Fish & Shellfish

Lesson 12: Fish

Finally, we got the chance to cook some protein. We learned a bit about heat transfer and what it does to proteins as they are heated to higher temperatures. Fish are classified as lean, medium, or fatty. Fatty fish would be salmon/tuna whereas lean fish would be considered sole or trout. Chef taught us how to choose fresh fish (shouldn't smell "fishy," firm flesh, scales in place, bright eyes not sunken and cloudy, shiny brilliant appearance, brightly colored gills) as well as how to store fish (upright with fillets not touching any ice once they've been removed from the body). Finally, we got the chance to fillet two fish (trout and sea bass).

This was the first time I'd successfully filleted a fish. I remember about a year ago, I bought some Spanish Mackerel from the market and tried filleting it to no avail. I got so frustrated that I just ended up throwing the fish away which was a huge waste. Removing the pin bones from the trout was a huge pain in the ass since they have more than your typical fish, and they're really small which makes it really easy to miss one. I also learned that after you fillet the fish, you should always store the fillet to fillet instead of fillet to skin since that can damage the flesh. We made two different dishes: Poisson en Papillote (fish baked in parchment paper) and Filet de Truite a la Grenobloise (sauteed trout grenoble style).

The Poisson en Papillote had four different components: the fish, the tomato fondue, the duxelles (mushroom/shallot mix) and the veg garni. All that had to be wrapped up in a heart shaped package (I kid you not) where it was to be cooked first on the stove and then in the oven. Usually this dish is served in the package in which it was wrapped. Mine unfortunately didn't come out looking like it should have, though chef said it tasted good, so I didn't take a picture.

Grenoble Style Trout was easier to make. Simply pan searing the fillets after flouring skin side down till brown. Then making the butter, shallot, caper sauce and then serving with a side of cocotte potatoes and handmade croutons:

Potatoes

These last two weeks have been errmazing. Class has been great and I've been doing really well on the exams. We even got a new instructor for the rest of Level 1 who is really good. I'm getting a little more acclimated to the city which is nice and the weather is finally starting to get a bit warmer. My cousin was in town last week and it was really nice catching up with her since we hadn't seen each other in about 2 years. We planned a dinner at L'Ecole (the restaurant at the school) with two other friends. Overall the food was pretty decent. Four courses for $21 since I was able to use my discount. Afterwards we stumbled into a really awesome dive bar that had a bunch of guys playing the piano and singing show tunes. The place had a very vaudeville feel and I felt like I had traveled back to the 20s. The next day my cousin and I met up for lunch at a restaurant called Marea and opted for their 5 course Prix Fixe menu. The restaurant was really nice and considering I had my test on fish/shellfish later that afternoon I'd say that it was appropriate "research" =P.

First Course: Assaggio Di Tre (Tasting of Three Crudo, sliced raw fish/shellfish)

Bigeye Tuna, Oyster Cream, Crispy Sunchoke

Marinated Razor Clams, Fennel, Peperoncino

Long Island Fluke, Lemon Thyme, Olio Nuovo

Second Course: Astice (Nova Scotia Lobster, Burrata, Eggplant Al Funghetto, Basil)

Third Course: Spaghetti (Fresh Cut Semolina Pasta, Santa Barbara Sea Urchin, Basil)

Fourth Course: Spigola Nera (Local Black Sea Bass Alla Piastra, Beluga Lentils, Puntarella, Hazelnuts, Red Pepper Soffrito)

Fifth Course: Caramello (Caramel Custard, Valrhona Chocolate Cake, Caramel Crispies, Buttermilk Sherbet)

Overall the meal was alright in my eyes. Some of the highlights were the Razor clams (perfect light way to start off meal) and the Sea Urchin Pasta (something I've only had at one other restaurant). I didn't care so much for the Lobster or Sea Bass (although the burrata and beluga lentils were delicious, respectively).

Okay, enough on dining out, now for school:

Lesson 11: Potato

An entire lesson devoted to the potato? Yup. I didn't realize there were so many different ways to preparing the potato just with French recipes, but sure enough we tackled eight different ways of making potato in one night.

So there are two different types of potato: waxy and starchy. Waxy potatoes hold together when cooked which are good for gratins, potato cakes, soups and salads (Red Bliss, Yellow potato, Yukon Gold). Starchy potatoes are denser than waxy potatoes because they concentrate dry starch in their cells, so when they are cooked, the starch expands and separates, creating a dry, fluffy texture. These guys are better suited for fried, baked or mashed potatoes (Idaho, Yukon Gold, Peruvian Blue).

We also learned a bit about smoke points since we were going to be deep frying for the fist time in class. Some of the things we need to be aware of when deep frying: don't use oil when it foams up, or has an off smell; don't mix used and new oil; don't salt food before frying. There are three different techniques for deep frying: 1 step, 2 step, and 3 step. In 1 step, the potato is fried at one temp (350-375 F). In 2 step, the potatoes are poached at 300 - 320 F with no coloration and then they are finished in fryer at 350 - 375 F. In 3 step, the potatoes are cooked briefly in oil at 280-300 F until they begin to bubble, then cooked at 350 F but no coloration, then finally deep fried at 350-375 F.

The first thing we made in class was Pommes Gaufrette, or waffle cut chips, We had to use a mandolin to make the cuts, which was pretty scary since I've heard some horror stories of people slicing off parts of their hand using the damned thing. So I made sure I had a towel as a barrier between my hand, the potato, and the mandolin. I definitely didn't want to make a trip to the hospital. The basket came out okay, a little burnt on the bottom, but that's cuz I wasn't moving it around when I was frying which I think is the trick to achieving an even brown all around. Chef told us that these baskets went out of fashion in the 90s, which made me wonder why we were still learning how to make them. We also made Pommes Puree (mashed potato) to go along with the basket. It was the first time I had used a food mill to mash the potatoes which were surprisingly easy to make with that tool. Here's a picture of the ridiculousness:

We also made Pommes Pont Neuf (French Fries), Pommes Duchesse (Duchess Potatoes), Pommes Darphin (Essentially shredded has browns), Pommes Croquettes (Logs) and Pommes Anna below:

I was so sick of potatoes by the end of this lesson......