Wine_Dad

I'm interested, do you think it was the 12 course or the 12 people that did you in? It seems to me that with such tiny courses, it gets quite fiddly making for 4 and 12 would be a relief in some instances, but in other courses, just the prep for 4 is driving me mad and I don't know if I could handle 12. ← The larger number of people actually allowed for larger quantities to be prepared and simplified the prep, however, it did produce logistical challenges in presentation and serving at proper temperature. The number of courses is clearly the issue. With practice, we learned to use a stock to create a consomme as a course, later you use the stock as a braising liquid and again as the basis for a meat sauce. Like I said, try and layer flavors rather than incorporating them, you can build on tastes rather than taking your guests in completely different directions.

I've done it before and posted a response but can't remeber where. Long story short, a friend asked if I would help him prepare a twelve course for 12 people in his home. He worked two solid days in prep, I worked 16 hours straight that day with him and it was maginificent. It was however, the hardest day of work in my life and I spent 4 summers as a contractor, working 16 hour days, 7 days a week. It comes down to doing as much as humanly possible in advance, keeping it very simple, layering flavors rather than integrating them is important. Interspace soups and mousses between labor intensive courses, have a salad with marinated something or other, build on courses and try and serve a trio of something prepared three ways (veal cheek, sweet bread, shank or brain). When I do it all by myself, I usually strick to Asian dishes, from Nobu et al.

I guess it all started when someone asked me if I had ever had a peanut butter and mustard sandwich. Once I tried one, I must have eaten them every day for a year. In university I eat about 6 goldfish and chased them down with Scotch. However, while travelling the Indonesian island of Sumatra, I hooked up with some French backpackers who were going to Padang for the purpose of sampling the food. Apparantly, Padang is renowned in south east Asia for it's authentic dishes. It was the end of my first week there having travelledc for 2.5 days from the eastern seaboard. We settled on a 2nd floor eatery above the market in central Padang. Not a word of english on the menu, not a word of english spoken by the staff - 30 Indonesians and 3 lilly white caucasians. We understood that they would bring 2 of each dish available and we would be charged by the number of dishes completed. They brough out over 40 dishes. One the dishes was a chunk of braised meat prepared in a fashion known as "Randang" which I believe is marinated for well over 24 hours and then braised in some local concontion for another few hours. We ate it like it was going out of style - we must have consumed 6 dishes of it - meat of any quality was hard to find in the back woods of Sumatra. We were then approached by an Indonesian man who was clearly western educated who proceeded to explain, in english what the dishes were. At that point I had a sinking feeling that the meat dish was not pork, beef, lamb, muskox, water buffalo or anything else I was accustomed to. In fact it was dog. While I am a big fan of pets, each society has evolved in its own way with its local customs and I have to respect the care and quality of the preparation of the food. Who was I to judge the Indonesians for their choice of meats? Afterall, two more days trekking through Sumatra and I would have eaten one the Frenchmen.

I took clients to Hiro almost every day for 2 weeks and we all signed the petition at the door. For a minute there, I thing democracy may have worked. For a minute.

There are too many to mention, many of which spend more time on the name and label than on the inside - here are my faves On anything - Sambal Olek On everything else - Red Hot On Rack-o-lamb - Jamaican Jerk On Pizza - Home made haberno When you want to go nuts - Dave's Insanity Saw a guy once slurp a capful (1 tbsp) of Dave's and he was taken to the hospital. 1 tsp per 4 quarts of meat sauce is plenty to burn a hole in ya!

I'll second that. I buy all my Riedel there (I live in Toronto) thanks to their policy that if one of them breaks, they'll charge you the cost of replacing it rather than the retail like Ashley's or The Wine Establishment. Something to consider.

Here, here. Every year I host an "Anything but Beaujolias Nouveau" party. It's a huge hit.

I've got in touch with the association and had a long discussion with their customer relations people. Based out of Alberta they currently sell to the restaurant and wholesale industry and have no retail agreements here in Toronto. They used to work with Pusateri's but do so no longer. They will do home delivery but it's going to be a primal cut of at least 100 lbs. He's willing to work with me/us to establish a retail network throughout Toronto. My questions is this - does anyone out there feel that there could be enough volume through eGullet to form a reasonable syndicate in the Toronto area? I'm convinced that I could form a syndicate for a 100lb cut, however, I would like to work on something that's a little more permanent. Any ideas would be helpful and appreciated.

We've been doing it with cold soups for ever. Typically it's a cold pea & tarragon and a roasted red pepper & chipotle. It does take practice to get the consistency right but once you do it's awesome. I use Pyrex cups and go as slow as possible from either side of the bowl, at the same time so the soups "bump" into each other in the centre of the bowl. As for the design, I go with sour cream out of a pastry bag and do leaves, yin yang, initials, what ever. Watch your cappucino guy next time he designs on top of your coffee - mine has taught me some cool stuff. Other ideas are quenelles, blanched and placed just under the top of the soup so they can't be seen. Into the quenelles go herbs of your choice so they appear to be standing in the soup. I've never done it with hot soup or with one cold and one hot. I would be interested to know if that works.

Shortly after my daughter was born my wife developped food sensitivities. It lasted about about five years. Unfortunately, a couple of friends, and some familty too, were not all that concerned and she would often feel "off" after eating at their respective homes. We got into the habit of having partial meals in the trunck in the event that the ingredients were questionable. A few times, after seeing the food being prepared, I would go into the trunk and leave her to fend for herself.

Nobu, Charlie Trotter, ADPA, Susur and Perigee aside, the best meal of my life to date was a favor I did for a friend where he put together a 12 course, wine matched meal for his father and 11 guests and invited me to sous with him in his kitchen. It's memorable because of the work put into the event, the gushing praise of the guests (all of whom were foreign gourmands with the exception of my friend's father and his guest who were local gourmands), tasting the fruits of our labor, the shear joy of being finished, the left overs and the realization that I could never do that for a living. It starts out on a Tuesday last May where my friend asked me to take him "shopping in the big city". My local purveyors who are accustomed to seeing me once a week went out of their way to help my friend and I. One even went as far as coming with us and giving us "cred" with his friends enabling us to stretch the budget to accomodate beluga caviar, moulard foie gras, a huge bag of morels, and a gross of lobster tails. In fact I should thank them all by listing them in my next post. After our shopping trip, I went back to my normal life for a few days, while he returned home to prep - all day Thursday and Friday while communicating with me to assure that we were on the same page as far as presentation, sequence of dishes, responsibilities and wine matching. I arrived at 11:00 (two hour drive) with a car full of cooking gear straight out of the French Laundry Book (my inspiration) and the Charlie Trotter Book (his inspiration). At this time I must say that I have had some odd, hard, back breaking jobs in my time but nothing, absolutely nothing prepared me for what I was getting into. I got right to work prepping for him and prepping for the two dishes which were my responsibility - 2 for me, 10 for him - afterall they were his dad's friends. Since we've never worked together like this, there were some miss steps in communication and we were not as efficient as we could have been but it was fun as hell. All of a sudden it was 6:00 pm, 30 minutes until guests arrived. Remember we're doing this in a residential kitchen, everything rented, two knucklehead "chef want to be" professionals in their late 30s cooking for 12 people, one fridge, one 40" - 6 burner professionnal range, 4 coolers, and his wife doing everything we were not. I believe the pros call this "in the weeds" - I call it f'ing screwed. Now to the menu: Parmesan Tuiles with Salmon Tartar and Creme Fraiche - Keller inspired Blinis with Three Caviars & Traditional Garnish Brocolli Flowerettes with Truffle Oil & Asparagus Mousse Mandarin Orange and Salmon Mousse Quenelles Leek & Spinach Soup Butter Poached Lobster with Poached Fig and Moulard Foie Gras - Keller inspired Lobster Angnoloti with Crisp Sweetbreads & Truffle Oil Seared Tuna with Wasabi Butter Roasted Red Pepper Sorbet on an Ice Plate Ontario Lamb with Morel Sauce (made up the sauce on the spot - exillerating) Artisinal & Farmhouse Cheeses Chocolate Mousse Cake Throughout the evening we got to hear about all of the global dining experiences of the guests as well as some damn good feedback as to what to do next time - yes it's an annual. Everyone left by about 1:00 am. We started to clean for the sake of cleaning when we decided it would be much more fun to get into the left-overs and sear up the remaining foie gras and open the extra Sauterne and go until we dropped. What a night. I wish I could say that all of the wines worked but they didn't. They were my responsibility. We doubled up on some courses and the menu could have been built to support the wines but it was about the food. Afterall, 12 people in their late 60s early 70s eating 12 course are not going to go nuts drinking. Once a year is enough for me. I've gained a tremendous amount of additional respect for the professionals in the food business to go with the unwavering admiration I already had for them.

I was going to describe my "roasted red pepper sauce" but after seeing the "Carrot Air" it seems pointless. Anyway! Take three roasted red peppers, 2-3 cloves of crushed garlic, splash of lime juice, and hot peppers of your choice (I use chipotle) and grind them into a sauce. You can add (or not) oil to get the perfect consistency. Depending on our respective girth at the time dictates how much oil we add. Carrot air - I'm going to town with that one.

Hot and Sour Soup Linguine ala vongole A giant bone-in rib eye, topped with foie gras and a lobster tail Rappini with garlic and parmesan Creme brule With unlimited supplies of Penfolds Bin 28 Kalimna Shiraz and a nice Ashton 898 for afterwards. Beautiful

I didn't want to go into this in such a public forum, however, I recently experienced the worst meal situation at our thanksgiving back in October. We went to my in-laws as they were hosting the meal prior to leaving for the warmer climes of the southern US for the winter. They had invited my brother in law's, in-laws, an immigrant couple from Italy who tended a perfect garden and had never, ever purchased anything packaged or prepared. Due to an injury to the cook, I had offered to help prepping but the meal was to be my MILs. After a day of prep work, the guests arrived and I assited in the host discussion with my newly met extended relatives. The cocktails were served and a lively discussion on the way "things used to be in the old country ensued". I went into the kitchen periodically to help my MIL and noticed that she was not herself - I assumed that since she's not all that comfortable socially that she was just nervous of not impressing her son's in-laws. It was about an hour later that I smelled someting acrid. I entered the kitchen to find my MIL completely wasted, stirring the gravy which had by now burned to a pungent horrible state. I offered to help but it was like talking to Dudley Moore's intoxicated Arthur character. I managed to get her seated with the help of the other, sober mother-in-law and proceeded to carry out the meal and carve the bird at the table. Long story short, about 30 minutes into it, I look over and my MIL is so fried that she's got both elbows in her plate eating a turkey leg like it's the last peice of food she's ever going to eat. Covered in acrid gravy from elbow to cheek - she ate oblivious to her state. No one had touched the gravy and there's no butter or milk in the mashed potatoes. I was the first up along with my spouse, my brother in-law and his wife to clean the dishes and get away from the train wreck at the table. I must say we laughed our asses off in the kitchen afterwards. The next day we all behaved as if nothing had ever happened. Just another disfunctional family gathering.

Rule of thumb when cooking with wine: Don't use anything that you woulnd't be able to serve on it's own.

Faves Bourdain - Entertaining anti-christ who gets to the heart/gut of the matter. Alton Brown - He's my visual McGee, I've learned more from McGee and Brown than from any others. Oliver - Must admit, his simple no nonsense approach is perfect for a busy family with young kids. Nigella - There's just something about her. She's so comfortable, Not so Faves Rachel Ray - Just doesn't do it - the $40 a day show is a horrible premise Rocco - What a prima-donna James Barber - Horrible sanitary practices - watch very closely and you'll see what I mean

Firstly, bone them. They're much easier to eat and it's not that hard. First start with removing the wish bone, then, using your fingers remove the meat from the internal skeleton. Break both legs at the joints. If you must you can cut the skin at the back bone to remove it but it's not necessary. Prepare a stuffing of exotic mushrooms, garlic and thyme. (I use some fresh and some dried mushrooms, reserving the hydration liquid for the rissotto). You can zing up the stuffing with Balsamic vinegar to taste (less than a tsp). Stuff birds and truss them if you can. Meanwhile, make a rissotto using the reserved and strained (2-3 times) mushroom liquid. Shave a little percorino, arrange stuffed quail on top, shave a little truffle on the mix and watch out. We did a 6 course for gourmand friends of ours. Up against some tries and true high-end dishes this one was everyone's favorite. Serve with a southern Rhone Gigondas or Chateauneuf-du-Pape.

Early on, when I thought I could cook but couldn't, I used to offer to prepare meals for dates at their house. I would ask what they liked and study like mad to make it right then prepare it for them in their home/apartment/hovel. My most memorable one was a Paella for a wonderful but spoiled rich girl in a giant mansion with a professional kitchen used by the family's chef! We started with wine and I described everything as it came together and why and made up stuff about the natural ingredients. Long story short it turned out awful. Wall plaster chunky rice with saffron, hard as rock mussels, stringy chicken, and dried sausage. Never heard from her again. Go figure.

For safety sake, get the stock cool as soon as possible. The bullet frozen water bottle(s) is great. I go one further by filling a larger stock pot with ice water and dropping the smaller stock pot (containing stock) into this ice bath. Within the hour it's cooled down from 180 deg to about 50 deg. Freeze some in 2 cup, 4 cup and 6 cup batches and fill a couple of ice cube trays to boost sauces. You should really go out of your way to get veal bones. They contain much more gelatin and veal has the ability to take on the essence of the meat it's being cooked with - I don't know why. A calf's foot into the mix is a great gelatin boost as well and usually freaks the kids out too.

Salt story #1: When encrusting a $100 peice of tenderloin with an herb/salt and flour crust, the doubling of the size of the tenderloin does NOT require the doubling of the salt content. Should you double the salt content you will have the most expensive beef jerky ever made. I think I may even have some left - from 2001. Salt story #2: Making the cornets for salmon tartar ala Keller when, without thinking, I poured the salt from the container into the measuring device - OVER THE BOWL WITH THE OTHER INGREDIENTS. A little spilled over, ok a ton of it spilled over, and I managed to remove the majority of the excess. Nevertheless, I served the cornets and it was like walking out to a field and sticking your tongue on a blue salt lick. The lesson, if you screw up start over - don't try and cover it up.

Michael Rhulman's Making of a Chef and Soul of a Chef are wonderful for those people who love to cook and think it would be fun to be a professional chef. What a couple of great books to make you happy that you do it as a hobby. I agree with the Bouchon/Les Halles books. They are two different approaches to the same ends. More importantly, they are honest archives of some of the most succulent dishes ever prepared using natural ingredients. For the really dedicated/possessed home gourmand I would recommend any one of The French Laundry, Larousse Gastronomique, Nobu, or Charlie Trotter. Most of these dishes are day or two events of prep and organization. With a little time and luck, your foodie's confidence will be boosted through the roof when they serve up their creation to the delight of everyone in attendance. What Einstein Told his Cook is a great beginner food chemistry book for the budding "creator", however, McGee (as it's known) On Food & Cooking is the bible. If your favorite foody doesn't become insufferable after studying McGee, I'll come over to you house and eat your snow tires.

While I'm a big fan of cooking shows, I have a problem with the Top Five, Unwrapped, $40 a Day, and any show sponsored by a product that does not occur naturally. Anyone ever notice how Kraft's cheese products have their price fluctuate proportionately with the price of oil? What the hell are we doing letting them have a cooking show. We need to get back to basics. How to make good, tasteful, wholesome foods using real ingredients. Do people really believe that North Americans are obese because of what they eat? We're not fat because of what we eat, it's because of how much we eat. Give me a cooking show that uses butter and serves up a delicious, properly portionned meal any day. What do I get instead? A show where all of the crap that goes is has been squeezed out of a machine, injected with chemicals, and could be identified by it's chemical symbol. BTW - $40 a day isn't living it's panhandling.

What amazes me is how closed "minded" the north american palate has become. Mealks that have been "dumbed down" for our palates have become the defacto standard by which the real versions are measured. Have a peice of tuna prepared by a Japanese master chef; try a steak with no sauce, butter, seasonning - just the damn meat; how about a slow braised osso bucco with nothing but the juices from the meat and veg. You can buy a roast in a damn bag now! That's appalling. Give me 8 hours, 3 people, wine, converstaion and natural ingredients and I'll give you one of the best nights in your life. Outside of this forum - there would be no takers.

It's all about your relationship with the local advisor. If you frequent the store on a regular basis and you can show that product will sell, he'll stock it for you. I would also suggest that you get to know others who frequent the store on release day and try and influence the purchases to your tastes. If you want something bad enough he'll order it for you but you better be prepared to do what it takes for the product to move - even if it means syndicating the extra stock or buying it yourself.

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