That's it, that's all...

Well this culinary adventure started about a month ago, and I'm sitting here in disbelief in how it's actually over, how quickly it passed, how hard it was, how many cuts my hands have suffered, and how I'm going to miss my classmates, most of whom are now returning to their regularly scheduled lives.  Two are continuing on to Intermediate and some said they would return for their graduation from Superior.

The Basic Cuisine Intensive course started with twelve students.  Quickly, one of them transferred over to Pastry, and two dropped out before the final.  Of the nine of us who attempted the final exam, only eight passed.  It was heart-breaking to hear this morning that one of us got a 48% on the final exam, and thus wouldn't graduate.  I believe it is possible for him to challenge the results, but doubtful it will make a difference.  He worked so hard, but I think a large part of it for him was the language barrier.  He really deserved to pass, but he really fucked up his Bernaise sauce.  Rough deal.  I guess they weren't kidding on the first day of classes when they said that the Ottawa school is known to be the hardest and they actually do fail students.  As an aside, at the Superior level, two sessions ago, only 6 of 10 students passed.  Yikes!

My final dish was certainly not my best, but it was my best effort given the stress levels involved.  I got an 8/10 on the Bon D'economat (shocking!) and above a 3/5 on my veal chops, so it's as good as I could reasonably expect and in line with what I was doing during the regular session.  Most people do 20% worse than a regular practical, but if that had happened, I would have been perilously close to failing.

Graduation was a non-event really.  They briefly introduced the school staff, and then handed out the certificates, a bronze pin (which I will cherish even more than my ITIL foundation pin -GEEK JOKE-), and a class photo.  Chef Benoit handed me mine, shook my hand, and asked me if I was continuing, and I said "Unfortunately, I have to return to my real life." and he looked disappointed but we both laughed.  The later stages are definitely interesting, including butchery of a lamb, advanced plating, costing, etc. but I'm not sure if my story includes me devoting 6 more months of my life towards this hobby.

Last night, most of us went out for drinks, and I asked my classmates two questions:  What did you learn?  If you knew how it would actually be, would you have done it?

Some answers to the first question were:
- Lots about sauces
- Different cooking methods
- How to cook different kinds of meats
- Knife skills

The answer to the second question was a universal YES.  Some people talked about the opportunity cost and financial cost (you can definitely do a lot with the tuition and 5 weeks of holidays) but all said it was a wonderful experience that they are glad they did.

What I learned can be summarized in classical French style cutting and turning vegetables.  Take the time to do something right, because people take way too many short cuts in life.  At the end of the day, there is a right way to do something, and a wrong way.. and often people are in too much of a rush to do things properly.  Also, with proper practice, technique gets really good and fast.. (Chef Benoit and Chef Gilles can turn carrots in under 10 seconds, whereas it still takes me closer to 90).

Thanks for reading, hope you've enjoyed the ride.

Point final.
-THC

Now we wait...

Quick update:  I just finished my final exam... For the written portion, I had to write a Bon D'economat for the Civet de Lapin a la Francaise, and I completely forgot that there was pasta there.  Other than that, I hit most of the ingredients, if not the amounts so I'm happy with that.  For the practical portion I had Côte de veau à la crème, petits pois à la française with one starch and that went actually quite well, even though it was super busy.  My sauce was thickened a bit too much, but it was absolutely delicious.  I hope my meat was cooked, and I think my peas turned out well even though I over cooked my lardons.  Oh and I managed to turn 9 potatoes.  I used every minute of the 2:30 and hopefully I passed.  They will let me know by the end of the day if I did not, as you cannot attend graduation if you don't pass.  It looks like only seven of us will be attending graduation, two people have early morning flights tomorrow so won't be able to make it.

Overall, I feel good. I messed up a couple of things, but it was definitely edible and I did my best.

It doesn't seem fair to have to wait around for a phone call, so I'm not!  Going out drinking with my classmates instead!

Keep your fingers crossed for me!
-THC

Breakfast of Champions...

Spent a restless night thinking about the exam.  Finally rolled out of bed around 5:30am, and took a shower.

Right now I'm eating my usual pre-competition meal of instant oatmeal.  In the words of one of my best friends "gotta have oatmeal, that sticks to your bones!"  Also having a coffee and some scrambled eggs.

I feel pretty Zen about the whole situation.  I've done as much as I was willing to invest energy wise into this challenge, I have managed to write a blog for pretty much a month straight so I'm on top of things.  No I didn't do an all-nighter trying to memorize if it uses 10ml of olive oil or 20ml.  And right now I don't care.  5 hours from now it'll be all over!   Wooohoooooooo.

I'll do a post-mortem afterwards and (hopefully) talk about graduation tomorrow.

Stay Classy!
-THC

Class is done.. D-day tomorrow.

Today was the last day of classes.  I'm actually a bit bummed but gonna be really glad 24 hours from now when my exam is done.  We had lesson 30, which was lamb tenderloin cooked in a salt crust, and also an apple donut thing.  I was super tired, so I skipped out on the practical because there were a lot of knife work involved, and I had cut myself first thing in the morning grabbing something out of my bag so I didn't want to chance it.  Besides, it wasn't an exam dish, or marked for that matter.  Of the 9 people, only 6 people did this last practical.  After the demo, we had the course evaluation, as well as drawing for the order.  I drew an A, so I'll be the first one entering the kitchen, which is a bit unnerving since there will be 3 Chefs watching us, and only two of us for the first ten minutes.  After that, every ten minutes, another two people come in.

Anyway I'd better study some more... stupid Bon D'economat and memorizing recipes.  Stupid.

REVIEW: Côte de veau à la crème, petits pois à la française

Lesson 29
Côte de veau à la crème, petits pois à la française with one starch

Ingredients List
2 pcs cotes de veau/veal chops
50g beurre/butter
25ml huile vegetale/vegetable oil
25g farine/flour
==Garniture/Garnish==
400g petits pois/peas
50g poitrine de porc fumee/smoked bacon
0.25 pc laitue Boston/Boston lettuce
50g oignons grelots/pearl onions
==Sauce/Sauce==
50ml vin blanc de cuisson/white cooking wine
150g champignons/mushrooms
50ml fond de veau/veal stock
250ml creme/cream
==Finition/To Finish==
sucre/sugarpoivre blanc, 
moulu/white pepper, 
groundsel/ salt


Cooking method: Saute


Debone the veal chop, and tie it up.  Using the extra bones, saisir them, then add the parures from the pearl onions, and also the mushrooms which are peeled and then cut into halves and then at an angle.  Add veal stock and reduce.  Saute the veal chop about 10-15 mins per side in hot oil or butter, make sure to arosser the meat, and give it time to rest after it's done cooking.  Can fariner if you wish.


For the Peas, cut bacon into lardon, and then fry them.  Degrease pan a bit, and cook onions.  Add peas and then add sugar, salt and butter and enough water to be just below peas.  To finish add some lettuce finely chopped to be wilted.


For the sauce, in a separate pan, saute mushrooms in butter.  Deglaze the veal chop pan with white wine, and then add the cream.  Add the veal stock that has been simmering for an hour and passed through a chinois to the cream, adjusting for colour.  Add mushrooms at end.


Suggested starch is potatoes a L'anglaise, lustre with butter.


Comments:  Difficulty is deboning the veal chop, which is same as the beef rib and pork chop.  Rest is just prep work and timing.

And then there were 9...

It was a real downer today when one of the students showed up around lunch and told us that he wouldn't be doing the last few lessons and won't be doing the final, and therefore won't be graduating with us.  He was the oldest guy in the group and we went out for drinks after class a couple of times.  Really nice guy, but he said that he got what he wanted out of the course, so I'm happy for him.  Just kind of hard to say good bye like this.  I told him I really respect him for trying this at his age (my guess is he's in his mid 60s) and I hope I have his energy when I'm older.

The day started with Practical #028, and Chef Christopher from the Production Kitchen.  Chef Benoit showed up about half way through the lesson and took over.  Chef Christopher kept on trying to get me to move faster, but I knew I had plenty of time so I was trying to make everything perfect in terms of my vegetable cuts, and making sure my bird was tied properly, etc.  The dish came out okay.. I kinda burnt one side of the canape and my meat filing was way too dry, but my poultry was perfectly cooked and sauce was a bit thick (since it should have been a jus) but the taste was good, ...  and my potatoes were soggy because i didn't cook them long enough, but my julienne were perfect.  It was passable and since it wasn't an exam dish, I don't really care.

Lesson #029 was Fritots de ris de veau, sauce tartare, persil frit (sweetbreads deep fried, tartar sauce and fried parsley), Cotes de veau a la creme, petits pois a la Francaise (Veal chops with peas French style) and Pets de nonne (deep fried pastry).  The pastry is funny because it translates to "nun's farts" and that's the sound they make as they are cooked and deflate.  I have no idea why you would fry parsley.  Sweetbreads breaded are still gross.

Practical #029 was the Veal chops and went very well.  My only major problem was with the sauce, which I didn't thicken enough but taste was good.  My meat was cooked well, my peas were perfect and so I was happy with the dish.  Another 15 minutes and my sauce would have been reduced to the proper consistency, but Chef Benoit made us serve after 2 hours instead of 2:30 so it was okay.

Tomorrow is the very last day of classes, and lesson 30, which is not an exam dish but I'll go anyway.  Probably be a better idea to stay home and study all day, but I'd probably just end up playing with my new iPod touch which has been severely underutilized.

REVIEW: Mignons de porc Arlonnaise

Lesson 27
Mignons de porc arlonnaise
Ingredients List
1 pc filet de porc/pork tenderloin
20ml huile/oil
sel et poivre/salt and pepper
== Julienne de legumes/Julienne of vegetables==
100g carottes/carrots
100g poireaux/leeks
100g navets/turnips
100g champignons/mushrooms
40g beurre/butter
sel/salt
==Sauce/Sauce==
20g sucre/sugar
40g vinaigre de vin rouge/red wine vinegar
150ml biere blonde/blond beer
200g demi-glace
80g beurre/butter
==Pommes anglaises/Boiled potatoes==
6 pcs pommes de terre/potatoes

Cooking method: Saute


Dry the meat and trim any fat or nerves off.  Tie meat with string by looping around, and underneath.  Then tie sections at approximately every 1.5 inches.   Pat meat dry again and season with salt and pepper.  Cook in hot oil browning each side and arosser with the oil.  Remove meat to a rack and degrease pan.


Julienne carrots, turnips, leeks.  Cut mushroom caps and only use white parts (roughly julienne).  Etuver each of them separately in butter, salt and a little bit of water.


Cook extras for the sauce in hot oil.  Remove meats, add sugar and cook to caramel colour.  Add red wine vinegar, reduce to a syrup, and then add beer.  Reduce again.  Add veal stock, and reduce.  Add to pan used to cook meat and deglaze.  Adjust taste with extra beer, red wine vinegar or sugar.


Turn potatoes a L'Anglaise from cold water with coarse salt.  Lustre with butter to finish.


Comments:  Kinda difficult to tie the meat.  Be careful with the Julienne, must be perfect since this isn't that complicated.  The sauce is difficult to get perfect taste... be prepared to have to change some tastes at the end.  The meat needs to be pretty much golden on all sides in order to be done.  Don't forget to let it rest.. may need to make a loose tinfoil lid.


Tools required:  Chef Knife, scissors, spatula, spoon, tongs, paring knife, peeler, turning knife, brush

Well.. that was interesting...

Today all our lessons were taught by Chef Gilles.  Yikes!

Demo #027 was Creme Dubarry (Cream of Cauliflower soup), Mignon de porc Arlonnaise (pork tenderloin in beer sauce) and Profiteroles glacees, sauce chocolat.  The pork tenderloin was the practical, so I'll talk about the other two.  The cauliflower soup had almost zero taste to it.. it basically tasted like cream, salt and pepper.  There may have been subtle hints of cauliflower but maybe my palette is refined enough to taste it.  The Profiteroles are this pastry that is frozen and then filled with this frozen creme anglaise and then smothered with chocolate sauce.  Very tasty!

Practical #027 went very smoothly.  The english tranlsation on the recipe was "Pork tenderloin with sweet and sour beer sauce, Julienne of vegetables".  Since it's an exam dish, I'll describe the recipe in a REVIEW post.. but I didn't have any major problems with this.  My julienne were standard size, and sauce came out just a little bit not acidic enough, but the tenderloin was cooked perfectly.  I asked for a 2h15m serving time and was ready as needed.  Could have been done sooner, but people are starting to hoard the bowls and monopolize the small pots.  It's frustrating... during the finals, I hope people aren't going to do this.

Demo #028 didn't have an exam dish, so I found my mind wandering.  It's getting harder and harder to pay attention to anything that isn't going to be on the exam.  The dishes were Gaspacho (cold vegetable soup that you make in a blender), Pintadeau roti sur capage avec pommes paille (small roasted poultry with deep fried straw cut fries), and Gateau de Savoie.  Maybe Chef Gilles was tired, but he severely undercooked the poultry and used an electric mixer!!!  We ended up getting out at 6pm, so who am I to complain?  It looked nice on presentation.  Tomorrow morning we have to do the poultry for practical #028.  But again, it's not an exam dish, so I won't be too stressed.  I should go study now.

Stay classy!
-THC

One more week....

So I spent the weekend going over my course notes and writing up the entries on the exam recipes.  It's "get 'er done" time, and the scariest thing is that one week from today, I'll be back at my real job!  The past month has flown by so fast I can hardly breathe.  I really should have taken next week off, and compounded with Thanksgiving, I woulda had an extra 8 days off.. but I was already pushing it with work taking 5 weeks off straight.  <insert mandatory butt-kissing here> Thanks boss!!! <end>

Saturday night I went out for Chinese with a classmate and work colleague.  We actually ordered ONLY vegetarian dishes, which is completely unlike me.  For one or two weeks after, I am going to have to detox with some heavy-duty salad eating.  I've had more different meat than in the last 5 years.  Veal (and knuckle), beef (and knuckle), chicken, duck, fowl, rabbit, frog legs, various fish, lobster, shrimps, scallops.  All smothered in some sort of butter, cream and veal stock!

Being the keener that I am, I looked ahead to lessons 27-30, and I'm confident that I could do them right now, without watching the demo.  Even flipping through the earlier lessons, where during the demonstration the Chef did some crazy dishes that will be done in intermediate... I understand at least conceptually how they are to be cooked.  The basic techniques have been hammered into my brain: emincer, ciseler, saisir, raidir, rotir, frire, emonder, epepiner, concasser, hacher, pocher, braiser, nacrer, etc. It's just a matter of getting my body to do them.  My knife technique has improved, but it's going to require a lot more practice (which may or may not happen).  I also understand the cooking theory of concentration, expansion and mixte.  So this big blur has left it's mark (or scar) on me already.

So today is double demo day, with lessons 27 and 28.  Which means tomorrow is the final double practical day... Lesson 30 on Wednesday is a non-exam dish I believe.

REVIEW: Civet de lapin à la française

Lesson 26
Civet de lapin à la française
Ingredients List
1 pc lapin/rabbit
==Marinade/Marinade==
1 pc carotte/carrot
0.5 pc celeri (branche)/celery (branch)
1 pc oignon/onion
1 pc bouqet garni/bouqet garni
0.5L vin rouge/red wine
3g poivre noir entier/black peppercorns
==Cuisson/To Cook==
30g farine/flour
30ml cognac/cognac
200ml fond de veau/veal stock
2 pcs gousses d'ail/cloves of garlic
==Garniture/Garnish==
100g poitrine de porc fumee/smoked bacon
150g champignons/mushrooms
150g oignons grelots/pearl onons
sel et poivre/salt and pepper
50g beurre/butter
2 pcs pain de mie en tranches/sliced white bread
2 brs persil/parsley
==Pates fraiches/Fresh pasta==
250g farine/flour
5g sel/salt
10ml huilde d'olive/olive oil
2 pcs oeufs/eggs
10ml eau/water


Cooking method: Braiser


Prepare marinade.  Huge bowl, red wine, mirepoix: carrots, onions, celery.  Black peppercorns. Get Bouqet Garni and garlic ready. 


Cut rabbit into 16 pieces.  For the ribs, put in the freezer, for a couple minutes, and then chop in a straight line.  Should be able to pull them back very easily by squeezing down.  As you cut up each piece, put in marinade.  (Ideally would be marinated for 24 hours)


Pasta dough.  Make a fountain with flour, and then add rest of ingredients and incorporate.  Make into a ball, cover with plastic, and put in the fridge to let rest as long as possible.  Roll out as thing as possible, the cut into square.  Dust flour liberally, and then fold in half.  Dust exposed side again, then repeat.  Then cut into small fettucine sized pastas


Remove meat from marinade and dry well, saisir.  Pass marinade through chinois to get the veg, and then boil the marinade and ecumer.   Remove meat and then saisir the G.A., singer and deglacer with cognac.  Add meat, red wine, and some veal stock.  Reduce veal stock on the side.  Add B.G. and garlic.  Bring to a boil, add coarse salt, bay leafs.  375 for 45-60 mins.


Garniture.  Pearl onions glacer a brun (sugar, salt, butter, water, paper hat).  Peel mushrooms, cut into quarters, saute in butter.  Make hearts with the bread and saute in butter.  Cut and saute lardons.


Remove meat from cocotte.  Pass sauce through chinois and reduce.  Add reduced veal stock if necessary.  Hache parsley.  Incorporate saute musrhrooms and lardons.  Plate with pearl onions, hearts and parsley.


Comment: This is a speed dish and is probably the hardest dish in Basic cuisine.  Debone your rabbit as soon as possible.  Marinate as you go along.  As soon as you are done your pasta dough, start saisir of rabbit and get it into the oven as quickly as possible.  Work on the garniture, and then do the pasta last.


Tools required:  Chef Knife, scissors, spatula, spoon, tongs, peeler, paring knife, brush.

REVIEW: Côtes de porc charcutière, pomme puree

Lesson 25
Côtes de porc charcutière, pomme purée
Ingredients List
2 pcs cotes de porc/pork chops
sel et poivre/salt and pepper
25ml huile/oil
==Pommes puree/Mashed potatoes==
650g pommes de terre/potatoes
250g lait/milk
50g beurre/butter
sel et poivre/salt and pepper
==Sauce/Sauce==
1 pc oignon/onion
100ml vin blanc/white wine
100ml fond brun de veau lie/thickened brown veal stock
10g moutarde de Dijon/Dijon mustard
15g cornichons/pickles
15g beurre/butter
2 brs persil/parsley


Cooking Method: Saute


Prepare Pork chops.  Use excess to make sauce.  Saisir extra bones.  Degrease.  Suer onions, and then add half of the white wine.  Reduce by half.  Add bay leaf and veal stock, pickle parures.  Ecumer and reduce for about an hour.  Add dijon and Montee au beurre to finish.  Cannot boil once dijon is in, or else will become clumby.


Peel and cut potato into 1 inch chunks.  From cold water with coarse salt, bring to a boil and simmer for about 30-40 minutes.  In pan, heat milk and butter, adding salt and pepper.  When potatoes are done, pass through a food mill and then fold in the heated milk and butter.  Cover with plastic and put in bain marie.


Dry pork chops, and season.  Heat oil.  Sasir and arosser.  Approx. 10 mins per side.  When done, deglacer with rest of white wine, and add sauce, and julienne of pickles.  Don't forget the papilotte.


Comments:  Biggest challenge is the deboning of pork ... similar to beef rib.  Machonner the bones, etc.


Tools required:  Chef Knife, scissors, spatula, spoon, tongs, peeler, paring knife, brush.

REVIEW: Osso-bucco piétmontaise

Lesson 24


Osso-bucco piétmontaise With one starch


Ingredients List
2 pcs jarrets de veau/veal knuckles
20g beurre/butter
10ml huile/oil
0.5 pc carotte/carrot
0.5 pc celeri (branche)/celery (branch)
0.5 pc oignon/onion
1 pc gousse d'ail/clove of garlic
1 pc tomate/tomato
20g farine/flour
150ml vin blanc/white wine
350ml fond de veau/veal stock
sel et poivre/salt and pepper
==Garniture/Garnish==
3 brs persil/parsley
0.5 pc orange, zestes/orange, peel
0.5 pc carotte/carrot
0.5 pc oignon/onion
100g tomates concassees/crushed tomatoes
10g butter


Cooking method: Braiser


Trim extra fat from meat.  Tie string twice around the veal.  Fariner (thin layer of flour over the meat).  Saisir in butter and oil in cocotte.  Baste with oil.  Mirepoix for carrot, celery and onion.  Remove meat, and add G.A. and tomatoes..  Singer and deglacer with white wine.  Add veal stock to cover G.A. and put meat on top.  Bring to boil and ecumer.  350 for 45 mins.


Make brunoise with carrots, onions, orange peel, saving best orange julienne for garnish (remember to blanchir).  Suer in butter.


In separate pot, high temp, cook the tomatoes.  To be used to make quenelles.


Remove meat from cocotte, strain sauce through chinois, add extra veal sauce if necessary.  Bring to a boil and ecumer.   Pour this sauce over the brunoise veg.  Plating, sauce goes over the meat.  Use spoons to make tomato cones.  Orange zest on top.  Sprinkle hache parsley on top and parsley leaves between tomatoes.


One extra veg:  Potatoes a L'anglaise.. Lustre with melted butter.


Comments:  This is not particularly hard, but they will be VERY picky with the veg cuts, so be careful.


Tools required:  Chef Knife, scissors, spatula, spoon, tongs, peeler, paring knife, brush.

REVIEW: Poulet sauté chasseur

Lesson 22
Poulet sauté chasseur



Ingredients List


1 pc poulet/chicken
50ml huile/oil
sel et poivre/salt and pepper
30ml cognac/cognac
==Garniture/Garnish==
50g beurre/butter
250g champignons/mushrooms
2 pcs echalotes/shallots
200g tomates/tomatoes
==Sauce/Sauce==
20g farine/flour
30g tomates concentrees/tomato paste
100ml vin blanc/white wine
250ml fond brun de veau/brown veal stock
1 pc bouquet garni/bouquet garni
1 pc gousse d'ail/clove of garlic
1 br persil/parsley
1 br estragon/tarragon
1 br cerfeuil/chevril
sel/salt


Cooking method: Saute


Break the chicken down into four pieces.  Habiller and remove the wishbone.  Starting with the chicken thing, cut off towards the spine, making sure you get the solylaise by scooping underneath.  Bend back the articulation, and a bone will pop out.  Cut around the articulation.  cut off the ribs and spine.    Carve the bones until only 3 bones left in Chicken breast.  The chicken thigh can be broken down to only the non-drumstick bone.  Manchonner the bones. Dry meat well.


Make sauce with extra chicken parts.  Chop up and dry well.  Saisir, remove chicken parts and drain well.  Pincer tomato paste.  Put chicken parts back in, Singer with flour.  White wine to deglace.  Add veal stock, and any peelings fromt he garniture.  Add bouqet garni and garlic to the sauce last.


Ciseler shallots, mushrooms should be cut into quarters.  Saisir the mushrooms, and then suer the shallots.  Add the tomato concasse last.  Salt to taste.


Season the chicken and saute in large pan in olive oil.  When cooked, remove chicken and oil, deglacer with cognac.  Pass sauce through chinois onto large pan.  Reduce.  Add hache taragon and parsley at the last minute.

Serve with sauce on bottom of serving tray.  Chicken on top, Lustre.  Don't forget papilottes for the legs.

Comment:  Lots of different techniques and small details, for example the papilotte.

Tools required:  Deboning knife, Chef Knife, scissors, spatula, spoon, tongs, peeler, paring knife, brush.

REVIEW: Filet de rouget à l’anis

Lesson 21

Filet de rouget à l’anis with one starch and one root vegetables

Ingredients List

1 pc rouget/red snapper

1 pc citron/lemon

sel et poivre/salt and pepper

==Garniture/Garnish==

1 pc fenouil/fennel

50g beurre/butter

50m pastis/pastis

3 pcs anis eotile/star anis

50ml fumet de poisson/fish stock

sel et poivre/salt and pepper

==Sauce/Sauce/==

poudre de curry/curry powder

100g beurre/butter

Cooking method: Poeller

Prepare snapper into two filets.  Using the extra bones, make a fish fumet.  Cook the bones with butter, low heat, shallots, white wine. add water and mouiller a hauter with bouqet garni.  Simmer 20-30 mins.

Cut up fennel.  Leaves can be saved for presentation.  Cook fennel in butter until translucent, deglacer with pastils.  Add some fish stock, and anis.  Cover with paper lid and steel lid, 375.

Put cooked fennel in oval shaped dish and add more fish fumet.  Season fish and add lemon juice.  Put on top with red skin side up.  No lid required, put in oven @ 350 for about 10 mins.

Remove the cooking liquid, montee au beurre with cold butter, which as quickly as possible.  Add pinch of curry powder for colour.

Comment:  Hardest part of this dish is the de-boning of the snapper.  Rest is not too bad.  Potatoes a L'anglaise and carrots glacer a blanc.

Tools required:  Deboning knife, Chef Knife, scissors, spatula, spoon, tongs, peeler, whisk, paring knife, brush, pincer.

-

Prepare Fish

Very similar to Salmon.  Cut along top following the spine, cut around head, scrape along bones. Be careful to remove bones with pincer.

REVIEW: Petite marmites Henry IV

Lesson 19


Petite marmite Henry IV


Ingredients List


0.5 pc poulet/chicken
1 pc jarret de boeuf/beef knuckle
1 pc jarret de veau/veal knuckle
2L fond blanc de volaille/chicken stock
==Garniture/Garnish==
300g carottes/carrots
150g navets/turnips
150g haricots verts/green beans
1 pc coeur de celeri/celery heart
1 pc poireau/leek
==Accompagnement/To accompany==
0.5 pc pain francais/French bread
75g cornichons/pickles
50g moutarde de Dijon/Dijon mustard
50g fromage Gruyere/Gruyere cheese
50g gros sel/coarse salt
==Sauce caultative/Optional sauce==
15g roux blanc/white roux
0.5 pc citron, jus/lemon, juice
100ml creme/cream


Cooking method: Pocher


Chicken:  Wipe down and habiller the chicken.  Making sure to remove the wishbone.  Pour 3/4 stock over beef knuckle.  Bring to a slow boil.  Turn carrots, peel celery.  Cut leeks and tie like a B.G. and put in liquid.  Add veal knuckle.  Ecumer constantly.  Remove knuckles and add chicken and rest of stock.  Put knuckles back in.


Plate with: coarse salt, mustard, pickles, gruyere cheese, toasted bread slices.


Optional sauce. Make a roux, use the liquid, and thicken to a veloute.  Add cream and touch of lemon juice.


Presentation: Cut a piece of dark and white chicken.  Slice pork and veal knuckle.  Cut up veg, and also add green beans cuit a L'anglaise.  Pour liquid on top of dish


Comments:  This is one of the most bland recipes we ever made.  The knuckles are supposed to help clarify the chicken stock.


Tools required:  Deboning knife, Chef Knife, scissors, spatula, spoon, tongs, peeler, whisk, paring knife, turning knife