An Interview with Chicago’s Chef Yowceph Ben Israel

Hello there! If you are new here, you might want to subscribe to the RSS feed for updates on this topic.

By Charles S. Mombo

Chef Yowceph Ben Israel, owner of Chicago based Stir Fried Soul, LLC.

Whenever I am in the City of Big Shoulders for some work thing, I always find time to sneak away and gravitate toward one of the world's best coffee shop locate on Chicago's South Side – MySoul Café located at 7201 and Exchange Avenue. The warmness of the café seems to be an extension of its friendly and approachable owner; Mr. JaMarr “Stitch” Nance.

It was during one of my many visits to the MySoul cafe that I met Chef Yowceph Ben Israel. At first meeting, Chef Yowceph Ben Israel did not fit my limited perception of a chef – he was not wearing the unisex French chef coat with the buttons and thermometer in the pocket. Instead, he spoke the language of the likes of James Allen, Dr. Wayne Dyer, Les Brown and other outstanding motivational speakers. If anything, I was sold on his high level of integrity, positive energy and motivation.

Chef Yowceph Ben Israel is the founder/CEO of Stir Fried Soul, LLC and Phrat House Entertainment, Inc. He host a weekly StirFried Friday evening events at MySoul Cafe. According to Chef Ben Isreal, “StirFried Friday is unparalleled as a neighborhood dining & social experience on the south side of Chicago; combined with the unrivaled ambiance of MySoul Café.” The Chef's tantalizing and mesmerizing "make your own" stir-fry with fresh and colorful vegetables combined with a DJ in a relaxing and comfortable BYOB atmosphere is second to none.

Over a cup of coffee at MySoul Café, I chatted with Chicago's Chef Yowceph Ben Israel. Following is the interview:

CC: Chef Yowceph Ben Israel, did you cook growing up?
YB: Yes I did, inspired by my parents who were both great cook’s!

CC: What does it mean to be a chef?
YB: Literally, it’s from the Latin caput or capus, meaning “head”. The French later grafted the thought of “chief” or “head of the kitchen” from the French phrase chef de cuisine”. During my journey though, I have come to define the term chef beyond the classical meaning of the word, to encompass attributes that exceed taste and technique, to include an emphasis on the spirit of the cooking process, while injecting Love and Concern into the experience for the benefit of who you are feeding as well as promoting the life sustaining nutritional value of good for you food. This to me is what it means to be “Head of the Kitchen”.

CC:: What made you decide you would become a professional cook?
YB: I don’t consider myself a “professional” cook in the traditional sense of the word, although I play that role from time to time when I am hired out for private parties or promoting an event I’m doing using the StirFriedSoul™ brand. I consider myself a Restaurateur/Culinary Event Promoter; I use the event/party promoter platform to bring awareness of better food choices to the community and as a marketing tool to develop a loyal following and to prove the viability of the StirFriedSoul™ concept. After experiencing the damages of poor eating habits firsthand, myself, family members and the community at large, I knew I could offer something better that would make a difference.

CC: Where you were trained and how difficult was your training?
YB: Although I attended the Cooking and Hospitality Institute of Chicago in the early 90’s and Kendall College in Chicago in 2006 as well, that time was spent taking restaurant management classes. My training in/with food came from the years watching and helping my parents cook, reading cookbooks, researching the health benefits of different foods or the lack thereof, going to restaurants and experimenting at home with the dishes that I had eaten, seeing if I could improve on the taste and bring out the nutritional value of the food by changing the ingredients. My training (still to this day) is a labor of Love.

CC: What if any, what celebrity have you prepared food for and where?
YB: So far I have cooked for musicians, namely R&B/Soul vocalist Eric Roberson and Neo-Soul/Funk/Jazz band Fertile Ground, both occasions were held at venue in Chicago called The Wine Consortium in the historic South Loop district. The events were pre-concert meals promoted and sponsored by my other company PhratHouse Entertainment Inc., which in part provides Culinary & Hospitality Services for entertainers.

CC:Best piece of advice you would give a home enthusiast?
YB: Acquire an understanding of the overall purpose of food beyond the superficial, it is to sustain you, it is fuel for our four dimensional Bio-suit we call the body that encompasses the Spirit, Mind, Flesh and Emotions. Add Love and you can’t go wrong.

CC: Best cooking tip for a novice?
YB: Cooking Is Freedom!

CC: What is your favorite kitchen gadget?
YB: A Good Knife!

CC: What is your funniest kitchen incident?
YB: It would have to be getting back at one of my daughters for always sneaking food off my plate right after I would take if off the stove and turn my back to do something else; I had time on one occasion to sprinkle some Cayenne Pepper on my food without her knowing, which she doesn’t like and was followed by the hot mouth dance!

CC: What is your favorite food to cook with?
YB: Anything from Leviticus 11 of the Bible, well almost anything, I haven’t figured out how to get pass Beetles and Grasshoppers! lol

CC:: When at home, what do you like to eat?
YB: I like Rice and Noodle dishes with small portions of seasoned meat or fish (say no to pork, lol) and lots of veggies. Foods that are quick and nutritious. Macrobolic foods when I’m going hard in the gym for my workout diet.

CC: What is your favorite cookbook?
YB: I don’t really have a favorite, yet one might want to check out a few from some of my favorite chef’s like Michael Chiarello, Marcus Samuelsson and Jamie Oliver. There is a book that I think a cook should have and it’s called, The Book of Yields: Accuracy in Food Costing and Purchasing by Francis T. Lynch, it teaches you about measurements and how to break down recipe, a good one have for the novice chef. The best advice though is to walk the aisles of your local bookstore and see what turns you on.

CC: If you had any advice for Soul Food restaurant owners what would it be?
WE DON’T HAVE TO EAT OUT OF THE SLAVE MASTERS POT ANY MORE!!!

CC: What is your favorite soul food?
YB: One you have never heard of, Greens & Salsa! So Good!!!

CC: Care to share a quick and healthy recipe with us?
YB: Whole-Grain Wrap Bread Pizza: pre-heat oven at 350°, place your wrap bread on a cookie sheet (a pizza pan with holes in the bottom to get the bread crispy is good to have) and with a tablespoon, spoon out your favorite pasta sauce or if you’re feeling adventurous, grab some mango salsa and evenly spread it out over the wrap bread, add your favorite toppings and seasonings, pop it in the oven for 10-15mins or until the cheese is evenly melted, (there are a number of healthy cheese choices out there from soy, vegetable and goat cheese, play around with them to see what turns you on) if you want to add meat, make sure it is cooked before you add it to your pizza because of the short cooking time. Using a pizza cutter, you should be able to cut out 8 slices, depending on the size of the wrap bread that you are using, look for the Mission brand wrap bread that comes in different styles like: Multi-Grain, Spinach, Sundried-Tomato Basil and a few other flavors and comes in a spacious 10” size. Have fun!!!

CC: Thanks for the interview Chef Yowceph Ben Israel.
YB: Thank you Charles, the pleasure was all mine!

Please checkout Chef Yowceph Ben Israel on January 8th, 2010 at the MySoul Cafe, 7201 S. Exchange Avenue and enjoy the Bob Your Head Beats of DJ Big CHUD. The Chef is also pleased to bring to you the soulful sounds of Chicago born/Nigerian raised ObiSoulStar in a free performance.

To recommend a chef, a good cook for an interview or to share a great recipe, please do not hesitate to contact us. All food related articles will be posted on both www.chocolatecity.cc and www.1-800-SoulFood.com.