If there’s one unwritten rule for how to properly celebrate Canada Day, it’s that it’s best done in the company of family and friends surrounded by a smorgasbord of top-tier bites — ideally outdoors. We asked five Toronto chefs what they’d serve at a Canada Day fête and, from Cantonese-style pork to beef qheema, their answers go well beyond the poutine, Caesars and butter tarts you might expect. “When I think about Canada and what it is to be Canadian, so much of it is the reverence and respect for other cultures on all levels,” says Missy Hui, executive chef at And/Ore. “And that inevitably translates to food.” So what dishes do these chefs want within arm’s reach this Canada Day? Inspired by the country’s bounty and the seasons, they’re varied and bold. They hold whispers of childhood and encountered customs, of memorable restaurant meals and recipes learned at the elbows of elders. As approachable and interesting, awesome and diverse as Canada itself, they’re a splendidly fitting tribute for the day.
The chef: Suman Ali Sayed, founder of House of Khaleej and culinary partner at Bar Mordecai
The app: toum-spiked hummus and beef qheema
To chef Suman Ali Sayed, Canadian food is more about what you put in it than what you make. “The quality of the ingredients. That’s the superstrength and power of Canada,” she explains. A chef who has worked in British Columbia, Alberta and Ontario, Ali blends her Bahraini roots with the rich diversity of ingredients at her disposal. “I use local, sustainable ingredients, that is the showstopper. Then I bring in the cooking techniques and flavours.” An ideal Canada Day starter, bannock khubz flatbread served alongside whorls of toum-spiked hummus and cumin-scented Ontario beef qheema is a reflection of Ali’s culture brought to life through a Canadian lens. “Canadian food culture is not a melting pot because when you say that it means you have forgotten where you come from. Here, you still have your heritage and root attached to something new.” That chef suggests “this would be a perfect dish to place on top of poutine,” merely proves her point. 1272 Dundas St. W., barmordecai.com
Rocco Agostino, executive chef and partner at Pizzeria Libretto and Enoteca Sociale
The starter: panzanella salad
With a gloriously ruddy hue that tidily matches the day’s theme, sun-ripened tomatoes are the star of chef Rocco Agostino’s favourite July 1 dish. “If I can get my hands on some really good tomatoes, I like to do a simple panzanella salad,” he says. A jumble of juicy tomato chunks, jagged focaccia croutons, fragrant basil ribbons and tomato vinaigrette, “to intensify the tomato flavour,” the dish is a bright nod to the style of cooking Agostino grew up with. “I was born here in Canada. My parents immigrated from the south of Italy, from Calabria,” he says. “Growing up it was all about pasta and pizza. They always had a garden in the back and took advantage of the space to grow vegetables and herbs.” Devoted to dishes that are comforting, flavourful and “never too out there,” Agostino revels in the mingling and merging of culinary traditions he sees in Toronto and beyond. “Canada is a vast land with so many different cultures. Some flavour profiles that come together are pretty incredible. It pushes the cooking aspect of it forward, instead of staying stagnant.” 221 Ossington Ave., pizzerialibretto.com
Missy Hui, executive chef at And/Ore
The sandwich: char siu with greens and mustard
Growing up in Hamilton, Ont., chef Missy Hui lived in a neighbourhood that was home to families from Italy, Scotland, Hong Kong and more. “That’s what I love about Canada. I think most people’s food experience does exist in some way outside their own culture,” she says. “We have the privilege of living in a multicultural society where we have access to almost any ingredient we could possibly want. Canada Day and its food, to me, is personal and exciting and whatever you want it to be.” What does chef crave? A sticky, smoky char siu sandwich loaded with fermented mustard greens and Kozlick’s Triple Crunch Mustard, because “it just checks a box that no other mustard checks.” Beyond that, the thing she most looks forward to on Canada Day is “the slow smoke and baste on the barbecue” that precedes that memorable first bite. “I love to cook outside,” she says, adding that, as a Canadian, it’s in her genes to hurry outdoors any chance she gets. “Look at what happens when patios open,” she says with a laugh. “It’s pandemonium.” 1040 Queen St. W., andorerestaurant.com
Lonie Murdock, Head Chef and Partner at Miss Likklemore’s
The main: jerk chicken
No matter what’s on the menu, if chef Lonie Murdock is in the kitchen you can expect it to be a vibrant, rich, fiery and fragrant showing. “My mom’s side is all Jamaican, and my dad’s side is generations of Canadians. I was probably the only person on my street that was eating curry and doing those things as a kid,” she says, laughing. Formed during her childhood in Cornwall, Ont., Murdock’s comprehensive view of Canadian food is that it can be anything. “Everyone I know is an immigrant, or has an immigrant story, or an immigrant parent or an immigrant grandparent,” she says. The food we make and share, “all ties back to something else.” On Canada Day, “I’m definitely grilling, 100 per cent,” says Murdock. “You can’t have a summertime meal without having some of that smokiness.” Whether it’s her famed jerk chicken or simple burgers, Murdock takes every opportunity to zhuzh recipes up with her own spin. “At this point, there’s something from either my culture or my husband’s culture — he’s Guyanese — mixed into whatever the dish is.” 433 King St. W., misslikklemores.com
Steven Tran, executive pastry chef at Shangri-La Toronto
The dessert: tiramisu
Canada Day desserts should be “cold and portable,” according to Steven Tran, executive pastry chef at Shangri-La Toronto. “When I’m baking at home, the easier the better,” he adds. His go to? Crowd-favourite tiramisu that’s built from store-bought lady fingers soaked in bracing Vietnamese robusta coffee, cushiony layers of chilled mascarpone and generous lashings of grated chocolate. Inspired by Europe, made in Toronto with Canadian and Asian ingredients, it’s a dish that embodies Tran’s view of Canadian food. “I grew up in a very multicultural neighbourhood,” says Tran, who was born in Vancouver to Vietnamese parents. “I saw and I grew up with a huge amount of different types of cuisine. My view of Canadian cuisine is very diverse.” Though burgers, hot dogs and poutine are non-negotiable come Canada Day, Tran also likes to branch out. “I love to cook. I cook a lot of Chinese and Vietnamese food but also love to experiment with other people’s cuisines.” 188 University Ave., shangri-la.com/toronto/shangrila
