(I am apologizing now for the poor camera quality in this post)
Anyways, to the menu. Usually, the chefs will do one entree (in America, we would call this a starter or appetizer) and a main plate (in America, we would call this an entree- which makes no sense as entree means entering, but whatever. I'm sure we have a reason) OR a main and a dessert. These guys did the entree/main route.
To start us off, they made Croustillant de Saint Jacques (Crispy Scallops). Now, this dish actually serves scallops in two ways (despite the name). First, there were the crispy scallops or scallops rolled in a brik pastry, which is similar to phyllo dough in texture.
A fun trick that I learned during this recipe: roll the scallops in breadcrumbs before making the roll in brik because the breadcrumbs will soak up excess moisture and keep the brik flaky!
The second way of serving scallops was a scallop carpaccio, which seems to be a very popular way to eat scallops in Paris (I keep seeing it on fancy and/or "hip" restaurant menus). The carpaccio was served with a traditional cucumber and radish garnish, however, they added espelette pepper, pine nuts, and mimosa to mix it up a bit. Now, like me, you're probably like, "Mimosa? Where?" But this mimosa is actually just grated hard boiled egg. You grate the white and yolk separately. It's a thing here and while interesting, not nearly as exciting as a real mimosa.
(SUPER blurry. I know. But I still thought it would be cool to see the crispy scallops in the middle on the bed of the carpaccio with the cucumber/radish/mimosa)
The main dish, Roti de Lotte Facon Paella (Paella Style Roast Monkfish) ended up basically being a deconstructed paella dish with monkfish, chicken wings, langoustine (scampi), and calamari. To make the paella, they created a risotto using langoustine stock. Then they formed the finished risotto into balls, covered them in breadcrumbs, dyed the breadcrumbs with squid ink, flash froze them, and then deep fried them.
The monkfish was wrapped in serrano ham then caul fat and was roasted in the oven. The langoustines were marinated in paella spice and thyme and then seared on their blanched claws. The chicken wings were roasted and the calamari was struck like grill marks and then seared at the last minute.
Things I liked:
1. The scallop dish. Those scallops were really quite incredible. Before arriving in Paris, I was not a scallop eater, but especially this course, EVERYTHING has scallops in it. And I actually quite like them. Usually. But these were fantastic served in the two ways together. I would love to use this recipe as a base to continue experimenting with in the future.
2. The idea of deconstructed paella. It was kinda fun. Plus, deep fried risotto balls? Yes, please.
3. The monkfish roasted in this way. But you wrap anything in serrano ham and caul fat and roast it and I will 95% of the time be happy.
Things I didn't like:
1. The squid ink on the risotto balls. To me, the strong black color did not fit the rest of the Paella inspired/colored dish. I would have preferred to keep the balls their natural color in this case.
2. Platter served deconstructed Paella. It just looks funny to me. Deconstruction makes me think of smaller plates, more like a tasting situation. Not a platter.
(In guest chef demos, we are allowed to take pictures during the demo as opposed to class where we can only take pictures of the plates at the end. These are the two chefs in the front. I was sitting in the back row.)
Anyways, that's my review on the food. But now for the part that as a once Washington, DC-er, I enjoyed. Learning what it's like to cook in the Presidential Palace kitchen. I of course compared it to what I know about the White House kitchen.
Elysees Palace: White House:
-There are 18 full time chefs on staff -There are 3 full time chefs on staff
-There are NO women chefs on staff -The executive chef is a woman
-The first lady picks the menu -SAME
-They serve family meals and state galas -SAME
So, as you can see there are some pretty big differences in these two kitchens and some similarities.
Other fun things that I learned:
1. The 18 person staff is on different teams (there is the executive chef, two sous-chefs, and then teams made up of chefs de partie with their commis) and there is one team that does not get along AT ALL! Ooooh exciting!
2. President Hollande enjoys "light, healthy" food. President Sarkozy was always moving too quickly to really have time to eat, so he liked his food cooked to be eaten quickly.
3. There is no movement by the French Presidential chefs to improve or change the way French people/children eat as opposed to First Lady Michelle Obama's goals and gardens. However, I don't think they have as much of an obesity problem here...
So, once again, a successful guest chef attendance.
(One of the chefs with the blue collared LCB assistants- students who take the semester "off" to work as assistants to the school chefs for a small wage. This was taken while in line to take a picture of the plated dishes.)
No comments:
Post a Comment