“[Duck fat] is the best fat in the world, clean and pretty. It is like snow.”
—Jill Barron
Jill Barron started her culinary career by interning for Michael Short at Star Top Cafe in Chicago before further developing her culinary skills in Los Angeles. The farmers’ markets in L.A. are where she found her passion for fresh ingredients but also many ingredients she had never seen in Chicago. The city’s Asian and Hispanic population brought many fruits and vegetables that were not commonly used in cooking at the time and this opened up new possibilities for cooking. But Jill got more than her love for farmers’ markets in L.A. She also got an ear of corn tattoo on her right leg as a tribute to her Midwestern roots when she started to get homesick. She says, “I started missing Chicago. People in the Midwest are just solid.”
Jill decided to return to Chicago and took a job with the restaurant group Big Time Productions opening restaurants such as Ooh-la-la and Vinyl, as well as consulting on Angelina, an Italian bistro. She would go on to work in myriad different cuisines, taking jobs with Mediterranean restaurant Tizi Melloul, Latin restaurant Watusi, and Japanese restaurant Sushi Wabi. Finally, in 2004, Jill opened De Cero, a taquería, with Susan Thompson and Angela Lee of Sushi Wabi. Their taquería concept at De Cero has had great reviews, winning the restaurant a spot in Chicago magazine’s “20 Best New Restaurants” as well as “Dish of the Year.”
In 2008, Jill, along with business partner Susan Thompson, opened MANA Food Bar, an all-vegetarian restaurant. Jill loves eating meat, and she has the tattoos to prove it, but she strongly believes we eat too much meat in America and hopes MANA can show people how to abstain at least one day a week. Yet, more than simply going without something, or imitating the main protein, Jill’s goal is to get people to fall in love with vegetarian dishes. “When I go to vegetarian restaurants, it is a lot about fake food. Why would you want to eat a fake cheeseburger?”
Like her food, Jill’s tattoos—similar to those of her husband and fellow chef, Chris Barron (see entry in Part 1)—are a collection of self-expression. She says, “If they aren’t personal … I don’t know, it just doesn’t make a lot of sense to me.” Her right arm is inked with her “Canadian monkey pope.” Why? Because she was born the year of the monkey, her family is French Canadian, and she was raised Catholic. Below that, wrapped around her arm are the words “white sugar,” one of her go-to ingredients for bringing balance to a dish. On her other arm, the tattoo of sparrows holding a ribbon reading “Duck Fat” is a tribute to another of her favorite ingredients. Above the ear of corn on her leg, she has a skull and crossbones breakfast in one of her favorite kitchen tools, a cast-iron pan. While there may be more tattoos in her future, her only rule is no neck or hand tattoos. “I like that I can cover up and no one is the wiser.”
While Jill eats meat she owns and operates MANA, an all-vegetarian restaurant. This meat-free spicy dish is a regular item on her menu.
In a sauté pan over high heat, working in batches, brown the eggplant in olive oil, uncovered, about 3–5 minutes. Stir to keep moving, so it browns evenly and does not burn. Add oil as needed. When all eggplant is cooked, add it all back to pan, add hoisin, mix thoroughly, and then add sambal, black beans, and ground peppercorns. Add diced tofu and heat thoroughly. Taste for salt, sweetness, and heat; all flavors should stand out. Adjust seasoning if necessary. Serve over rice and garnish with green onions.