A monster lives in Taylor Hale\u2019s garden. It\u2019s not a chipmunk \u2014 though there is one of those, with an insatiable appetite for fennel and cucumber. No, the rodent is outmatched by what the Maru chef-owner calls a \u201cf\u2014ing monstrosity,\u201d which dominates one of his vegetable beds in Old Snowmass. It\u2019s so intimidating that the pesky critter doesn\u2019t dare touch it.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe biggest red sorrel plant I\u2019ve ever seen in my life!\u201d Hale exclaims, pointing toward a 3-foot-tall spiky bush. Some of the leaves, which are bright green with blood-red ribs and veins, are 15 inches long and double the width of a samurai sword. Neighboring plants are one-third as bulky, and last year those were the biggest red sorrel plants Hale had ever seen.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s crazy,\u201d he continues, \u201cI didn\u2019t know there was such a thing as biennials. I didn\u2019t plant that one (this year). It decided to come back.\u201d<\/p>\n
This is the third summer that Hale has cultivated a garden for Maru in raised beds he built from old garage doors and wooden barrels on the bucolic Snowmass Cottages property, just off Highway 82 and abutting the Roaring Fork River. Surprises abound. Feathery mizuna is thriving in the hot July sunshine. Bell peppers he planted this spring from seed are turning red, unexpectedly. Rouge d\u2019Hiver (red romaine) lettuce, in contrast, needs a little more TLC. Japanese eggplant are slow to grow, too, possibly recovering from the shock of being spaced too closely.<\/p>\n
Barrel plantings are lush with wild arugula, mint, rosemary, tall spires of tarragon and flat-leaf parsley the dark color of alpine evergreens. In another bed are chives with puffy purple blossoms, two kinds of thyme (German, lemon) and pineapple sage. Regrettably, a wasabi root from Eagle Crest Nursery didn\u2019t survive last year.<\/p>\n
Hale, who admits he\u2019d never grown anything \u2014 \u201cnot even weed!\u201d \u2014 until 2017, when he was living in a cabin here, never quite knows what will sprout up or thrive. Yet that\u2019s the thrill of his new hobby.<\/p>\n
The same might be said for diners awaiting a meal at 5-year-old Maru, where Hale decorates expertly sliced, raw Japanese fish with less traditional accouterments such as fruits, vegetables, herbs and greens from his garden.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy new style is doing petite salads to top sashimi \u2014 a mixture of baby sorrel, purple basil, mizuna, kale, with the finest chiffonade chop, seasoned with sauces or mushrooms or orange wedges,\u201d he says. \u201cThis year is about specific garnishes.\u201d<\/p>\n
Back at the giant sorrel plant, Hale plucks a large leaf and nibbles. The bigger sorrel grows, he explains, the more intensely bitter its flavor. So, he\u2019ll use these freakishly long leaves as a backdrop, instead of something natural yet inedible, like bamboo leaf. I take a bite of some sorrel he hands me. Instantly my mouth puckers, as if I\u2019d sipped a spoonful of lemon juice.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, Hale is chewing and guffawing. Even crazier: it\u2019s clear that using the massive, astringent sorrel leaves on a hundred plates at Maru lunch and dinner won\u2019t put a dent in this overgrown plant. So, he\u2019s toying with other preparations.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen you juice that up, it turns red,\u201d he explains. \u201cSo I\u2019ll make a really tangy red sorrel ponzu. Everybody loves ponzu \u2026 and you can enrich it with any other type of flavoring.\u201d (Other popular variations are thickened by grilled, pureed Palisade peaches or tiny diced cubes of apple \u2014 a French knife technique called brunoise.)<\/p>\n
As Hale\u2019s mizuna, kale, and heirloom cherry tomatoes will explode in coming weeks, two or three nightly specials (in addition to 14 or so sashimi dishes on the main menu) will feature these garden-fresh ingredients.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m using (produce) from here to make flavors I\u2019ve never had before,\u201d Hale says. \u201cNo one else is using this stuff or has this exact combination to put together. That\u2019s why this is so cool.\u201d<\/p>\n
The farming ethos dovetails neatly with Hale\u2019s philosophy toward sourcing fish near daily from Japan and with his training as a sushi chef (15 years at Kenichi before opening Maru with kitchen executive chef Peter Coyne in 2013).<\/p>\n
\u201cIt applies so well to sushi, because you have to do so little if you\u2019re using the best quality product,\u201d Hale says. \u201cJust like a beautiful piece of bluefin tuna: You just slice a piece \u2014 you don\u2019t even need soy sauce. There\u2019s enough natural flavor and goodness that you don\u2019t mess with it.\u201d<\/p>\n
Similarly, regarding a tender baby green or a behemoth stalk of curly kale, Hale has an innate sense of how to best prepare something he\u2019s tended by hand, \u201cthe same as I know what to do with a special fish I would order, like an akamutsu (Rosy seabass) or suzuki (Japanese seabass),\u201d he shares. Coyne and Maru cooks receive deliveries of Hale\u2019s yellow squash for tempura amuse-bouche, radishes for salads and herbs for poultry and meat. Together they brainstorm creative uses.<\/p>\n
Of course, this translates to a garden variety of color at Maru \u2014 from the sushi bar in particular. Hale might place translucent slices of fluke atop a ribbon of plum jam, topped with candied grapefruit, sliced baby strawberries, shiso leaves, and Champagne vinegar. He\u2019ll nestle bright-coral salmon on a blanket of avocado mousse with roasted mushrooms, sesame seeds and garden chives. White fish could be rolled in nori dust, which turns black with a quick sear, then drizzled with golden beet puree and that signature chiffonade \u201csalad\u201d of sorrel and purple basil.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe whole reason I ever got into sushi \u2014 thinking back now \u2014 was for sure because of the colors,\u201d Hale says. \u201cEven a basic plate of nigiri \u2014 tuna, yellowtail, salmon \u2014 it\u2019s three striking colors. When you cook tuna it turns from a beautiful showcase red to gray. Day-one bluefin tuna just gleams.\u201d<\/p>\n
While every ingredient picked from the chef\u2019s Old Snowmass garden is unique (and means one less item for Hale to order from an outside purveyor), the real value is personal.<\/p>\n
\u201cDoing this kind of work,\u201d he says, sweeping an arm toward his verdant raised plots, \u201cis so relaxing. Especially in the chef game, where everything is frantic, so over-scrutinized. Just being here is so calming. I bet all chefs get stuck or burnt out, overworked, momentarily uninspired \u2026 but finding out inadvertently that you\u2019re good at something pretty major on the scope of human existence \u2014 being able to grow your own food \u2014 is gratifying in a way that nothing else is.\u201d<\/p>\n