Fresh Markets

Cook Like a Chef with Ingrid Chen McCarthy

Ingrid Chen McCarthy

By Ingrid Chen McCarthy

06/28/2023

Chef Ingrid Chen McCarthy came to The Fresh Market with more than 20 years of experience in restaurants and food service operations. She was a server, a host and a bartender before attending the Oregon Culinary Institute in Portland, working her way up to executive chef and later owning her own hospitality consulting business. Today, she creates and tests many of the recipes you find in this magazine, on our website and in our stores, from meat and seafood and produce items to our ready-to-cook meals, such as Little Big Meal and Market Meal Kits.

Ingrid Chen McCarthy's Smash Burger Recipe

Q: What made you pursue culinary arts? Did you always want to be chef?

I have been interested in cooking since I was a kid. I grew up in North Carolina eating my mom’s amazing Taiwanese cooking, but envied my friends’ American dinners and eventually taught myself how to make mashed potatoes when I was 8 years old. My parents and relatives fostered my love of cooking and food by buying me cookbooks and letting me cook a lot at home, and I started working in restaurants as a host and server when I was a teenager. I fell in love with the restaurant industry and after 10 years working in “front of house” jobs, I went to culinary school and learned how to cook professionally. I was lucky enough to work my way up through fine dining kitchens in Portland, Oregon with some amazing mentors before moving back to North Carolina to be closer to family.

Q: Where do you draw inspiration from when developing recipes?

The number one motivation for my recipe writing is making food that I want to eat! I draw inspiration from a variety of sources: Sometimes I start with an ingredient or product, sometimes I get inspiration from a dish I ate at a restaurant or a friend’s house or that saw a photo of. Sometimes it’s a craving I have, sometimes it’s something I remember from my childhood or something I remember eating while traveling abroad. Oftentimes it’s recipes that our customers ask for!

Q: How would you describe your personal style of cooking/cuisine?

I often joke that I think I was an Italian Nonna in a past life. My favorite way of cooking is very fresh and simple, rustic, garden-to-table, using solid techniques and highlighting the ingredients themselves. If I’m cooking a steak, for example, I’m going to season it simply, maybe add some garlic and herbs and grill it. A lot of the Taiwanese cuisine I grew up eating is done this way—simply sauteed or steamed with aromatics.

Q: What is your favorite part of being a chef at The Fresh Market?

I have been a fan of The Fresh Market since I was a kid! I grew up going to one of the original stores in Greensboro, and it was always such a special treat. It’s honestly wild to me that I am a chef for The Fresh Market now—it’s truly my dream job. And I can’t say enough about the people I work with; I feel very lucky to have the coworkers I do.

Q: What is your favorite signature item at The Fresh Market? Why?

I feel like my favorite item changes constantly! Right now, it’s our new Market Meal Kits—we worked hard to develop some really great flavors for our meals. I’m partial to the Madeira Steak with Asparagus and Gnocchi; that classic sauce is phenomenal, and we couldn’t stop eating the gnocchi when we were testing it.

Q: Do you have any kitchen “hacks” or special techniques you can share with us?

I use a Microplane to grate garlic for any recipe that calls for minced garlic. Same with fresh ginger. It’s so much easier than chopping it up!

Q: Since it’s The Fresh Market’s 41st birthday, can you share some of your favorite dishes to make for celebrations?

Seafood is one of my favorite ways to celebrate; in many cultures there’s such a long history of celebrating with seafood spreads (think crab or crawfish boils, oyster roasts, clam bakes, etc.). We love to make an elaborate seafood spread for celebrations that usually includes crab legs, colossal shrimp, scallops and clams.

Q: What are some staples in your kitchen at home?

We always have room temperature butter in a butter bell ready to go on bread; my husband is a baker, so we always have fresh bread in our house. Good olive oil and finishing salt are always a must; my husband can’t live without mayonnaise (preferably Duke’s) and I always have soy sauce, fish sauce and sesame oil in the house for cooking.

Q: What was the inspiration behind the smash burger?

I think The Fresh Market’s ground chuck is one of the best products that we offer—it gets ground fresh every day in store and we start with a really high-quality meat. My family loves burgers but we love a smash burger the best; the thin patties that are crispy on the outside and tender on the inside are my ideal burger. It’s the perfect summer dinner!

Q: What are you most looking forward to in the next year at The Fresh Market?

We’ve been working hard this year to innovate new items with our teams and our vendors and I’m really excited to see more new and fun products and ingredients come into our stores.