Hannibal Lecter (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
sharp_man) wrote in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png)
fandomhigh2018-01-09 08:58 am
sharp_man) wrote in fandomhigh2018-01-09 08:58 am
Entry tags:
Beginning Gourmet Cooking Techniques | Tuesday, per. 2
Hannibal smiled at the students as they settled in. The Danger Shop today had been arranged into separate cooking stations for each student. "Hello. This is how I will typically have the place arranged when we are cooking. Since some of you may not be familiar with the sorts of equipment in use in this time and place, please feel free to ask if you have questions. For today, we will start with the stove."
He turned on the one at the front of the room. "You may find electrical ones as well, but I prefer gas, like this. It means more immediate heat, a finer control over the degree of heat, and more even heating." He smiled. "And fire translates better to other times and places than electricity, I find."
He held up a pot. “To begin the class's theme of simple yet complex tasks, we'll start with something deceptively complex. Boiling water.” He motioned them toward his cooking station. “Gather around, please. First, you should always begin with cold water. It will take longer, but it will taste less like pipes and water heater. Filtered is best, if you can get it, both for taste and for exactness of temperature." He filled it from the filtered faucet nearby. "Now, there are several types of cooking you may see referred to, and it's important you know the difference: a simmer, a slow boil, and a rolling boil. The best way to achieve and maintain each depends upon your tools and what you are using them for.”
He explained the differences, plus the relative sizes of pot that should be used, how to adequately work a gas stove (and how to make do with electric if necessary), and the benefits of boiling before simmering versus not.
“Today we will be making pasta. It’s a simple food that can be made more complex depending upon what you do with it. And how you boil it does make a difference.” He showed them overcooked, doughy pasta; undercooked, crunchy pasta; pasta that had been stuck together from not enough room in the pot; and pasta cooked correctly. “I prefer fresh myself, but dried is easier to find these days for most people, so that's what you're most likely to use and what you’ll find at your stations." He nodded to them.
"You will also find a number of simple recipes to try, or you may invent your own. Please ask for help if you like. When you’ve all finished, we’ll discuss what you've learned.” He smiled and waved them toward their individual setups. "Whatever you make, you may take with you. Meanwhile, you may eat what I've made using these same techniques. Please do concentrate on your cooking, however."
He raised a hand. "Also, I have no teaching assistant, so if you would be interested, please let me know."
He turned on the one at the front of the room. "You may find electrical ones as well, but I prefer gas, like this. It means more immediate heat, a finer control over the degree of heat, and more even heating." He smiled. "And fire translates better to other times and places than electricity, I find."
He held up a pot. “To begin the class's theme of simple yet complex tasks, we'll start with something deceptively complex. Boiling water.” He motioned them toward his cooking station. “Gather around, please. First, you should always begin with cold water. It will take longer, but it will taste less like pipes and water heater. Filtered is best, if you can get it, both for taste and for exactness of temperature." He filled it from the filtered faucet nearby. "Now, there are several types of cooking you may see referred to, and it's important you know the difference: a simmer, a slow boil, and a rolling boil. The best way to achieve and maintain each depends upon your tools and what you are using them for.”
He explained the differences, plus the relative sizes of pot that should be used, how to adequately work a gas stove (and how to make do with electric if necessary), and the benefits of boiling before simmering versus not.
“Today we will be making pasta. It’s a simple food that can be made more complex depending upon what you do with it. And how you boil it does make a difference.” He showed them overcooked, doughy pasta; undercooked, crunchy pasta; pasta that had been stuck together from not enough room in the pot; and pasta cooked correctly. “I prefer fresh myself, but dried is easier to find these days for most people, so that's what you're most likely to use and what you’ll find at your stations." He nodded to them.
"You will also find a number of simple recipes to try, or you may invent your own. Please ask for help if you like. When you’ve all finished, we’ll discuss what you've learned.” He smiled and waved them toward their individual setups. "Whatever you make, you may take with you. Meanwhile, you may eat what I've made using these same techniques. Please do concentrate on your cooking, however."
He raised a hand. "Also, I have no teaching assistant, so if you would be interested, please let me know."
Re: Cook your food!
It came from making all that tea. Teas were finicky if you wanted to do them right.
So that much? That much she got.
As she watched her noodles carefully, though, she tried not to worry. Sure, Papa Hannibal had shown her what undercooked and overcooked and all the noodles in between looked like but how was she supposed to know while they were under water?
Was she supposed to fish out the odd noodle with a spoon to check?
Re: Cook your food!
Re: Cook your food!
Re: Cook your food!
"If you want to, you can wait a moment for it to cool, and then taste it. It should be a little chewy, but not much. Al dente, it's called." He grinned. "Or if you prefer, you can throw it at the wall." Not the ceiling, Summer. "If it doesn't stick," which this one didn't, "it isn't done yet. If it sticks and stays, it is overdone. If it sticks for a moment and then falls off, it's good."
Re: Cook your food!
Full marks for observation, Alluka.
"Do, do we have to do that? Won't it make a mess?"
Alluka didn't really like messes...
Re: Cook your food!
Re: Cook your food!
Because, really. Making a mess there was ugly.
Re: Cook your food!