Day 12: Cooking in a Paper Bag

Chef jumped right into the chapters in our text book ~ Cooking Fish and Shellfish, Understanding Vegetables, and Cooking Vegetables. Cooking fish and shellfish is no different than cooking meats and chicken. Only exception would be maybe when cooking en papillote. This is cooking in parchment paper. You make an envelope to seal the food. Steam from the heating the envelope cooks the fish and anything else you enclose. When the envelope puffs up you know that the food is cooked. This method is very light because you don't use very much oil to cook the fish or shellfished like clams and mussels.

Poaching and simmering is another method used for cooking small amounts of lean fish. The broth used for poaching/simmering is a court bouillon. A court bouillon is water containing seasonings, herbs and usually an acid used for cooking fish. The name means "short broth" in French because it is made quickly unlike broths. The court bouillon is cooked to exact flavours before cooking the fish in it. The cooking temperature is between 160 F and 180 F (depending on if it is a fat or lean fish) well below boiling which is 212 F. Cooking at a low temperature of 160 F is sufficient for cooking fish and will reduce the likelihood of over cooking.

As we moved on to Understanding Vegetables guidelines to follow in cooking are texture, flavour, colour and nutrients. These change depending on how you cook various types of vegetables. There are general rules to follow to make it easier to understand vegetables. Don't overcook. Cook your vegetables as close to serving as possible. If you need to cook vegetables ahead of time, par cook and chill. When ready to serve, reheat by pan frying quickly. Do not use baking soda with green vegetables - the baking soda destroys vitamins, and makes the vegetable slippery and mushy. Cut vegetables to same size for even cooking. Start with boiling, salted water for anything that grows above the ground. For root vegetables, start them in cold, salted water for even cooking. Cook green or strong flavoured vegetables uncovered. For preserving colour, cook red and white vegetables in a slightly acid liquid. Cook greens in a neutral liquid.

As cooks we need to consider standards of quality in cooked vegetables ~ colour, appearance on plate, texture, flavour, seasonings, sauces, and vegetable combinations. There are so many vegetables types offered to the commercial and home cook. As we become more multicultural, more ethnic foods enter the mainstream via local corner grocers to large supermarkets. Today I went grocery shopping at Organic Garage and saw Nopales (cactus pads). Nopales are used in Mexican cooking. One of my colleagues is from Mexico and mentioned that she ate them fried with eggs for breakfast and that they are absolutely delicious. She also said that she would make some for us to try.

We presented our Black Box (items used in The Next Great Chef ~ Ontario episode) menus Chef asked us to do for homework. It's for today's menu are: Muscovy Duck, Artic Char, Fiddleheads, Havarti Cheese, Fresh Figs. From these items we were to create our menus. My menu follows:

Appetizer:
Pan Seared Muscovy Duck Breast
Wrapped in a Crepe with Slivers of Ginger and Chives
Drizzled with Hoisin Sauce

Main Course:
Arctic Char en Papillote
Steamed Fiddleheads tossed with Walnuts, Lemon and Olive Oil
and Yukon Potatoes au Gratin

Desert:
Rustic Fresh Fig Tart
with a Rose Water Infused Custard

After all menu presentations, Chef selected dates for our country food project. I will be presenting my project on Tuesday. Chef also quizzed us on questions for our test on Monday to help us prepare.

Lots of homework this weekend. Still need to finish my project, read chapters and study for a test on chapters three and four this coming Monday.