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fandomhigh2014-12-06 04:03 am
sharp_as_knives) wrote in fandomhigh2014-12-06 04:03 am
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Beginning Gourmet Cooking Techniques | Friday, 3rd period
It was a good thing Hannibal had had this class ready to go, because arguing with a ghost didn't really lend itself to much class preparation. Still, Bob was behaving himself as promised this afternoon, and there were still several topics to cover, so Hannibal was here, hoping some of his students at least would be, too.
"Good afternoon." He nodded to them. "We're two classes behind due to the holiday and my one absence. However, the remaining three topics dovetail nicely, so we'll be covering them all, although not in nearly the depth I would prefer."
He waved them toward seats. "Part of cooking a meal happens nowhere near the kitchen. There are a number of considerations before and after you cook, to make a meal successfully. The first is planning. There are a number of things you must take into account when planning any meal." He held up his fingers to tick them off. "The first two are time, and skill." He looked at them. "The less you have of one, the more you will need of the other. So - how much time will you need to make a meal? Always overestimate if you're at all uncertain, and leave yourself some leeway in case of unforeseen circumstances." He grimaced. "Such as a sudden rash of possession."
He shook it off and held up another finger. "Ingredients. What does your budget allow for, what can be gotten in the time you have allotted, and when can you get it? Don't plan for out-of-season produce; even if you can get it, it's unlikely to be as good. Don't buy things too far in advance of your meal, or they may spoil. Don't plan for one very expensive dish if it means you won't have money for any others.
"Plan for things that go nicely together, not flavors that will clash or fight for dominance," he advised. "Also, try to remember you're likely to be cooking several things at once. Unless you have help, avoid more than one dish that needs to be closely observed, or more oven-baked dishes than can fit in your oven at once."
Once they had that, he nodded. "Presentation is also extremely important."
He set out a number of dishes, and a series of pots and pans with food in them. "No matter how good your food is, how it looks can be every bit as effective. He picked up a plate. "Simple white dishes set off food best. Plain colors can also be dramatic." He gave them a look. "If your dishes are more interesting than your food, you've failed on a number of levels." He plated a bit of meat. "Try to keep it neat, rather than leaving smears of food over the dish."
He set a shallow bowl next to the plate. "Choose the right sort of dish; you don't want a soupy dish running over the table." He carefully ladled a bit of soup into the bowl.
"Sauces can be useful to set off food, both in color and in shape." He set the next dish on a plate and demonstrated with the sauce. "The shape of your food and the shape of your dish should interact nicely; you're attempting to make art, so treat it as such."
He picked up a bundle of herbs. "In some traditions, anything on the plate should be edible. Personally, I find that somewhat constraining." He liked using bones. "But you should always make sure that it is perfectly clear what is edible and what is not. You don't want to poison your guests, and it's rude to confuse them.
"Some things you may need to take into consideration - will you be setting out platters, or will each person have their own plate? What space will you be serving it in - a dining table? A picnic blanket? A kitchen counter? How formal will your meal be?"
After a pause to let that sink in, he brought out platters with appetizers and small plates of food, as well as a series of glasses.
"Lastly, part of any good meal is knowing what drink to serve with it," Hannibal told them. "The precise intricacies are far beyond what we can cover in one class, let alone a portion of one, but a few basics should prove useful." He nodded at the glasses. "I'll be sampling these for you. If you prefer not to drink, you needn't do so. Just be aware of the flavors and character in the abstract." He eyed them seriously. "If you do choose to drink, I expect you all to know your limits. I have no intention of cleaning up after you."
On the other hand, he suspected today that many of them could use a drink.
"In general, white wines have a lighter taste, and go more readily with delicately flavored foods. Seafood particularly, as well as greener foods and some fowl." He passed around a dish of squid in tamarind brown butter with green mango and poured a bit of chardonnay to go with it.
"Cheeses will go well with most wines, but rosés work particularly well." He served asparagus-cheese tartines and poured a dry rosé with it.
"The earthier the food, the more robust the wine can get without overpowering it." He hesitated and grimaced at the oversimplification. "One wine common with red meats is cabernet sauvignon." He passed around chorizo poached in red wine and poured the cabernet. "This also illustrates another principle - cooking with wine. If you intend to do so, the wine you cook in and the wine you serve should be, if not the same, then close.
"The two other main categories of wine are dessert wines - which are, as you might expect, best with sweet foods or fruits - and sparkling wines such as champagne, which are very good with salty foods as well as sweet." He illustrated the point with a good moscato and stone-fruit panzanella with zabaglione, followed by crispy udon noodles with nori salt and a decent brut.
"If you don't care for wine, or can't find anything to match your meal, there are also guidelines for pairing foods with beer. The rules are much the same - you don't want your drink to overpower your food. The more robust your beer, the stronger the food must be. A lager is lighter, fruitier." He poured a bit of that and nodded toward the squid. "An ale, particularly a darker one," and they were not getting his homemade beer, just a decent craft beer, "will go better with the earthier foods." He pointed out the chorizo.
"You should also keep in mind both your own and your guests' likely tolerance." He raised an eyebrow at them. "Know when to switch to water."
As they were tasting things, Hannibal looked around the class and nodded. "Today we've two class exercises to get through - planning a menu and presenting food. I will let you each choose one. Do both if you like and you have enough time."
[OOC: OMG I TOTALLY FORGOT CLASS! Sorry, guys. I plead both BDE and "sick as a dog". But here it is, however belatedly!]
"Good afternoon." He nodded to them. "We're two classes behind due to the holiday and my one absence. However, the remaining three topics dovetail nicely, so we'll be covering them all, although not in nearly the depth I would prefer."
He waved them toward seats. "Part of cooking a meal happens nowhere near the kitchen. There are a number of considerations before and after you cook, to make a meal successfully. The first is planning. There are a number of things you must take into account when planning any meal." He held up his fingers to tick them off. "The first two are time, and skill." He looked at them. "The less you have of one, the more you will need of the other. So - how much time will you need to make a meal? Always overestimate if you're at all uncertain, and leave yourself some leeway in case of unforeseen circumstances." He grimaced. "Such as a sudden rash of possession."
He shook it off and held up another finger. "Ingredients. What does your budget allow for, what can be gotten in the time you have allotted, and when can you get it? Don't plan for out-of-season produce; even if you can get it, it's unlikely to be as good. Don't buy things too far in advance of your meal, or they may spoil. Don't plan for one very expensive dish if it means you won't have money for any others.
"Plan for things that go nicely together, not flavors that will clash or fight for dominance," he advised. "Also, try to remember you're likely to be cooking several things at once. Unless you have help, avoid more than one dish that needs to be closely observed, or more oven-baked dishes than can fit in your oven at once."
Once they had that, he nodded. "Presentation is also extremely important."
He set out a number of dishes, and a series of pots and pans with food in them. "No matter how good your food is, how it looks can be every bit as effective. He picked up a plate. "Simple white dishes set off food best. Plain colors can also be dramatic." He gave them a look. "If your dishes are more interesting than your food, you've failed on a number of levels." He plated a bit of meat. "Try to keep it neat, rather than leaving smears of food over the dish."
He set a shallow bowl next to the plate. "Choose the right sort of dish; you don't want a soupy dish running over the table." He carefully ladled a bit of soup into the bowl.
"Sauces can be useful to set off food, both in color and in shape." He set the next dish on a plate and demonstrated with the sauce. "The shape of your food and the shape of your dish should interact nicely; you're attempting to make art, so treat it as such."
He picked up a bundle of herbs. "In some traditions, anything on the plate should be edible. Personally, I find that somewhat constraining." He liked using bones. "But you should always make sure that it is perfectly clear what is edible and what is not. You don't want to poison your guests, and it's rude to confuse them.
"Some things you may need to take into consideration - will you be setting out platters, or will each person have their own plate? What space will you be serving it in - a dining table? A picnic blanket? A kitchen counter? How formal will your meal be?"
After a pause to let that sink in, he brought out platters with appetizers and small plates of food, as well as a series of glasses.
"Lastly, part of any good meal is knowing what drink to serve with it," Hannibal told them. "The precise intricacies are far beyond what we can cover in one class, let alone a portion of one, but a few basics should prove useful." He nodded at the glasses. "I'll be sampling these for you. If you prefer not to drink, you needn't do so. Just be aware of the flavors and character in the abstract." He eyed them seriously. "If you do choose to drink, I expect you all to know your limits. I have no intention of cleaning up after you."
On the other hand, he suspected today that many of them could use a drink.
"In general, white wines have a lighter taste, and go more readily with delicately flavored foods. Seafood particularly, as well as greener foods and some fowl." He passed around a dish of squid in tamarind brown butter with green mango and poured a bit of chardonnay to go with it.
"Cheeses will go well with most wines, but rosés work particularly well." He served asparagus-cheese tartines and poured a dry rosé with it.
"The earthier the food, the more robust the wine can get without overpowering it." He hesitated and grimaced at the oversimplification. "One wine common with red meats is cabernet sauvignon." He passed around chorizo poached in red wine and poured the cabernet. "This also illustrates another principle - cooking with wine. If you intend to do so, the wine you cook in and the wine you serve should be, if not the same, then close.
"The two other main categories of wine are dessert wines - which are, as you might expect, best with sweet foods or fruits - and sparkling wines such as champagne, which are very good with salty foods as well as sweet." He illustrated the point with a good moscato and stone-fruit panzanella with zabaglione, followed by crispy udon noodles with nori salt and a decent brut.
"If you don't care for wine, or can't find anything to match your meal, there are also guidelines for pairing foods with beer. The rules are much the same - you don't want your drink to overpower your food. The more robust your beer, the stronger the food must be. A lager is lighter, fruitier." He poured a bit of that and nodded toward the squid. "An ale, particularly a darker one," and they were not getting his homemade beer, just a decent craft beer, "will go better with the earthier foods." He pointed out the chorizo.
"You should also keep in mind both your own and your guests' likely tolerance." He raised an eyebrow at them. "Know when to switch to water."
As they were tasting things, Hannibal looked around the class and nodded. "Today we've two class exercises to get through - planning a menu and presenting food. I will let you each choose one. Do both if you like and you have enough time."
[OOC: OMG I TOTALLY FORGOT CLASS! Sorry, guys. I plead both BDE and "sick as a dog". But here it is, however belatedly!]
Sign in!
Listen to the lecture
Plan a menu
"And as always, please ask if you have questions."
Present a dish
Talk to Hannibal!
OOC!
Re: OOC!
SHE'LL OFFER TO MAKE UP FOR THE LOST CLASS ONCE EVERYTHING ISN'T TERRIBLE?
Re: OOC!