Alex Budman: Dinner with Dan Dube

Dan Dube breaks all stereotypes. He is a lax bro who indulges in donner kabobs at Empire, yet is also a whiz in the kitchen. His cooking technique would give any professional a run for their money.
 

 

He’s well versed in the fundamentals of cooking and has a set of kitchen skills that wowed me as he seamlessly whipped up this white wine chicken dish. Dan learned to make this easy and delicious recipe on Sympoz.com, a website his brother created that offers a variety of online courses taught by professionals.

 

The mini kitchen in his Kinness Place home may be modest at best, containing only the most basic utensils, but Dan being the tactile, fearless, and funny man he is, found a way to let his expertise shine through. When faced with the challenge of opening a bottle of wine without a corkscrew, he simply grabbed the bottle, headed outside and smashed it on the corner of the house. (See, Lacrosse prepares you for all of life’s situations!)

 

When asked his thoughts on his spur of the moment solution he replied, ‘I get shit done.’ That he does. There was nothing that could deter him from cooking this meal. When the smoke alarm went off, Dan once again came to the rescue: ‘Throw it out the window! Out of sight, out of mind… right?’

 

Overall, Dan made an incredibly delicious dish. The combination of flavors were rich and exciting; a great way to vamp up the basic garlic, onion, and wine combination. Although perfect for any occasion, he commented that he would prepare it for a funeral – interesting and morbid, ‘ya big weirdo.

 

Despite what Dan may lead you to believe, he is a very skilled cook and you would be lucky to dine with him.  The scrumptious dish definitely shows a whole lot of Italian influence on this Detroit-native at school in Scotland. Not to mention a whole lot of flavour! 

 

Dan’s recipe for White Wine Chicken… well, he learned it from a video but here is the gist!

 

Serves two.

 

Ingredients:

Basil (to taste)

1 Onion (diced)

1 garlic clove (chopped thinly)

1 red pepper, cut into strips

2 chicken filets

White Wine

Chicken stock

Salt and Pepper

 

Place chicken filets in a pan with olive oil and fully cook. Add salt and pepper to your liking. While chicken cooks, dice onions, garlic, basic and red peppers.

 

Once chicken is done cooking, place it on a plate and cover with tin foil. Set aside. Do NOT clean the pan, the chicken bits and juices are imperative to the deliciousness of the sauce.

 

Add more olive oil and throw in the diced onions. Then, add the garlic and red peppers. Once the onions start to turn clear and caramelize, add in approximately 3 cups of white wine. Let the mixture simmer. At this point all of the alcohol will burn off. (Dan informed me that if you sniff the fumes you can expect to get nicely tipsy…)

 

Add in approximately one cup of chicken stock, followed by the basil. At this point the sauce should simmer, and the vegetables should be nicely soft.

 

This recipe is made to taste, so if you are a garlic lover or a die-hard red pepper eater, don’t hold back!

 

Dan’s Cooking Playlist: “Top 5 Chillest of the Chill”

 

“Pinch Me” by BNL

“Iris” by the Goo Goo Dolls

“Who Says” by John Mayer

“Round Here” by Counting Crows

“Afternoon Delight” by Starland Vocal Band