Tuesday, October 5, 2010

Prepping for Day 3 means being comfortable enough with the regular menu items that you can step up and add an extra item to your routine and still be on time. Everything must be ready by 11:00.

Sous Chefs - You'll need to have a new service diagram for the Dim Sum. We don't have space on the steam table, so we usually set up two chaffing dishes with sterno on table 5. Think about how you would lay it out. Two chaffing dishes with three 1/3 pans in each. You'll need a pan for the steamed dumplings, the pan-fried dumplings, the spring rolls, the ribs, and the stuffed peppers. Everyone who comes to K1 will get a Dim Sum plate on Day 3. Presentation will be on 6" round plates with a ramekin of ginger-soy dipping sauce in the center. The five dim sum items will be positioned around the dipping sauce and a dab of spicy mustard will go on the plate next to the spring roll. Make sure that you know who will be doing what during service- figure it out ahead of time and tell the people involved what their duties are well before service, everyone will need to multi-task and hustle.

Station 2 - Braises PLUS Steamed dumplings (Shao Mai) - make sure to remember that each dim sum plate gets a 1 oz ramekin of the ginger soy dipping sauce (only fill each ramekin 1/2 way).
The dumplings can be steamed ahead using the wok steamer and then re-heated as needed during service. They are brought to the service line in 1/3 hotel pans.

Station 3 - Moo Shu PLUS Pan Fried Dumplings. The dough must be kept cold. As soon as it's rolled and cut, it should be stacked in single layers- with parchment paper between each layer - in a 1/2 hotel pan, covered and kept in the cooler. After they are shaped and filled, they should be held in similar fashion. When brought to the cooking line, the pan containing the dumplings shod be nested on another pan of ice. If these dumplings become warm before cooking they stick like crazy and are very difficult to work with.

Station 4- Spring rolls - filling should be made and cooked on Day 2, rolls filled on Day 3. There are two recipes for filling - we can do the stir fried pork and vegetables or the raw vegetable one with the BBQ pork and Shrimp - or both, ask Chef if you want to do that. Once they are rolled, they should be kept cold - layered between parchment paper sheets in a 1/2 hotel pan. Set up a proper fry station and fry them in batches as needed for service. Remember - you're responsible for the spicy mustard that's served with them.

Station 5- Ribs may be put in Chinese oven with the Roasts early in the day. When they are cooked through you can cut them and hot-hold them, covered, until service. Bring them to the line in a deep 1/3 pan.

Station 6- In addition to the Grandmother's bean curd, you'll need to fill, cook, and finish the stuffed peppers. They can all be steamed ahead and held at room temp - covered - for service. At service they should be sauteed in small batches as needed, 15-20 at a time, and brought to the service line in a 1/3 pan.

Questions?

7 comments:

  1. Station 2 -
    Chef,

    The ginger-soy dipping sauce did not list the amount of sugar to use. Can you please advise?

    Thanks,
    Eleanor

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  2. [Station 6]:

    Chef,

    For the Stuffed Pepper-

    1. Do you steam them in the steamer or in the large wok? (Your demo video shows you put them in a large/full perforated hotel pan so I'm guessing you use the steamer but I just want to make sure).

    2. In your demo video, you instruct to slightly saute the peppers on the shrimp filling side only for service, but the recipe states to brown on all sides. For clarification, should we only brown on the top side (shrimp filling side)?

    For the broth we're making for Day 4's soup -

    1. Your instructions in an old post for a previous class states to "blanch beef bones AND beef shoulder together, dump the blanching water and then start a stock." Just to clarify, this means I will be blanching the meat and bones for the same amount of time correct?

    2. In your previous instructions you wrote "Simmer it as long as possible," while the recipe says to simmer for an additional hour after adding the onions and ginger, or until proper flavor is achieved. Ideally, how long should it simmer for?

    3. Also, your previous instructions you wrote "All of the woks and the range will be busy tomorrow - the grill is the only free heat source you have." This should apply to us as well, meaning I should use the grill as a flat top for the broth tomorrow? Or if we will have a wok open, would that be better?


    Thank you,

    Cindy

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  3. Chef,

    I was also wondering what extra recipes you have that our team could perhaps take on tomorrow? Depending on how involved they are, I would like to try to build it into my timeline to see if we'll be able to make it.


    Thanks,

    Cindy

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  4. Sorry, one more question..

    How many of the stuffed peppers should we fire/saute for family (1/person maybe)?


    Thanks,

    Cindy

    ReplyDelete
  5. Eleanor - Sugar to taste, start with a small amount to temper the salinity of the soy sauce.

    Cindy-
    For the Stuffed Pepper-

    1. Do you steam them in the steamer or in the large wok?

    You can use either, or both - which ever you would like more experience with

    2. In your demo video, you instruct to slightly saute the peppers on the shrimp filling side only for service, but the recipe states to brown on all sides.

    I will demo with you at about 10:30 if you're set up. Ideally, you wold brown on all sides

    For the broth we're making for Day 4's soup -

    1. Your instructions in an old post for a previous class states to "blanch beef bones AND beef shoulder together, dump the blanching water and then start a stock." Just to clarify, this means I will be blanching the meat and bones for the same amount of time correct?

    Blanch them together, yes, at the same time for the same amount of time

    2. In your previous instructions you wrote "Simmer it as long as possible,"

    Simmer for as long as possible, meaning - get it started as soon as you come into the kitchen, simmer for as long as you can, add the onions and ginger an hour before you plan on taking it off the heat. Ideally you would simmer it for about 6 hours (it's a white beef broth, same as Skills 1), but you won't have that much time...so maximize the time you do have.

    3. Also, your previous instructions you wrote "All of the woks and the range will be busy tomorrow - the grill is the only free heat source you have." This should apply to us as well, meaning I should use the grill as a flat top for the broth tomorrow? Or if we will have a wok open, would that be better?

    All of the woks are always busy on Days 1-3, you could not possibly simmer a stock, uninterrupted ,for 5+ hours. Look at the menu, the only heat source not being used is the grill, use it as a "flat-top". That being said- blanching should take place in a large wok - early in the day the woks won;t be in use and they are much faster. Review the section in Pro Chef on making a White Stock and be sure you understand what it means to "blanch" bones and meat.

    As far as extra recipes are concerned, I don;t have the capacity to post them from home. I will print cpies for you in the morning if you're interested. In the future, if you need these in advance, please stay after class when I can retrieve them from my School server and print or send them to you.

    Peppers for family meal - 1 per person.

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  6. Chef:

    Thank you for your detailed answers! Much appreciated...


    -Cindy

    ReplyDelete