Tasting tray for Day 2 Lecture

Here's a photo of what the tasting tray for Day 2 should look like if you follow the sheet. 17 items in all, whole pieces of things that would be cut up or re-hydrated for tasting (just so you can see both forms). Chef should walk you through each item, giving a short explanation and allowing you time to taste each one. If you clean up fast - before 12:45 - it can be done in the kitchen, otherwise, take it upstairs to Lecture room 455. Make 1 tray for each 4-5 students. If you have 12 students, make 3 identical trays for them to share.

If you click on the photos, it will take you to an album of photos from the Chinese section, some of which I've not had time to upload and embed into the website. When tasting is done, please cover and wrap remains - as in second photo - and store in AM cooler. We can use this to review for tests later in the cycle.

BTW- There are several different "class maintenance" forms that the Chef should have introduced you to today. The early morning supplemental is due in by 7:30 all days except Day 1, followed by the double sided Sanitation supply/Leaning Checklist sheet,the Expediting Sheet, and the Daily inventory sheets. For pictures and brief explanations of each click on the August Archive link to your right and look for the post beginning "Early Morning Supp".

From Day 1 K1 China

From Day 1 K1 China

Pre-Day One Sept 14th 2010

If you are on your way into K1, this is the place. If you've been with me for this past block, click on the Day 14 Post to your right to leave any last minute questions.

New comers - Welcome to the K1 Blog.

This is the place where you post questions for me (up until 8:00PM on School nights) and to interact with each other, answering each others questions, bouncing ideas around, and looking back at past posts from former students to see what THEY did.

It's also the place to tell me what you'd like to see more of, hear less of, and what I can do to make the course more informative. Do we need to shoot a new video clip for the Site? Add some new recipes? Fix some typos in the old ones?

I'll log on here at least once a day, usually between 8:00-9:00 PM to check in, but really, this is a forum for you to discuss things with each other and establish a community learning base. Over time, you'll build a library of experience that help you learn from each others mistakes and build on successes. This is a work in progress, help me keep the ball rolling.

Questions? Comments?

Questions for Day 14? Post them here.

I'll try to check back by 8:00 pm - 9:00 at the latest. E-mail me if it's really important and you need a quick answer.

Questions for Day 13?

Ask them here, I'll check in at 8:30.

Day 12 India Info

This is a labor intense Day. You'll need to be well organized before coming to class so you know what to start first and how you'll fill in the blanks. If you don't plan how to make every minute count it can get away from you really easily.

Sous Chefs-

All entrees will be served on a 12" round plate LINED WITH A BANANA LEAF CIRCLE. traditionally, Indian diners will not eat from plates, they use banana leaves to hold the food, this presentation acknowledges that. We will receive several pacakets of banana leaves, they need to be cut into cirles which fit into the 12" plates. Ask me early and I'll show you how.

Menu is divided into "North" and "south" - everything will be in 1/2 hotel pans on the steam table except for the accompaniments. Draw a detailed diagram of where everything will go on the steam table. There won't be enough space on the steam table for the rice - put rice in chaffing dish at end of steam table near plates.
Lamb Shorba - broth is made and shoulder is cooked already - soup itself is simple, check flavor with me before serving.

Salad - 1x recipe. This salad is served with the accompaniments on a small, round "condiment" plate

Rice - Saffron rice Pilaf - make SURE you know everything there is to know about rice Pilaf METHOD -this is where people fall down. Make 16 cups raw rice. Use Basmati. Serve from steam table in shallow, full hotel pan.

Mago lhassi - the yogurt is being made overnight - should be ready in the morning. You will receive frozen Mango Puree from the store room. Don't plan to make mango lhassi all 3 days - look for some other flavors or talk to me. Serve in 10 oz milk glasses - see me early if stewarding doesn't supply.

Set up "accompaniment" station on Table 5. small, uniform containers of each item + salad. You can keep any back-up in the cooler if you need it. It's ok to make a lot of plates in advance and hold them on the shelf under Station 5.

Station 2:
Lamb Khorma - start early, braise in small rondo on top of stove - keep covered, stir often, don't scorch. You will receive 5# lamb cubes for this. Cashew paste is made by soaking cashews in hot water and then pureeing in food processor. Serve from steam table in 1/2 hotel pan.

Samoosas- Dough is already made - filling should is prepped, needs to be finished. Let me help you toast the spices, they burn easily. The samoosas should be fried in small batches as needed for service and served from steam table in 1/2 hotel pan.

Dal Tadka is easy to make, but consider starting very early. The lentils should be mushy - falling apart -and the "tadka" added at the end. Bring to the steam table in a 1/2 hotel pan.

Chili Chutni - we should have enough for the rest of the block - see Lindsey for details.

Station #3:

Fish curry - read recipe, know all ingredients, watch video and ask chef to help get started, This is an unusual and unique dish. Fish should be portioned into 5-6oz portions, see chef depending on type of fish. Make sauce ahead, hold hot, poach fish in sauce a few orders at a time, just before serving. Serve from steam table in 1/2 hotel pan. You will receive enough fish on Day 12 to last for 3 days. Divide and ice the fish for Days 13-14.

Pooris(puris) bread - Make dough FIRST thing in the morning. check with chef for proper consistency, let it rest, ask chef for advice on rolling and cutting. Watch demo on frying and pre-heat cast iron pans about 20 minutes before you plan to fry. These should be fried before service and held warm on paper towels to absorb extra fat. Serve from steam table in 1/2 hotel pan lined with paper towels.

Station #4;

Pork Vindaloo is marinating for all 3 days. Take 1/3 meat, 1/3 pork and other MEP and let chef help you get started early with this.. You can make it in a large wok, but you have to be very careful about heat control and evaporation - keep the flame low and keep the wok covered. Serve from steam table in 1/2 hotel pan.

Dal Sambar - also start very early. Lentil should cook until mushy. Keep heat low, stir often, keep pot covered. If lentils start to stick, change pots and add a bit more water. Serve from steam table in 1/2 hotel pan.

Bondas - cook potatoes early, let chef help with spices toasting. con=mbine potatoes and spices and let chef demo how to size and shape. Dip in batter and fry only as needed for service. Serve from steam table in 1/2 hotel pan.

Pachadi - Crack open fresh coconut and remove flesh - chef can help. Toast in oven, stir occasionally to keep coconut from scorching. Toasting chick peas - they must be toasted until they are cooked through and REALLY crunchy - if they're soft in the center, they're not done. Check with chef.

Station #5:

Make dough for naan first thing - it needs to rise, be divided, and rise again. If it's already been made from the day before, remove from cooler and divide and let rise. Naan should go into the oven between 10:30-11:00.

Tandoori chicken - should already be marinating. Remove from marinade and put on skewers early in the day. The meat will cook more easily if it's not cold right out of the cooler. Skewered meat can be held on plastic lined sheet trays at room temp. Be ready to put skewered chicken in oven by 10:00 AM. Serve from steam table in 1/2 hotel pan.

Raitha is made with drained yogurt - if the yogurt did not get drained the night before, drain it in a chinoise lined with cheese cloth for a couple of hours before making. put in small container for sous chefs.

Station #6:

Paneer Saag - make cheese as early as possible - 7:15 or so. Let drain and firm until cool, then cut into small dice. Spinach is braised - meaning a longer, slower, moist heat method. Have all MEP near a wok and be ready to start cooking slowly by 10:00. Let simmer on low heat, covered, until spinach is very soft. Then finish with cheese and yogurt. This takes about 45 minutes to cook.

Vegetable Curry - Also a braised veg dish. Long, slow, moist heat, covered. All MEP ready by 10, cook slowly until cauliflower is very tender.

Both dishes served from steam table in 1/2 hotel pans.

Hit me with questions before 8!!

Day 11 - Prepping for india

Tuesday should be a pretty easy day, menu wise. Yelana want's to make Adobo and maybe one other Philippine special, so if you're interested in seeing what "home-girl" can make, start planning to help her this evening.

The other part of the day is thinking ahead for the Indian menu. each station will have some prep listed on the tracking schedule, but if you look ahead and want/can prep anything else to make your 1st day of India less stressful. Bread dough for naan, puris, samoosas can all be made ahead - MAKE SURE to talk to me about it before you start - there are slight changes to make in the recipes if you're making it a day in advance. We need to make fresh yogurt and drain some existing yogurt over night - if you need "drained yogurt" for an Indian recipe, talk to me and we can set it up to drain in the cooler.

Basically, do your research for India so that we can talk and plan together on Tuesday - Day 12 is notoriously difficult if you don't plan ahead.

Hope you're all having a great weekend. I'm typing this less than 100 feet from the Atlantic ocean. Just had 2 Lobster Rolls for Breakfast, and am getting ready to go body surfing. Yahoooo!

Day 10 Info - Thai Menu

Who's going to help prep the lemon grass beef? I think you'll be glad you did. We'll use it for family meal, too good for anyone else.

Sous Chefs-

Hot and sour soup - watch demo on how to cook shrimp in broth, make soup in a wok, hot hold
Salad - Green papaya, watch demo on papaya fabrication
Sticky rice AND Steamed Jasmine rice
Set up Street food station - similar to Vietnamese set-up, chaffing dish on Station 5 with 1/3 pans for hot food, cool food, plates, sweet chili sauce, etc. should all be set up near the chaffing dish. Draw a complete diagram of how the station will be set up with all components and items labeled in diagram. Sweet Thai Chili sauce comes from store room - bottles labeled "Mai Ploy". This goes in ramekins in center of plate.

The Steam table will need to be used to hold the Curries, the pad thai, the squid, and the jasmine rice. Put each curry in a 1/3 pan, the Pad Thai and Squid in 1/2 pans and the Jasmine rice in a full hotel pan. Draw a diagram- make it complete.

Station #2 -

Chicken Rice is served room temp in summer. Entire plate is picked up from your station. You need to make your own rice, make it pilaf style and use rendered duck fat to parch the rice. Pandan leaf is usually available - order it on supplemental if you don't see it on the invoice in the morning. For Service you will need:
- Chaffing dish to hold rice
- Shallow "gratin" dishes to hold chicken and sauce, gratin dish sits on large oval plate with rice and cucumber/tomato/cilantro garnish (this is like and undressed salad tossed together).
- Service utensils to plate.

Yellow Shrimp Curry - use the curry paste to make the yellow curry sauce. Make the sauce completely except for the shrimp. Hold sauce for service and gently poach the shrimp in 1/3 batches in 1/3 of the sauce - this keeps the shrimp from over-cooking on the steam table.

Station 3-
The squid is stir fried, divide the MEP into 4 batches as usual, you can mix the Oyster Sauce, fish sauce, sugar, and chicken stock together before service. Watch the video, it's pretty easy. I want to do the first batch with you. Squid will be served from the steam table in a 1/2 hotel pan.

The satay - trim off external fat and collagen from Flank steak and let me show you how to cut it for satay. You will trim and cut the meat, then put it on skewers, THEN marinate it. Talk to me or one of the people from Station 5 Day 8+9 about how to set up the grill so the skewers don't burn. You need to gently re-heat 1/2 the peanut sauce that was made on Day 8. This sauce breaks easily when heated, if it breaks on you, fix it the same way that you would fix a broken mayonnaise. Watch the video on how to pound meat - I'll have a meat mallet for you to use. Make 2x the cucumber salad - this will go with satay and fish cake on every street food plate.

Station #4 -
Make 1x each curry recipe. They're going to be served in very small portions, so it should be enough. It's important to start them early, so hustle. Use small rondos or large sauce pots with covers, remember to keep them covered until the meat is tender to avoid drying out and burning by evaporation. Also remember that you can braise in the oven - the range will get crowded later in the morning, if you don't have room on top of the stove, you can finish in the oven. The braises should go to the steam table in 1/3 hotel pans

Start the lamb broth by roasting the bones - that's all for Day 10 - just roast the lamb bones and the lamb shoulder, cool and store. On Day 11 you should start a stock with the roasted bones as soon as you arrive.

Station #5-

Duck Curry - recipe is pretty self explanatory. Ask for clarification on the blog if you need it. Served from a 1/3 pan on the steam table.

Fish cakes - important that you have a VERY sharp knife to hand mince the fish. Also very important that the long beans are sliced into PAPER thin rounds, if you slice them thicker, the cakes fall apart. Cakes should be fired in a 325 fryer in small batches as needed for service and put on the street food station in 1/3 pans.

Station #6
Pad Thai- Stir fried dish, divide MEP into 4 batches, it's ok to combine ingredients for sauce ahead. Make sure to have lime and peanuts for garnish. Served from 1/2 hotel pan in steam table into deep noodle bowls. Be sure NOT TO OVER SOAK THE NOODLES - about 5 minutes in very hot tap water. The idea is for them to be pliable, not ready to eat. In the wok you will add more liquid and heat and they will become done at that point. I believe that the embedded video may not be exactly the same recipe as the one you have, if it looks different, the technique is the same. Remind me if it's different and we can shoot a new video.
Seafood "yam" is the seafood salad. Easy to make, hold at room temp in a 1/3 or 1/6 pan for use on the street food station.
Pork Vindaloo - follow recipe for 1st stage of the paste.

Questions?