Tuesday, December 20, 2016

Day One Information for January 4th, 2017

In coming Group :
 Hi, This is where you should look each day for information about the course in general and instructions specific to your class and station. It's VERY important that you read and analyze your recipes, watch all videos AND read the daily information posted here. A significant part of your grade hinges on being prepared for class and these are the tools to prepare with. Day 1 begins at 7:00 AM , Please be prepared as instructed in advance. Read the entire Blog post Every day, you are expected to be familiar with not only your station, but where you fit into the bigger picture. There will be information under other station's heading which may pertain to you - you will be responsible for knowing that.

It's important the watch all of the "Pre Day One Videos" listed on the Course Website. There is an updated version of the Knife Cuts and Vegetables for Asian Kitchen loaded on the Moodle Site, this is required viewing prior to class on Day 1.

 Several of you have asked about the proper format for a "Time Line" in my class. BE SURE to check the bottom of this post to see the required format. Each student must have their own, individual timeline, in this format, at the beginning of each day. Failure to have a properly formatted, complete time line will require you to leave class and return only when you are properly prepared .

PLEASE NOTE THAT FAILURE TO READ ENTIRE BLOG, ANALYZE ALL RECIPES FOR YOUR STATION, AND OTHERWISE PREPARE YOURSELF USING THE MATERIALS POSTED OR GIVEN TO YOU WILL RESULT IN A SIGNIFICANT REDUCTION IN YOUR DAILY GRADE. PLEASE REFER TO GRADING RUBRIC IN COURSE GUIDE FOR FURTHER INFORMATION.

If you have questions, please use the "Comments" section at the bottom of this post. I generally do not check CIA e-mail from home, but I do check the comments posted from you to the Blog. 


Heads up -
Some basic rules in my kitchen:
- If you don't know, look it up
- If you still don't know - ask
- Know your product before coming to class - use Google and Google Images to see unfamiliar products
- Look before you order...10 point deduction applies to ordering items already in stock
- All produce is washed/cleaned before final preparation for use
- Don't prep more than you need
- Don't save cut or cooked foods for service the following day without permission from Chef
- Don't serve "left-overs" to customers
- Keep a clean, moist towel on you station at all times
- Step back from your station every 10 minutes, inspect, straighten, wipe down
- "Yes Chef" means that you understand, agree and will comply
- "Yes Chef" does not mean "Go away, you make me nervous"
- The Chef's desk is not your work station - NO FOOD or SUPPLIES may be placed there without Chef's prior approval
- Metal containers are used for holding hot food, don't store food overnight in them unless instructed by Chef
- Papers, quizzes, tests submitted without full name on page will receive no credit
EQUIPMENT SAFETY - Never use a piece of equipment you have not been trained to use properly and NEVER put your hand or any utensil in a machine while it is running!


The most common mistakes made on Day 1, class wide, are:
Not observing the Basic Rules
Not having a complete and detailed time line in the correct format
Not analyzing recipes fully
Not researching terms, ingredients, techniques that you are unfamiliar with
Not knowing how to set up a basic work station
Not knowing basic cooking fundamentals covered in Skills such as - how much starch do you need in a slurry to thicken a set amount of liquid "How much corn starch thickens one cup of soup?"
Not knowing basic measurements - how many pints in a gallon?, etc...

The MOST COMMON MISTAKE OF ALL is not following directions - this especially includes the direction to read all material and be prepared for class. If you read and listen and then ask questions if you need further clarification, you'll almost certainly have a successful and enjoyable class.

The Daily  Schedule will run as follows:

Day 1 AM
7:00AM -  Arrive, meet with Chef, discuss class objectives, introduction to kitchen and ingredients
7:30 - 10:00 - Prep and Demos
10:00-10:45 - Set up for Service/finish ala minute preparations with Chef
10:45-11:15 - Plate Demos/Family meal
11:15- 11:30 - Final Prep before service
11:30-12:00  - Service on Alternate days
12:00-12:45  -  Clean kitchen/inventory
12:45- 1:30 -   Lecture + Tasting

Cleaning towels - each student will be issued two clean cloth towels at the beginning of each day, these are to be used for general cleaning and station maintenance instead of paper towels. Please keep your station and work areas clean by "wiping down"  between each task, or as needed.

At the end of each day, Sous Chefs will collect the towels, count them, and place them in a plastic garbage bag for return to Central Issuing.


On a station by station basis, here is more in depth info for you:
Sous Chefs - STATION 1:
All China and dish ware must be stored (hot or cold) as soon as you come in and the carts taken back to the dish room. Hot plates are kept in the warming box near the refrigerator, make sure it's turned on as soon as you arrive. This is standard every day, a "China Checklist" will be supplied to you and you must be aware of what plates, bowls, cups, etc. we need for service each day and alert me before 8:00 AM if anything is missing. A supplemental sheet should be started on a clean sheet of paper. The supplemental will list Item Ordered, Quantity, and Station ordering the item. Usually the supplemental is due to me no later than 7:30 AM, but on Day One 8:00 AM is acceptable.

Stock - Each day we make either a stock - based on chicken feet and pork hocks - or a remouillage from the previous day's bones. We will make a stock using remouillage on Day 1, a remoillage from the bones on Day 2 and, from that point on, will use the liquid from each remouillage to make a stock with the next batch of fresh bones. Please see recipe loaded in the Chinese Section of Moodle. Each student is required to have a printed copy of this recipe to follow each day. 


Rice - Rice should be rinsed according to video demo and ready to cook by 10:00 AM. Do not cook rice earlier than 10:00 AM to ensure freshness at service. Watch BOTH video demos on rice cooking but be ready to use the electric Rice Cooker, talk to me before you start anything to make sure you understand the procedure. Your team is preparing rice for the entire class, the only other station preparing rice today should be Team 4 in preparation for Fried rice on Days 2 + 3. Rice cooked in the Rice Cooker - Do not cook more than 12 US cups of rice in the rice cooker at one time. Rice Cooked in Convection Steamer - Use only 2" deep hotel pans - not deeper; Do not cook more than 10 cups of rice in a single pan.


The soup Mise en place should be assembled on a sheet tray and set near a large wok so that I can help you start it no later than 9:00.

The Bean Starch Sheets for the salad should be rehydrated early, cut, and the salad assembled by 9:30 as well.

Sous Chef's Paper Work, each day you receive a clip board with these papers. It's your responsibility to know how to use them and do so. If not sure - ask in advance. On the Day before you are assigned to be a sous chef, it is important for you to review this.

Menu: You will receive a laminated menu for each service day, be sure that it's posted on the wall nearest the kitchen door. If unsure of where to post it, ask chef early in the day to avoid confusion at service time. 



Early Morning Supplemental. Note "Item-Quantity-Station Requesting"















Sanitation Supply Ordering Sheet, based on par-stock system. Amount we SHOULD have on hand is listed, order what we need to get UP to that amount. If we have enough already, fill in blank with an "X"











Flip Side of the Sanitation Sheet. This is the end-of-the-day cleaning check list to make sure everything is left clean and orderly











Daily inventory sheet. While the rest of the group cleans, the sous chefs inventory what we have for the following day's menu.This allows me to order more if we are short, or back something out of the next morning's order if we are over stocked. Important to do this accurately - it shortens early morning supplementals and keeps our cooler from getting over crowded. Sous Chefs should fill in ONLY the far right column. Be sure to count and record specific QUANTITIES of each items or a "zero"- blank spaces and or check marks are not "counting". 
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Station #2:

You should plan to start the lamb braise no later than 8:30 and the cabbage no later than 9:00, they need to be finished, hot held, and the woks clean before other teams can step in to stir fry at 10:15. Analyze your recipes and let me know if you have questions. Common mistakes are : Not knowing how much cornstarch is used to thicken a set amount of liquid, cutting ALL MEP and garnish for the lamb BEFORE braising begins(you should start the lamb cooking and THEN start working on the vegetables and garnish) and not asking for help with unfamiliar ingredients or appliances.

Station #3:
Dough is prepped ahead for you for Day 1, be prepared to complete the dough and roll it out,  make 1x  for Day 2 and allow to rest in the cooler over night.You will need to roll and cook the pancakes for Day 1, so write that into your time line. You should plan to prep the vegetables and other MEP for the Moo Shu as quickly as possible - watch the Vegetable prep video and work in a clean, organized fashion. On day 1 you only need one batch to cook for family meal. On service days  break the MEP for the stir fry into 4 batches so that we can fire them as needed during serviceThe sauce should be made and pre-portioned into 1 oz. white china ramekinsthese will be held on the side to accompany each plate. The Pancakes need to be rolled out as soon as the dough has rested -The prep table under the spice rack near the prep sink is The Place place to work on that. Ask me to help you get started, but see if you can walk yourself through the procedure and get all of the necessary equipment in place before you ask me for a demo. Remember to pre heat the cast-iron skillets while you prep the pancakes so that the skillets are hot when the pancakes are ready to cook. Common mistakes - not cleaning bean sprouts properly or cutting vegetables properly, pre heating the cast iron skillets too hot and burning the first batch of pancakes, not watching videos closely enough to understand the procedures.

Station 4:
Set up the wok steamer and stake out the large wok next to it as "yours" for Bok Choy. The fish is fairly simple, I can demo how to cut it. Make sure to know all of your ingredients and how the steaming process works. All of the Bok Choy we receive is for you to prep, so use it all- cut as directed, cleaned, blanched in heavily salted water, shocked, gently squeezed dry, divided into 4 batches for service. Garlic should be sliced into thin "chips". Please ask me to help you with the first batch of Bok Choy - the garlic can burn very easily if you don't control the wok heat. The rice for Fried Rice must be very early, Fried rice is best when made with cold rice, so speak with me about steaming off rice early enough for it to be chilled before 10:00AM.  Be completely ready to start the fried rice by 10:00 AM in the same large wok you will later use for Bok Choy - you'll need to be finished with the fried rice by 10:30. Common mistakes are - not understanding how the fish is cut or garnished, not cutting garnishes properly, not knowing what type of ham to use, burning the garlic for the bok choy.


Station #5:
There are Pork Butts in Marinade for Days 1 +2. You will also be receiving 2 butts to complete the entire process yourself over 3 days. For day 1, put 1 marinated pork butt in the Chinese roasting oven at 325F as early as possible. Make sure you know how to use the oven, if you do not - ASK. Before the end of the day you will need to put the fresh Butts in Brine . Once that's started, begin prepping the chicken. Cut and clean the chicken thighs and get them into the marinade, preheat the fryer,make the sauce in a small wok, and cut all of the vegetables, fry the chicken pieces ahead of service - Make sure you understand what type of frying you are doing and how to best accomplish it. All of the MEP for the chicken should be divided into 4 batches for firing as needed during service except the sauce. Sauce can be held in a bain marie with a ladle on your wok station. You are also responsible for setting up a pork carving station for service on the end of Station #5 near the oven. The pork should be held in the conventional oven at 200F on a sheet tray with a rack. When you get an order, the steam table line will pass you a plate with rice and cabbage on it - you will take a pork butt from the oven, slice a portion, plate it, and put the pork butt back in the oven to keep it warm. Common mistakes are - not having a complete recipe and understanding of how to fabricate, brine, marinate and roast pork;  not knowing how to fry battered items properly or how to set up a fry station efficiently, not knowing how to use cornstarch to thicken the sauce, not following directions and getting flustered as service approaches.

Station #6:
Follow the recipes, on service days divide the MEP into 3 batches to be fired as needed during service, assist the sous chefs through out the day - Early in the morning you should assist/delegate the putting away of plates, etc and return the carts to the dish room/store room, complete sanitation supplemental supply order, be involved and aware of the Sous Chef duties - you will be sous chefs later in the cycle, so it's good to look ahead. On the Second Day of Each Menu, Team 6 will be responsible for setting up the class tasting for the unit. On Day 2  you will be responsible for setting up the class tasting, so please talk to me about this before the end of class on Day 1 so you understand what you need to do, you'll need a copy of the tasting sheet from the Chinese section of the course guide.

MANDATORY 
Use This Time Line Grid to help organize yourself + team to work in sequential order and not forget anything. It may seem like a lot of work at first, but if you train yourself, it becomes easier to do and frees you of most anxiety in the kitchen, making cooking more fun and success more likely. 

 You are required to use THIS format to organize your time-line ; make two copies - one for you to work from and the other to hand in to the Chef  - all timelines are due upon arrival to class at 7:00 AM - typed and neatly organized as shown below. Failure to submit a complete timeline in this format will result in a 50% reduction in grade for not following instructions and being unprepared for class and you will be asked to leave the kitchen and return only when you are properly prepared. 

 The example below shows only two items, but you should create a similar one out-lining all of the items your station is responsible for. This is not a group or team project - EACH PERSON must create a time line of their own. List each menu item for the entire station, putting them in the order to do them , and include detailed lists of equipment and ingredients. The final column "Method" will put each step of the plan in sequence. Use bullet points and short words, do not clutter it up with a "narrative". Do not "Cut + Paste" directly from the recipe. Think about it and put things into your own words. Copying directly from the recipe will be considered plagiarism and result in a failing daily grade. 
Sequence
Task
Equipment
Ingredients
Method
 #1
Stock---
-Wok
-Skimmer
-Stock pot
-Ladle
-Cont. for Mire   Poix
-Cont. for straining
-Chinoise
-Storage container

-Water to blanch
-Bones
-Remouillage – 10 l
-Onions – 2#
-Carrots – 1#
-Celery – 1#
-Ginger – 4 oz
-Garlic –  1 oz
-Dry shitake  - 2 oz
-Kombu – 3 oz.

            -Blanch in wok
          --Skim/dump water
          --Transfer to Stock pot
           --Simmer 2 ½ hours
          --Add Aromatics ½ hour
         ---Off heat/Add kombu  1 hour           Strain – save solids

 #2
Noodle Salad
Pot to heat water
Bowl to soak noodles
Board
Towel under board
Chef’s knife
Measuring spoons
Measuring cups
Whisk-
Sm. Bowl for mustard
Lg. bowl for salad dressing and mixing

-GBSS Noodles
-Cucumber ,thin ½ ea.
-Cabbage,.75 #,  1” wide
-Mustard , I Tbsp finished
-Dark Rice vinegar 1 oz
-Light Soy Sauce 1 oz
-Sugar 1.5 Tbsp
-Scallion 1 Tbsp
-Garlic 1.5 tsp.
-Sesame oil .5
            -Heat water for noodles and cabbage           Soak noodles
        --- -Cut/Blanch/
shock cabbage
           --Rinse + cut noodles 1 inch 
-         -- Make mustard for dressing -1 Tbsp. only
           - Dress + hold

16 comments:

  1. Chef, another question for clarification, we are writing both the scaled recipes on 3" x 5" cards in addition to writing the specified timelines right?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. If you choose to write your recipes on cards, feel free. BUT - make very sure that they are accurate. If done correctly, and fully,the Time Line format should completely replace the need for recipe cards.

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  2. Chef, just watched the Ouch hot water video and had just a quick question for the cool down for the shrimp (or any other boiled/poach item that requires cooling/shocking): could we also have a china cap placed into a cambro with ice water to cool down the shrimp?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I guess that depends on how many items you have, how deep the shocking water is, and the capacity of the China cap. It's always easier to plunge the items into ice water if they're in a perforated container or sieve, than it is to dodge ice cubes. Small batches if you have limited capacity.

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  3. Also, just a heads up Chef, comments posted on this particular day sometimes post on days 3 & 4 for some reason.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. The Day 3 and Day 4 blog posts are usually, but not always, posted together because there is an assignment concerning Day 4 which is due on Day 3. I assume that's what you're referring to. If not, let's talk in class.

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  4. This comment has been removed by the author.

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  5. Chef, I am confused about what the recipe analysis needs to include. It seems like it is the timeline, but questions and times are added. I just want to make sure I have all the necessary items prepared for class on day one.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Most people "Read" a recipe. Most chefs will tell you to do that - "Read the recipe"...I encourage you to read it the first time, then go over it critically a second time - line by line - and ask yourself "Am I sure I understand this? Have I thought the entire process through (before class) , or am I assuming I can wing it or figure it out at the moment? Is there a connection between something I learned in a previous class? Is there something I've not done before, or, at least, in a long time? Maybe I should look it up; Does this make sense? "....that's analysis. After a complete analysis, you should be able to write a coherent timeline which get's you from start to finish. Have you ever seen a well trained restaurant cook fumbling with a recipe card in the middle of service? Nope...

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  6. Chef, I am confused about the Grandmother's Bean Curd recipe. Are we using both fresh and dry shiitake mushrooms? It says in the recipe that we need the liquid from the dry shiitake mushrooms to soak in the liquid. If we do use the dried mushrooms, how much should we soak? Just for clarification on the liquid, the recipe looks like this

    Lightly salted to taste 2 cups

    Crushed black pepper 2 tsp.

    Red Chili oil (recipe follows) 2 Tbsp.
    I would assume that the 2 cup measurement isn't for salt, but from the liquid used to rehydrate the dried shiitakes.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. The recipe calls for 2 cups f liquid from rehydrated dry shiitake mushrooms, seasoned to taste. Take 1 package of dry shiitake, soak in about 2 liters of warm water for at least 1 hour, drain off 2 cups of this liquid and season lightly with salt - to taste. Add another 2 cups of water to the mushrooms and refrigerate for use on Day 2. You can usually do this 4 times before the mushrooms lose their flavor, but taste each time you use them.

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  7. Chef, I am on station 4 and have a couple of questions. Firstly, how do we make the fat paste that goes on top of the fish? Running a knife through the fat back and forth or a robot coup? Also, how big do you want the large pieces of scallion that go on top of the fish for the majority of the steaming process? Is that the 2" bias? Then do we finish with thin bias cut scallions for garnish?

    For tomorrow, would you like station 4 to steam rice for Day 2 fried rice?

    Also, I haven't been able to view the basic ingredient slideshow from your website. It takes me to another page, but the slideshow itself won't open.

    Many thanks.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. The fat won't actually smear into a smooth paste, mince it finely and then use the edge of your knife to smooth it out a bit more, The recipe actually calls for more than you need for Day 1, so if you over produce, it can be saved for Day 2. Scallions should be cut as demonstrated in the video - long, very fine bias cuts - about 2" long, but thin. Concerning the slide show - there's a break in the link, I'm trying to figure out how to repair it. Don't be overly concerned, I'll go over a ot of that at the beginning of class.

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    2. Feide Rice- YES, make rice for days 1 + 2. Cold rice makes better fried rice.

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  8. Chef, for the crispy tangerine chicken, what temperature would you like us to set the deep fryer to? Also, it says we will be getting two fresh pork butts tomorrow and to begin the brining/marinading process. Will we be using one of those two pork butts for day 3?

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  9. Chicken - you are deep frying 1" pieces of battered, boneless chicken thighs. You're in 4th term t the CIA, If you can not figure it out before class tomorrow, we can discuss your options. I'm not being snarky, if you really don't know, we should talk about it. Pork Butts - you will be fabricating all for the pork you recieve on Day 1 for use on Day 3. according to the recipe.

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