JBF Awards 2010

Several weeks ago, I reached out to the Director of Student Affairs of my school to inquire about volunteering opportunities for future events.  He promptly told me about the James Beard Foundation Awards.  The JBF Awards is the Oscar of the food industry, and I have wanted to be a part of this event for the last couple of years but something always came up that prevented me from participating.  So I happily submitted my application along with my resume and patiently waited until I hear back from the organizer.  A week later, I was picked and was thrilled that I will be involved in such a prestigious event.  I was really excited about being able to be there amongst the best in the industry, but also anxious to find out my assignment as well as meeting the chef whom I'll be assisting.

I was assigned to Chef Liu Zhizun of Quanjude Restaurant in Beijing, China.  The restaurant is world famous for their Quanjude Peking Roast Duck.  I was hoping that maybe I'll get to learn a thing or two about roasting a Peking duck.  As you may recall, I originally wanted to make Peking duck for my graduation's grand buffet; however due to the hours or days that it takes to hang and dry the ducks in order to achieve the crispy skins, I made regular roast ducks with Chinese flavor instead.

Once I arrived at Avery Fish Hall, Lincoln Center, I found out that Chef Liu prepared to serve two desserts:  Sweet Potato and Red Bean Puddings.  The sweet potato pudding was really delicious and surprisingly light.  As to the red bean pudding, there was a gelatin texture on top and the red beans on the bottom.  Once again it was light and refreshing; both desserts were not too sweet.  The red bean dessert reminded me of the red bean ice cream I loved as a child growing up in Hong Kong.

As the guests arrive, the excitement grew.  I first spotted Jean-George Vongerichten.  He is such a super star and being that I loved my dining experience at Jean-Georges, I made sure I said hi and told him how much I enjoyed his restaurant.  Then I saw Michael Symon whom I love even before he became an Iron Chef.  His laugh is so contagious.  I would love to go to Cleveland just so I can visit his restaurants.  Then one by one, Thomas Keller, Dan Barber, Wylie Dufresne, Mario Batali, Tom Colicchio, Jose Andres, who was profiled on 60 minute for his avant-garde cooking technique of molecular gastronomy, and many more talented chefs were there.  I was surrounded by super chefs and people in the industry that I admire because of their passion for food.

As the award ceremony begins, I was able to sit through some of the awards presentation.  Then final preparation was underway for the post award reception.  I helped Chef Liu and other volunteers set up the food and plated the desserts.  As the reception filled with guests I was able to walk around and taste other chefs' dishes.  I also love working at our station, there I met so many people who were eager to taste and comment on the desserts.
 
In the end, I met some really amazing people and volunteers who worked in the various restaurants.  The night was filled with lasting memories of the sights and senses of the food.  It was just an awesome experience, and I was so glad I got to be a part of it.

 

Spring eating

Spring is in the air and my allergies are rocking. I already got myself a sinus infection and the hay fever season has just started. To make myself feel better, I decided I need some spring eating inspiration. A good place to start is always your local farmers market so I took a stroll through Union Square Green Market in search of some fresh seasonal ingredients.

There I saw bunches of ramps also known as wild leeks.  They are one of the first plants to emerge in the spring so in the spirit of celebrating spring eating, I thought it's appropriate to make something with these beautiful spring vegetables.  Ramps are from the onion family.  Both the scallion-like white bulb and the leaves are edible.  The flavor resembles garlic but with a much milder flavor.  I thought I need to pair it with another spring vegetable so I found some organic fresh pea shoots.  Pea shoots are the young leaves and tendrils of the pea plants.  They have a light pea flavor with a hint of sweetness but pack with nutrients.  They provide a good source of Vitamin K, C and A.  They can be eaten raw or cooked.

Warm ramp and pea shoots salad (this recipe makes 2 serving of side dishes)
8 pieces of ramp
1/2 pound of pea shoots
Zest of one lemon
2 tbsp of lemon juice (Approx. 1/2 lemon)
Salt and Pepper to taste
1 tbsp of extra virgin olive oil

To prepare this recipe is simple, I separated the white bulbs from the ramp leaves, sliced them and put them aside.  First saute the ramp bulbs with olive oil, season with salt then cook until they are tender for a few minutes.  After the bulbs are caramelized, then add the pea shoots and the ramp leaves, lightly cooked until they start to wilt and season with salt and pepper.  Take it off the heat then add lemon zest and juice then toss.

This combination of the mild garlic flavor of the caramelized ramp goes extremely well with the sweetness of the peas shoots, adding the lemon for a little bit of acidity makes this salad light and fresh.  I also prepared a pork cutlet milanese and toss this spring salad on top, but you can top this warm salad on chicken, veal cutlet or any of your favorite protein.  The possibility is endless.

Even though spring may not be my favorite season because of my allergies to tree pollen but the taste of spring through these young vegetables have sure help me appreciate this beautiful season of new beginnings.

A season for baking

As you know, I have never baked in my life until culinary school. I have always preferred savory than sweet.  However since my pastry classes in school, I have grown to love baking and have occasionally made some wonderful sweet treats.

As this holiday season is fast approaching, I decided to make one of my favorites which is pecan balls. When you bite into it, it is light as air.  The cookie melts into your mouth then you taste the crunchiness and the nuttiness of the pecans which makes them a perfect combination. Other than being so delicious, I think they are my favorites because they are so easy to make. Also since they are covered with confectioner’s sugar, they look so festive during the holiday season. They are a great treat to give to your friends and families. So here's the recipe for any of you who wants to try your hands at baking something delicious in no time. I assure you everyone will love these and will want the recipe.

This recipe makes approximately 60 balls. I recommend using a scale if you have one since it's the most accurate.

1 pound of unsalted butter (4 sticks - room temperature)
3/4 cup of granulated sugar
1 1/2 teaspoon of salt
1 tablespoon of vanilla extract
1 tablespoon of water
1 1/2 pounds (5 cups) of all purpose flour
1 cup of chopped toasted pecan
1 to 2 cups of confectioner's sugar

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
Cream the butter with the sugar and salt with either a hand mixer or stand mixer.
Once the sugar is incorporated into the butter, add the vanilla extract, then water. Gradually add flour and mix to incorporate. Once you see the flour is well mixed into the butter then add the pecans. Do not over mix.

Spray 2 cookies sheets with non-stick spray and put aside.
To portion the cookie, you may use a teaspoon.
Roll each portion in the palm of your hands to make a walnut-sized ball.
Place each ball an inch apart on the cookie sheet so when the cookies spread, they won't stick together.

 

 

Bake for about 20 minutes or until the bottoms are lightly browned.
I also suggest after 10 minutes, rotate each tray to avoid uneven baking. If you are using multiple racks in the oven, they may take longer than 20 minutes.

After the cookies are done, transferred them to a cooling rack. When they are completely cooled, roll them in the confectioner's sugar.

Enjoy!

It's been a pleasure...

I found out recently that one of my culinary school classmates passed away suddenly. Even though I was not as close to him as some of my other classmates, I felt a great loss. I gather it was the intense time we spent together in school. We loved and argued with each other like a family. So when I heard one of us is gone, I was deeply saddened. He was only 33 years old, way too young. It was a very sudden death. He had no idea that he was sick until one day he didn't feel well and was taken to the hospital by his dad.

He was passionate about cooking. He was friendly with all the instructors and staff. He was always a comic relief though at times he was a bit disruptive. Since he had a great sense of humor, it was difficult to stay upset with him. I was proud of him when we graduated. I can see that he wore this great sense of accomplishment in his body language. He stormed through many obstacles to reach his goal. He followed his passion for cooking and completed the program. We were all very proud of him.

When someone young dies, it reminds you that life is fragile. You never know when your last day may be; therefore, it is important to enjoy each day like it is your last. Live passionately and happily, do what you love so you can leave your mark when you're gone. It's been a pleasure knowing you, Mike, you sure left your mark in all of our hearts for the brief time you have on this earth. It makes me want to strive to be a better person because of you. R.I.P. my friend!

Street & Savory, what a great concept!

I volunteered at the Street & Savory event for Citymeals-on-wheels. Street & Savory was a global street festival. Top chefs around the country came together and created their own favorite street food from dumplings to satay; sandwiches to tacos. The goal was to raise money for Citymeals-on-wheels. I was in awe of the creativity and the talent of all the participating chefs. It was truly a wonderful charity event, and I was so thrill to be a part of it.

The event took place at Rockefeller Center. I was assigned to work with Ed Brown, owner/chef of 81. His restaurant was recently awarded a Michelin Star. I met the chef and he introduced me to his staff. He grew up on the Jersey shore so he decide to set up his booth with a beach theme. There were sand, sea shells, salt water taffy, sand buckets with candles inside. It was a fun theme. His dish was a crispy clam roll with toasted hot dog bun top with a homemade tartar sauce. It was simple and delicious, something he grew up eating. As you know since I'm a big fan of fried food, this was right up my ally. I couldn't wait to get my hands on one of those rolls. It turned out I wouldn't be able to taste anything until the very end as we were one of the busiest stands at the event.

Words quickly spread and people were telling us they heard about these clam rolls and they want to know what the buzz was about. I was working with the Executive Sous Chef and putting the sandwiches together. The line was getting very long and we were working at a feverish pace. We served a lot of people and hours later, we finally ran out of food. Luckily I managed to get my hands on one of the last sandwiches. The crunchiness of the fried clam strips along with the toasted bun were just perfect, no wonder why everyone wanted one.

After we ran out of food, I was free to join the festivities so I wasted no time to visit some of the booths and tasted a few dishes. The kimchi quesadilla by Kogi Korean BBQ. The kimchi was not too spicy, it was definitely an interesting concept. Braised beef with carrot jam, brown butter couscous by Aziza. The beef was so tender, and well seasoned. So delicious, the beef just melted in your mouth. Next, roasted pork shoulder gyro with pickled cucumber & yogurt from Anthos. The pickled cucumber and yogurt sauce complimented so well with the pork shoulder. The texture and sourness of the pickled cucumber combined with the tendered pork gyro was outstanding. This is one of those perfect sandwiches that you can eat throughout the summer. The most creative was probably by Park Avenue Summer. Park Avenue restaurant is located on Park Avenue and 63rd Street. They change the restaurant's decor as well as its menu every season. Currently they are serving a summer menu. At the event they were serving a 5 course 3 minute picnic. They have a picnic table that seats eight people. In the center of the table there was a huge basket of waffle fries. First up, grape and cheeze-its, then smoked salmon and egg salad finger sandwiches, third was Dr. Pepper pulled pork, watermelon feta skewers and finally blueberry pie serves in a shot glass. Each course was a little bite of great flavors coming together and so much fun to eat.

Those were some of the dishes I tasted and wish I had room and time to taste more. I was grateful to given the opportunity to volunteer at this event. I was thrilled to learn that Always Hungry in New York voted the clam rolls as one of their favorites. I had such a wonderful experience. It also brought back fond memories of some of my favorite street food I had when I was growing up.

My love for all things fried, starting with Beignets.

For those who know me, I'm not a huge fan of desserts. I take savory over sweet any day. I have never baked any cookies or cakes or made any desserts until my pastry module in school last year. It was an overwhelming experience for me. I was totally intimidated. I know how to cook but making pastries and cakes? That's just not my thing. I was afraid I would be terrible at it. I confessed to my chef instructor right away, and he reassured me that it's ok, we can get through this together. I still remember him telling me not to be afraid of the dough when I was rolling out my puff pastries and bread dough. Through the guidance of my patient instructor, Chef Jeff, I became more confident and started to enjoy making desserts.

So from time to time, I experiment, this time I made beignets as these little fried dough are one of my absolute favorites. I love all things fried, fried chicken is the ultimate comfort food for me. As to dessert, topping my top 5 list has to be beignets.

A few years ago, I went to a local French restaurant. As we sat waiting for our first course to arrive, I saw these mini copper pots filled with beignets and I couldn't keep my eyes off of them as it seems everyone around us was ordering them for desserts. So of course I had to have them, and they are the most amazing little bites I've had. These beignets are stuffed with chocolate truffles! As you put one in your mouth, the warm chocolate just melts in your mouth along with the soft puffy dough, it was heaven! This restaurant no longer serves them as they now have a different owner/chef, but I got to know the chef and his family, and he told me how it is made. Though I haven't made an attempt to make those yet but soon and when I do, I'm sure you'll hear about them.

Anyway, before I start making the truffle stuffed beignets I thought I would try making the regular beignets. However after a twice-failed attempt Sunday night, I took a break and thought I would do some research on Monday. As a follower of Michael Ruhlman's blog, to my surprise I found on Monday morning, he posted a new entry about a pate a choux recipe which is the dough I need to make beignets. I was so excited that I wrote him and told him about the synchronicity. He was nice enough to reply and told me to check the ratio of the recipe as his new book is all about ratio. He uses this particular ratio for his pate a choux, 2 parts water, 1 part butter, 1 part flour and 2 parts eggs. So I thanked him and told him I can't wait to go home and make my attempt number 3.

Well I went home last night and did exactly what he said and this time, the dough was light and fluffy, it was exactly the way it should be. I was so excited. This is such an easy recipe, anyone can do it so go ahead and give it a try.



Beignets (this recipe makes about 2 dozen)
1 cup of water
1 stick of butter
1 cup of flour
4 eggs
2 tbsp of sugar
1/4 cup of chopped pecans (or any nuts you like or nuts are optional)
1/4 cup of powdered sugar

Boil water, butter, salt and sugar in a pot in high heat until it comes to a rolling boil.
Take the mixture off the heat then add in the flour and stir rapidly.
Put it back on medium heat and keep stirring until all the water is absorbed into the flour and the dough will pull to the side of the pot, cook for another minute or so.
Take it off the heat and let cool for about 5 minutes.
In another pot, heat some vegetable or canola oil for frying.
While the dough is cooling, you can add chopped pecans or any nuts you like.
Pour the mixture in a standing mixer fitted with the paddle.
Add one egg at a time, and mix until the egg is completely absorbed before adding the next egg.
The dough will become a bit sticky like a paste.
Using a teaspoon, scoop about a teaspoon or less dough, use another teaspoon to push the dough into the pot of oil for deep frying.
The dough will puff up and get larger, fried until golden brown.
Finish them with powdered sugar.

By the way, if you don't have a standing mixer, you can do this by hand with a wooden spoon and just stir. Be sure to let the pot cools before adding the eggs. These are best to enjoy while they are hot, so make a batch and share with your friends and family.

What's for brunch?

I have been craving for fresh bread lately, mostly Ciabatta rolls. These are the rolls they serve at the restaurant I externed at, and we often used these for garlic rolls or just toast with butter for snacks. I'm not a bread eater. My choice of carb are mostly noodles, pasta or rice. Bread is not something I would crave to eat. I wonder if in some way this means I miss the restaurant as I am craving for the Ciabatta rolls. Anyway when the craving hit late last week and I couldn't find any around, I settled for some sour dough and brioche rolls. I ate them but they didn't satisfy my craving. I did find some over the weekend, and they were so delicious.

But what should I do with the few of the other bread that I have left over. I didn't want to waste them so I looked around the fridge and found an unopened package of turkey kielbasa, some shredded parmigiano reggiano and eggs, and I made an egg and turkey kielbasa strata for brunch.





Egg & Turkey Kielbasa Strata
8 large eggs
1 cup of diced turkey kielbasa
1/2 cup of shredded parmigiano reggiano
2 sour dough rolls (diced)
2 brioche dough (diced)
Pinch of salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 350
Saute the turkey kielbasa at this point, if you're using other ingredients, you can pre cook them first, be sure to season with salt and pepper as needed.
Spray the bottom of a 10 x 10 casserole dish with cooking spray
Spread the diced bread covering the bottom of the dish.
Whisk the eggs, add salt and pepper then pour into the dish covering the eggs.
Sprinkle the kielbasa and the shredded cheese on top.
Put in the oven and bake it for 30 minutes. Test for doneness by inserting a knife in the middle of the casserole, when you take the knife out and it's completely dry then it is ready.
Cut into pieces and you can eat it like a slice of pizza.

As mentioned this is just one recipe that I made with the ingredients I have available. You can surely add as many variety of protein, vegetables, cheese or herb as you like.

Brining

Now that I have more time to test recipes, I thought I would check my freezer to see what's available since I still have all sorts of meat that were leftover from school. I found a boneless pork butt, veal tenderloin and some duck legs. I've been wanting to try out a brine recipe and thought the pork butt would be ideal. Brining is like marinating, but with a lot more liquid. This method was used originally to preserve meat. It is now used to gain flavoring and it retains a lot of its juiciness after cooking.

I found a brining recipe that Chef Chris (my favorite Chef instructor) have given us and broke it down according to the size of the pork butt. There seems to be some debate about how long the meat should be left in a brine. I inquired about it on line and some said I shouldn't leave it in for more than 24 hours as it would start curing. As I confirmed with my classmate Kelly, she brined a pork butt for graduation, 4 days was long enough. I also learned that I should have heated the brine ingredients first but since the honey was stirred in well with the other ingredients, it turned out to be OK that I didn't heat the brine first. The pork was really tasty and juicy. It was very tender. I also slow roasted for 7 hours at 250 degrees.

I know it seems like now that the summer is all about grilling, no one wants to use their oven for that amount of time, but if you slow roast it and make pull pork sandwiches with homemade barbecue sauce that seems to be just as summery as grilling a hamburger. It is also great for entertaining as this recipe is so easy to prepare.





Brine (This recipe was adapted for a 6 - 8 pound pork butt)
6 cups of water
2 cups of soy
1/2 cup of rice wine vinegar
1/2 cup of honey
3 oz of sliced ginger (no need to peel)
5 gloves of garlic or half head of garlic (no need to peel)
4 tbsp of sesame oil
2 bay-leafs
1 tbsp of Chinese 5 spice

Combine all the brine ingredients, stir well or cook the liquid and cool, tied the pork butt to ensure it cooks evenly. Submerge the pork butt with the fat still covering the meat as this will keep the meat moist. Brine for at least one to four days (depending on the weight of the pork). Take it out of the brine, wipe off excess liquid, let it dry for a couple of hours. I let it dry in the fridge overnight then slow roast it at 250 degree for 7 hours or until the meat is falling off. Slice or pull the meat, put it on your favorite bread, I recommend Ciabatta rolls, add your favorite barbecue sauce or top with some cole slaw. This is a great dish to entertain with family and friends. Enjoy!

What's next?

This past Tuesday, I completed my externship of 210 hours. It has been one of the hardest things I have done. It has been quite exhausting physically and mentally. I knew it would be difficult and the 3 months felt like a decade. I am just so thrilled that I'm finally finished. I have completed my externship obligations and it feels awesome with a great sense of satisfaction.

What's next someone may ask or at least I ask myself. I am looking forward to take some time off, rest up a bit. I'm tired of being tired. Hopefully, I'll be able to take a vacation to somewhere exotic very soon. I also want to test recipes, and maybe enroll in some recipe contests. I still have so much to learn, but I think I know what direction I am heading, at least I think I know. I also want to do some volunteering. I inquire about an upcoming event as well as a more permanent volunteering opportunity with two of the local agencies. I am looking forward to learning more and hopefully get more involve this summer.  I am hopeful and excited that I will continue my passion for cooking. In fact, I am starting to defrost a various cuts of meat that have been sitting in my freezer since school ended. I hope to create new dishes for my family and friends to enjoy as well as searching for what's next in my culinary quest. Life is good.

Externship

To complete my culinary degree, the program requires us to commit a 210 hour externship in the food industry. It could be in a restaurant, catering or media company of your choice. Since I have a full time job interning at a food media company, even though it would be my first choice, was out of the question since I'd have to be there during the week. Therefore, I decided I would complete my externship at a restaurant. To be honest, I don't have any desire to work in a kitchen of a restaurant; and have no experience whatsoever, so I thought it may be a good experience for me to try. I knew it would be difficult, but I had no idea what I was getting myself into.

I have known about this chef/owner, and I'm excited for the opportunity to work with her. She is well respected in the industry and her restaurant offers the type of food that I want to learn about. She happened to be one of the panelists at a seminar I attended last year and I spoke to her about the possibility of interning at her restaurant. After trailing there one full day, and spoke to many people, I made the decision of doing my externship there. I committed at least 18 hours a weeks which would roughly takes about 12 weeks. I thought 3 months would go by quickly. Well I was wrong and I have underestimated how difficult this was going to be. I was miserable in the beginning. I hated that I'm being told what to do by 20 something year old. The way some of them spoke to me was a bit degrading. It felt like they think I am incompetent, but I bite my tongue because the fact is I have no experience, and there was a lot to learn.

I was put on the line right away. Being on the line is being where all the action is during service. The line is set up by various stations. Each station has a line cook that heads up that particular station. This is a fine dining restaurant, and they only open for dinner service. The kitchen is really small and only consists of the garde manger (cold appetizer/dessert), grill and saute stations. On certain nights, the chef/owner is there to expedite the orders. Other nights either the sous chef would expedite the orders or the line cook themselves would work together.

I was require to work at least one full day so in the beginning I worked on Saturdays, and then a couple of nights a week to make up the hours. On Saturdays, I am due in at 2:30 and often worked straight until the restaurant closes which is mostly 11:30 or 12. Every day at 4:30, everyone gathers to have dinner aka "family meal". Each line and prep cook takes turn cooking the family meal each day. The prep cooks help to prepare all the desserts as well as fabricate all the ingredients on the menu including breaking down the proteins.

It was very intimidating to be on the line because as the orders come in, especially on a busy night, you need to properly put together each dish and make sure that the presentation and the taste are spot on. There is no corner to be cut. I had to learn all of the components to each dish, and each dish has at least 6-10 components that make up a dish. It was very challenging especially on a busy night; there is no room for error. You have to send out dishes that are exactly the way it was created and nothing else.

After a few weeks interning at the restaurant, I got to learn the personality of everyone and didn’t take things too personally. It took a few weeks to get use to the hours that I was putting in and I tried not to be resentful. I was torn because the nights that I am scheduled are usually not as busy so there were a few weeks that I was asked not to come in since there was nothing for me to do. I was happy and sad at the same time. I was glad that I can go home and not have to work late but I really wanted to be done by Memorial Day weekend, and if my scheduled days are being canceled, it would mean I would have to stay on past my target date. So after much consideration, I decided to give up my weekends and work full days on Saturdays and Sundays and still pick up couple nights a week. By working full days I was able to work with the other lines cooks and help them with prep for the service that day and not just to be on the line during service.

I was also asked to prepare family meals on Saturdays. I was nervous and happy at the same time because this means I finally get to cook, but I have to make a meal for 16 people including the chef/owner. It was a bit intimidating, but I was ready. We have a list of ingredients we can choose from, and if certain things are not available, we can order or purchase separately. I knew what I wanted to make. It was a simple recipe but I tested it at home to make sure it came out good; and if I needed to, I'd change some of the ingredients. That became part of my weekly routine. It’s been weeks since I started making family meals. I still get nervous, but not as much as my first week. I’ve been getting more compliments about my food each week and it’s been giving me more confidence each time I do it. I still have to practice on my knife skill and time management to get my mise en place done more quickly.

I am now a week away from completing my 210 hours. I am exhausted but I know that if I can survive these last 3 months, I can do anything. Along with my full time job, I was putting in at least 60 hours a week. I have never worked so hard in my life. I have so much more respect for the line cooks, back of house, pretty much the whole restaurant industry. It's been an eye opening experience. I also found out what I am made of. I am a hard worker and even though I have no experience, I am a pretty good cook. I just need to believe in myself so I can show more confidence. I am glad that I stuck it out and have the opportunity to work in a restaurant, but to be honest I can't wait to have my weekends back as I plan to be able to spend more time testing recipes and cook for families and friends. Most importantly, I am looking forward to catch up on sleep and not have to whine about how tired I am anymore.