practice day

Today we had some 'down time', so to speak, in that we were able to just catch up on some stuff without doing anything else new classwise. Of course, tomorrow is back to the regular cooking routine. I had enough time to make two sauces, and even if I say so myself, they were pretty good. So far all 4 of my sauces have recieved full marks. On the other hand, I just could not do a good job with precision cooking today, so I just decided to leave it till after class. Or maybe I can do it before class tomorrow. We should have plenty of time.
I also spent two afternoons hemming pants over the weekend, but at least now they are done. I hope I can get the tomato stains out of my jacket tonight.
Tomorrow my group gets to play with pasta, and somebody else is cooking rabbit.

Is it really the end of week 4 already?

Last night I'd hoped to be able to make the potato gratin today, but since our sous chef insisted on making his own dish, I ended up making some rice, after I finished chopping some of the vegetables and getting the tomato done. I made too much rice though, unfortunately. I brought it home, since nobody else wanted it, but I actually think it was pretty good. Well, OK, I don't really like the kind of long grain rice we have at school, but for all intents and purposes I think I did an OK job with it for not using any kind of recipes at all. But I used saffron, peas, onions, garlic and green onions. Our recipe dishes turned out not too badly, though I'm slowly coming to the conclusion that I'm not so fond of fricasses and blanquettes. All that sauce... We had really good green beans today too from the veg group.
After everything was cleaned up and everyone left some of us actually stayed behind to do some other stuff. This was the first chance I had to stay. I got my bechamel sauce done, and got another 3 on it too. :-) I had to say that somehow with several of us standing there stirring sauces it felt like I was in a Harry Potter story in the potions class. That was funny.
I got home around 2:30 today with a ton of food, and did a bit of work around the garden, and then bought some more veggies to practice cutting with. I finally managed to turn out some half decent tournes tonight after dinner. I am also thrilled that I am able to estimate the lengths pretty well for the potato cuts we have to do. Yay! Carrots and the other stuff tomorrow. Got to work on cutting straight too. I can't believe there's only two weeks of it left. Today Chef Dennis gave us a very serious talk before he left us. It's been interesting having him around this week. I still think he needs to relax, but he does take this seriously, and that's a good thing. All in all he is probably a nice person with a good sense of humour. But as with all teachers, he is proud of what he does and wants us to learn. He's also right - in this business we do have the ability to kill people. (Good thing we're not doing fugu, eh?) It certainly won't be all fun and games when we all get to the main campus in two weeks.

Stocks and Sauces.

Yesterday it was our day to do vegetables, and we actually did a rather decent job, I think. We went more Asian, and I did tempura for the first time. Got some compliments on them too. Today as a group, however, left something to be desired. We as a class got a late start with our tasting. But our sous chef for the day, as nice a person as he is, did not always have his act together and communicate his ideas very well. So far our group has not had a very good thing with our mise en place. It is not my place to say that to anyone in particular, but I made it as a comment about the whole group, and they agreed with me. We have to do better tomorrow.
In all honesty, however, he tried, and if he messes up, he messes up. Part of the learning experience. Most of us got a couple of proficiencies signed off, between the onions and sauces. I wish my concassee could have turned out well yesterday, but I had a major hiccup. Will have to get it some other time. I think I can do that tomorrow. My veloute got full marks, which considering it was also the first time I'd done it, made me very happy. But of course Gary did give me a tip so I was able to fix that a bit better. But we might even be able to use that for our dish tomorrow, since we're doing fricassees.
I also need to be more careful with my knife, according to Chef Dennis.

Our first day in the kitchen

For our first day of food production, we had an excellent day. Friday last week and yesterday we finished up our lectures on cooking methods, and also saw a couple more sauces demoed, as well as a pasta demo. We also did more knife cuts on Friday, which amazingly I did quite well on compared to what happened on Thurday. My orange segments were very good, and they are actually consistently good, since I've now done 3 of them between then and today. Tomato concassee was even a success. All I can say is that after the tourne fiasco of the previous day, I really need that to go into the rest of the weekend.
It was my group's turn to do knife practices today, and I think we did a fairly good job of setting up. The kid I thought was a bit annoying is getting along a bit better. I've now learned to treat him just as a kid, and not worry too much about him being impatient, as long as I have the patience to do what I have to get done. I think things will go OK.
I had the right idea about my knife board today. I did the rest of the stuff fairly well, and left the tournes to do until the very end. I did well enough on the rest to offset things. As it turns out, I still got 5 points for them. So I ended up getting 87. Considering that I did not have a chance to do the potato dices before, I don't think that's too bad. And even just doing it once today taught me some pointers which improved things. Also, except for the tourne I even made pretty good use of product, which is a good thing because on the final we are not given any room for error. All in all, I am encouraged. So far so good.

The Dreaded Tourne

This morning we had a demonstration of the different cuts in class, and I have to say that I had a very hard time with the tourne potato when it was our turn. For a first effort, however, it wasn't all that bad, and I can only improve with more practice, right??? At least so far I managed not to cut myself doing it. There were several people sporting various cuts afte today. I almost cut myself.
We also went over the Espagnole and tomato sauces today. Yum! This afternoon after tutoring I stopped at Williams-Sonoma on the way home, and bought myself a food mill. Now I can also make Duchesse potatoes. I don't know if mom is going to appreciate the stuff that I make though. It sounds too involved for her. The thing is, it's not that she's a bad cook. She's actually rather good. It's just that she'd rather not go through as much trouble at this point.
We had some really bacon and sausages and French baguette today. Appropriate, since it's Bastille day today.

carb day!

All I can say is that I'm glad I'm not on the Atkin's diet. We made two kinds of potatoes, and some pilaf as well. I need to learn to use more salt. Also need to learn how to use a pastry bag. Piping the Duchesse was a little hard at first.
I went to look for some equipment after school, and the only thing I ended up getting was the salt, and some potatoes. This working in the afternoon thing is already getting to be a drain on my energy and time. But how else am I to get any income? At least it's something I do sitting down, and I no longer have written homework to do for now. But getting to sleep early enough is still hard. This morning I did not want to get up at 5 am. I had time to practice two eggs. Still no success. Ugh! But this time I ate them. I also ate a bacon sandwich. I had som much starch today between all the food I ate. Mom wants me to lose weight. At this rate I don't think I am going to.

Egg day - splat!

Today we did a couple more cooking methods, and then got our first taste in the kitchen. Pan frying and deep frying and also roasting. We were divided up into two groups, and my side got to try our hand at eggs. I found out that I am not very good at flipping eggs. But I tried an experiment at home for dinner, and gained an insight. It could have been something as simple as the fact that at the height I had the pan, I could not get proper leverage. When I was able to put the pan lower, things went better. I actually managed to flip my eggs for dinner tonight without breaking the yolk. Will have to see if I can do that at school tomorrow morning. I really felt bad about wasting so many eggs today. But I still need to get some signed off. I don't know why, but even my poached eggs didn't cooperate today. Normally I don't have that much trouble. I think that maybe I had the water too hot. Also, I probably need a different spoon to get the egg out. I don't know if I'll be able to do the hollandaise tomorrow, but I'd sure like to get it signed off soon. The other girl in my group managed to finish off all her eggs today, and I think she also did the sauce after class.
I think I'll have better luck with the potatoes and risotto tomorrow. I sure hope so. Yikes. Good thing I never had delusions of grandeur of my cooking skills. I need tons and tons of practice.

Cooking methods

Last Friday and today we started talking about cooking methods. So far we've done griling, broiling and sauteing. They are dry, high heat methods, great for things that are tender. Unless, of course, you overcook them, which is ironically what happened to the porkchops I had for dinner on Sunday night. I didn't have the heart to tell my class. But then again, I was not the one doing the cooking.
We also finished up the last of the math stuff last week, and had our quiz today at the end of the class. It wasn't too bad, unless if I made some stupid careless mistakes. Always possible, of course.
Today we also got divided up into our cooking groups, and got the menus for the next two weeks. I kind of feel gipped, since our group didn't get to play with duck. Oh, well. What actually really concerns me, however, is that there is a person in our group that's been through this before. It's nice in a way, but at the same time I am hoping he wouldn't want to take over or something. My group seems rather quiet, and there are 4 guys to 2 women.
We also got an orientation to the kitchen. I forgot to mention that they are called Escoffier and Careme, after the ooo-la-la fancy French chefs. We also got towels and aprons. I am really hoping that the cooking weeks will go well.

Fish and Vegetables

Today we did stuff about costing servings. I had a question about rounding numbers, since in my former life (so to speak) I was a mathematician. But as long as I know what convention they want to use, I guess I can live with it. We spent some more time talking about meats and connective tissues, and also about battering and breading. I did not know that tempura was spiky because of the ice cold water. Now I see why the batter is made with ice inside. The big difference in temperatures is what causes the 'explosion'. Trussing and tying are other things we might be able to do as part of the mise en place.
Also talked aobut fish proteins today. Must remember to be very careful about cooking fish - flesh is easily overcooked because it does't have much collagen.
And speaking about explosions, bombs went off in London this morning. What a horrible thing to wake up to. I read the news before going to class today, but since it's so early there were plenty of people who had not heard about it. It's really kind of weird to be discussing food after that. Certainly brings back memories of 11th September. Chef Costa mentioned how difficult it was to keep things normal that day at school.
Wouldn't it be nice if all we had to worry about was how to fillet things properly? Or how to tourne a potato?

Cooking math and meat.

Today we did more with math. From having cooked for myself, I know that there's always a certain amount of food that one tosses away during the preparation process, such as the rinds of fruits. There's actually a formal way to think about this in terms of percentages so that when one is cooking on a large scale one can know how much to order. There's even books with tables that tells you the edible percentage of such and such food.
Chef Ron had something else to do today, so Chef Jacky had us for the rest of the time. We talked about the different primal cuts of beef, veal, lamb and pork, and the various methods to cook things. I'm somewhat amused to find out that I actually had some pretty good sense about this just from having observed what was served in restaurants and what's done on cooking shows. We also went into more detail about beef and poultry. Someone suggested during one of our breaks that we should all chip in and get some Kobe beef just so we know what it tastes like. That would be awesome. I can't believe that I used to live in Japan and never had it. Of course, it's so bloody expensive.
Chef Jacky was pretty funny today too. He's not a big fan of English or Scottish food. Then again, who boils meat!!! (I mean, except maybe in soup.) Also, I don't know that I'd ever be brave enough to stomach haggis. (Pun absolutely intended)
We also got our sanitation tests back. I missed one question. Must find out which one that was. Oops. (On the other hand, for my job that's going to help pay part of my expenses, I had to take the certification test and got 100 on that, so....) We'll get our Food Handler's Cards next week. Of course, since at the moment I don't have a restaurant job, I don't have a use for it just yet, but... I wonder if the other states require something similar. I know that when I was a college student in Massachusetts we didn't have to get one. But then again, that was like a gazillion years ago.

Picnicpalooza

What a wonderful day for a picnic on Saturday! We got to school early, packed up the food and loaded the truck, and drove to Cook Park. Chef Ron, being the 'Mad Caterer', (and I say this with the utmost affection and respect), had linen for the picnic tables and everything. This is the first time I've been to such a fancy picnic. I throughly enjoyed it. I wasn't able to help lift too much, but I helped to take turns grilling the corn, hot dogs and chicken. We actually ran out of food. Imagine that! The corn eating contest was hilarious. I also found out that I will eventually need to make a food portfolio. Yup, a food portfolio. So I'll have to get a digital camera eventually. (Gosh, darn!)
Yesterday, being 4th July, we did not have class. I must say that I really missed it. But today it was back to normal. Chef Lori lectured on culinary math. Seeing as how I was a math major... But it's nice to know how to convert measurements. And then Chef Ron talked about different things to do to food before the cooking process even begins. The so called mise en place. (Ah, oui, it is something different in French class!) We also had our sanitation test and got our equipment kits today. I wasn't sure about a couple of the questions, but unless they demanded perfect scores to get the card, I'm sure I'll get my food handler's license. After class I went to the library to do homework and read about seafood and vegetables. I also noticed that there was an 'Advanced Professional Cooking' book, by the same person who wrote our text book.
Yesterday I also talked to an old professor about the restaurants run by Ming Tsai and Todd English. (Different restaurants.) I did not know that Todd English had one in Boston. The professor's research project is to check out those places. I regret to say that I cannot give him a research grant, however.... :-)

Well, it had to happen sometime.

Finally done with the sanitation lectures today, and I promise that if I ever own my own restaurant, I'll make it really, really clean. If I ever get to work for Ming Tsai, I think he'll be happy with me.
Got to play a culinary game at the end of class, because we were so good and finished up early. I'm sad to say that my side of the room was two points behind, but everyone made a good effort, and I was able to come up with two answers for my team. Vichyssoise and dolmades.
We've also had excellent attendence this first week, and if this keeps up through the year, we'll have an absolutely awesome class. I'm so excited for all of us!
We also did a good job of working together to put together tomorrow's lunch. I wasn't able to do quite as much because somehow I didn't get to play with the knives, but I shucked corn, helped to pull pork, back fruit salad, and mix up the pasta salad. I also did one tray of the chicken. So I had a hand in everything, literally... :-) And yes, I cleaned my hands obsessively.
I also cut myself, of all things, on the cover for the corn. Bah! It just wouldn't be the first day in the kitchen without a cut, eh? I have observed several people definitely knowing how to handle knives properly. Have a lot of catching up to do in that respect. But I have my own strengths, so I won't feel too bad. Patience.
Our knife kits arrived too late to be handed out, but we'll definitely get them next week. Can I just say that they are absolutely gorgeous!
If the year keeps up being like this week, we'll have a wonderful time.

I may never eat out again! :-)

Sometimes common sense isn't so common, eh? We flew through some more chapters about sanitation, and got a look at what kind of things should be rejected in receiving. Talked yet more about cleaning hands and so on. I may not have a major OCD about it, but I've always had the habit of cleaning my hands whenever I'm going near stuff that's going in my mouth. But I had to go out at lunch, and had the chance to sit at a spot where I could observe the workers. Granted, I haven't gotten sick, but for one thing, I noticed them not using gloves, and for another, they handled money without washing hands. They also took dirty plates in without washing hands. I shan't go on.
But now I also understand why it is at the buffets we really should get a new plate every time we go up to fill up on food. Never really thought about it before. I may not go to salad bars again either! :-)
We should be getting our equipment kits today. Wahoo!
There's a person taking notes in the back of the class on the computer for people who miss lectures. Boy, the people who miss class are missing so much. I don't think the jokes go in the notes. Notes of the day to self - gerbil, proctologist.
Went shopping later on in the day and got more white shirts. Also spent time in the library to do HW. Cooking methods, herbs and spices, and stocks and sauces. I'm glad to note that I'm relatively familiar with most of the spices. But I will have to work on the sauces. And thanks, AB.