January 17, 2012

Today was the first day of culinary class.  The resources in the kitchen that we have access to are amazing and I am looking very much forward to learning how to use them and actually work with them. 

Chef Vhynanek began teaching us about the basis for brown sauces and the difference between a white and brown sauce/stock.  I never really knew what the main difference was.  The basis for the brown sauce are roasted bones that are browned, hence giving the stock the brownish color, white sauces do not contain roasted bones.  Furthermore, I knew that to make a stock you need bones, celery, onion, and carrots.  I was unaware of the 50% onion, 25% carrot, 25% celery ration as well as the type of bones that are preferred in stock.  Veal knuckles and cow necks (we received bone marrow bones instead of neck which usually contains more meat).

Overall a great day, a lot of learning and I am looking forward to working with the seven other students and the Chefs!

January 18, 2012

Stock day! We tackled chicken stock, fish stock, brown stock, and court bouillon. Today I took on the role of Sue Chef for my team.  I know how to follow recipes one at a time, but understanding how to manage time, assign tasks and to make sure everything was getting done was a new concept for me.  Instead of dicing carrots, celery and onions for the chicken stock, I assigned Kim to cut all the onions for the stocks, Franklin to dice the celery and to chop the chicken and fish and Sarah to make the sachets.  At times, we all had to pick up where someone left off if they needed to skim the stock or cut and clean the fish.  It was a stressful day since I usually am a planner and like to organize what needs to be done.  Being thrown into managing without having time to really plan, exposed me how to think on my feet and really work as a team.  Even though we were broken up into two groups, we all acted together to make the cooking process as seamless and timely as possible. 

Tasting, Smelling, Feeling the stocks – comparing them to each other.

January 19, 2012

Today, we finally finished a few dishes - SOUPS.  The process of making soups can range from easy to the most intense and time-consuming procedures. Making the beef consommé was eye opening to the possibilities out there to infuse flavors into liquids.  The broccoli soup also was time consuming and making the roux and veloute needed patience and needed to be perfect.  The numerous steps, procedures and ingredients that all go into some recipes are truly amazing.  I knew some recipes were difficult and involve many steps, but I never really practiced any of these types of recipes before.  This class is exposing me to not only the traditional French practices but also the skills, the numerous layers of flavors and the time and effort needed in every step to produce something amazing.  Furthermore, this class is giving me the opportunity to explore these recipes that I would have normally skipped over. Oh and salting is important!  I got perfects today on flavor and seasoning!

January 23, 2012

Poultry lesson.  We learned how to bone a chicken, take it apart, saute it roast it, bake it, and braise it.  The Chef’s teaching style was very different than Chef V.  He engaged more by walking around the room and checking on everyone’s dishes.  I have roasted, braised, sauteed and baked chicken before, but to really understand the purpose for each technique was fascinating.  Each part of the chicken was used in varying ways, each giving its unique flavors to the dish. We made chicken breasts in white wine, shallot, thyme and mushroom sauce. We used the carcasses to make chicken stock, which we used in the chicken mushroom dish.  My partner, Sarah and I roasted our chicken using lemon, onion, salt, pepper, and thyme.  The chicken thighs were braised in a tomato, chipotle and "darkened onion and garlic" sauce.  The thighs were served with homemade corn (masa) tortillas - so simple to make!
masa + hot water = play dough roll into circle, cook in hot cast iron skillet.  The tacos were served with sour cream, cilantro and cabbage.  Yummy!

Few pointers learned 
- start cooking meat at room temp.
-chicken must be 165 degrees to be cooked
- Never stuff a bird - bacteria !! because the stuffing also has to reach 165, but then your bird dries out - boo
- feel for the joints when cutting up the chicken