Vietnamese Menu Days 8+9, June 6+7

PLEASE READ Before Class on Day 7:

I have a lot of preliminary notes for today, please read everything to be informed of your requirements and also to see if you're interested in taking on any extra projects.

For Day 7 - it's IMPORTANT that we start a broth of Pigs Feet and Chicken feet, I will be delegating this to the Sous Chefs unless someone else asks to do it first.I have a recipe, so ask for it as soon as you enter the kitchen.

Also - day 7 or 8 - We have extra pork belly, butt, and feet - opportunity to play with Pork Products for those with extra time.

But wait...there's MORE - also an opportunity to make a Cambodian Style sour Duck Stew....prep Day 7 for Day 8.

Remember - Sit-down quiz on Japan and Korea with ingredient ID component after clean-up is scheduled for Day 8


Each Station  is responsible for making and properly holding Table Salads on their station. Station 4 will set up the MEP for making these but construction will be done by each station according to their service needs. Table Salads will accompany every entree served. You must watch the video on Handling Fresh Herbs in the Vietnamese section of the Website. PLEASE DO NOT start grabbing herbs for other uses until Station 4 has set up for Table Salad MEP.

EVERYONE! We will not be using the steam table for any items served on this menu.  Since we're not using the steam table, you are required to design your station layout  in  a diagram. This is mandatory for each person - draw up your plan, bring yours - along with your team mate's - for review and present it to the Chef at the beginning of the day for final adjustment. First draft diagram is due for review at the beginning of class on Day 8. 

If you need to use Tamarind Paste you should watch the video on how to prepare it by clicking here:
 Preparing Tamarind Paste


Sous Chefs:

The good news is you don't have to set up the steam table today, everything comes off of it's own station.

Fisherman's soup - recipe is easy, watch demo of how to cook shrimp in the soup. You can make soup early and hot hold - keep cooked shrimp on the side until service, put them in cups and ladle soup over them. We will make the same soup on both days. Prepare 1 gallon for Day 8 and 2 gallons for Day 9.

Salads - make both each day. 1/3 recipe of each on Day 8 + 1 full recipe on Day 9.
 Green mango salad - mangoes should be green and firm, if not - talk to me. The salads goes on the street food plate, so you don't need a lot per portion - about 1 TBSP.  The Lotus Rootlets come in glass jars, rinsed and cleaned before cutting Check with chef if the instructions aren't clear.

Long Grained Sticky Rice (Sweet Rice) - should be soaking over night - if you're readin ghtis before Day 7, check that it gets done and you know where to find it in the morning. . You need to drain it, put it into a perforated hotel pan lined with moist cheese cloth and steam it for 15 minutes. Do this early, it's usually served at room temperature, so it doesn't matter if it's not hot at service. Keep it for the street food station in a 1/3 hotel pan, covered with a moist towel.

Your primary responsibility besides soup/salad/sticky rice will be to set up the Street Food Station. This should be done on Station 5 using one chaffing dish with three 1/3 hotel pans in it to hold the hot food - like the dim sum set up. The street food plate will go to every customer with an entree, so we need to be prepared for 50-60 on Day 9. Each small (6") plate will contain a 1oz. ramekin of nuoc cham (made by station 2), a small portion of each salad, about a tablespoon. of sticky rice, one rib, one Beef in La-Lot portion, one salad Roll, one shrimp on sugar cane. It should look something like one of these, depending whether we have time to make any extra items :



Include a small lump of sticky rice next to the mango salad:

From K1 Menu Photos

Draw a great diagram of how the Street Food Station will look on Station 5. Where will everything be? Plates? Ramekins of sauce? Chaffing dish with each compartment labeled, Where's the rice? The salad rolls, and mango salad and the lotus rootlet salad? Don't use utensils to plate- use gloved hands - faster that way.

BTW - All of the nouc cham for the class will be made by Station 6 and distributed or portioned as needed. Station 6 should portion 60 small ramekins of the nouc cham for the street food plates on day 9- about 1/2 full each ramekin. The rest will be used by Team 4 to dress their noodles for the fish.

Station 2:
Salad Roll set up is deceptive. It looks and sounds simple, but until you've made a few, it's awkward. For that reason, have all your MEP set up to start rolling by 9:00 AM - we'll get everyone to practice rolling a few, I'll help, and it will be easy. Watch the video - ask me for the towels as soon as we walk in. These go on the street food plate. Each person should make two rolls apiece on Day 8 and 4 rolls apiece on Day 9 - that should give us enough for service each day.

Pho - You will have 2 types of beef to add to this - boiled beef (already done) and thin slices of raw sirloin. On Day 8 plan to go to the meat room for about 30 minutes and slice the semi frozen meat down there at about 7:30, be sure to talk to me before you go. Plan to set up Station 2 table and a tray stand with sheet tray for Pho pick -up during service - you'll only need to do this on Day 8, once sliced we save the bulk of it for service on Day 9.. The broth has been made for 2 days, so only heat 1/4 on Day 8 and the rest will be saved for Day 9. Heat it in a stainless pot on the range ,use one of the Station 2 woks, filled with simmering water, as a hot water bath to hold the stainless pot of broth. The wok next to the broth should have simmering water and a china cap - this is to heat and refresh the noodles in.Draw a diagram of how you are going to set everything up. Noodles should be portioned ahead and held in cups - where will they be on the station? The Herbs? The raw beef?Where are your hot bowls for service kept? Under liner plates for Table Salad, Sambal, and Lime? All of this should be mapped out before you get to class. Check with chef before service if you have any doubts about the efficiency of your plan. You will pick up ala minute from Station 2.

It's a good idea to look ahead to the sous chef's duties for Days 10 + 11 and ask questions before you get there. 

Station 3
Shrimp on Sugar cane - the shrimp "mousse" for this should have been made on Day 7 and should be enough for both Day 8 + 9, Talk to the sous chefs about who will do the finishing grill work on these - probably we only have one person to grill both your shrimp and team 5's Beef in La Lot skewers. Watch the video on how to shape and form and also on how to work with sugar cane. Chef can help. You need to fabricate the sugar cane as well, make sure to get chef's assistance with this before you begin.

Fried Fish - catfish fillets should be coming in, cut them into large bite-sized pieces and divide into 5 oz portions. You will set up most of your mise en place on your station, the fish portions and seasoned flour mix on a tray stand next to the wok, and one of the large woks directly across from your station will be filled with 6" deep of fry oil and act as your deep fryer. Let chef turn on and adjust the temp on the oil - if you get it wrong, it's a BIG fire - very scary. Draw a diagram of where everything will be and label everything, you can set up a tray stand with fish and flour mix next to the wok and keep your noodles, nouc cham, herbs and table salad on the table behind you - it will make your life soooo much easier. You will be frying ala minute - order-fire-pickup as the orders are called. Served in the wide, shallow bowls with rice noodles and table salad. See recipe for details.

Station 4- Making the table salad is labor intensive and time consuming, you're setting up a station for each team to construct their own, start early so no one is waiting for you. Watch the video on handling herbs and table salad and then set up a production assembly line so they can be assembled  efficiently. We really only need enough of each ingredient to construct about 15 table salads on Day 8, but on Day 9 we'll need enough to produce 65. Keep completely covered with moist towels at all times so they don't wilt.

The Chicken salad is very straight forward - follow the recipe and serve at room temp, be prepared to adjust seasoning with chef as needed. You are responsible for your own Jasmine rice and making enough to share with Station 5. Hold it hot in a chaffing dish on your station. Chicken Salad is served with Jasmine rice and a table salad.Jasmine rice is a long grain rice, prepare as we have been for Chinese Long grained Rice.

Butchering and marinating the duck for Days 10 + 11 must be done on Day 9. Be sure to watch the video on duck fabrication and work t=with the chef to start the process. Separate the breast from the legs and thighs and Reeves all for use. 


Station 5
 Beef in la lot leaves is time consuming, set it up "production style", meaning don't make one at a time, lay out all of the leaves, fill them all , roll, them, then put them on skewers. Remember that the amount of beef prepared is supposed to be enough to last for both days - we will make about 20 skewers on Day 8 and save the remainder of the filling for Day 9, these will be cooked  on an Asian Satay Grill.

 Satay Grill Set Up - under hood

 The Satay grill needs charcoal and it needs to be lit far enough ahead to be hot when needed but not so far ahead that it's run out of heat by the time you're ready to cook. Speak to chef about how to light coals, also be sure to check that we have some charcoal when you place your supplemental order in the morning. Have a conversation with Station 3 and the Sous Chefs about who will work the grill for both your product and the shrimp on sugar cane during service. They will both be cooked in batches and brought to the street food station in 1/3 hotel pans. On day 9 make sure to add more charcoal to the grill before going to family meal so it's hot when you need to fire orders for service.



Crepes- On Day 8, make 1/2 times the recipe for the batter and then consult with Chef on weather we should increase quantity on Day 9.  Make batter early and consult chef  when you are straining the batter - these are common places to make mistakes, so get my input before you do. Make and fill crepes ahead, hold at room temp and reheat in a non stick pan ala minute.Draw a diagram of your service station for the crepes


Station 6 - If you're reading this before Day 7, it's possible to get ahead on the dough - but speak to Chef first, it take some adjusting if ti's made a day ahead. Weigh out ingredients for Bahn Mi dough and get started on it as soon as you come in. While dough rises, prep and set out all other sandwich ingredients and make chips. The pate and roasted pork was made on Day 7, so slice for sandwiches early, we'll have plenty of both,  let's ask the class how many sandwiches we should makes on Day 8. For day 9. plan to prep for 20 rolls. The rolls should be ready to bake by 10:00, so that they have time to cool before cutting for service. Chips can be made as far ahead as you want - just not a day before, the recipe for chips can be found in the "Sub Page" section at the bottom of the Vietnamese Menu Page on the website. You are also making all of the nouc cham for the rest of the class, we need about 16 oz on Day 8 and 2 quarts on day 9. Most will go into ramekins for street food - you are responsible for that, and on day 9 we need 2 cups to go to station 3 for their noodles. Remember -  ingredient ID component after clean-up will be scheduled for Day 9 - Friday!