Viking Culinary Basics – Day 3

Paul Stanley, Chef Jamie Watson and Sous Chef Brooke Bridge

Our third and final day; we had a great group and I believe I can speak for everyone in our class that we all came away more attuned and acclimated to a professional kitchen than we were before walking into our first session on Friday evening. I don’t feel it proper to describe the third day without first thanking out phenomenal instructors, Chef Jamie Watson and his Sous Chef, Brooke Bridge. Teaching at any level takes patience, yet Chef Jamie and Chef Brooke appeared to glide through the class as effortlessly as sharp knife eases through a tomato. They not only kept our attention, but also explained in simplistic and basic terms what they were doing and more importantly, why. I actually enjoyed Chef Jamie’s “tirades” on the corporate food world and why American’s are so much unhealthier than Europeans even though they consume more whole dairy products and fat in their diet. But that’s a discussion for another day and Chef Jamie can make it better than me.

The third day’s menu:

Salad of Mixed Greens with Homemade Blue Cheese Dressing (eating the dressing itself would have made my day), Old Fashioned Pot Roast (so tender a knife is completely unnecessary), Grilled Strip Steaks with Sautéed Mushrooms, Perfect Mashed Potatoes (of course we used real butter), Green Beans with Caramelized Shallot Vinaigrette, Individual Chocolate Soufflés (we learned the secret to letting the soufflés rise properly and when to serve), and we began the morning with Blueberry Almond Muffins. If I may once more quote Amy Adams in her role as Julie Powell in movie, Julie & Julia – YUM.

We came to class to learn and that we did. For example, that A’l’anglaise is a 3 step cooking method of:

1) Salted boiling water

2) Shock and stop

3) Cooking a’l’minute ( I have no clue if I’m spelling this word correctly)

And then there is braising – the 2 step cooking method, both dry and wet. We also continued to advance basic knife skills of chopping, dicing and mincing and I’m proud to say no cuts to my fingers yet but every great cook and chef has multiple stories of cutting into skin and bone. Yet what amazed me the most was how Chef Jamie just seemed to float about the kitchen in what appeared to be an effortless manner, fully aware of how long the meat had been sitting out, how long the muffins had been in the oven and the exact point during our meal that the soufflés need to go into and come our to the oven.

Another excellent trait Chef Jamie possessed was how succinctly he could instruct a group of amateur’s on basic cooking techniques, while keeping maintaining a demeanor so calm and nonchalant. The difference in a professional kitchen is everyone has a specific job and they are expected to start and complete their task at a precise moment and exactly the way they did it the minute, day, week and year before. We amateurs can go home, screw something up without anyone knowing or caring, and still have a great time. When someone is paying twenty-five to thirty five dollars for an entrée in Middle Tennessee they expect consistency and most of the time what they experience to rival in three-star restaurant in New York.

Late in the afternoon as I was preparing to grill the steaks, Chef Jamie walked up behind me and causally mentioned I had put too much oil on our perfectly seasoned steaks. My heart stopped. Was I going to get fired – dismissed from class with just a little over an hour left in my last day of instruction? “I’m sorry Chef Jamie, did I ruin them”, I asked? Okay, he might have been mad if I were his grill Chef at his restaurant, possibly running the risk of having expensive cuts of meat sent back by an expectant restaurant guest – someone like, oh, myself. Yet he just grinned and taught me one of the most valuable lessons in my early, or should I say in the infancy of my culinary career. “Paul, there’s not too many mistakes made in the kitchen we can’t fix. Not to worry, we just won’t add any oil to the grill surface.” Whew, now my heart could start beating again. Yes, they came out perfectly if I do say so myself.

Everything was fantastic; the meal, the instruction and meeting five others who shared a passion for food – and yes the great wine we had with our meal. So what’s next you might ask? There’s still a ton to learn and for all intense purposes, I still know nothing. But motivation is not my issue. I’ll return to the Viking Cooking School on Monday evening to take “Basic Knife Skills”. Goal numero uno is still to keep all ten digits on my hands intact, but still be able to slice, dice and mince good enough to make it in a professional kitchen. Buying lots of onions and shallots to practice on.