Knife and Whisk

On Writing Recipes

2010-09-15T10:28:00.004-04:00

The history of written culinary recipes has always fascinated me. It's been a great treat to be taking a series of lectures from Joe Carlin, who among other credits, is the associate editor of the massive Oxford Encyclopedia of Food and Drink in America.

Reviewing the technical details and writing styles of recipes from several historical cookbooks, such as Hannah Glasse's The Art of Cookery Made Plain and Simple (1747), Joe showed us how the written recipe has evolved and made several points about contemporary recipe writing which are relevant to Knife and Whisk.

Contemporary publishers show a preference for the following:

Recipe titles which are long, colorful, descriptive, and detailed.
A "personal statement" or other contextual description at the beginning of the recipe. This prose helps to give a better depth of meaning to the recipe, and interestingly, is a hallmark of early cookbooks.
The listing of the ingredients in very descriptive terms (such as details on the cut sizes). Additionally, no abbreviations should be used (e.g., always spell out 'tablespoon').
The procedure is the prose through which the author's personal voice is clearly heard. The level of detail, logic, and sequencing of the method should be obviously be clear. Yet, the focus is often exclusively on what *to* do, not what *not* to do. The trick is finding the right level of detail relative to your audience and other information in the cookbook; for instance, you might not need to describe what is a brunoise cut if you have a separate glossary.
Relatedly, there is no standard for "disaster avoidance" procedures for critical steps or possible odd consequences. On Knife and Whisk, I've frequently placed this type of non-procedural information in the Recipe Notes.
Contemporary cookbooks contain copious margin information depending on the experience of the writer; for instance, a dietitian might include nutrition information or a cook might describe what is a shallot.

It's great information and I'll be making these changes in the future. I'm considering consolidating the Recipe Notes into the actual recipe posts. Thoughts?

Recipe Notes: Grilled Whole Onions

2010-09-07T12:12:00.001-04:00

Place Onions Here

What? You've never roasted an onion before? Oh sure, you've thrown some cut up onion or some pearls on a sheet pan and tossed them in your oven for a half hour or so.

But, you certainly didn't do that when it was 92F outside. And, what with it being right around Labor Day and all, you needed to break out a simple grilling recipe. And, what's the point of grilling on your Grill when you just wrap the thing up in tinfoil and pretend it's a sheetpan? You want that smokey-just-grilled flavor, not that I-think-it's-Alcoa-aluminum taste.

If you've grilled whole peppers before, this is obviously a similar procedure with one major exception. Soaking the onions in water for a good amount of time is critical. It prevents their papery skins from catching on fire while allowing all the onion goodness to roast inside.

The major trick here is to ensure you've cooked the onions as thoroughly as possible. The entire onion should be black. Not brown. We're talking night sky. We're talking about a burn-down-the-house char (note: so, do this outdoors, or at least at a friend's house).

And, if your timing is right, you provide a light onion smoke for your meat searing on the other side of the grill.

Updates, updates, updates

2010-09-07T11:52:00.001-04:00

Excuses, excuses, excuses

Like any content-based site, keeping Knife and Whisk up-to-date is a challenge. However, it's regrettable that the challenge hasn't been posting the ideas, experiences, and recipes--it's been the amount of time necessary to integrate Knife and Whisk with with Facebook, multiple RSS feeds, Flickr, and Twitter.

The biggest source of frustration has been integration with social sites, such as my decision to use Facebook's own Notes application to import the RSS feed automatically. When this works, one post will update Knife and Whisk, the RSS feeds, Facebook, and Twitter all at once. However, because Facebook constantly tinkers with the Notes application and the ability to actually import RSS feeds properly, this has been broken and required silly amounts of time to keep updated.

Additionally, because I want to keep Knife and Whisk's "tags" separate between the regular posts and the recipes (and pending product reviews), I've effectively had to create multiple blogs on Blogger which appear as one site. Then, I've needed Google Reader to create an aggregate "bundle" feed which lets it look like one RSS feed.

Now, thanks to the excellent RSS Graffiti application on Facebook, I again have the ability to update everything in one fell swoop! Thanks RSS Graffiti!

A Taste of Lamb

2010-04-10T22:29:00.000-04:00

I was able to help prep, cook, transport, and serve food at the Taste of the Nation fundraising event at the Hynes Convention Center in Boston this week. Taste is the annual series of events held by Share our Strength, one of the most impressive charities working to reducing childhood hunger.

I represented our school, along with several other students. We hosted two tables, one savory and one pastry, out of 108 stalls. This was the second large scale catering type of event with which I've helped and both were equally intense. It is so much more constructive and valuable to participate in these events from start to finish, at least as much as is possible. The scale of the thing is one of the most valuable; in this case, we cleaned, marinated, and seared off 76 loins of spring lamb.

The menu was wonderfully clean, light, and Easter springtime--Loin of Spring Lamb with Garlic and Rosemary in a Red Wine Reduction served with a side of Fava Beans, Ramps, Morels, and Bacon. What I found really perplexing was the level of apprehension about lamb. Remember, we're talking about people, mostly "foodies", who have donated $100 or so to enter the event.

I know some people are turned off by the lanolin or hand-lotion flavor which can come from some lamb, but that gaminess is really an artifact of improper cleaning or serving lamb which has past puberty. Out of the 600 servings we provided, there was an apprehension by about 50% of the people. About half of those took a plate mostly peer pressured into it by their partner with whom they approached the table. I convinced at least two dozen people to try the lamb--100% success rate of being impressed with a great and simple dish.

Besides getting yelled at by the chef for having a sip of champagne while actually working at the table (although I should know better, it was given to me as a toast by one of the owners of the wonderful Betty's Wok and Noodle--seemed impolite not to have a sip...), and overcooking exactly only two of the loins, I think I did a pretty decent job. I kept the food moving non-stop through the line (unlike some of my fill-ins), kept the lamb tender and med-rare to medium, kept a damn clean station, and had a great time. I'd have even attended the after-party if I could have found the damnable place.

Encouragingly, I can easily picture myself working at a restaurant's table in a year or two. More importantly, I can picture myself hosting a table in the future.

Recipe Notes: Braised Veal Tongue with Madeira and Preserved Lemon

2010-03-26T13:16:00.005-04:00

Braised Veal Tongue
with Madeira and Preserved Lemon Glaze

Overall recipe summary:

Yeah, yeah, I already hear it in your voice...my gawd, is this meat tasting *me*? Frankly, might you prefer this to eating the cow's arse (like ground round or a roast)? This is more disturbing than chicken 'parts'? Get over it! Tongue is such a wonderful cut of meat, is well marbled, and has the depth of flavor of many steaks. It has a very low cost (Veal: US$3-5/lb) and the veal has a delicate texture.
Often, tongue is brined and cooked to make terrines or a kind of 'cold cut'. However, braising the meat gives a wonderful, soft bite with a very different texture--somewhat similar to a pulled pork but with smaller strands.
The recipe and the sauce are incredibly flavorful!

Lessons learned:

There are two layers of skin, if you will, on the meat. Keeping the top layer on through the braise helps retain moisture. However, you must ensure that you remove the outer leathery skin before the meat cools or you'll likely never get it back off.
The second skin really doesn't need to be removed when braised, mostly cooks off, is very tender, and helps retain a 'steak like' shape when cut.
The recipe can easily accommodate two tongues about 1.5 lbs each--which would have been great because there wasn't enough leftover to use as taco meat (a great leftover dish for most braises, by the way). In fact, I've updated the recipe to demonstrate this. Alternatively, one could use a larger beef tongue although I'd expect a cooking time closer to 3 hours. In my oven, with my cut of meat, with my dish, this took 2 hours in the oven.
The shape of the meat is slightly awkward to sear, however keeping the outer skin on definitely helps minimize overcooking the thinner part near the tip during searing.
The only real function of the trimmings is to help get some flavor and fond onto the dish. There's not a lot of value in keeping them in the braise itself, so this step could be eliminated if desired.

Overall critique:

To my palate, spot on. Even the 5 year old ate some!
If my chef instructor saw that I didn't sauce the entire face of the meat like in that photo, I'd expect he'd slap me upside the head. Lightly painting the meat from a braise after making a sauce really makes an incredible difference in presentation and glosses up the plate.
One could substitute one-half of a fresh lemon, but the flavor would be different. I love the combination of Madeira and preserved lemon. A dark high-body red wine would also likely work well here. You're using your own preserved lemons, right?
If one prefers, you could easily use a less reduced and more fluid sauce. However, I'm a strong advocate of using a glaze for braises because of the well done nature of the meat. Remember not to season the sauce until it is fully reduced--or you'll end up with a salt sauce.
It's not critical to have the overnight soak, but it definitely helps improve the flavor.

Copyrights and Recipes

2010-03-25T12:48:00.008-04:00

Even though the internet is filled with copies upon copies of recipes, including direct verbatim transcriptions of published cookbooks, and even though I'm not making any money from Knife and Whisk, I am seriously concerned about intellectual property and US copyright law regarding recipes.

The best source I can find on the matter is from the US Copyright Office who have a specific page to explain copyright regarding recipes:

Mere listings of ingredients as in recipes, formulas, compounds, or prescriptions are not subject to copyright protection. However, when a recipe or formula is accompanied by substantial literary expression in the form of an explanation or directions, or when there is a combination of recipes, as in a cookbook, there may be a basis for copyright protection.
Protection under the copyright law (title 17 of the U.S. Code, section 102) extends only to “original works of authorship” that are fixed in a tangible form (a copy).
[...]
Copyright protects only the particular manner of an author’s expression in literary, artistic, or musical form. Copyright protection does not extend to names, titles, short phrases, ideas, systems, or methods.

Specifically, ingredient listings are not copyright-able. Neither are titles, systems or methods. What does seem protected is the "prose" with which the recipe is explained. Indeed, recipes can be a disaster, leave out ingredients or steps, not have a clear procedure, or can be a linguistic work of art.

All the "prose" or text describing the recipes on Knife and Whisk are significant paraphrases, frequently with procedural or ingredient changes, and are not copies from another source. I rarely follow recipes precisely and I'd wager any recipe I've adapted has changed at least 25%. All "recipe notes" fully originate with me. To help clarify these matters, I've cited "adapted from" statements on the recipes where I've not fully originated the recipe.

Any lawyers care to chime in?

Waiting for Godot

2010-03-24T14:40:00.005-04:00

As you may have noticed, I haven't updated knifeandwhisk.com in a few weeks. I assure you I haven't lost my passion. Or my password.

Instead, I ran into two unexpected circumstances:

On the same day I intended to post about the dynamics in our classroom, including some strange and conflicting behavior on the part of my student colleagues, I discovered at least two other students and likely one chef instructor were actually reading this site! You know who you are. In short, I struggled with how to proceed--there are many interesting personalities and details in the dynamics which are important for those of you considering a career change. I've summarily decided to not mince words or hold back on my opinions--I'm not in school to per se make friends. I'll continue to maintain a general confidentiality. And, now that four of my fellow classmates have dropped out or "gone on an indefinite leave of absence", this make things a bit easier.
Copyright infringement. Although some say it's your best entertainment value, after having a friend suggest that some of my posted recipes may run afoul of their copyrights, I took some time to research this in depth. I'll post on this separately and thankfully it doesn't look like any of my posts infringe on any copyrights.

That said, what an incredible culinary month it's been! Look for recipes on various breads, lamb, veal all incoming.

Also, look for lengthy diatribes on Why I am Not a Vegetarian (anymore), The Value In Taking Apart a 112lb Beef Chuck/Shoulder, and The Gear You Really Do Need In Your Kitchen.

Recipe Notes: Crisped Pork Loin Violated with Carrots

2010-02-12T08:42:00.006-05:00

Crisped Pork Loin
Violated with Carrots (recipe)

Overall recipe summary:

Above average, crisped outside, sweet and juicy inside.
Beautiful sliced presentation and color, especially where all 6 carrots intersect near the center of the roast.
Inspired by Cristina Fernandez, President of Argentina and her comments about the vitalizing powers of pork.

Lessons learned:

The tricky part of this recipe is properly cooking the carrots. You don't want too much crunch from the carrots in pork on the plate. You want a toothsome crunch, but it shouldn't overwhelm the crackling.
Ensure fresh carrots, ensure about 1/2 inch diameter.
Cook an extra couple carrots for testing for the right heat/texture of the carrots.
Highly season the carrots to help season the center of the pork.
Depending on the quality of your meat and details on how it's cooked, you may not have fond for a pan sauce. If a pan sauce is highly desired, try placing the loin directly on the pan and surrounded by the aromatics. The downside of this approach is if the loin drips too much fat, you'll be frying the bottom of your loin.
Probably tastes better than Viagra.

Overall critique:

The recipe still needs some minor tweaking, but pretty solid.
First attempt didn't include parcooking the carrots which is critical to ensure they properly cook.
Absolutely ensure the crust is fully developed before reducing the heat. The flavor and texture is a big part of the dish.

Recipe Notes: March of the Penguins

2010-02-07T21:19:00.005-05:00

March of the Penguins (recipe)

I'm nowhere near clever enough to have thought of this one.

Several months ago, I saw this idea on CutOutAndKeep (which I saw highlighted on SeriousEats)

I've been looking for an excuse to make these at one of the next parties I hosted which had little kids. We invited families to my birthday this weekend and these little guys were a pretty big hit with the dozen or so 5 year olds.

In fact, I had to snap this picture of the last few very quickly before they marched away. I didn't even have time to clean up the cheese on them before kids (and a couple friends) took them right off the board.

Birthday Cake: I'll Eat My Hat

2010-02-07T20:45:00.007-05:00

I'll eat my hat. Then my knife.

Sharon Berke at Sweet*Bea Cakes made this amazing cake for my birthday, shown here before we lit it on fire and ate it.

At one point, someone actually picked up the gum paste chef's knife to use to cut something else, ripping the handle from the blade. What else could you ask for?

The 'chef' appellation is a wee bit premature, but sweet nonetheless.

Pork: Viagra 2.0

2010-01-29T22:57:00.007-05:00

Today, Reuters quoted the current President of Argentina, Cristina Fernandez, as having this to say about her getaway weekend with her husband:

"I've just been told something I didn't know; that eating pork improves your sex life ... I'd say it's a lot nicer to eat a bit of grilled pork than take Viagra," President Cristina Fernandez said to leaders of the pig farming industry.

She said she recently ate pork and "things went very well that weekend, so it could well be true."

Now that there's some crispy cracklin'! Personally, I don't know what else to say. But she does:

"Trying it doesn't cost anything, so let's give it a go," Fernandez said in the televised speech.

I'm sensing a new and more interesting way for Obama to pass healthcare reform.

Salt, Taste, and Flavor

2010-01-29T17:23:00.010-05:00

For being one of the 4 (or possibly many more--don't you get me started on umami) tastes the human tongue is physiologically designed to sense, salt sure does have a bad reputation. Like your bad attitude, it's really just misunderstood.

I've only recently come to realize how so many of the vegetables and other awful flavors from my childhood fell flat and tasted unpalatable simply because of a lack of seasoning. Cauliflower, green beans, and brussel sprouts are just a few personal examples.

The impact of proper seasoning during the actual cooking is another revelation, especially as it relates to vegetables. The total amount of consumed sodium is clearly lower than when salt is added after cooking. Although I've heard for years about chefs wanting to keep salt shakers off the table, frankly I had considered it was just a matter of pride or snobbery to avoid what we shall call "auto-condimentation."

I've now begun to realize the deeper reasons to avoid letting people flake white all over the food you cooked for them, that is health and impact on flavor. Let's put it this way; is it healthier to eat your vegetables? When it comes to basic tastes (as opposed to understanding the complexities of aroma and palate in flavor), I've come to believe my young kids are a great indicator and clearly prefer properly seasoned vegetables. I refuse to share about half-chewed cauliflower spewed onto the kitchen floor or detail the fact that said cauliflower was spewed completely un-chewed when salted on the plate. With full certainty, I can categorically state that any positive health benefit from consuming vegetables is more likely to occur should one actually eat them. Additionally, there is less mopping.

This past week's tasting seminar and demonstration proved to me the power of salt, its ability to draw out some flavors, and mask others.

There were two simple and brilliant demonstrations. First, tonic water with and without a pinch of salt. The salt increased many of the subtle low notes in the water, such as sour citrus notes, and increased the sense of sweetness. Additionally, it masked the bitter flavor of the quinine.

A more powerful demonstration contrasted two vinegarettes compared to four greens. Again, the only difference was one included salt. We compared escarole, radicchio, bibb lettuce, and spinach in each dressing.

The impact on taste was impressive. Bitter flavors from the radicchio and escarole were clearly mellowed by a gentle seasoning in the dressing. However, when tasted with the seasoned vinegarette, the subtle sweetness of the bibb lettuce was completely masked. I believe it did this by heightening the taste of sourness from the acids in the vinegar. In short, I believe salt can bring forward sour flavors and push back bitter flavors.

I clearly remember the first time I had fleur de sel. I remember my friend going on and on about the complex mineral flavor and justifying why he spent on the order of $15 for a pound. I took a pinch, put it to my tongue, and was completely let down. It tasted like...salt! Figuring I missed something, I had another pinch. Nope, just salt. I smiled, nodded, said "wow" and quickly changed the subject. It wasn't until later that evening when I had a salad that I understood the other potential of salt beyond taste: texture.

When it comes to salads, I'm now just starting to understand my palate. At this point, my preference is for larger and slightly toothsome salt crystals, either fleur de sel incorporated throughout or small factor sea salt crystals melted into the dressing. Now, when I consider the potential variations in sweet and bitter greens which make up a salad, there are countless other possibilities about how to leverage salt crystals which are not fully incorporated in the dressing. In other words, what type and how you use salt can allow a completely different experience which I've only now understood--an initial spike of taste of the greens bitterness and sweetness, as well as a textural gentle salty crunch, followed by muted and more subtle flavors from the vinegarette as the crystals melt on the tongue. And, that salad is bound to be paired with a protein which will impact the flavor.

I don't think it's accurate to consider salt a flavor enhancer, but more of a taste shifter. Proper seasoning can allow the more gentle aromas in cooked foods to have a more recognizable impact on flavor. And, it tastes great.

Knife and Whisk on Facebook

2010-01-29T08:43:00.003-05:00

Knife and Whisk now has enough Facebook fans to be eligible for an alias:
http://facebook.com/knifeandwhisk

Thanks for your surprising and humbling support!

If you like, you can also follow us on Twitter:
http://twitter.com/knifeandwhisk

A "Contact Us" section is also in the works. Feel free to leave comments here, use the discussion board on Facebook, or send email to knifeandwhisk at gmail.com

Please keep those comments, critiques, and suggestions coming!

Recipe Notes: Bread Pudding with Lemon Rum Sabayon

2010-01-26T22:09:00.006-05:00

Bread Pudding (recipe)
Lemon Rum Sabayon (recipe)

Overall recipe summary:

Total comfort food, high in...fiber.

Learned today:

Keep the egg's chalazae (the white string connecting the egg white and yolk) out of the sauce from the get-go; it will pit the sauce--sabayon or pudding.
Do put the bread dish in water while cooking--it makes for much more even temperature on such a thick dish, especially on the base and sides. Some will argue to lower 25F temperature if you use pyrex.
Keep the bread pudding covered to keep it moist, but pull the foil off the last 5 minutes or so to get some good caramel on the top.
Press the bread down frequently but don't weigh it down; you want the expansion of the bread to draw in the pudding. The dish shouldn't be weeping when you dish it out.
The raisins are, perhaps, optional. Macerating them isn't.
Neither is the rum optional.
It's not zabaglione if it doesn't have marsala. If you call it zabaglione, the chef will likely whack you. On the side of your fat head. While making you say "sab-ahy-yeohn" slowly. I swear this did not happen to me.
Keep air bubbles out of the sabayon by using an up-and-down whisk motion in the pot. However, keep the sauce constantly moving.
If you see steam come from the sabayon, it comes off the heat immediately and you whisk like a mad man. You're losing moisture, thickening your sauce, and more importantly inappropriately hitting near 180F (coagulation point of your eggs: read "scrambled").
A pinch salt will cut the tin flavor from a copper pot.
Yes, that is a whole lot of lemon juice to toss in the sabayon you've been whisking non-stop for 20 minutes. Assuming you don't get it in your new-found whisk-induced blisters, you will appreciate the acid kick,
Sanding sugar is a sweet and textural improvement to dust on top.

Overall critique:

Better than expected, no negative chef critiques.
Could have used a touch more spice, such as nutmeg, and salt.
Use the "evil salt"--iodized table salt, or triple the amount of kosher.
Personally, I found the coconut flake a distracting texture. I'd try macerating the coconut in the rum with the raisins.
Candied zest is a fine garnish, but candied-cayenne pecans would have been brilliant.
The sauce is intentionally very, very intense with a big acid bite. Use it in a limited way.

Eggs

2010-01-26T21:41:00.001-05:00

The past two weeks have been ferocious and I love it.

I believe that after a day-long lab on eggs, another on soufflés, and yet another on pâte à choux, it is highly probable my HDL cholesterol is around 400.

We had a very detailed review of egg architecture, internal construction, grading, sizing, and classic uses. Interesting yet unlikely to be helpful information included facts such as the porous nature of eggshells; there are over 17000 pores.

Helpful information included the average size of whites, 2.5 tbsp, and yolks, 4 tsp.

Especially useful information on eggs included the fact that the chalazae (the white strand connecting the yolk and the albumen "white"), can cause "pitting" in some sauces and custards.

An absolutely critical fact revolves around the coagulation point of eggs (generally at 180F). At this point, the proteins begin to firm and solidify--this much I knew. However, I didn't know how dramatically this can be tempered by adding other ingredients, especially starches.

We took eggs to a whole different level as we started exploring two of the five main Mother Sauces: hollandaise and mayonnaise. Effectively, these are nothing more complicated than a hot (hollandaise) and a cold (mayonnaise) between eggs and fat. In both cases, slowly incorporating the fat is the major key to a successful sauce.

It's pretty darn cool to be able to have just one egg yolk hold over a full cup of oil.

I made hollandaise, mayonnaise (of course by hand), a classic omelette, an egg crepe, and poached eggs. Then, I got down to business and made Bread Pudding covered with a Lemon Rum Sabayon.

No egg creams, dammit.

Almost Famous

2010-01-22T18:28:00.004-05:00

I've managed to find time to post several new recipes I've executed recently, but I've not had a chance to write much about the classes or post my recipe notes. I blame it all on the fact that over the past couple days I've been helping to prepare for San Pellegrino's Almost Famous Chef competition.

The regional finals were held at our school on Thursday night. Eight recent culinary school graduates from various spots across the Northeast competed to go the the national finals to be held in Napa.

Although it was only eight competitors who cooked one dish each, there were about 80 invited guests and 10 judges. It was up to the school's staff to cook starter-size portions of all eight recipes for each of the guests. Nearly all the chef instructors took part, as well as a large number of students, prepping, cooking, and plating the nearly 600 dishes.

I worked all day Wednesday and all afternoon/evening on Thursday helping to prep the ingredients. It was great getting to work with some of these recipes. I'm a new found lover of the incredible flavor in rabbit kidneys. It was invaluable to learn an assortment of different techniques--how to clean a kidney, how to properly use a tamis, how to make and correct puree for a large service, and how to par-cook a tremendous amount of food to be able to plate and serve 80 dishes simultaneously.

I'm so very encouraged that after only 9 days in culinary school that I could participate in this kind of event. I must have done OK; hey, I only got yelled at once deservedly for a stupid mistake. I forgot about the intensity and rush that comes with that kind of immediate pressure and urgency, as well as the high speed groove everyone gets into. In some ways, it reminded me of when we'd get slammed nearly every night when I worked at Po Folks or Little Caesars in high school and college, but with much greater scale, recipe complexity, and expectation for precision.

In IT, the only time you get that sort of rush is when one of the production systems is down. Although everyone might collaborate to try and fix the problem, it is typically solved by a single individual. In preparing and plating these dishes, I saw collaboration and partnership start to turn into a fine machine over the course of the service. Everyone played a part and if they didn't, it would have likely failed.

It also gave me a great chance to meet the real life human beings who act like students and instructors during the day, both working side by side in the kitchen and over some pints at the bar next door.

Haiti Earthquake Survivors

2010-01-17T21:26:00.002-05:00

I still can't wrap my head around the scope of the disaster in Haiti. To put it in perspective, in a country roughly the size of Massachusetts, nearly 2% of the residents-200,000 people--are now estimated to have been killed and up to 20% of the infrastructure is destroyed.
In raw numbers, that's about 1 in 3 people of the population of Boston.
Only 65 people have been pulled alive from rubble.

Charity Navigator is a helpful resource to identify and vet charities who can help, such as the American Red Cross.

Making Duck Prosciutto Part 2: Cured, Ready to Eat

2010-01-15T11:10:00.006-05:00

Duck prosciutto, sliced and ready to eat.

Duck prosciutto, salt and air cured.

About a week ago, I started my first foray into charcuterie with a Duck Prosciutto recipe. Now, it's time to untie the twine, unwrap the cheesecloth, and get to work. My Pekin duck breasts have hit their dry cure targets of -30% weight and firm centers. I gave the larger one an extra day to cure.

Other than my helping make some pancetta when I was a kid, this is my first shot at making my own charcuterie. I like the looks I get from friends and family who see slabs of drying meat in my house.

Overall summary:

Success! Immediate physical sensation of melting and coating as it hits your mouth, a full wide flavor of the duck fat, slight pungency from the pepper on the front of the tongue, briny, deep notes of duck flavor yet somehow not gamy.
Texture is very creamy, but with very small "strings" of both the skin and the air-exposed meat side.

Lessons learned:

Very, very easy. Major ingredient: patience.
I believe a fine scoring the skin with this thickness of fat would have both improved the curing of the fat as well as made for a less stringy skin texture while eating.
Definitely do not rinse the salt/spice cure with water (as some online recipes suggest). That said, definitely do ensure all salt/spice is fully rubbed away before air curing.
Similarly, fully rub away all traces of spice/herbs used at the end of the air cure.
I would like to experiment with different duck meats. This one used Pekin duck. It's hard to imagine given the creamy richness of this Pekin prosciutto, but I'm fairly certain a Moulard/Magret would be even richer. A leaner and less fatty Moscovy would be an interesting experiment. Would I could find these locally.
I might leave out the pepper next time. Also, the pepper seems to be used to dissuade insects--not a problem mid-winter in Boston. The recipe calls for white pepper during the air cure, I used cracked black, but it's slightly distracting.
Flavoring the salt cure would be good: juniper and bay come to mind.
Flavoring the air cure would also be good: rosemary sprig in the cheesecloth

Overall critique:

Slightly too briny, slightly too peppery.
The very top layer of the meat side of the breast is tasty but is drier than I would like and is slighly "jerkied". It's only about 2mm think. I think this may be due to the low humidity (20%) environment in which it air cured.
Score skin to improve texture.

Additional Gear for the Culinary School Student

2010-01-14T10:55:00.002-05:00

Previously, I talked in gory detail about the gear we received from the school when we paid our tuition. Soon, I'll start reviewing the equipment piece by piece.

After just the first week, I am quickly learning about the many little ancillary items which have not been included but are really a necessity.

Sharpies: An absolute necessity for marking gear and clothes, writing on tape to identify what stock is in a pot on the stove, marking the kitchen management/cleanup task lists, and labeling deli containers of extra ingredients to put in the walk-in. I keep two in my pocket at all times because they walk off when people borrow them.
Pens: Seems obvious, but I also seem to loan these out frequently and keep two handy at all times.
Scissors: Small ones might be handy for some herbs but mostly help you keep from dulling your knives needlessly.
Thermometer: Yes, a digital one with a battery is included in my gear and it gets turned on all the time in the kit. I fully expect the battery to go flat in the middle of my practicum. An inexpensive mechanical quick read thermometer should always work, assuming you've validated its accuracy.
Tasting spoon: You don't want to have to borrow the school's spoon every single time you're cooking. I notice some of the chef instructors bend the handles on the spoons completely around making a "C" shape with the concave bowl of the spoon on the outside. I'm not quite sure why this is bent, but it seems a handy way to keep your chef coat clean.
Superglue: For fingernail repair and closing some small cuts.
Bandaids: Come in handy for minor damage when you don't want to advertise a trip to the first aid station (although the gloves one needs to wear over bandaids are a bit of a giveaway)
Hand sanitizer: Plenty in the school labs and absolutely none available on the filthy subway.
Digital voice recorder: Record your lectures. There will be exams.
Digital camera: All the students are required to create a portfolio of their work at the end of the year. Quite intentionally, I am taking copious pictures and learning about image manipulation as part of making this site, but also to use in my portfolio.
Clear laminate page holders: These are very handy to hold the recipes and your notes, and keep them dry, while you're cooking in the lab. The school provides one, but they easily tear.

Fixed Comments

2010-01-14T09:24:00.004-05:00

I was wondering why I keep getting emails about the site, but I haven't seem much comment traffic. The comments were not set properly and required two logins, a validation, and moderator approval before being posted. I wouldn't have the patience to do that.

Please do comment away!

The Random Recipe Generator

2010-01-12T23:26:00.006-05:00

After the discussion I had with the chef today about the inconsistencies in and overall difficulty of writing recipes, I thought that this random recipe generator was pretty darn hilarious.

It generated splendid recipes for "Water Salsa" and the "Muslei a la Prawns". Yet today, after the discussion I had with the chef today about the evils of a particular compote recipe, which she then proceeded to have me make, I think this one's my favorite:

Sausages Compote
Serves 4
You will need:
2 sausages
120g basmati rice
Instructions:
pre-heat the oven to 180 C
whisk the sausages
discard the basmati rice
bake for 70 minutes and serve hot

Allez cuisine!

First Class in Baking: Fruits and Spices

2010-01-12T20:34:00.006-05:00

Today was our first lab in baking and we met our chef, and interestingly she's been shown on the Food Network recently. Much like the food basics lab, kitchen familiarity was the main goal. There was a little more breathing room with only 13 students and a few no-shows. We tasted somewhat rare fruits (especially in the height of winter), like Ugli fruit, kumquats, and pummelo, and discussed texture and ripeness. We walked through about 3 dozen spices and their use and history in baking and pastry. My knuckles still smell of saffron.

The teaching styles of the chef instructors differs dramatically between food basics and baking. Both seem equally approachable, quick witted, intense, and well versed. One is concise and the other is reflective. One is sparse with description and the other colorful. Interestingly, given the highly individualized work we're doing, I think either teaching style matches how I learn, however, I'm realizing the size of the rift between the pastry and savory worlds.

It's funny to see the personalities of the students start to come alive after just two days of labs. We're already getting glimpses of who's bossy, who's not paying attention, who's says they'll do something and doesn't, who forget their knife, who cleans up and who doesn't. I can already see some of the people with whom I might have a bit of friction unless I'm tactful. On the flip side, it's interesting to see who's willing to help out intuitively.

I think the culinary arts is highly collaborative when it comes to the actual prep and cooking, but it's a delicate art to deal with opinion and suggestion--especially when it's unsolicited. It's hard enough to hear it from the chef, but you kind of expect that. I didn't expect so much free opinion from the other students. After getting an unsolicited suggestion about how to cut something a bit easier (which contradicted the chef's instructions, mind you) I found myself irritated and defensively thinking, "no shit, hey, let me show you what else I can do with a knife". Then, a few minutes later I caught myself offering advice about how to use an oven. Whoops.

Recipe Notes: Dried Fruit Compote, Applesauce

2010-01-12T19:24:00.004-05:00

Dried Fruit Compote (above, recipe)
Applesauce (recipe)

Overall recipe summary:

Applesauce: Texture is everything.
Dried Fruit Compote: Needs pancakes.

Learned today:

Leaving the peels (and later straining) makes for a nice color change instead of the yellow-brown I've seen.
I'd strongly prefer a touch of salt and nutmeg with the applesauce.
The compote recipe tightens dramatically upon standing to room temperature. The consistency out of the pan was loose maple syrup, but at room temp it was more like honey.
The compote recipe seems too watery and needed about 30 minutes extra to reduce.
The compote recipe can use just about any fruit. I used a combination of dried apples, dried apricots, prunes, and dates. The garnish is a mission fig slice which is a nice deceit since there's no fig in it.

Overall critique:

Simple and wildly flexible recipes to demonstrate spice, sweet, and cooked fruit applications.
A little salt might increase the sweetness?

First Class in Food Basics: Vegetables and Herbs

2010-01-11T19:11:00.004-05:00

Today was our first actual lab in food basics, our first time meeting the chef and assistants, and the other students. On its face, the purpose of the lab was becoming familiar with the kitchen layout, kitchen management, cleanup, and pairing up for recipes. I was one of two people pegged for cleanup, however everyone thankfully pitched in as the class has 16 students.

We had about 3 hours of lecture, including a tasting and detailed discussion about the flavor, aroma, pungency, and aroma of about 20 fresh herbs. To me, most surprising were the strong flavor in parsley stems compared to the bland leaves, the delicate anise flavor of fresh chervil, and the pungency of winter savory.

Recipe Notes: Gombaleves (Hungarian Mushroom Soup)

2010-01-11T19:09:00.002-05:00

Mushroom Soup (recipe)

Overall recipe summary:

An earthy and pungent simple soup, easily made vegetarian.
A late fall, early winter soup?

Learned today:

Mushroom gills can immediately discolor stocks, soups, or other fluids.
Black pepper has an affinity for hot hungarian paprika.
Black pepper's pungency is markedly increased with longer cooking time in fluids (like a braise or soup).
Size of the mushroom dice being small provided extra texture what could be an otherwise thin soup (unless reduced more or thickened)
Porcini stock is just delicious.
Needed a touch of acid.

Overall critique:

Well seasoned.
Too pungent for most palates, too much black pepper added.
Good comments from colleagues overall.