Rouxbe

I've used Henckles 3 star knives for some years but a few months ago I bought a Global 7" Santoku. It blew me away. So much lighter in feel than Henckel's chef's knife and it fits my hand perfectly. Now my Henckel knives sit quietly in the block while I use my Global Santoku for just about all cutting.

tara

Oh I agree. I've experienced the same thing you describe. But I have to say, there is one restaurant here where i live that I adore. I have no idea how they pass the health inspectors. It's run by Jamaicans and is Jamaican cuisine. The whole establishment is tacky in the extreme and if you can get a glimpse of the kitchen, well you do because this is also a situation where you have to walk through the kitchen to get to the washroom. After this experience, you are so grossed out that you wonder how you can actually order and eat food prepared there.

BUT, you do because the food is fantastic. The staff and the general atmosphere just makes you so happy that you forget about the other stuff.

tara

For sure. We actually approached the cook/owner once and asked him about the condition of the kitchen. He said, "this is the way we do it in Jamaica, don't worry, be happy".

Generally though, when I go out to eat, I want (and deserve) excellent, congenial service, wonderful food prepared with care and skill, and a Clean environment. If I don't get that, I don't return. Word gets around.

tara

I made this dish today, loved the result and the sauce was wonderful. I served the chicken over dressed baby greens and as a side, potatoes mashed with butter, s&p, sour cream and lots of chives. I found that the chicken wasn't done after 30 min so continued to simmer it for another 15 min or so. This was probably because all of the pieces were not uniform size. This dish is time consuming but worth it.

tara

Thanks for your suggestion. This looks yummy. I like to makes dishes that are popular in other countries. Once I get the sambol oelek, I'll try this dish.

Made this tonight and the crispy, crunchy almonds were a perfect compliment to the sole. I served it with broccoli and parsley rice.

I'm going to make this again and again. So simple, so French. :)

I've managed to complete, so far - salad greens and dressings, knives and knife cuts and making a basic white stock. I had no idea how the school would work but now that I'm in it and actually doing it, I am impressed. I find the whole process very professional, informative, easy to understand, and above all, an intelligent design. I really appreciate the format. Not only are the instructions thorough but the 'why's' (the science), behind what we do is the added and very important bonus for me. Nothing really makes sense, (for me anyway), without a meaning.

Like many others here, I suspect, I don't have lots of time. I've got other daily stuff to do and I only have so much energy to do it all. I love the fact that I have control over when I do the lessons and the practical application.

Thanks Rouxbe team. Great Work! ;)

Tara

Is whole wheat flour ever used to make a roux?

Yes your answer and tips help a lot. I rarely use white flour of any kind and w.w. pastry flour sounds like a good substitute for all purpose white. I like the idea of using brown rice flour as well.
Thanks Divina.

To my mind, if you are going to add pepper combined with your herbs. .. and (In this case to stock}. a few whole peppercorns won't make a big difference}.

What I do is take a few peppercorns and instead of adding them whole, I get out my little hammer in my drawer and lay out a bunch of whole pepper corns on my work table and smash (tap) them with my handy little hammer. Then I add the cracked peppercorns to the stock.

I dunno, I just think that if you are going to add pepper, why not really add pepper. And if you crack the pepper corns first, this will do it

I understand now and see what you mean. Thanks for your reply, Joe.

I dunno, I absolutely love the school, the format, the expertise, but what I'm missing is a feeling of community among others who are also doing the cooking school lessons. I look at the forums and I don't see much input.

When you physically attend school, you talk among others there. You find out where you are in relation to where others are. You compare notes - stuff like that. I miss that kind of interaction here in this venue.

It feels like I'm kind of all alone here - doing my lessons and practice but without the feel of community with others doing the same thing.

Maybe that is what the internet is all about. If so, it lacks something real. It's missing a very important piece of the learning experience.

tara

Hi,
I'm just a bit confused here ;)
In the quiz: How to Cook Pasta, one of the questions reads:

"Removing about one cup of the pasta water near the end of cooking can be used to:
a) lighten oil based sauces
b) thin out a sauce
c) both of the above

I answered b) thin out a sauce
Was told that the correct answer is c) and when I clicked on "review the question", the video said "it is used to thin out sauce that may be too thick" taken from the section "draining pasta".

I know, not a big deal but

??

thanks,
tara

Yeah, when I was trying to answer the quiz. I knew that both a and b were saying essentially the same thing but also knew that "lighten oil based sauces" wasn't mentioned in the video. So thought I would play it safe...for once, haha.

thanks.

tara

If you don't have cornstarch, potato starch or arrowroot on hand, can you use flour and cold water to make a slurry and add it to the sauce in the same way?

Tara

Hey, great. Thanks Tony. I have an allergy to corn so tend to avoid products made from it. I used to use arrowroot for thickening and it works well, but it's hard to find sometimes and I always have wheat flour in my kitchen.