151 SOUTH 500 EAST
SALT LAKE CITY, UTAH 84102
(801) 322-0404
EFREN BENITEZ, HEAD CHEF
Over eighteen years ago, a young guy named Efren Benitez moved from vera Cruz, Mexico, to Salt Lake City and got a job washing dishes at Oasis Cafe. He knew no English and had never stepped into a commercial kitchen before. He didn’t even cook at home; he always found a way out of it when his mom would ask him to help with the cooking.
Now Efren’s mom, still in Mexico, can hardly believe that her son is the head chef at a top restaurant in Salt Lake City. Efren made his way from dishwasher to head chef all in the Oasis Cafe kitchen. On occasion he now calls his mom for tips on some of her classic Mexican dishes. While Oasis Cafe serves mostly American cafe-style cuisine, they do have a few modern takes on Mexican dishes, like their mole fajitas or chicken and goat cheese tamales.
Efren finds much of his success working alongside a great team in the kitchen. He often suggests an idea, and they all come up with the final product together. Creative dishes are being born all the time at Oasis. For brunch they serve a salmon chorizo with their huevos rancheros, and for dinner they have a new risotto seasonally.
The risottos at Oasis aren’t your typical risottos. Sweet corn risotto with blackened chicken and avocado salsa, root vegetable risotto with smoked hickory sauce, and wild mushroom risotto with applewood smoked bacon and a poached egg are just a few examples of unorthodoxy. Efren mentions that the key to making good risotto is that the rice should still be soft before the cheese and butter are added. This way the flavor will shine through best.
Brunch, lunch, and dinner are all available at Oasis, and when the patio is open, it may just be the best spot to dine in town. And with a story like Efren’s, you can’t not enjoy Oasis Cafe.
(SERVES 6–8)
For the risotto base:
½ small white onion, diced
¼ cup vegetable oil
2 cups white wine
2 cups Arborio rice
2½ quarts vegetable stock (hot) or water
For the scallion butter:
¾ pound scallion tops, chopped finely
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
¼ teaspoon salt
Pinch of ground black pepper
For the wild mushroom risotto:
½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter
4 ounces vegetable oil
14 ounces wild mushrooms (any type)
24 ounces risotto base
36 fluid ounces water
12 ounces scallion butter
6 ounces Parmesan cheese, grated
Salt and pepper
6–8 poached eggs, depending on how many people you’re serving
3 ounces crispy applewood bacon, diced
2 ounces white truffle oil
1 ounce chives, chopped finely
To prepare risotto base: Sauté the onion in oil until it begins to turn soft and clear. Add the wine and cook over a low heat, until the onion is falling apart and the wine has evaporated. Add the rice, mix well, and then begin adding broth, a ladle at a time, stirring gently all the time. When the rice has almost reached the al dente stage, remove the pot from the fire. Place rice on a sheet tray and allow to cool.
To prepare scallion butter: Blanche the scallions (put in boiling water for 30 seconds, remove and dunk in ice bath, then transfer to a new bowl). Place scallions, butter, salt, and pepper into a blender (make sure butter is at room temperature) and blend at high speed until smooth. Remove from blender and refrigerate for at least 2 hours or until hard.
To prepare wild mushroom risotto: Add butter and oil to a large hot sauté pan. Add mushrooms and cook until slightly crispy. Add risotto base and water, stir well, reduce heat to medium, and simmer until water is reduced. Remove from heat. Add scallion butter and cheese; mix well until blended. Add salt and pepper to taste.
Divide into individual bowls and top with one poached egg, diced bacon, a sprinkle of truffle oil, and a pinch of fresh chives.