Lowblow

The plating style has certainly changed since I worked with him, seems a little less regimented which isnt always a bad thing, nice photos by the way. Im hungry now.

Very Sorry, just realised this should be in the Pastry section, please forgive me I was looking through all my recipe card's and disks yesterday and I have lost my Chocolat Fondant recipe. If any of you have a good recipe for these could you let me have it please. I would also love to hear anybodys thoughts or ideas on these sexy little things oooohhh I like them sooooo very much. PS Im on about the things that look like little chocolate sponge cakes that have a soft saucy centre hmmm yum. Yours Lowblow

Odd. When I went there in May 2004 I had the impression the guy had just discovered foams. My starter had no less than three different foams. Each course had some type of more or less tasty foams. You don't get two Michelin stars for pouring foams around do you? Have improvements been made over the last year? F ← Sorry I made a mistake when I wrote this Fabienpe I was very tired when I wrote it, I meant to say that while most of his dishes are worhty of two stars, some are not.

Damn made a mistake in this post sorry meant to say " while most of his dishes are worth the two star rating, some are not" Please forgive me!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The last time I cooked them I served them braised on creme fraiche mashed potato with porcini spiked braising jus. I remember that I braised them with white wine and dark veal stock, Plus some porcini essence I make my self. Then when I served them added some amazing sauteed fresh small porcini mushrooms to the jus . I decided against red as I though it might over power the flavours a little.

Well SWISS CHEF, Your reduction sounds like it is very ballanced and profesional, I have quite a few reductions I like to make for different things, red wine & shallot for Beef, Basimic for Calfs Liver, Casis for wild duck, Brandy & cracked black pepper for pepperd fillet steak and so on. It is my dark stock that I use for these reductions that I am proud of though. I place equal amounts of veal shin, skinned duck necks and chicken legs ( I do not roast or colour these) in a large stock pot with cold water then bring it up to the barest simmer then I skim the first impurities and foam off the top and add my raw carrot, onion, leek, garlic and four plum tomatoes that I squash a bit in my hands before putting them in. I cook this on the lowest of heats skimming from time to time for a day, Then I strain the stock add a bottle of red wine and reduce it down till I am left with a liter of the stuff. Its very nicely balanced and is much nicer than a stock made with roasted bones, even though it is a perfect dark viscus sheany brown.

Whilst I love Fergus Henderson's food, him, his restaurant and his family, I am not so sure that it is the best restaurant to build your skills in. More the type of place to go and work after you are a fair way into your career.

I worked at Aubergine when Ramsay was there, and I think I know what you mean, you want t work for a great Chef that is still building his reputation, if this is the case I would recomend you ask Andre Garret at the Orrery for a postistion. If you want to see the Menus check them out on www.conran.com.

Oh Andy Im so sorry I didnt realise you posted that three years ago dohhhhhhh, well Andre is now running the kitchen there (Chris having taken an executive role with Conran Restaurants, dont know what that is but sounds cushy) and I realy recomend you go back it is not cheap but for what you get it offers value, I realy cant recomend this place enough. The last two meals I have had here were better than the last two I had at Gordon Ramsay Royal Hospital Road, and they were a damn site less expensive. The cheese board here is the best I have had anywhere.

This is a very good restaurant all though I am bieast as I worked with Andre Garret years ago. Past dishes I have enjoyed here have been well pretty much everything Ive had, which is alot. But they usualy have an assiette of Lamb or Ofall/ Pig Trotter that is always good. Hmm had an excellent Bresse Pigeon as well as Turbot with Garniture Bourgugnon ( I know thats spelt wrong), as well as class Foie Gras starters and world class puddings.

I have had quite a few meals that have been cooked by Tom Aikens (three at his current restaurant and more when he was at Pied a Terre) and I belive that while most of his dishes are worth the two star rating, some are most definatley in the two star league and to be frank if the inspectors arive and one of them happens to order three of these, then thats it no promotion. However I am certain that he will achive two stars within the next two or three years. He is by the way a very nice guy, I have met him twice and found him to be very humble and down to earth (and I cannot say the same for quite a few starred chefs I know).

Bejamin, Are you still looking for a place? if so could you also let me know where you have worked before? it would make it easier for me to sudgest a chef to you. I have worked with Nico Ladenis, Piere Koffman, Alistair Little, Gordon Ramsay and Marco Piere White as well as briefly at two of Alain Ducasse's establishments amongst others. It is a good idea to have some directon and planning in your CV and career path, any way let me know

Abra, just looked at your link, WoW, you can cook, Blueberry&Lavender Jam nealry brought tears to my eyes I will read all of your Blog this evening it looks facinating. And maybe even pluck up the courage to make my own vinegar!!!. Thank You So Much for the Link

No Abra it does not need to be a Cabernet vinegar, although it should be red. The Cabernet is actualy not my favouraite red wine vinegar, the best I have had was Borolo but I cant get it in London . It just has to be a good dark red wine vinegar, and as you make your own (which I have to confess is impresive) I'm sure it will be.

I have also always thought that Carnaroli was the type of risotto grain to look for. Although I have had good results with other types in the past.

Dear Abra, Hear is the recipe as promised. I should point out that this dish relies on the type of red wine vinegar that I use, it is Cabernet Sauvignon Red wine vinegar, which has a very low acidity, lots of body and finds its self in many of my sauces and reductions. If you need any help in finding a suplier let me know and I will attempt to track one down for you. Braised Red Cabbage Ingredients 150g of unsalted butter 2 red cabbages sliced or shredded 2 white onions thinly sliced 2 cinnamon sticks 290ml red wine 200ml Cabernet sauvignon vinegar 50g soft dark sugar (see note) salt and pepper 1 small ham bone left over from another use (see note) Method Preheat your oven to 160c/325f/Gas 3. Place the butter in a preheated Le Creuset type pan that is over a medium heat or flame. As soon as the butter begins to stop foaming add the onion and red cabbage, the salt, pepper and cinnamon, then continue to cook stirring well for a few minutes untill the cabbage and onion begin to soften. Add the red wine, red wine vinegar, soft dark sugar and the ham bone if using. Cover the pan with a tight fitting lid and put it in to the preheated oven for approximatley 45 minutes to one hour. Half way through cooking remove the 2 cinnamon sticks. When ready check the seasoning and serve (or as I do, allow to cool and put in airtight jars then refrigerate. Notes, I have found the amount of sugar that people like in this dish to vary so the amount specified is a guide line. If you are using the optional ham bone, I would only use a very little salt at the begining as the ham bone may release a fair amount of salt in to the dish. When it is finished check for seasoning again. Tip: before sweating sliced, diced or chopped onions, lightly salt them and set aside for five minutes. This incourages the juices to start seaping out from the onions and helps with the sweating or carameliseing in the pan. PS I cook better than I spell.

Is it expensive? Not the book, but the ingredient cost of the recipes you tried at home. cost/yield? ← No - but it all depends on how you approach what you're doing. In the case of the veal jus, I had four pounds of veal shoulder - one of the cheapest cuts of the animal. The other ingredients are veg, water, and a little veal stock (made from bones - even less expensive than shoulder). (And by the way, once I had siphoned off the jus, I had the makings of a great veal stew for dinner - so it paid for itself twice.) But placing truffles as an inhibition to this kind of cooking is ridiculous. If I want to do a duck dish, I can buy a supermarket duck for 5 pounds sterling. But for fuck's sake, it's going to taste like a five pound duck. If I do my research, and find a duck hand raised, organic and free-range, it's going to cost me a lot more. Now for a thousand bucks - which one do you think will taste better? For me, the point of getting into food is to find the best ingredients possible - not buying the most expensive for the sake of them being the most expensive - but the best for what you can afford. I can go and buy a chicken reared in Bresse for around 24 pounds. Alternatively, and with some work, I can start to research alternatives, and I discovered (along with many others) a chicken raised in England under the Label Anglais tag, which is less than half the price (around 10 pounds), and equals the Bresse bird in flavour (according to all of the Michelin 3 star restaurants in this country). But the point is not the price - the point is the looking. The discovery. Finding the best you can, and doing the best you can with it. ← Hear Hear, I couldnt agree with you more MobbP, its not all about when you get there, some of its about the journey you had on the way. Finding an ingredient localy that is as good as the best imported French Lux et Volup ingrediant is a moment to cherish in its self.

As a certified confit adict, and as I am usualy eating it when I have got home after a long shift in the kitchen, I tend to have it with braised red cabbage. Admitedly this is because I usualy have an airtight jar of the stuff ready to heat through, in my fridge. If you are hungry enough I would say serve some mashed potato with it as well (although I am usualy too tired to at this stage). Appart from the fact that my braised red cabbage recipe does seem to go with the confit amazingly well (the right balance of acidity and sweetness perhaps?), if you would like the recipe just ask me for it. Simply place two legs of duck confit under a grill to heat and crisp whilst warming through the cabbage in a pan, ten to fifteen minutes and its ready. PS If this is a little simple for some tastes Im sure I could think of somthing a little more "michelinified"

I'd have to say Almeida. I find the many traditional dish's served here very refreshing. The cooking is of a very high standard and the open plan kitchen is a joy to behold. Although I must admit I know the Head chef and have worked here in the past, I still love to eat here as often as I can. The restaurant has an excellent web site that can be reached via www.conran.com simply click on Restaurant search.

Thanks for the welcome MobyP, I live and usualy work in London, although I have worked in France.

Pigeoneax de Bress or Bresse pigeon's are indeed a domesticated variety of pigeon (and therefore are Squabs) that are farmed in Bresse France, along with other types of Poultry. They have a fair bit more fat on them than European Wood Pigeons (their wild cousins) and it is this along with their free range rearing and the excellent feed they given, that makes them so much more tender and moist after roasting or grilling. As they can be quite fatty many French and English Resaurants are now preparing them in the "Poche Grille" manner (this is usualy done by briefly poaching the birds in barely simmering stock, the cooking of the bird is then completed under a salamnder or over head grill), when cooked in this manner they are gloriously tender whilst their skin becomes nicely crisp. The last time I cooked them at work I serverd them with a two large Wild Mushroom & Foie Gras Tortelini, braised Savoy Cabage and some Madeira jus. Last year my suplier was charging me eleven pounds per bird, although I dont know how much they are at the moment. If any one would like me to find out if there is a suplier that will ship to the U.S.A. just leave a reply. This is my first post on this forum, and I would like to appologise for my spelling mistakes in advance.