Chef Wayne Lyons is best known for his soul food creations and winning the Food Network’s Chopped Season 7.
The father of two is owner of the popular Jersey City restaurant Soul Flavors, where he is also the head chef.
Chef Wayne told theGrio his fascination with food started back when he was just 9 years old.
“My first time I ever prepared anything was for international school day at the elementary school. I prepared crepes,” he said with a smile. “They were a big hit.”
Trying new and different things
Once his interest in cooking was sparked, Wayne was inspired to try new things.
“On the occasion that we went out to restaurants, I would try to recreate what we tasted out there.”
“My aunt was a home-EC teacher, so she had a lot of cook books,” Wayne shared. “I would go through her cookbooks and try different things. I’ve always enjoyed it.”
Growing up in Hollis Queens, Wayne cites his parents’ Caribbean background and the Southern families in his neighborhood as the biggest influences on his cooking style.
“I didn’t have money to travel, but I’d be able to travel through food and cookbooks. So I became interested in other cuisines as well,” Wayne said. “But definitely Southern and Caribbean, that’s my roots. ”
“I like to create”
The Caribbean and Southern influences are easily noticed when looking at Soul Flavors’ menu.
The downtown restaurant offers specialties ranging from cornbread and biscuits to jerk salmon and even buttermilk marinated fried chicken and waffle, one of their most popular dishes.
Chef Wayne doesn’t shy away from trying new things. “I like to create,” he said while explaining the sous-vide method of cooking.
“Basically you cook something in a vacuum sealed bag at a very low temperature, 140 degrees. I’m cooking mila-glazed pork ribs, baby-back pork ribs. I’ve been cooking them since yesterday. So you cook them for about 24-48 hours depending. And when I tell you these things are like so tender that they fall off the bone.”
On the topic of being one of the Food Network’s Chopped champions, Wayne said, “it was a great experience.”
“It was great for me in the sense that it sort of was a sense of validation. Because people have this misconception of soul food and soul food chefs or cooks, which I think is a bit, a little demeaning,” Wayne said.
“I think by going on, entering the competition on Chopped and winning and being able to show that as a chef I can do more than just fried chicken and collard greens, I think was liberating.”
The stars are lining up
Local residents aren’t the only ones enjoying Chef Wayne’s soul food creations.
Celebrities such as Joe Jackson and Q-Tip have enjoyed meals at Soul Flavors, and rapper Kanye West called it his favorite restaurant in New Jersey after hosting a birthday dinner there.
The list of Soul Flavors’ catering customers includes hit shows Saturday Night Live and 30 Rock as well as Lauryn Hill, Jay-Z, and P.Diddy.
Sous Chef Shawn Santana is Chef Wayne’s right-hand man, aiding in the creation of new soul food dishes and the perfection of traditional recipes.
The cooking duo has been a team, working together for the past 17 years.
Everyone preparing food in the kitchen — Chef Wayne, Sous Chef Shawn, and fellow Soul Flavors employees Janea and John — works together effortlessly.
Chef Wayne shared with theGrio Soul Flavors’ cornbread recipe:
Ingredients:
2 cups all purpose flour
2 cups cornmeal
2 cups sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
4 teaspoons baking powder
1 cup fresh or frozen/thawed corn kernels
1 1/2 stick of melted butter
3 cups milk
4 eggs
Directions:
Mix all dry ingredients ( flour, cornmeal, sugar, salt, baking powder) together in a medium sized bowl. In a separate small bowl mix the milk and eggs then add to the dry ingredients, mixing until thoroughly incorporated. Lastly, add the melted butter and corn kernels. Butter a 10 x 12 pan and pour cornbread mixture in and bake for 1 hour at 325 degrees.
Note: Make sure your oven is pre-heated for at least 15 minutes before baking cornbread.
Follow Chef Wayne Lyons on Twitter @SoulChefWayne.
Follow Carrie Healey on Twitter @CarrieHeals.