C_Ruark

I think they had two hours for this one -- and Hung had an additional 30 minutes from winning the 20-minute quickfire. ← Och! Edited out the wrong time. You're right. Still. With the chicken and potatoes happily cooking in the oven, there would have been plenty of time to get soup made.

Saw the thread while scouting the recaps. I'm with ya on choosing a KISS recipe. I was pretty surprised with who chose what to make and how to cook actually. Those guys were in a room LIT UP by some amazing chefs - cooking for Soltner? Holy cow! But nobody went with French Onion soup?!?!? Wonder why :rhetorically of course: My menu - 1 - Chicken - roasted - except I would opt to quarter it ahead of cooking. Salt it enough to crisp the skin. Daniel Boulud's "Gramma's Chicken" recipe would be a good source to riff on. I don't have his method handy to quote but I would change it up by adding a different palette of spices; paprika and dill maybe. Cut the strained jus with a little corn starch to build a bit of viscosity and call it done. 2 - Potatoes - whatever is quick - just not whipped, scalloped, smashed. Maybe a gratin with good cheese. Manchego instead of Beaufort. Both would require the simplest no hassle methods just so I could free up time for... 3 - Onion - Soupe a l'Oignon - Trad French style* with a good white wine and not beef stock. Note: this is where I'd spend the most money. Are all are very doable in the time alotted? I think so. The trick would have been to reduce the soup portion just enough to make chicken the centerpiece. ETA: I misidentifed the cooking time earlier and corrected. Thanks RK. * = LCB method

A Master Cook, is a Las Vegas Casino coorporate designation. For instance their is no such thing as a "pastry cook" here. All pastry cooks are deemed "Bakers". A master cook is half-way between a Cook, and a sous-chef. ← Sort of OT: If the pseudo-traditional brigade model is used, aren't Commis and Chef's de <station> senior? I've never worked Vegas (not that I want to ).

Answers are upstream. ETA: Find my entry on p10. ~C

He's a Master Cook. Basically, he's a troop leader at a given station. When the Sous and above detail tasks that have some level of advanced technique (sous vide as an example), he leads that station's prep.

Awesome book A&A! ~C

I bought a silicon bundt cake pan which is rather nifty. Save more cakes than I can count. They're widely available. Tip: make sure the pan is thoroughly dry before adding any fat or flour. ~C

My gf thought this was hysterical, like Marcel was trying to be all high-end. Personally, I've heard this term used many times over, especially related to cooking -- it almost seemed like more of an inside joke than Marcel trying to be highbrow. ← "Soignée" is a little more intensive than refined/elegant. A better translation (IMPO) is "impeccable, verging on perfection". Still, It is chuckle ammunition! ~C

Good read Bryan, thanks for posting. MG is facinating and scary stuff, to me anyways. Fascinating in that these"outside the box" techniques present an interesting departure from the standard sensory associations we build as we live; like "if it looks like an apple, it should taste like and apple". FA, GA, and WD (and others) seem to have a knack for making you see one thing and taste another. Again, fascinating... What's scary is that, if I order a Fettucine Alfredo Especiale not knowing that the MG guru made special pasta using Porchini and Shitake mushrooms and Activa, I'll be deader than a door-nail because of a severe allergy! In most cases, it's rather obvious to overcome this with natural instinct. If I see or read about an ingredient which might be harmful I avoid it. But what happens at a tasting event or if I were to dine family style with friends and not follow what everyone else is ordering? The food is out of context, so the threat may not be discernable. This is where I think the MG trend hits a roadblock. It forces the resto to explain the food a bit more and reduces the alternatives chef and cooks have available to step around a problem like an allergy, and the fallbacks a resto will have if - inadvertently - a customer is harmed by a dish. ETA: I'd still experiment with few of the products to see what fun I can have in the kitchen though! ~C

Thanks UnC... very useful info. ~C

Another round of questions... 1 - Highly hydrated doughs:Is there is hands-on technique to detecting when the dough is suitably saturated? Anything like "windowing" before throughing, perhaps? Still tuning my "Baking with Julia"'s recipe where I halved all weights. Might help to post pictures (I'll have to work on that), but right now the best description I have is this: coming off the dough-hook, my dough has the feel/behavior of weighty Play-Doh. It's definitely not glossy and I bet the gluten formation is retarded. 2 - Yeast activation: I'm simply adding active dry yeast to 105deg (controlled temp) water. Is that too low? 3 - Degassing: This is more of a survey question... how much gas do you leave behind after punchdowns? I'm probably too heavy-handed. Thanks in advance, ~C BTW, Warren's no-knead recipe is on-deck

Thanks! Very helpful advice. ~C

Tino, Timely comments! Appreciate the tweaks for the next trial: will try the pre-ferment suggestion as well as moving the addition of oil to later in the process. Also, brioche will be my first rich bread attempt, so thanks ahead of that test.

Got my copy of the Omnivore's Dilemma last night. 25 pages in and I am really liking his writing style and the content. Definitely recommend it. ~C

Just a quick update. Sorry for the delay. In trial 2 I corrected my errors with choosing the right oil and salt... much better results. More "bread-like"!!! Now working on the airness of the bread. I noticed that there is a significant difference to the air retention capacity of the dough when the corrected oil (read: olive) is used. What sorts of tricks will help keep the air cells larger? Trial 3 starts tomorrow: Warren's no-knead recipe and technique. ~C

Hi Alana, Preface: I tip my hat and will yield the floor to your expertise any day of the week (and twice on sundays). The melted chocolate should store just enough heat to achieve partial thickening power. Not full though. Honestly, I am not sure the starch is added solely for thickening power. My first guess would be that it "mimics" the structure of milk. If it were just chocolate, water and alcohol, I think that would break. Could I be close? With the recipe, I don't notice a starchy flavor. ~Chris PS - I'd kill to eat your fruitcake from the challenge.

Not really. I go for really lean cuts (top sirloin; the rounds) which have just about the same fat content as skinless chicken. The meat doesn't have a lot of time give off too much fat. Duxelles on the other hand: Heat that prior. At least the mushrooms; they need to give off their liquor before you add them in. Afterthought: I need to edit the recipe to say that the filling needs to be partially cooked for meats.

ChiantiGlace usually comes through with some good recipes; in the meantime, hope this helps. Rough version of my recipe. Because of kitchen differences, you might need to adjust. 3oz plain chocolate 2 Tbsp water 7oz water 2 tsp cornstarch 2 Tbsp water 1 Tbsp superfine sugar 1 Tbsp liquor 1. Rough-chop chocolate and place in a heat proof bowl. Add most (but not all) of the water. Melt over a simmer water. 2. When melted, gradually add next portion of water. 3. In a separate bowl, combine cornstarch and last portion of water. 4. Add to chocolate mixture 5. Add in liquor Drop the finish product into a squeeze bottle and keep warm in a bain-marie; which you would also use to heat up refrigerated sauce (micrwave works too). Note: I learned this recipe in Austria, so there might be some play in the actual amounts. Just remember gentle heat. Others might have a better way to prep the sauce.

It's funny you say that, my husband and I were contemplating wellingtons. I was thinking about making very small ones - think petit fours with a filet center. Maybe two per person with different offerings (i.e. one with spinach/gorgonzola, one with boursin/mushrooms). Yep, pads & pens for note taking on the wines! I'm corny like that. ← I haven't read the whole thread yet, but I saw this note while thinking up my reply to the original post. You can do a Wellington-esque pastry using philo. It's a variation on Spanakopita. "Sketching" my method; don't feel like writing it out formally. The filling: Just about anything will do. Approximately 2 Tbsp are needed for each triangle. It just can have "too much" moisture; not wet to the touch. * For Wellingtons I dice up choice-cut steak, add duxelles and when rolling the triangles I add a cube of foie gras (don't like pate as much). ** For meats: you should partially cook the filling to ensure heat gets in. Otherwise the filling centers may not cook thoroughly in time. 1. On acceptable work board, place one sheet of philo with shortsides at top and bottom. Butter lightly. Add a second sheet. Butter lightly. 2. Cut philo into three long strips. 3. At each strip, place 2 Tbsp mixture about 1/2" in on three sides (not the top obviously). 4. Fold into triangles as you would fold a flag. 5. Use butter to tack the last edge down, or tuck. 6. Butter tops and place on a lightly oiled breaking sheet --- I actually use a stone, so I just butter both sides. 7. Bake at 350 until done (brown edges, clean knife). You might want to rotate the sheet once to ensure even baking.

Grand Marnier, Cointreau, Godiva, and Chambord all work for chocolate. I imagine others work as well. Also try Kirschwasser and white chocolate.

Score! Thanks M

Great thread! I am remodeling my home kitchen and want to hang some new artwork. Where can I get food themed photography prints?

Thanks, that' interesting. I generally do this for less ceremonial occasions than thanksgiving (like, say, dinner for me and my girlfriend) so I want to be able to do it all in an evening. Does anyone have a scientific explanation for why brining effects browning? It might help with a solution. ← McGee's got a pretty decent scientific explanation which may help.

I've seen goose stock used in a twist on French Onion soup. A Béchamel from Goose is the basis for Gansleinmachsuppe. ~C

DAMN! Truly exquisite work.