I mean come'on! The classes were at 6pm- I would go there right after work, and was completely famished as we cooked up some ridiculously aromatic dishes.
ohmygod. I wanted to devour everything in sight!
Every diced carrot. every toasted chopped walnut. every beautifully sliced green apple.
every piece-of-anything-edible! . . . BUT I couldn't.
Literally, we'd get called out on it- like a little kid in kindergarten for eating a crayon, or glue.
(I must admit I was the one who got "in trouble" the most. haha! ooops)
oh. & FYI, there is a difference between tasting vs.
"eating-everything-in-your-recipe-while-you're-cooking".
Tasting is OK. & actually, learning to do so is essential in gourmet cooking.
"eating-everything-in-your-recipe-while-you're-cooking".
Tasting is OK. & actually, learning to do so is essential in gourmet cooking.
Taste (tāst/: [teyst]): to perceive the distinguished flavor of. a deliberate process. To truly appreciate and take detailed assessment through all the senses- appearance, smell, feel, taste.
Hands down, the greatest thing I learned in culinary school: Patience.
Patience here, I define as:
The ability to WAIT
for something
AMAZING.
Can you see where this can go as far as analogies for life?!
(I'm sure you can)
In the kitchen.
In life.
In relationships.
(Why settle for anything less?)
Commit to AMAZING.
A simple decision.
I commit.
To amazing . and nothing less .
in the work I do.
with my family.
-the way I live my days.
Because I want to look back at my life and know that I brought my "A" game to everything i did.
"A" as in : Absolutely gave my all.
my best. With my whole heart.
Each day. Each moment .
"A" game .
AMAZING .
& what does this have to do with being single?
Well, I know what I want.
& there is absolutely no rush.
Patiently ( Joyfully, actually. ) await-
for that. & nothing less .
For the same reasons that I decided to take the time to make a brine (in the recipe below).
& individually clean each mushroom.
It might take a little more effort, time, patience now,
But the result will be worth it. Because the goal is not average or mediocre. . .
(with a dish, in life, in my work, with family/friends/a partner )
going for much more than that.
much more.
I had to learn a new way to look at that diced carrot.
those toasted chopped walnuts. the sliced green apples.
just wait a bit, until its been given the chance to be transformed into whats intended.
Patience.
Wait,
for AMAZING.
Yes I know, not every meal will be a masterpiece-
I mean honestly, some days after a long day of work
all I need is a can of beans . a spoon . & Im good!
BUT when setting out to create:
AMAZING.
Beautifull.
delicious.
out of the ordinary.
It is most certainly necessary to commit to just that .
& PATIENCE is key .
First & foremost thing to start doing to bring your "A" game in the kitchen:
1. Mise en place
Pronunciation: MEEZ-ahn-plahs. French term for "putting in place".(translation: get ALL your shit together!)
Before ANY cooking starts- mis en place is about preparation, arrangement, and organization of all ingredients and tools necessary in order guarantee you set yourself up for success.
(Insert more analogies for life and success here...hmmmm...food for thought ;)
& yep, this requires patience!
Slowing down and taking the time to prepare. set-up. guarantee success.
when often we just want to jump right in and get started.
& yea sometimes we have to do that too, but don't be surprised if you're working on a dish, then half way through you realize you need ONE EGG.
One freaking egg! and as a result you can't do what you set out to do,
0r at least not with the degree of quality you intended.
Moral of the story?
Next time you try a new recipe (or an old one) setup every-single-little-thing necessary.
Mince every clove of garlic. measure out every teaspoon of red wine vinegar.
Take your meat out of the freezer and let it come to room temp before cooking.
you get the point.
preparation.
have it ALL set up.
. . . I guarantee it'll be more fun this way!
& You'll feel like a chef on food network.
FOR THIS RECIPE-
The little details that will test your patience.
But will elevate your dish from good to AMAZING.
Shiitake mushrooms: I literally- carefully cleaned each one individually with a moist cloth.
Cooking Hint: Mushrooms are extremely porous and soak up water like a sponge. If you just throw mushroom under running water to clean them, that will add unwanted additional moisture to your dish/salads. If your dish calls for browning or caramelization (such as this dish does)- the excess moisture will make it very difficult to achieve that.
Brining chicken: A brine increases the moisture and tenderness of meat. A brine may also serve the purpose of heightening flavor. Brining is similar to marinating, but uses a simpler liquid for soaking the meat: salt + water. The process of soaking meat in salted water causes the meat's cells to absorb some of the water through osmosis, making it moister when cooked. A basic brine consists of water + salt, but there are few rules after that- You can add flavor in all kinds of forms for example- herbs, spices, honey. Or you can opt to use liquids such as apple juice, orange juice, beer, wine, vinegar, stock, or tea to replace part or all of the water . . . so, in other words- have fun! get creative!
I brined my chicken for two hours in water+salt formula.
Also including: Thyme + couple Bay leaves + peppercorn + garlic powder.
 |
| (above) Shiitake Mushrooms. Recipe modified from Fine Cooking Magazine |
Chicken Ragoût with Shiitakes & Potatoes
- 3 Tbs. extra-virgin olive oil
- 1/2 lb. fresh shiitake mushrooms, stemmed and quartered
- 3/4 lb. baby red potatoes, quartered
- 1 cup frozen pearl onions
- 8 cloves garlic
- salt & freshly ground black pepper
- 4 boneless, skinless chicken thighs, 6 to 7 oz. each
- 1 tsp. fresh thyme leaves
- 1 cup chicken broth
- 3 Tbs. thinly sliced chives
Heat 2 Tbs. of the oil in a 12-inch skillet over medium- high heat. When the oil is hot, add the mushrooms and cook, stirring occasionally, until they begin to soften. Add the potatoes and cook until they brown lightly. Add the pearl onions and garlic, then cook until the onions are thawed and the mixture begins to brown. Transfer the mixture out of the skillet into a bowl. Set aside.
Return the skillet to the stove and heat the remaining 1 Tbs. oil over medium-high heat. Season the chicken thighs generously with salt and pepper.
- At this point here, Dredging chicken thighs in seasoned flour is part of the original recipe. I opted to salt/season chicken thighs without dredging them in seasoned flour. Purpose of flouring meat: dredging in flour will result in more of a "crust" and does add texture to your chicken. Also, the flour serves as a "thickening" agent for the sauce/stew. However, I would argue that thickening and enriching of the sauce can be achieved through reduction, which of course requires bit more Patience, because reduction is achieved through very slow slow simmering of a sauce in order to reduce the water content, as a result thickening it and intensifying the flavor. . . decisions decisions! Leaving out the flour is a health conscious alternative. your call.
Cook the chicken until browned on one side, about 4 minutes. Flip the chicken and cook until the other side is browned. Stir in the mushroom mixture and the thyme and cook for about a minute. Pour in the chicken broth, scraping up any browned bits in the skillet. Bring the mixture to a boil, then reduce the heat to medium, cover, and simmer. Let the dish simmer until a meat thermometer inserted into the thickest part of a chicken thigh registers 170°F.
Serve- Arrange the chicken on top of the vegetables & sprinkle with minced chives.
. . . ENJOY!
