Smithy

Over in the topic How I Became a Professional Cook in France, I asked Chris Ward about teaching his students the economic realities of the food world. This part of his response brought me up short: This is a new concept to me. It makes sense, in a way; I know that when I travel, ready availability of food (either in the hotel or very close by) is a factor. Many eG members over the years have noted that hotel restaurants aren't likely to be as good as stand-alone restaurants. However, the idea that the restaurant is a necessary element for a successful hotel, but not likely to be a money-maker, is a surprise. How universal is this idea?

So catching the golden ring isn't just a pilot fantasy, but applies in the food world as well. That sounds like an interesting exercise you do. Probably, given the nature of students, some of them will value the lesson later and realize what you were trying to say. This is a new concept to me: Do you think that's peculiar to France, or to most developed countries? I think I'll start a topic in the broader forums to ask. Edit: and so I have. *click*

Thanks very much for sharing this with us; I've enjoyed an in-depth view of a world foreign to me in more ways than one. When you teach your classes on restaurant management, and talk to your students about the restaurant world, how honest are you about the challenges of making a living at it? Do you share the pitfalls and challenges with the starry-eyed would-be chefs, or decide simply to let them follow their dreams and find out for themselves?

That sounds like a fun night out, and makes me long for the days when I visited big cities more regularly than I do now. Now, I try to expand my home repertoire with concoctions I read about and wonder why I hadn't thought of it myself. With that in mind, please tell more about these dishes: Texture, doneness, and so on...how were the cabbage and walnuts used with the pork? Was the mustard a coating on the rack, or a dipping sauce? How big were the chunks of sunchoke and shrooms? Was the chicken jus the "jelly" that set them into the pate? Did you detect any other seasonings?

"wiffit"?

I wouldn't claim that Duluth, Minnesota is "hitting the big time", but I was pleased to see an article about Rob's book in yesterday's paper: Acclaimed foraging chef Rob Conneley releases cookbook. (The original was from the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, and our paper picked it up.) It's a nice little writeup, with a picture of that gorgeous cover.

Yes, it's been lovely - as always. I liked the cocktail name 'Voyageur' - very appropriate for your location - but it made me think of 'Bon Voyage'. Is there such a drink? If not, you should invent it for these occasions.

When I have a cocktail atop a glass of wine I usually spill both. *Ba-dah BUMP* Thank you sooo much for the shrimp secret! It sounds wonderful, and simple, and I will be trying it soon.

Please describe how that shrimp was roasted. I've never thought of roasting shrimp, but that looks well worth trying.

I expect you did. How nice to see that Nassima got a come-uppance! Do you know if it reflected in her grade?

It might indeed! Thanks.

My sister-in-law has a Costco membership, and when we visit I've enjoyed their rotisserie chicken as well as their crab-stuffed salmon. Now THERE'S something I would buy regularly if we had a Costco nearby. Better still, eventually I'd like to learn to duplicate it.

Yessss...so do I....right after I purchase that book....

Hanky Panky! What a great name for a cocktail! Now all you need is for Kerry to be drinking a Hokey Pokey.

I'm trying to visualize this. You mean the box got dropped into the foie gras? Buried in it? How was it done, and how was it discovered? Nothing I can add here, except to say about this attitude, "right on!" I think that, all too often, people reach a certain point and figure "Hey, I'm the best, baby!" and become insufferable. I'm curious about retention of the material you folks learned in school. On this last day you say the class needed little guidance to cook the dishes described. Would you say that the specifics of recipes (ingredients, proportions) would be well retained from this course, due to repetition and study, or that it would be more the techniques (knifework, searing, etc) that would stick around? Does it depend on the individual? As a home cook I find that once I learn a particular technique I can apply it and make a favorite dish more or less repeatably, but if it's something I don't do often I need to refer to a recipe for guidance. I'd guess a professional cook doesn't need that. Does the transition happen during the course of the school year for most people?

Shelby, I was sure I would never like mint sauce, based on that nasty green mint jelly I'd always been served with lamb in restaurants and dining halls. I'm not sure what got me to try making my own. It may have been included with some lamb recipe I was determined to follow to the letter. It was a revelation. I don't remember sugar and vinegar in mine; no doubt there's more than one version, but this too sounds good. I too can recomment peas with mint sauce.

Do you make your own mint sauce? I have, a few times, but not often enough to have a set of ingredients without looking it up. Mint, garlic, olive oil, salt? Perhaps a touch of parsley as well?

What are they made of, Kerry? And how do they taste?

With a steak like that, I'd be too hungry to think of anything but a fine sandwich no matter how much I'd already had to eat! As to @blue_dolphin's point, I'm glad not to have guests who helpfully offer to take away my treasures like leftover tri-tip. Hospitality has its limits. Oh, that ginger looks wonderful!

What a fun haul from your day's shopping! I wish I had a thrift-store-shopping buddy within easy distance. It would be more fun. Come to think of it, it would also be more expensive. Maybe it's a good thing my thrift-store buddies live far away.

@Shelby, for what it's worth I'm glad you didn't put green food coloring in that jelly. There's something revolting to me about vividly, unnaturally green jelly, like that cheap "mint jelly" that almost invariably accompanies lamb at restaurants. A green that's found in nature - for instance, from a good mint or basil jelly - now, that's another story: it can truly be a revelation. But green food color? No, thanks. Yours looks much prettier.

This is all making me want quiche. One of my favorite combinations is spinach and feta cheese, but there are some excellent alternatives being suggested here. Thanks for the tutorial, Chris. I especially like the sound of sun-dried tomatoes in a quiche.

I went on a beet kick last month and bought a small bucket of them. As an experiment I sliced some, vacuum-packed them with a bit of oil or butter and some herbs, and then sous-vided them until they felt tender. Haven't opened any of the packages yet, but I'll report back here when I do.

Welcome, winedoc! I remember reading a few years ago about some researcher's attempts to convince San Joaquin Valley wine grape growers to change their viticultural methods to compensate for the heat and minimize water loss. One idea was to train the vines into self-contained nests, almost conical, as is seen on Thera and in some parts of Egypt. Is that effort still under way? Is that the sort of project you might do?

Hello, Nauticus! It sounds like you'll fit right in. Specific cuisine? Go for it. New technology? Have at it. Our membership ranges from those who plunge with glee into a new method of cooking to those who carefully advance, one toe after another, into new waters. Either way, we welcome good discussion. What are some of the modernist elements you've begun incorporating into your cookery? If you have any questions about how the forums work, feel free to ask a host...in public, if you're bold, or by the PM (Personal Messenger) system.