Tuesday, April 6, 2010

Monday, 4/5/10 – Flounder Your Way

This was an exciting night. A night when I would have the chance to shine my own light, prove my worth, stick it to the proverbial man. The options were as endless as the Great Wall of China…to an extent; the creativity was gearing up to flow like the Colorado River. We were given a flounder, lots of vegetables and 1.5 hours to create something/anything. We had to use the techniques we’ve learned so far in school and were told to not “recreate the wheel.” It was only after I got over the unavoidable sense of panic and swabbed my dripping underarms with a clean rag did I realize that this was what I had been waiting for, what it’s all about. Being a chef is not only having the ability to follow a recipe; it’s being able to create something aesthetically and gustatorily pleasing with the ingredients that are available. Sure, creativity is key, but the basics have to be present and the tastes have to complement each other.

We were originally going to be given whole fish to butcher for our recipe, but due to the holiday weekend the fish market was closed so we were given pre-cut fillets. This raised a few problems for me, considering I needed the fish bones for my recipe, so I was left re-thinking my entire plan within the first 10 minutes. I made some major changes, gathered my new ingredients and mise en place, then found out we were being given a few large fish carcasses from the restaurant downstairs…..so it was back to the drawing board. I ended up deciding on a variation of my first ideas, and quickly got to work.

I worked feverishly for the full hour and a half, and produced a dish that I thought was nothing short of wonderful. I cooked white rice and tossed it with a mushroom duxelle (mushrooms and shallots sweated in butter) and zucchini cubes steamed with butter. I made a fish stock with the bones, thickened it with a roux and added tomato paste and seasonings. I then covered the fish fillets with a light coating of flour and pan fried them in vegetable oil and butter. I served it with a mound of vegetable rice in the middle, the fish/tomato sauce dripped around like a moat, two small crispy fillets on top surrounded by caramelized pearl onions and zucchini sticks. We presented two identical plates, one for “judging” and observation by the class and one for our own dinner. I guess I had to make it good – it was the only food I ate last night. Joke’s on you, classmates who made something yucky but pretty. News flash: my dish was DELICIOUS. I cleaned my plate, and this is after I added all the leftover vegetables and rice, essentially eating two servings - two servings of complete and utter self satisfaction. Chef said my dish was “excellent” and had a nice mix of colors and portions. Wahoo! I had so much fun that I’ve decided to use divine right to implement a new rule in the Lindsey household: whenever she feels it necessary, the Queen can declare a last-minute cooking challenge during which participants, both working on the same team, must create a complete yet beautiful dish with ingredients available in the kingdom’s kitchen at time of said declaration. The default winning team, always The Lindseys, will get to enjoy the meal they’ve created and can allow themselves one Cadbury egg (pending availability) as a prize. It’s good to be Queen, especially since I’ve got my King by my side.

RANDOM RECIPE OF THE DAY

PEPPERED STEAK & CREMINI MUSHROOM SALAD

I cooked this little ditty up in my mind while salivating over a picture of steak at work today. Seriously.

Serves 2

You Will Need:

-1/2 lb. thinly sliced or shaved beef

-1 Tbs. vegetable oil

-1 head of romaine lettuce, chopped into edible pieces

-1 cup fresh baby spinach

-1/4 cup red onion, diced or sliced (whichever you prefer)

-1/2 cup cremini mushrooms, thinly sliced

-1/4 cup green or red bell pepper, diced or sliced

-4 Tbs. crumbled feta cheese

-1/8 cup Worcestershire sauce

-1/8 cup olive oil

-kosher salt and freshly ground pepper

Heat a skillet until it’s very hot. Season each side of the beef with salt and a generous portion of pepper, according to your taste. Sear the meat in vegetable oil for 30 seconds on each side, or until brown. When meat is done, remove from the pan, turn heat off and pour in the Worcestershire sauce, deglazing the pieces of meat with the sauce. Stir it well with a wooden spoon to loosen the bits, and pour the Worcestershire sauce in a medium bowl. Chop the meat into edible sizes.

Combine all vegetables and the feta in a large salad bowl. Return to the Worcestershire and season it with salt and pepper. Slowly add the olive oil in an even stream while whisking. Toss the salad with the dressing, put into a low bowl and top with the beef. Serve with garlic bread or breadsticks.



1 comment:

  1. You go girl, that sounds delicious and so does the peppered steak salad, thats right up my ally.

    ReplyDelete