Stocks to Stock

With recent market conditions and a week off from class, I have taken a bit of a hiatus from the regular posts. However, it looks like the market might have finally hit bottom and class resumes tomorrow so I'm going to catch up on last class and gear up for some action packed cooking this week.

Last class we learned the "mixte" technique which combines elements of both concentration and extraction of flavor. We made two dishes - the first was "Navarin printantier" or "Lamb with Spring Vegetables." Not only was this relatively easy but utilized only a few ingredients making it ideal for home cooking. We started with a hot pot and coated the bottom with olive oil. Once the oil gave off a light smoke, we seared cubed lamb shoulder and mirapoix (separately). After adding flour and tomato paste we deglazed the pan with water and stock. We covered the meat and vegetables in cooking liquid and let simmer with a bouquet garni that included a bit of orange zest. Chef taught us a little trick about making stews to ensure you have nice, properly cooked vegetables instead of overdone soggy mush. Cook the vegetables separately! So while the stew cooked we turned a ton of vegetables into little footballs and cooked them separately. Then when the stew was done, we removed the meat, strained the cooking liquid (and soggy vegetables) and added the meat and freshly cooked vegetables back into the sauce. The result was a lovely, flavorful stew with perfectly cooked vegetables.

After the lamb stew we quartered a chicken for "Fricassee de volaille printaniere" or "Chicken Fricasse." Since my partner missed the chicken lesson, we both got a repeat demonstration of the process which was great because there are so many little tricks. We started by searing the chicken in butter without allowing the chicken to brown. We removed the chicken from the pan and added chopped onions. The onions cooked until translucent and we added flour to act as the thickening agent for the sauce. After cooking the flour for about 2 minutes we added chicken stock while whisking to prevent lumps. At this point the sauce is called a veloute. We put the chicken back in the sauce and simmered for about 30 minutes until the chicken was cooked. To serve, we strained the sauce, added heavy cream and reduced. At the last minute, we added vegetables (turned into footballs at the same time as the vegetables for the lamb) and the chicken back into the sauce. The final addition of lemon juice and parsley made this dish really amazing. I could see this covered in puff pastry as a "chicken pot pie."

Regrettably, I arrived about an hour and a half late to class after squeezing in a doctor's appointment. My partner is back at class but seeing as I was late - teamed up with another partner-less victim for the night. We worked as a three-some to create some excellent dishes. When I arrived they had already started the veal stew so I got to work on prepping potatoes to make frites for our Steak & Frites dinner. Ken seasoned and grilled the steaks while I cranked up the frier and Leah made an amazing sauce choron. The sauce consisted of a hollondaise sauce made with bernaise reduction and tomato fondue. It created a balance of acid and butter perfect for the steak.

After recovering from a minor food coma, we started the rice pilaf to go with the "Blanquette de veau a l'ancienne" (veal stew in white sauce) and the mushroom and pearl onion garniture. I got the rice pilaf going by sweating onions in butter and mixing in 1 part rice to 1.5 parts chicken stock. The rice was then covered and put in the oven for 20 minutes. Talk about hands off cooking! After the mushrooms and onions had been cooked, Ken started the sauce for the veal stew. This was the poaching liquid thickened with a roux and heavy cream and seasoned to taste. At the end we mixed the veal, mushrooms and onions into the sauce and plated with the rice pilaf for a lovely, rich winter dish.

We're almost halfway through the semester and for me, this class marks the point where we get into some serious cooking. We started the class by learning to french and truss a chicken. Not terribly difficult, but not the easiest thing either. The first thing you do is remove the wish bone in one piece. (easier said than done as you have to wiggle it out with your fingers) This will allow you to remove the breast with great ease either before or after cooking. We also removed the wings and cleaned the end of the chicken's feet by removing some tendons and pushing back the skin.

Each team started with 2 chickens, one we trussed and one we quartered. Trussing results in a chicken shaped neatly like a football which will ensure even cooking and easy handling. Quartering requires one to locate and pop joints before using a boning knife to cut through cartilage. Not the prettiest process but the results are great and maximizes the use of the chicken.

The first dish we made was poulet roti grandmere which to put simply was roast chicken. This was dinner for the evening. We also made a garniture of potatoes, pearl onions and mushrooms and a simple jus de roti. The dish started by searing each side of the chicken on the stove top and then finishing in the oven on a bed of carrot, onion and chicken bones (left over from the quartered chicken we prepped). While the chicken cooked in the oven we made the garniture - all of which were things we had made in the first two classes. The only trick was remembering how we did it! When the chicken came out of the oven, we set it aside to rest and used the vegetables and chicken bones to make an enriched stock for the jus de roti. Once each element was done we flashed it in the oven and ate for dinner!

The second dish was my favorite. We seared the quartered chicken (skin side down) on the stove and finished in the oven. While the chicken cooked, we made sauce chasseur which is one of the sauces we made on sauce day. It is a pretty simple sauce of mushrooms, shallots, brandy, wine, stock and tomato. We finished the dish on a plate and I took it home for lunch the next day. This is one of the most valuable dishes we have learned as I feel like I can make this over and over again at home.

At the end of class the chef quizzed us on a lot of material we have learned throughout the class. I think we were all pretty impressed to realize how much material we have covered and retained.

Pomme frites, pommes puree, pommes duchesse, and gratin dauphinois - we made it all! To start the class, the chef demonstrated using the mandoline to create various different cuts of potatoes. We then fried the potatoes using a few different methods at different temperatures. This class resulted in more cuts from the mandoline and burns from the frier than I care to think about. The smaller cuts of potatoes were fried once at a higher temperature and the larger cuts were fried twice, once at a low temperature and then again at a higher temperature to ensure the potato cooked all the way through. The results were delicious.

We also made a hash brown like potato pie using seasoned shoe string cut potatoes. I think this would be excellent if stuffed with cheese and bacon. It was really easy to make - simply brown in a pan on one side, flip and finish in the oven. I see this dish making an appearance at brunch in the near future.

The best part of class was the potato gratin dauphinois. We cooked thinly sliced potatoes in cream seasoned with salt, pepper and nutmeg before finishing in individual ramekins with Gruyere cheese. High in calories and satisfaction. I ate this for dinner with some chicken from the prepared meal. Honestly though, by the time dinner came I was pretty full on potato.

The final dish we made was mashed potatoes. These were pretty easy and filled with butter and cream. We piped them onto a tray and browned in the oven. This creates a lovely outer crust and warm fluffy inside.

At the end of class the chef demonstrated how we could make some other dishes including potato croquettes and pommes soufflees. The pommes soufflees are triple fried potatoes that expand into a blown out potato chip. It's a very impressive and difficult technique that is often then stuffed with a filling and served as a side dish. Our assistant chef (Mark) showed us a garnish he used to make at Per Se which was a beautiful chip with a piece of parsley inside. It didn't seem difficult to make but incredibly time consuming. After this class though, I think I'll lay off the potatoes for a while. Maybe with the exception of the gratin.