On Fried Chicken And A Farming Mindset: Chef Cibelli
Today, we’re chatting with one of The Front Market’s Fall 2022 vendors Krystyna Cibelli-Pettus of Chef Cibelli.
✰ ABOUT KRYSTYNA CIBELLI
“I am a born and raised New Yorker who has been in Texas for two years enjoying that southern life. I have been in the culinary industry for nearly 20 years and have created my own version of how I want to run my business. I call it ‘Sinatra-Style.’ I do it my way. I wanted to create something for myself that allows the leeway of being a multifaceted company, as well as create the type of work environment where people feel comfortable and appreciated.
Being a chef often bleeds into your personal life as well. Food and cooking are a part of everyday life and can be a bit difficult to take a break from. When I do get the chance, I love to go out to new coffee shops, fly my drone with my younger brother, volunteer, go out with my cameras, paint, build things and hang with my amazing pup Regina Phalange. I would say one of my favorite things to do when I’m not working is to create my own adventure. ”
Q: Our latest market theme was “Metaphorical Community Garden.” What does this mean to you?
A: Water, water, water, and sun. If you are not out there supporting others, do not expect blind support, especially from entrepreneurs and small business owners. Find folks that actually want to support you and believe in you. I love using other people's products in my dishes and then bragging about them. When I come across another great local product, my mind map starts to form—and for me that is planting the seed in the community garden. Every product or company is a new row and I don't want a garden. I want a farm.
Q: How did your incredible Fried Chicken Sandwiches come to be?
A: The “Fricken” (fried + chicken) came to be through a combination of not being able to find exactly what I was looking for and a bit of a happy accident. That signature sauce that comes on the original Fricken was a happy accident of a very burnt-out chef. I was heating up some honey (exact reason unknown) in preparation to teach a pastry class. Multitasking can only go so far, and I forgot about the honey over the flame. I don't like to be wasteful so I tasted it and tried to think of what I could use to balance out the new intensity of the sweetness. I walked around the kitchen and narrowed it down to chipotle. I gave that a shot and liked how it turned, and I played with it for months until I got it just right
Q: How do you get into the headspace to create something new?
A: There are a few different ways this happens. One way is walking through a farmers market or local store and coming across an item that sticks out to me. My brain starts rolling out the mind map and the images of how I would cook and plate this. Another way is seeing or trying something. My brain immediately starts rolodex-ing through my repertoire of skills and dishes to see which would be a happy marriage.
Lastly, if I'm feeling inspired, but unmotivated, I will sit with a pen and notebook and start unloading on the paper. At first, it's pretty messy—random thoughts, ideas, ingredients or products. After that, I will look it all over and narrow it down to the parts that make the most sense together or that I am feeling most inspired by, and that will make it to the next part of the process. The next step is to "cook it in your head first,” which basically means to go through all the steps, skills and ingredients in your mind to see if those all make sense together.
The last and most important part of this process is asking myself if I can make every one of these components all on my own or ala minute, while also doing 13 other things, drinking water and breathing. If I get that far, I sketch it out to see how I would plate the dish. I then test it out in real life, add notes and sometimes more drawings, then it's on a menu or at the very least in my notebook to use on an upcoming menu.
Q: There’s a picture on your website of little Chef Cibelli. When did you start cooking and what are some of the first dishes you loved and perfected?
A: Ha! Baby Chef. My favorite photo of all time is the one of me standing on the chair testing sauce at the stove. I didn't always want to cook. As a kid, I remember sitting in the kitchen and watching my Mom and Grandma cook and enjoying the time and participation, however, nothing really stands out to me as it was just a regular routine.
I remember being about eight or so and insisting on making pudding, except I didn't really understand the cook-and-serve instructions. It was truly awful and a bit burnt. I went to the cabinet and got some sprinkles and stirred those in thinking that would somehow make everything better. It did not. I ate it anyway. I sat with my bowl of warm, thick, semi-burnt, no longer vanilla pudding and its box to see where it all went wrong.
My mom allowed me to do quite a bit of experimentation with food when I was a kid and teen. Every year for Thanksgiving I got to make the butter and dessert. I have no idea why, but I did and I loved it, and I got to do whatever the heck I wanted. The possibilities are endless and I enjoy that so much about being a chef.
Q: You made a huge move from New York to Austin. How has the food culture of the South influenced your menu now?
NYC to ATX is definitely a huge move in many. many ways, especially when you spend your entire life in New York, as well as being in a biracial same sex couple—all the scaries.
It's been great so far though and I am digging the southern life. The food scene here has been quite surprising, and I'm continuously discovering new places. There's a huge, huge difference in the mom-and-pop culture of food down here, as opposed to NYC.
I think my biggest menu adjustment since moving down here has been trying to convert some of my most popular dishes to vegan. The vegan culture down here blows my mind. I've been able to work with another local small business (Peace Cheese!) that produces vegan cheese and other vegan "dairy" products to help me make some really great adjustments on some of my fan-favorite dishes.
Q: What are some tips you have for upcoming chefs and food vendors getting started?
A: Push through the hard shit. Honestly. I never really forced myself to do just that up until the last couple of years. The little British man on my anxiety app tells me that everything is on the other side of fear, and that never really made sense until the last couple of years. Absolutely nothing and everything will all go your way. You will give up an endless amount of times and that is okay. If you've made it as far as to be serving the public, you will experience all of the ups and downs and it's not always fun or easy or sane, but if this is your calling/passion none of that will stop you. What makes all of the hard parts a little easier, is that community garden. Plant your seeds. Water your garden. And don't forget the damn sunlight.
Q: This year has been wild for us all. What are some lessons or experiences you are grateful for?
A: At times, it felt like someone tossed me in the dryer with sneakers. The lessons I've learned about myself, my company, my new city, and most of all my new community have been priceless. There have been quite a few ups and downs as I figure this all out along the way. You don't know what you don't know, until you know it. After that, it's your moment to figure it out from there.