[music] On the edge of the Atlantic where rough waters meet rugged cliffs lies a place full of history as spirited as its landscape.

St. John's, Newfoundland, Canada.

In this episode, we'll discove the city's profound connection to the sea and the land and meet some of the welcoming locals who call this remarkable place home.

We'll also explore the culinary traditions with some unique recipes over an open fire.

So join us for this unbelievable adventure in St. John's, all for A Taste of History.

[Narrator] A Taste of History is made possible by [Three Little Birds b Bob Marley & The Wailers plays] ♪ Rise up this morning ♪ ♪ smiled with the rising sun ♪ ♪ three little birds ♪ [Narrator] The Caribbean all inclusive Sandals Resorts.

More information can be found at sandals.com.

Additional funding provided by Crow Vineyard and Winery on Maryland's Eastern Shore.

Sip.

Stay.

Savor.

[waves crashing] [atmospheric calm music] [gentle waterfall] [Walter] St. John' lies on the edge of a continent.

Each day brings new light to North America.

It's a city that crafts a mosaic of time.

With a story etched in every stone.

Here, present day allure mixe with rustic, century old tales brought together by the mighty ocean, which continues to provide the lifeblood of this growing city.

[Irish jig music] [seagulls squawking] To learn about St. John's connection to the sea, I am visiting with a kindre spirit of mine, Chef Todd Perrin of the Mallard Cottage.

After returning to his homelan following his training abroad, chef Todd had a mission of bringing to the forefront a new way of expressing the spectacular indigenous ingredients of this beautiful province.

[Todd] Chef, welcome to St. John's and Mallard Cottage.

-Let me tell you, your restaurant is gorgeous.

The feeling- it feels so- like I've been here before.

Now I've never been here before.

[laughs] -Right -It's my first trip ever to the Newfoundland, but it's so homey and so comfortable.

And I'm looking forward to wha you're going to whip up today.

-Well, our restaurant is in a building that's about 250 years old.

So maybe you haven't been here before, but many, many people have over 250 years.

So, so, yeah, we're happy to keep the building alive.

So we're going to start off with cod.

Obviously, cod is the reason that Newfoundland and Labrador exists.

There's a reason that settlers have been living there for 500 years plus, and indigenous communities before that.

So it' the lifeblood of the province, even still today even though it's changed a lot, but is still very much a part of the culture here.

You know, Newfoundland and Labrador is a place that we all tend to come back to.

It's a place that Newfoundlanders long to get bac to, it's like to say, you know, the only people trying to get out of heaven are Newfoundlanders wanting to go home.

But, it was not a place that, restaurant culture was very big 20 years ago.

It was an interesting time to come back and try to, to make your way as a cook in this town.

And it's been, it's been interesting.

And it's the culture has changed dramatically in the last 20 years.

Newfoundland and Labrador is a unique place in Canada, because it's the only province in Canada where you can serve wild game in a restaurant.

-No kidding?

-We can we can buy from hunters and serve in restaurants.

We can have a license to purchase game, and then a hunter needs a license to sell.

And so that way we can track th animals that are being traded.

Which actually is a great plus for you so people during a certain time of the year will come for the seafood.

And the other time, comes the fall, they'll come here for your wild game that you're serving up.

-Oh yeah, of course other places have game, but it would be farm raised.

-Got you -So here we're we're the only place in the country where we can do that.

-I'm sure there won't be much left for tasting once you serve it up for me.

Just kidding.

[laughs] [Todd] We have the skin on cod.

I think we're going to do that with a little baba ghanoush and some French beans from our garden here.

-Oil is looking good.

-Yeah.

Should be good to go there now.

-You use any specific oil or just- -Just the canola or grape seed.

-Have you ever tried that with lard?

-Oh, yes.

Yeah.

-It's delicious.

-Yeah.

It is.

I mean, lard obviously, you know, coming from meat, it's pretty common to eat cod in Newfoundland with a meat.

Like a traditional way to do this would be to extract some of the fat from a salted pork, and then cook the fish in the salted pork fat, which is not what we're doing today but- -You know, I have a deep admiration for cod because I worked so many years in the islands.

And salted cod kept some of the islands alive as you well know.

-Of course.

It's very much connected to a Newfoundland story, because much of that salt co came from this part of the world and was sent down to that part of the world, you know, in exchange for rum and other things.

So there we go.

This is a bit of my European- -You can never have enough butter.

-You don't want to cook it too much so skin side down just to get the nice crisp on the skin.

[sizzling] [music] [Walter] Now, this particula dish.

Is it on your menu also?

-Uh, I mean, a version of it.

We don't really have a menu.

We write the menu every day.

You know, we striv hard to just have a quality team that understands what we're trying to do, and we just tr to make everything taste good.

Basically.

French beans.

Haricot verts.

-Right from your garden, right behind us.

-So this is just baba ghanoush.

So eggplant puree, smoked eggplants.

-Oh, yeah.

Oh, the flavor!

-Just a few fennel tops in with them.

-That's what it's all about.

-Overcooked beans an overcooked fish are equally sad.

-You're speaking my language.

[Todd laughs] Let me try that cod there.

Oh wow.

Wow.

Now, this is how this cod should be served.

I mean, isn't that beautiful?

-Baba ghanoush underneath it is not something that you would typically see in my grandmother's home or even my mother's home.

But here at the restaurant, we try to, you know, show people the ingredients that we have in separate- in different ways then they're used to.

-The flavor is just so good.

And I think this combination, again, simplicity less is better.

And this is perfect.

-Takes 20 years to learn to do less.

-And some!

[laughs] [music] [waves crashing] [Narrator] John Cabot was an Italian explorer, sailing under the English flag during a time of uncharted waters and fearless voyages.

In 1497, his ship made landfall along the eastern coast of Canada, marking the beginning of permanent European exploratio and settlement in Newfoundland.

In the ensuing century, the Spanish, Portuguese, and French followed suit in hopes of profiting off the abundant natural resources of this part of the world, such as codfish, which were reported to be so bountiful that fishermen could scoop the out of the ocean with baskets.

At the start of the 1700s, Great Britain seized claim over Newfoundland and Nova Scotia.

They quickly became th leading force in the industry, selling and trading co to every corner of the Atlantic.

As the centuries rolled by, the coastal city of St. Johns became a pawn in the game of empires, with the British and French vying for control of these rugged shores.

The cannons, perched high above St. John's harbor, bore witness to a pivotal moment in 1762, when the British defeated French forces at the Battle of Signal Hill.

The struggle over this strategic location was the last battle of the Seven Years Wa on the North American continent.

In 1897, Cabot Tower began to rise at Signal Hill, a monument to both Queen Victoria's Diamond Jubilee and the 400th anniversary of John Cabot's 1497 landfall.

This architectural marvel not only stood as a monument, but also harbored innovation within its walls.

It was here that Guglielmo Marconi achieved a milestone that would change the world forever.

The transmission of the first transatlantic wireless message in 1901, marking the birth of global connectivity, bridging continents and people in ways previously unimaginable throughout the 19th and 20th centuries.

St. John' experienced high economic growth as the cod fishing industry continued to dominate the international market.

However, centuries of overfishing eventually led to the near extinction of cod populations, which caused the Canadian governmen to impose a moratorium in 1992.

This motion effectivel ended the cod fishing industry, and a way of life that had endured for almost 500 years.

[upbeat Irish jig music] [Seagulls squawking] Today, St. John's has evolved into a global energy hub, forging ahead into a futur where the spirit of innovation and resilience continues to define the city.

Its natural beauty, unique wildlife and colorful residential neighborhoods continue to enchant visitors and locals alike to this day.

[Walter] Many of today's residents can still draw their heritage back to the English and Irish settlers that first immigrated here in the late 18th century, along with their grit and determination.

I can say without question that fish and chips is something they also brought with them as well.

It's basically a beer batter that you put a fresh piece of cod in it and you fry it.

Serve it with chips.

Now, I guarantee you, there's hardly a bistro in the world that does not serve fish and chips.

It's obviously a very, very popular dish throughout.

Now here, the Newfoundland way is really interesting because they're going to serve a little bit of stuffing.

You put it over your fries so I'm told.

It's really interesting.

First time I got that.

And you cannot come to Canada without putting gravy on top of your French fries.

That is a given.

[laughs] Many places serve mayonnaise or aioli, different things.

So I'm going to put a little bit on there here.

Mmm!

Oh!

[laughs] It is absolutely spectacular.

Crunchy.

The cod is beautiful and flaky.

I mean it's just the way you want it.

And together with the French fries with the stuffing it's quite a unique, unique taste which I have never had before.

When in Newfoundland, why not eat it like here.

Mmm That is delicious.

[Irish jig music] This vast and verdant land has more than just fish.

Let's meet a local forager to learn more about the importance of this regions self-sustenance [Lori] My name is Lori McCarthy.

I offer people cultura food experiences in Newfoundland so that they can leave Newfoundland with a better understanding of who we are.

It's food, it's culture, and it's place.

That is pretty exciting.

[laughs] I think when people talk abou sustainability, it is different based on the environment that you're in.

For us here in Newfoundland and Labrador, so much of our food grows from the land.

We have just a little over half a million people.

Most of the province is vast wilderness.

So it is pristinely clean, and we can hunt and pick and forage and harvest from the ocean.

It's an incredible opportunity to be able to pick as much as we can.

You know, as a cook and a chef is one thing.

But as someone who grew up here and that knowledge being passed down to you, that you can become as clos to self-sustaining as possible.

It's pretty special.

I guess it is what drives m all the time to keep doing it.

[fire crackling] [Walter] Lori, it's such a pleasure.

-Pleasure to meet you.

-I mean, to me, this is like, really stepping way back when in time.

I'm thinking I'm right back home in the Black Forest.

-Oh, that's so nice.

For me, I grew up like this too.

Something as simple as cooking in the woods just changes how you taste food.

-Forget the grocery stores and forget the supermarkets.

That's what it all used to be about.

I mean, think about it.

-It teaches you a different appreciation for taking care of the land.

-So Lori I see all this unique mise en place.

So tell me, what do you have in store for me today?

I'm curious to know.

-Lucky enough I got a piece of moose tenderloin for ya.

-I saw that!

-Yeah.

I got some chanterelles we picked, and I have a flavor to introduce you to.

Just give that a rub and give it a smell.

This is one of my favorite plants that come from here.

It's called sweet gale.

You can pick i for several months of the year, but I use it like a rosemary or a sage.

It's really great with wild game, so we'll pick a little bit off and I'll make a little salt.

And that's what we'll finish our moose with.

It is beautiful.

-That I've never had.

-So you grind that up for me.

-Sure, absolutely.

-And we'll get our pan nice and hot.

These herbs and these plants.

This one.

You know, the moose are eating this all the time.

-Tell me, how did you figure out in the beginning what herbs can you use?

Or is that common knowledge?

-No, it's definitely not.

And it you know, most of the stuff I picked today, my grandparents didn't pick it, and my mom and dad didn't know about it So it's a real learning process.

A lot of it came from visiting chefs.

And I would go and pick it for them and say, do you know this one?

And they would be able to identify it and be familiar with it.

So it's like it wa a combination of two different knowledges.

They knew that it was edible and I knew where to find it.

-Oh, look at that.

-So moose here, I mean, they're massive animals.

And so every year, the hope is that someone in the the pool gets a license, right?

And it's really important to us still today because it means that there's, you know, 700 and 1,200 pounds of meat.

-Yeah, meat available.

-And to me, it becomes then a meat that you don't- that we don't have to go to the supermarket to buy.

It didn't matter what was done with it.

So it was all chopped up and preserved by bottling, which is not that common.

But here was very common to bottle meat like that.

And lots of it- most of it's then frozen.

Everyone here got six foot freezers because you have to find something to do with all the meat.

-How did you get so lucky to have a tenderloin today?

[Lori laughs] -I have good friends!

-How did you manage that?

You got to have a friend to a friend that will have a moose, and then share with you.

-Well, always.

-Yeah.

-It's very much tradition.

As you know we must let it rest, right?

-Absolutely -I'm going to let that sit there -That's beautiful.

I can see it already.

And it's already done.

And I really like, leaving the flavors as natural as possible.

I like to do very little with something so beautiful.

-You know what my slogan is, right?

Less is better.

-Less is better.

Always.

-I can't believe some of the younger guys put every herb that they can possibly envision throw it into their food it's so wrong, you know?

-It's so wrong.

Yes.

-That's the way it's gotta be.

-Yeah.

Cook it with flavors that grow with it.

And don't try to fuss with it too much, you know?

-Now, those ones I don't know the English name.

-We call these yellowlegs or winter chanterelles.

They come a little later than the other chanterelles.

They will stay right up till winter frost.

-I'll tell you, Lori somebody told me the other day that it may be perfect timin to learn what you're teaching.

our future is uncertain.

So, what is not uncertain is that we have to feed ourselves eventually.

So you might as well learn it, you know?

-It teaches a different appreciation for taking care of nature and an understanding of our role in it.

If we actually eat the food.

Because I sa that is how we pay attention to, you know when laws and regulations change because, you know, sometimes if you are not doing it or eating it, what will it matter to you?

You know, it's like the cod fishery, right?

When the moratorium came I was the generation of kids who were told that: 'There's nothing her left for you in Newfoundland.'

'The fishery is over.

And leave here and go find' 'a better life.'

Right?

And for me.

When I had my kids, I became determined that that was not going to be the story I told them.

And that is why I started eating and cooking more like this.

And I started spending more time with people who lived off the land.

And that gave me an opportunity to actually live differently every day.

-I have a really deep appreciation for people to do what you do because it's such a forgotten art.

Oh, look at this.

Man, we got the time just perfect, look at that.

[Lori laughs] Oh, golly.

-I don't expect you're the kind of man who is going to say it's too rare.

-Never!

[Lori laughs] Not with this gorgeous looking tenderloin.

-Now, my parents woul never eat this like this, right?

Many generations here, again, all the meat was stewed, right?

And it was about feeding large families.

Have a taste.

-Oh!

Ohhhh [Lori laughs] Oh, heavenly.

-Heavenly.

-I'm not kidding, I've never had this spice before, so this is unique.

-New flavor!

-I feel sorry for the people at home.

[Lori laughs] -It's just for us today.

-Five star!

I tell you what.

Any Michelin chef out there eat your heart out!

[Lori laughs] Unbelievable.

-Thank you so much.

[upbeat rock music] [Walter] Now it's time to g beneath the waves where expert divers harvest the culinar treasures of the sea.

[Rick] Newfoundlanders are tough, rough and rugged.

In 1992, with the collapse of the cod fishery, Newfoundlanders took to other things.

They're all handy people.

They became carpenters, they became foresters, they became divers.

And when one resource was down there was another one bountiful.

No doubt about it, that Newfoundland was built on the backbone of hard work.

All right, where's my crew?

Let's get out there.

Let's go for a dive folks!

[air compressor noises] Today we're going scallop diving, and we're going after the big bay scallops.

[splashes] Hand picked scallops i a sustainable way of doing it.

You're not dragging.

The ocean floor is not getting tore up.

The biodiversity is not getting tore up.

And so they're just lying on the ocean floor, you know.

And you just keep an eye, keep your face close to the ground, and you can se these little bumps in the soil.

And so this is what we're in hunt for, these scallops.

And we're hoping to get a feed for you guys here today [upbeat music] [underwater SCUBA noises] -Woohoo!

-Woo!

[John] Yeah.

There they are, chef.

They look like they got some scallops.

They're hooting and hollering.

-Looks like it!

-Yeah.

You want to get the elevator for them?

-Absolutely!

-Right over here.

[Captain] Okay, clear!

[John] All right, hit the green button there, chef.

[gears grind] Woohoo!

[Rick] Get ready!

[Walter] Wow!

Look at the size!

Oh!

[laughs] I don't believe it!

[crew laughs] Gosh!

[John] Right on!

-Look at that guys.

I thought you were giving me a fish-story at first but you didn't.

[crew laughs] That is- Look at the size!

Heyyyy!

[laughs] [Rick] I think we'll manage to get a feed out of this, ey?

[Walter] Gosh!

All my life I've been cooking scallops I've never seen this size.

Ever.

Look at it.

Look at it.

Unbelievable.

It's like a dream come true.

Look at this guy.

Yeah, you can see him in there.

There's even bigger ones in there.

Look at this.

This guy here.

-We've had them the size of dinner plates.

-Jesus.

-Yeah.

-They camouflage themselves a little bit, right?

-Yeah.

So actually, when we're down below.

a lot of these, you'll actually find they'll have seaweed attached to them.

Coming off the back.

And the seaweed will jus hang out just like a covering.

So you gotta tear a lot of that away so you're not trying to drag that all up with ya.

-So basically it's to protect themselves against, uh- -So basically it's to protect themselves against, uh- [Rick] Starfish and the sea urchins.

They bore holes through them an kill them, and then they go in.

Yeah, so the anatomy of a scallop.

So we have the eyes and the lips, the liver.

-Liver right there.

-The gonad.

And then this part here, of course, is our beautiful muscle.

And so you peel that back gently and you got your meat only.

-That's a serious one.

That's a feast for my eyes let me tell you that.

-Have a scallop.

-Yep.

There we go.

-Build a little bite-sizes here Uh huh!

-Oh, gosh!

[Rick laughs] So sweet, huh?

Oh!

[Rick] So we're gonna open up a few and Marco's gonna get the grill nice and hot there and he's going to sear some.

[sizzling] [funky music] -They couldn't be possibly any fresher.

I already ate my share raw.

-Yeah.

-Now I'm gonna get one cooked.

-Yeah.

-This whole experience to me is very memorable.

I'm going to take that, in the back of my brain and keep it there.

-Oh, fantastic.

-Something that I've been using for all these million years- not million, but a lot of years- in different variations.

And here I get to see it from the source.

-It's sustainable fishing at its finest.

[Marco] Try it like this.

[Walter] Fantastic.

Here we go.

[Rick] All right!

[Walter] Chief, it's your boat.

[Rick] Look at the size of those hockey pucks!

[laughs] -Look at that.

Mushroom with some peppers on it.

-And garlic.

-Very good garlic Just cooked exactly right.

-Yeah.

-See?

Pink -Yeah.

Just seared.

-Wow.

Oh!

-Marco, beautiful sauce.

-The flavor- [Marco] Everything made with love.

-Very good.

Yeah.

It's an honor to be invited in.

And it's been an honor to understand all that.

And I will tell nobody with your spot is, I promise.

[laughs] Thank you.

I'm so glad they didn' have the cameras rolling either.

[laughs] [calm atmospheric music] [waves crashing] [seagulls squawking] [Jill] Welcome, chef, to Ferryland Lighthouse.

-Jill, I'm sitting here daydreaming.

It's so relaxed.

-It's a very idealic spot.

-I'm very jealous You wake up every morning here and get to see this.

-Well, you struck on one of the most beautiful days we've had this summer.

-And so basically, anybody is invited to come here?

-Anyone is invited to come.

Newfoundland has a great tradition of outdoor dining, so we've taken a traditional picnic and put a bi of a modern, unique twist on it because we have a history of so much of our work was done outdoors.

So, for example, women primarily would, dry the fish and cur the fish in the saltfish trade.

So a lot of times you were working outside that you actually dined outside, you didn't have time to go home.

And Sunday picnics were a lovely thing to do.

We are the second mos easterly point in North America.

This stretch of coastline that you're seeing is known as the graveyard of the Atlantic But you can only imagine in fog and wind how treacherous thi was to mariners and seafarers.

So this particular lighthouse was lobbied for a number of years from the community, because there was great loss of life in this area.

The lighthouse itself was built in 1870 and my grandmother was born here at this lighthouse.

So it was in our family.

It was automated in 1970 and I've been doing this for 21 years.

-Fantastic.

-Thank you for coming.

I'll leave you to the view and enjoy your picnic.

-Thank you, Jill What a spectacular trip from Newfoundland for A Taste of History.

[music ends] [Narrator] A Taste of History is made possible by [Three Little Birds b Bob Marley & The Wailers plays] ♪ Rise up this morning ♪ ♪ smiled with the rising sun ♪ ♪ three little birds ♪ [Narrator] The Caribbean all inclusive Sandals Resorts.

More information can be found at sandals.com.

Additional funding provided by Crow Vineyard and Winery on Maryland's Eastern Shore.

Sip.

Stay.

Savor.

Viewers can find DVDs and cookbooks at atasteofhistory.org, including the all new A Taste of History Cookbook, complete with step by step instructions of recipes seen on the show.

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