Yesterday you may have read our interview with head chef Jobie Bailey of DOC, the fifth in our series of blog posts, The 12 Days of Pickles. The idea is simple. Last September, 12 top Portland chefs were given ten pounds of organic pickling cucumbers and put to the challenge to create the Perfect Pickle. On February 6th, at the 2nd Annual Perfect Pickle, we will be opening up those jars for sampling, selecting a “Pickler of the Year” and selling the remaining jars to benefit DPC. Each day leading up to the event, we will highlight one of the participating chefs. All chefs are asked the same questions…and their answers are telling. Today’s featured chef is Erin Williams from Olympic Provisions.

Erin Williams of Olympic Provisions

Q: What is your interest/background in cooking?

A: I never intended to be a chef. I earned my Bachelor’s degree with honors in both Politics and Italian and English Literature, and planned to pursue a career as a professor of literature. I took a year off of school after graduation, to try something different before pursuing a Ph.D. Through a combination of sheer will and luck, I got a job at the best restaurant in town, a small French dinnerhouse in northern-central California wine country. I worked pantry and pastry for their four-person kitchen, and it was and still is the hardest job I ever had. With a massive prep list, exacting standards and the finest chef I have still ever worked for at the helm, there was no room for error. I was given a two month trial to prove I could make it, and from that moment on never looked back at the Ivory Tower of academia.

Q: What is your cooking philosophy?

A: I was born in Pennsylvania Dutch country, where growing, butchering, and preserving your own food is a way of life. I was raised on solid farmhouse meat and potatoes for the body, and ethics of hard work and frugality for the soul. My love of well-executed simple, nourishing food prepared from great ingredients with little or no waste has been a guiding influence throughout my culinary career.

Q: Why should you be crowned “Pickler of the Year?”

A: My love and respect for the earth and its creatures and the domestic pleasures of hearth and home guide my continued belief in the beauty and necessity of simple food, well-prepared, with careful attention to frugality, resourcefulness and nourishment of body, soul and earth.

Thanks for thoughtful responses Erin! We look forward to trying those pickles at the Perfect Pickle! As a reminder, you can still get tickets (just $10!) through the Portland Mercury; get the details here.