The most amazing birthday meal at @astera_pdx #hosted
Led by @chefaaroncasanas this is truly a one-of-a-kind dining experience.
I had the Luxury at the Pass. Where you sit at the chef’s pass and have the most expansive tasting menu that highlights the Pacific Northwest’s bounty using modern cooking techniques.
The attention to detail when it came to the food, drink pairings, and service was just… wow! It truly left me speechless.
This is by far Chef Aaron’s best concept yet. Bringing a fine dining experience to Portland that I feel really highlights our city and our region in the best way.
Thank you so much for having me and allowing me to enjoy this incredible meal. It is one I will never forget!
Have you been?
#pdx #veganfoodie #veganportland #veganfinedining
VegNews Chef of the Year Aaron Adams Casañas is no longer sweating the small stuff—and at @astera_pdx , that shift is reshaping how fine dining feels for both guests and staff.
Fresh off his VegNews Veggie Awards Chef of the Year win, Adams Casañas sat down with VegNews to discuss why he refuses to engage with plant-based panic cycles, how he’s restructured restaurant life around family and well-being, and the surprising ingredients and ideas currently fueling one of the most acclaimed restaurants in the country.
Click the link in our bio to read more. Or comment "chef" and we'll DM you the story.
📸: @extracelestial
Follow @VegNewsMag for all of the latest plant-based news, products, and recipes.
#vegan #veganfood #veganchef #plantbased #plantbasedfood
I think they meant the United States of America…but anyway! Well, while I’m hardly the best vegan chef (looking at you @pietramala_phl ), the interview was very nice and captured how I’ve spent a great deal of time thinking, growing, and learning how to run a fine dining kitchen without so much of the nonsense I had to deal with. I’ve definitely been “that asshole” in the kitchen, but am happy to report that age (and my sweet two year old daughter) does indeed mellow many of us out. Very grateful to @vegnewsmag for the honor and interview. Link to story in bio.
Nixtamalized and charcoal grilled nopales, Persian cucumber and unripe green strawberry aguachile with fermented chiles, lime, calendula and coriander oil.
Had an amazingly informative conversation this morning about the Sinaloan origins of aguachile, the Japanese immigrant influence more similar to the current form, and other points of Mexican culinary history with the talented Chef Juan Gomez of @liliacomedor . Thanks, brother.
We humbly offer a PNW inspired version with beautiful produce from @groundworkorganics and @sunriseorganicfarm.llc ❤️ along with flowers foraged by our very own @maebotoichi and @morris.sebastian
We hate throwing flavor into the compost bin! All the asparagus scraps from the past weeks went into this Spring Asparagus Garum. We made it last year and it was really lovely so we’re doing it again.
Ratio by weight:
100% Asparagus Scrap, shredded
100% lentil koji with shoyu specific spores
200% water
Add 10% of its total weight in salt.
Mix mix mix. Stir daily for at least two months. Let ferment for at least six months.
Come with meeeeeee as we go check out the new viral labubu cookie crumbl Dubai chocolate rhubarb collab with @deeprootsfarm and @portlandfarmers !
But seriously, Victoria rhubarb is unrivaled. Go get you some of this delicious rhubarb and other wonderful veggies from this awesome farm.
It’s NATIONAL BIKE MONTH as you may or may not know, but for Chef Aaron (that’s me) it’s bike month every minute of every day of the year.
Ok, back to first person…a little jaunt from my home in Gateway to Provvista (Chef’s Warehouse now I GUESS!) for chocolate and hazelnut oil, to 11th Ave Liquor for cognac, and Cash & Carry (what’s it actually called now?). 25 mile trip to deliver some stuff for service tonight.
We also got our work bike out of the shed and ready for farmers market hauls so we can be as cool as @sarahminnick_ who if you don’t know grabs all her produce from the market every week on her @larryvsharry Bullitt!
I love bicycles, ever since I got my first bike as a little boy. It’s always been an amazing sense of empowerment and freedom to go a long distance on your own power.
Hope you all can get out there and ride your bikes for your health, your mental health, and the health of the planet!
It’s that time of year when we get TWO market hauls a week! In Spring and Summer, we’re blessed with Shemanski Park Farmer’s Market on Wednesdays…one of the many great market brought to you by @portlandfarmers .
Today we grabbed cucumbers, basil, collards, Hakurei turnips, carrots and spring onions from @sunriseorganicfarm.llc , Colorado rose new potatoes, green garlic, thyme and strawberries from @groundworkorganics , asparagus from #pheasanteyefarm, and lovage, radishes, mustards, marjoram, calendula, cilantro and chervil from @campo.collective . All in all a great day at our favorite market! Vivian had a blast, too!
Sunday was Chef Saxon’s last day with us at Astera and while we’re sad to see him go we’re so stoked for him to go do some adventures this summer! Lots of travel and activities on the docket! Saxon, thanks for all you did for us, but especially thanks for giving me the time to reclaim my personal health and be home more during my daughter’s critical first two years. You got us over the hump! Your skill and passion elevated us all! Love you mucho and so proud of you for taking some time to yourself for personal growth and fun. Best of luck to you and your wonderful partner Ingrid! ❤️🙏
Wonderful day at the PSU farmer’s market today picking up lovely produce from our favorite farms. Happy to see @jorinjimiso at the market today! They’re the best. Picked up some produce from @sunriseorganicfarm.llc@groundworkorganics and beautiful long radishes from @laterravita . Thanks for the saag inspiration for our collards dish @pietramala_phl we love you guys! Always a great day when you can go to @portlandfarmers
Nice market haul from the farmers at PSU Farmer’s market! Strawberries, rhubarb, Hakurei turnips, collar tabs, chervil, watercress, red leaf lettuce, green leaf lettuce, mixing, and mustard greens from the nice folks at @sunriseorganicfarm.llc and @groundworkorganics groundworkorganics
Conching dried kombu that came out of the sieve from another preparation. We conch with fat and sugar to approximate a 70% “chocolate.” Let’s see if we can make a seaweed chocolate for a new dessert in the future.
We will always explore our waste stream to try to find flavor and reduce the size of our rubbish bin. We will continually work towards zero waste to discover new flavors and textures and honor the ingredients we bring into our space.
