♪ ♪ >> From the editors of relish.com, we bring you Moveable Feast with host Alex Thomopoulos.

♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ >> ALEX: We're in Montana today.

A region rich in livestock, ranches, and endless wilderness.

It makes this state a true adventure in farm to table cooking.

Two chefs who relish in the fresh local ingredients here in Montana are James Beard award nominee Nick Stein, and one of Billings' top chefs, Ben Harmon.

First, chef Nick is taking us to Hollenbeck Ranch to High Five Meats, where we'll meet rancher Sarah and her family, who are raising some of the most delicious lamb in the state.

>> There's a connection as a chef, that when you know the animal, when you know the person raising it, you have a connection to the food that you can translate to the customer, to the guests, and it just creates a completely different dining experience.

>> ALEX: Then, Chef Ben takes us to an organic agricultural oasis to meet Kate at Lady Kate's Garden, where we'll learn how she's keeping the art of heirloom and small plot growing alive in the Big Sky.

>> Everything has value because it took time and you watched it grow.

You find a way to try to really use everything.

>> ALEX: And once we've gathered all of our ingredients, we're headed out to Camelot Ranch, a family-owned ranch that will be the perfect backdrop to our Montana feast.

That's all happening right now on Moveable Feast with Relish.

>> Major funding provided by... >> Oh, hey, it's the Donovans.

>> You know, legend has it, the Donovans had a barbecue that fed half a town.

>> You know what I heard?

They drove cross country just to walk their dog.

>> Welcome to the National Kennel Show!

>> Apparently, they climbed a mountain to save some wild horses.

(lightning strikes, thunder rumbles) (whinnies) That's what they say.

>> That's what they say.

♪ ♪ >> Additional funding provided by... ♪ ♪ >> There's a reason people call Myrtle Beach "The Beach."

There are 60 miles of wide, sandy beaches along South Carolina's Grand Strand coast.

This vacation destination has golf courses, attractions, food, wine, and southern sun.

♪ ♪ >> ALEX: Chef Nick?

>> Alex, how are you?

>> ALEX: Good, how are you?

>> Good.

>> ALEX: Who's this?

>> This is Chubs.

>> ALEX: Hi, Chubs.

Thank you so much for bringing us out here to Hollenbeck Ranch.

What are we going to be getting today?

>> Some lamb.

>> ALEX: Is lamb a big meat source here in Montana?

>> You know, it's definitely beef country out here, but I think lamb is kind of becoming the new thing.

>> ALEX: I'm Greek, you don't have to tell me.

>> (laughs) >> ALEX: I know.

Talk to me a little bit about Billings, Montana.

>> I was born and raised out here.

Billings is kind of the metropolis area, if you may, of Montana.

The biggest city of a whole whopping, like, 125,000 people.

So, we're definitely not L.A. or anything like that, but we've got character and we've got personality.

The only place I know that you can be 30 minutes away from riding horses and being in the mountains or in the middle of a city and doing a little bit of everything all the time.

>> ALEX: So that leads me to my next question, is where did you bring me and why?

>> We're at Hollenbeck Ranch in the middle of nowhere, Molt, Montana, and we came out here to meet Sarah, a woman rancher who does, I mean, thousands and thousands of sheep.

>> ALEX: Very cool.

All right, so should we go meet Sarah?

>> Let's go find Sarah.

>> ALEX: All right, Chubs.

We'll see you later, big boy.

♪ ♪ >> ALEX: Hi.

>> Hi.

>> ALEX: I take it you're Sarah?

>> I am Sarah.

>> ALEX: This place is amazing.

>> Yes, nice to meet you-- >> ALEX: Nice to meet you.

>> Hi, Nick.

How are you?

>> Good.

>> ALEX: Thank you so much for having us.

>> Of course, glad you could make it.

>> ALEX: So tell me a little bit about Hollenbeck Ranch and how you got started here.

>> Yeah, Hollenbeck Ranch, we primarily raised sheep, a little bit different than our neighboring ranches.

A lot of people focus on cattle.

We have a few cows, but we really enjoy raising sheep and in Montana, it's a great place to do that.

We run about 2,500 mother ewes, and then my husband likes to feed out quite a few lambs every year.

>> ALEX: Well, why did you choose sheep?

>> They're great to handle.

A lot of times with cattle, you have to have a lot of equipment, With sheep, if there's a problem, I can fix it myself.

I'm comfortable with my kids being around them, and they're just a great docile animal.

They grow really well out here.

We enjoy shearing and having their wool product every year as well.

It's a great renewable resource.

We like having that byproduct as well for the industry.

>> ALEX: How did you get started in being a rancher?

>> I always grew up with livestock animals, never at this scale and size.

But I kind of moved out here and I gave myself a year of grace of just trying to figure out what the heck I was doing.

Back in California, restaurants-- everything was listed where it came from and out here, I kind of saw that that wasn't really developed quite yet.

So I saw that as an opportunity.

I knew what we were raising was delicious and nutritious and sustainable, and I thought, why shouldn't our local community get to take a part of that as well?

>> ALEX: So that, that's how you two met, was through farmer-chef relationships?

>> Yeah, I kind of started just knocking on every door I could find, whether they thought I was annoying or not.

I just kept showing up and kept giving them samples to try, and they all really liked it.

It was just a matter of trying to get the end consumer to consume more lamb.

And I think little by little, it's really getting more popular and people are getting more comfortable with it.

>> ALEX: As a chef, what draws you to using lamb?

>> It's got this unique richness about it.

It's got great fat, but at the same time, it's very lean.

>> ALEX: Yeah.

>> It's easy to marinade.

It's easy to put into any style of cuisine, whether it's Asian, Filipino, African, European, you can do anything with a lamb.

>> If a chef wants to come out and pick out the lamb that they want to serve that week, they're more than welcome.

We've had a lot of chefs come out.

We'll give them a tour.

We make them feel the backbones and feel the fat on the lamb and really get to know the animal on a hoof level before they... it shows up in their restaurant.

>> There's a connection as a chef that when you know the animal, when you know the person raising it, you have a connection to the food that you can translate to the customer, to the guests, and it just creates a completely different dining experience.

It's not just coming off a truck.

Because you really can create the connection and you appreciate it.

>> ALEX: Yeah.

>> You don't want to waste a single thing.

You really have an appreciation for it.

>> ALEX: Are you going to be coming to our feast tonight?

>> I hope so.

We got a few sheep to work and then we'll head in.

(laughter) >> ALEX: Okay, well, we would help but we have to go cook.

So let's go get that leg of lamb.

>> Are you taking Chubs in?

>> ALEX: I'm going to take Chubs in for sure.

I'm going to take Chubs home with me.

>> Ride on in the sunset.

(laughter) ♪ ♪ >> ALEX: Chef Ben.

What's going on?

>> Hey there.

>> ALEX: How are you doing?

>> Doing well.

>> ALEX: Where have you taken us today?

>> We are at Lady Kate's Garden.

It's an acre and a half of just magic.

>> ALEX: And who's Lady Kate?

>> We're kindred spirits.

She grows produce the way I think it always has been done until recently, and I appreciate her candor and her relationship with this land and the food.

And she's bitter just like me, a little bit, at the way the industry has changed and I think we're just trying to bring it back.

>> ALEX: Hello, hello?

Are you Lady Kate?

>> Oh, good morning.

Yes, I am.

>> ALEX: Good morning to you.

It's so lovely to meet you.

>> It's nice to meet you, too.

Welcome to my garden.

>> ALEX: Oh, thank you so much for having us.

Kate, this garden is sensational.

>> Thank you so much.

>> ALEX: I would love to know a little bit about how you started gardening and how it evolved to this amazing abundance that we're in?

>> My grandfathers was from the old country, Italy, and so we always had a garden.

I've always had a passion for growing food and preserving food.

I started this garden 22 years ago and I've created a special little oasis here.

I call it my sanctuary.

Heirloom seeds, always organic heirloom.

I supply a few local restaurants and then I supply my own private clients, who come here and pick up groceries once a week.

>> ALEX: And I hear that you're not only growing fruits and vegetables here, you also have an apothecary?

>> I do.

I grow a lot of medicinal herbs.

I can and freeze and make extracts and vinegars, and syrups and all that kind of stuff.

I really love it.

>> It's important as a chef to have local farmers like Kate, and to be able to come out and look at it.

In the food industry today, it's so easy to just get more and I'm subject to that.

You know, just get another box.

>> ALEX: Mm-hmm.

>> That one's garbage.

It's not good enough.

Everything has value because it took time and you watched it grow.

You find a way to try to really use everything.

>> There's not a lot of people that really know how to do this anymore.

And so I feel an obligation myself to educate as much as I can because when I'm gone, there's not going to be that many people here in this area, anyway, that can teach.

>> ALEX: Let's take a look at some of the vegetables that you're growing here because we do have a feast to cook for tonight and, obviously, would love to showcase as much of Lady Kate's produce that we can.

>> Okay.

♪ ♪ So look at that gorgeous one right there.

>> MM-hmm, I see her.

>> Is that a good one?

>> ALEX: Yeah.

That's beautiful.

>> Yup, and a bunch of these flowers.

>> ALEX: Wow.

>> Isn't that pretty?

>> ALEX: That is beautiful.

They're very heavy.

>> The reason why I like the Romanescos is because, they don't get watery, you don't have to sweat them, and they have a real nutty flavor.

They're great.

>> ALEX: These are beautiful.

>> ALEX: Wow, those are beautiful.

>> So Ben, do you want your squash blossoms open or closed?

>> I'll take whatever you'll give me.

>> Are you going to stuff them?

>> I'm just going to toss them in at the end.

>> Then I don't have to worry so much about what they look like when I... >> Absolutely.

>> ALEX: We'll get some more squash blossoms.

I think I need a little bit of herbs.

Do you have any cucumbers here?

>> I have lots of cucumbers.

>> ALEX: Great, I'll take a few cucumbers.

>> All right.

>> ALEX: All right.

Let's go gather the rest of our ingredients-- >> Okay.

>> ALEX: For our feast.

♪ ♪ This is amazing.

>> Isn't that beautiful basil?

>> ALEX: Wow.

>> Look at the flowers.

They're just so subtle and beautiful.

It's got a little bit different flavor, but I love it.

>> ALEX: There it is.

>> Oh... Whoa!

Look at this color.

>> Those are those purple... >> ALEX: All right, I think we have everything that we need for tonight's feast.

Thank you so much, Kate, for having us here.

>> You're very welcome.

>> ALEX: And will we see you later tonight?

>> I can't wait.

I'd love to experience someone else's cooking.

>> ALEX: Great.

Well, I hope to do your produce proud.

♪ ♪ >> ALEX: Why, hello there.

>> Howdy.

>> Welcome.

>> ALEX: That was an amazing drive.

>> It's pretty nice out here, huh?

>> ALEX: Where are we, chefs?

>> We're out here at Camelot Ranch.

It's this great vineyard in the city of Billings and... >> ALEX: It's beautiful.

>> It's a great place for a feast.

>> ALEX: Yeah, I think we should get cooking.

>> Let's do it.

>> ALEX: All right.

♪ ♪ We're in the kitchen at Camelot Ranch with chef Nick.

We just got back from Hollenbeck Ranch, where we got some beautiful lamb leg.

And chef, what do you think you're going to do with it today?

>> We're going to make lamb bulgogi.

So we're going to take this bad boy here.

We're going to trim it all down and start marinating it.

>> ALEX: I've had beef bulgogi.

I've had chicken bulgogi.

>> Yeah.

>> ALEX: I've never had lamb bulgogi.

So this is new for me.

>> You know, its flavor profile lends itself really, really well to spice and flavor and funky.

So this is what I figured would work out really well.

Not a whole lot of bulgogi in Billings, Montana.

But my mom lived in California after she graduated high school, and had a roommate who taught her how to make it.

Once a year she would make it and the idea is if you eat like a rich man, you'd be rich in the New Year.

And we definitely never had a lot of money, but we always had our bulgogi once a year.

>> ALEX: The application for bulgogi is taking a cut of meat that is traditionally a little tough, that you would have to braise, and thinly slicing it so that so that when that marinade breaks down the protein, you're only going to cook it for a little bit.

Those sugars are going to caramelize and it's going to be really, really tender.

>> Yup, I've got brown sugar, a little bit of soy, some gochujang paste.

>> ALEX: That balance of sweet and... >> Sweet, salty.

>> ALEX: Salty umami.

>> ALEX: I love cooking with gochujang.

This is fermented Korean-- >> Fermented Korean gochugaru chilies is what they are.

>> ALEX: And gochugaru chili is the chili that they typically use for kimchi.

>> Yup, the trick to anything when it comes to cutting meat, make sure you're going against the grain.

If you're going with the grain-- >> ALEX: Right.

>> Just like in life, go against the grain.

>> ALEX: So we'll let that marinate.

>> Yep.

>> ALEX: And I see some mushrooms and other ingredients.

What else are you going to be making with this meat?

>> All right, now we're going to grill some mushrooms.

>> ALEX: Yum.

>> I'm just going to grill them off dry.

>> ALEX: And why do you grill them dry?

>> Mushrooms are essentially a big sponge, right?

And so if you cook them dry, you let all the moisture that's in there start coming out.

And then when we go to cook them, they will soak up more of the flavor that we want to put in there as opposed to releasing their own water.

>> ALEX: Smart.

>> So the dryer you can cook it, the better.

All right, so we're going to make a little Spam fried rice.

>> ALEX: Interesting.

Okay.

>> Yeah.

>> ALEX: That is screaming hot.

>> Yup, so we're happy.

We're going to go in here with the Spam.

(pan sizzling) All right, so we're getting some color on that now.

So this is just Napa cabbage I shaved really thin.

And I want some texture in this whole thing, so the cabbage will break down.

but I don't want the peppers to get completely cooked.

I still want some texture in those.

>> ALEX: I love when Napa cabbage hits heat and it gets really caramelized.

>> It loses its bitterness and becomes sweet.

We're going to start throwing our rice in here.

♪ ♪ (gentle sizzling) All right, we're going to crack these eggs.

Just crack them whole right in there.

>> ALEX: Oh.

>> Right in there.

You can start seeing those eggs start to cook up in there.

And then we'll start-- We can chop all those mushrooms.

Just slice them, they don't have to be anything nice.

>> ALEX: Thin?

>> Yup, once those are finished there, Alex, go ahead and start throwing them right in the skillet, which used to be my great-great-great-grandmas.

>> ALEX: Whoa.

>> Yeah.

>> ALEX: So this pan has seen a lot?

>> It's seen some stuff.

>> ALEX: Yeah.

>> And now that they're kind of getting there, you can see them starting to get some more color.

We're going to hit it with that sauce right there.

This is our fish sauce, lime juice, ginger, garlic-- >> ALEX: I'm going to use a sauce very similar when I make my salad.

(pan sizzling) These dishes will go great.

>> (chuckles) Yeah, it'll balance out.

>> ALEX: Yeah.

>> Glaze with that real quick.

We're going to grab some of that butter.

Yeah, that looks good.

>> ALEX: It smells amazing.

>> So that butter kind of emulsifies, does its own thing in there.

Then we're going to finish it with some sesame oil.

>> ALEX: That's dark roasted sesame oil?

>> Yeah, really, really nice stuff.

It just has a lot more, that toasted element.

I don't want to cook it at all.

>> ALEX: And the perfume of all that oil kind of release.

Mmm, smells amazing.

>> So now, onto the star here.

We'll start cooking that bulgogi.

(pan sizzling) >> ALEX: You can already tell all those sugars starting to caramelize.

>> Yep.

>> ALEX: The fat starting to render.

>> We're going to put down our fried rice in the bottom.

We're going to put our bulgogi over it.

We're going to throw our mushrooms on.

We're going to finish it with the gochujang mayonnaise, fried garlic, scallions, and a little bit of fresh sesame oil.

>> ALEX: I'm going to let you finish plating up this dish.

I'm going to go get my dish ready.

I'll go get chef Ben, and I think our guests are arriving, and then it's time to feast.

>> Let's go.

♪ ♪ >> ALEX: I've been really inspired by my time sourcing ingredients and cooking here in Billings, Montana, with chef Ben and chef Nick.

And I wanted to create a dish to go with their two dishes for our feast that really compliment the Asian flavors that chef Nick is using, but also keeping the theme of the vegetables that we got this morning from Lady Kate's garden.

So I got some cucumbers and summer squash, beautiful carrots and shallots that she was growing and thinly slice them on a mandolin with those little teeth on them to create these really thin, beautiful ribbons.

And I wanted to make a dressing that really complimented the freshness of these ingredients.

And that is a Vietnamese-style nuoc cham.

It's just a really vibrant and citrusy, garlicy umami flavor-forward sauce that goes with everything.

I'm going to start with some Vietnamese fish sauce, lime juice.

We've got our umami, salt, citrus, and to balance that out, some sugar.

I use equal parts lime juice, fish sauce, and sugar.

And I'm going to add about two to three cloves of garlic.

I'm going to whisk that until the sugar dissolves, and I'm going to add some water to that.

In a traditional Vietnamese nuoc cham dressing, there are Thai bird chilies.

But because we're in Billings, Montana, and we are sourcing locally today, I have some serrano chilies and Fresno chilies that I'm going to add just for that kiss of heat.

And I love to add whole herbs to this salad.

It adds beautiful brightness.

We have this purple basil that we picked from Lady Kate's garden this morning.

This is going to be the perfect side dish for our feast.

♪ ♪ We made it to the kitchen here at Camelot Ranch.

I'm with chef Ben.

We've harvested gorgeous produce from Lady Kate's garden.

And chef, what are you going to be making today for our feast?

>> So we're going to do a cast iron squash with red shallots, little pan sauce, and some fresh flowers.

>> ALEX: I think it's a beautiful application for these vegetables.

They've been grown with such care.

I think, not only are our guests going to be happy with it, I think Lady Kate's going to be exceptionally happy with it.

>> That's the goal.

We have our green Romanesco, yellow squash, and zucchini.

If you start with really nice stuff like Kate produces, the end result is bound to be amazing, especially if we keep the technique simple.

>> ALEX: For sure.

So we've got our pan really nice and hot.

>> We get it screaming hot.

Basically, we're trying to get color on these vegetables.

So before we do that, I'm just going to toss these in oil so I can get them seasoned in the bowl before I throw them in the pan.

Just start laying these in the pan.

You want some?

>> ALEX: Yeah.

You get that hit of black pepper as soon as it hits the pan.

>> Mmm.

>> ALEX: So often as cooks, we have an idea of what we want to make, and then we go out and get the ingredients.

Where in this case we got ingredients and then decided the recipe afterwards.

You're letting the ingredients dictate the dish, which I love that approach to cooking because it not only supports a sustainable, more local way of eating and cooking, but it's also super fun.

>> Well, imagine how people used to cook.

They looked around and they were like, "Well, this'll grow here and that exists here, so let's put it together."

I mean, that's pretty much cuisine in a nutshell.

>> ALEX: I think the best place to start looking for ingredients for a dish is right outside your door.

>> Absolutely.

>> ALEX: We've got the summer squash nice and toasty.

I love that we've just seared that one side so we don't overcook, it doesn't get mushy.

>> Yeah.

What I like about this one-pan cooking technique is that we've got all the residual fond from searing these vegetables in the pan.

Now we're going to add the shallots.

>> ALEX: Oh, that smell is just right away.

>> Yeah, yeah.

It's ridiculous.

>> ALEX: I know that Maillard effect that you get definitely on protein, you're getting the same effect on these vegetables and the caramelization and the natural sugars are going to come out.

>> Mmm.

>> ALEX: It's going to be good.

>> So just deglaze with some white wine.

I'm just adding a little bit of vegetable stock, and we're just going to kind of tenderize these as well as concentrate this flavor by reducing it down in this pot.

>> ALEX: Once this reduces down, you just add some butter, swirl it around?

>> Yeah.

So we kind of keep it moving to keep everything smooth.

And it smells phenomenal.

>> ALEX: Really good.

>> Oh yeah.

>> ALEX: Oh yeah!

I'm going to let you finish up this dish.

I'm going to go back into the kitchen, and then I think we're almost ready for the feast.

>> Awesome, thanks for your help.

>> ALEX: Okay, bye.

♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ (indistinct chatter, laughter) >> ALEX: Hello, hello!

It's time to feast!

(cheers and applause) Welcome to our Billings, Montana, feast.

We have spent the entire day around the Billings area sourcing ingredients for tonight's dinner, starting with Lady Kate's garden to get the fresh vegetables.

And, of course, Sarah's ranch, Hollenbeck Ranch, and High Five Meats to get the lamb.

I'll let chef Ben start by explaining his dish.

>> So we have some cast iron seared squash and red shallot with a little bit of a pan sauce, and finished with some fresh flowers.

>> ALEX: All from your beautiful garden.

>> All from Kate's.

>> ALEX: Yes.

And chef Nick?

>> So we did lamb leg bulgogi with Spam fried rice, grilled and braised mushrooms with nuoc cham, and a little bit of gochujang mayonnaise, fried garlic, and some scallions.

>> ALEX: And finally, I made a little vegetable salad with a Vietnamese dressing.

All the vegetables came from Kate's garden.

And a beverage to go with tonight's meal, we have Dustin and Hannah from Otium Brewing.

Would you like to explain a little bit about your beer?

>> 90% of the ingredients that are in our beer come from Montana.

So the barley and the hops are all grown and sourced in Montana, grown on local family farms.

>> Before you finish, I want to introduce Jeremy Evans.

Jeremy's a former sous chef of mine and now is a manager at Proof Donuts, and he's brought us some killer donuts today.

You want to tell us about a them, bud?

>> The Homer maple glaze there.

So maple bacon and a couple other little Sunday fun day treats that we made.

>> ALEX: Thank you.

>> Thank you.

>> ALEX: And finally, thank you to Lynn, our beautiful host here at Camelot Ranch.

This place is stunning and the perfect backdrop for our feast.

Would you mind telling everybody a little bit about Camelot Ranch?

>> Sure.

We do about 60 to a hundred events a year, several different locations, this being one of them for ceremony sites.

>> ALEX: And thank you everybody for coming.

And let's eat!

>> Yes!

>> ALEX: And anybody need the IPA?

>> Yes, please.

>> ALEX: This lamb is very special.

>> Pretty chili.

>> So good, chef.

>> It's really, really good.

>> Unbelievable.

It's really good.

>> Kate, this is your world.

>> You did good, Nick.

>> ALEX: We've had quite the adventure here in Montana.

I want to thank everybody here for joining our feast.

If you'd like any of these recipes from today's episode, make sure to go to moveablefeast.relish.com and who knows, maybe next time we'll be feasting in your backyard.

Cheers, everybody.

>> Cheers.

>> ALEX: To lamb and cucumbers!

(laughter) ♪ ♪ >> For more information about this episode, recipes, and behind the scenes fun, make sure you go to relish.com.

Follow us @moveablefeast_tv on Instagram, and like us on Facebook.

See you next time on A Moveable Feast with Relish.

>> Major funding provided by: >> Oh, hey, it's the Donovans.

You know, legend has it the Donovans had a barbecue that fed half a town.

>> You know what I heard?

They drove cross country just to walk their dog.

>> Welcome to the National Kennel Show!

>> Apparently, they climbed a mountain to save some wild horses.

(lightning strikes, thunder rumbles) (whinnies) That's what they say.

>> That's what they say.

♪ ♪ >> Additional funding provided by: ♪ ♪ >> There's a reason people call Myrtle Beach "The Beach."

There are 60 miles of wide, sandy beaches along South Carolina's Grand Strand coast.

This vacation destination has golf courses, attractions, food, wine, and southern sun.

>> Closed captioning made possible by: ♪ ♪ ♪ You can find it here ♪ (singer vocalizing) ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪