Week 4: Dairy and Egg Purchasing and Identification | Dry Goods Identification

On Monday, we were presented with a large assortment of dairy products, including different milks and cheeses. We were asked to try and identify each, which I successfully failed at.

This shows some of the liquid dairy products. Skim, 1%, 2%, and even whole milk were used to torture our taste buds. Although a strange process, it was interesting to actually taste the difference in milks for the first time!

This shows some of the less pleasant milk products. This included cottage cheese and even goat cheese. It was great to be able to taste them and have a feel for how they can be prepared, however my mouth hated me afterwards.

I think that the thing that surprised me the most were the milk percentages. I had always thought that I couldn't taste the difference between 1% and 2% milk, however it was extremely noticeable on the table and in the tasting!

The Second day consisted of grains, my favorite day thus far. Chef cooked up a delicious Risotto, and our group made some spicy grits (see video below), which were simpler to make than expected!

Risotto is one of the greatest things of all time. What I loved about Chef's is that he used chicken stock instead of water. Since risotto takes in liquid and releases starch, this made it extra flavorful.

Behold: The ingredients for the magical risotto. I was surprised at the amount of butter and cheese used, but it was well worth it in the end.

Presentation truly is everything. Chef knows this, for he teaches us every step in cooking, from the recipe, to the finale on a plate.

I had no idea that grains like these became the way they are because they absorb the liquid around them and release the starch (if cooked properly, of course). I'm also relatively sure that I thought Risotto was a pasta before today... so we all learned something.

 

This video shows our spicy grits. Grits have a similar property to risotto, however have a different texture. Adding pepperjack cheese was just the right amount of extra pizzazz for this dish.

In previous weeks, Chef has mentioned that salt has a purpose when cooking. It affects your tongue in a way that it is more open to tastes and sensations and sends these signals to the brain, which is why adding salt and even cheese to these grain dishes COMPLETELY changed the overall taste of the dish. It brought out a saltier flavor but also enhanced the natural flavor of the dish itself.

Week 3: Fish & Shellfish | Fruit, Vegetable, and Fresh Herb

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Here is where the fun begins.

Day 1 of this week consisted of the preparation of a fresh salmon and mussels. We learned that a fresh salmon will have gills in tact, plump and shiny flesh, clear eyes, and flesh that bounces back when you touch it. I had no idea that you don't want to bend fish! This was my favorite day, however, because I would like to think of myself as a pro at filleting fish (Chef, don't quote me on that). Since I have been doing this since I was small in Montana, it was easy to follow along with the directions, such as following along the spine, angling the blade up, and cutting down to the skin to tear away the meat. The lobster and mussels were interesting to learn about, especially how you barely get any meat from the lobster. It seems like a hard animal to make profitable!

I chose the left picture because it is a great photo. But more than that, this shows how much of the Salmon we were able to use. Profitability plays a huge part in food preparation in the kitchen! It is important to use every part of the food that you have to ensure that you make the most money and are not wasteful! The picture on the right might have been from my theater class. Sorry.

Day 2 was focused primarily on fresh fruits, herbs, and vegetables. I loved the apple tasting, since I'm a bigger fan of apples than I am of sports. The different textures, smells, and raw taste from each apple was surprising! This day also made me realize that I need to be far more adventurous with my produce. We also had a taste test with the 5 basic tastes: sweet, salty, sour, bitter, and umami. Bitter tasted a bit too similar to vomit for my taste, however the sour was rather good! Brett seemed to think so, anyway. I think that he drank the entire cup. But we do not accept judgement in the kitchen.

Week 2: Equipment ID | Meat, Poultry, and Game

We certainly got thrown into the game this week. Day 1 was primarily equipment identification. We spent a majority of the time learning what each tool is (or can be) used for. I found it interesting that some knives were made specifically for filleting fish. I am positive that I have used a flexible salmon slicer on apples and peanut butter before. This is a secret you must keep.
Day 2 was "Meat" day, Micky's favorite. Not only did we get to eat delicious, freshly prepared angus beef, but we also learned about how to SAVE MONEY! (I'm trying to appeal to my college-kid audience here) We took a $300 cut of meat and used nearly every part for some sort of steak or dish. It is incredible to me that you can use every part of an animal and create a masterpiece. Chef even mentioned that you can make a "beef lard pie dough". Sign me up!

This happy fella here was our top chef of the day! We learned how to properly cook pieces of the angus beef, and learned a handy trick using your hand to tell how well cooked it is. After this, we seasoned the beef (from up high, of course).

This is the best picture. Partially because of Chef's face, however also in part due to the obvious weight of the meat. It was interesting to learn about all of the different pieces inside that you can use to your advantage.

Week 1: Warm Welcome

The first day of class could not have gone better! I am extremely excited for all that this course has to offer. Not only is it relevant to my own life (as an off-campus college junior microwaving Mac and Cheese every other day), but this will aid me in my future career as well, whatever that may be. To top it all off, I believe that Chef Mark's puns are going to be an "egg"cellent contribution to overall class enjoyment (I apologize to all of the pun-haters of the world). This week we learned how to make a hard boiled egg. I had two AHA! moments, one being that salt and vinegar do NOT in fact help the egg in any way. The other moment involves the purpose of the egg's shell. The shell insulates and protects the insides of the egg, which means that it is a wise idea to peel the egg BEFORE you put it in cold water! Who knew?

This picture shows our 'wise' decision to add vinegar to the egg before boiling it. This does not in fact help the egg to boil faster or make it easier to peel off the shell at the end. It does, however, create a new level of debt that I owe to Chef Mark for vinegar supply. Because I didn't have enough debt already.

Here is our baby just before the water began to boil! One way to hard boil an egg is to bring water to a boil with the egg inside, then take it off the heat. This worked for us, however we should have left it in about one minute longer!