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Same rules, same possible draws, larger portion size.
My challenge today: Beef Blade Steak & Bulgar Wheat
Both ingredients are unfamiliar to me. It was definitely a fun day of “I wonder if this would work…” Here’s my take on a comfort food classic — burgers n’ fries.
Za’atar Spiced Blade Steak Burger on Bulgar Wheat “Buns” with Sweet Potato Fries and Cumin Aioli
First day of practical exam: present a 3-component appetizer plate.
The challenge is, you don’t know what you’re working with until right before the clock starts.
Drawing from a hat — 4 possible proteins and 8 possible additional ingredients.
My draws were Red Snapper & Green Papaya. This required a bit of thinking and testing on my part. Snapper I’m pretty comfortable with but green papaya isn’t an ingredient I’ve worked with much or have immediate associations with beyond the context of a Thai green papaya salad. In fact, when I drew green papaya out of the hat, the rest of my class erupted in a cheer for no one was eager to face this ingredient head on.
After spending some time exploring the different possibilities of cold and hot preparations, a concept began to emerge. 2 hours later, I was a proud presenter of the following dish,
Fried Red Snapper Curls over Green Papaya & Cauliflower Puree with Curry Lime Ginger Hollandaise and a drizzle of Walnut Oil.
(Garnish with fried cilantro leaves)
In preparing for the next two days of practical exams, today’s mystery basket was a fun way to warm up.
Mystery Basket had one mystery protein — Pork Chop
Rules to follow by:
1) pork chop must be on plate (in any form)
2) feature a specific flavor (selected by a random drawing from one of four possibilities: lemon grass, tahini, mirin, and fish sauce)
3) include a dough made from scratch
My team presented the following plate:
fresh pasta, pork chop strips (mirin-sake marinade), and vegetables in a mirin-soy-ginger sauce (made from roasted pork bone)
garnished with fried ginger & sacallions
We have been on an around-the-world tour all through this course but today was a special melting pot of country-specific signature dishes.
Monkfish Escabeche (Spain)
toothy monkfish coated in flour, fried, swimming in a vinegary fragrant marinade. May taste even better tomorrow but it was all gone.
Korean BBQ Ribs (Korea)
used pork ribs. I know, I know! It’s not real Galbi but we had to make do with what was available through the purchasing department.
Jerk Chicken (Jamaica)
spicy, cruncy grilled chicken that might even be better than fried chicken on some days.
Shepherd’s Pie (Ireland)
lamb meat, not beef (would be called ‘cottage pie’ if using beef) flavor is just unbeatable. We used a nice lean cut (lamb top) that tasted clean and delicate without being buried by the potatoes.
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