I Got Skillz

This week was the start of Skills Development 1. After the carnage of the last 3 weeks in Meat and Seafood Fabrication, Skills 1 has been quite tame. In fact, this last week was a bit blah in comparison. Skills 1 teaches the basics; stocks, broths, consummes, soups, bisques, etc. While not the most glamorous part of cuisine, a very important foundation to almost everything you make in the kitchen.

Veal stock is used as a base for many sauces and soups. Veal bones are much more mild in flavor, therefore making a great base to compliment the flavors

you add to it. You can also follow this production with beef bones if you do not know where to get veal bones.

First start with your mirepoix. A mirepoix is 2 parts onion, 1

part celery, 1 part carrots. It is the base for EVERY stock. In a brown stock, like veal or beef, you must caramelize the mirepoix. In a white stock, like chicken or white veal, you add the mirepoix raw. Make sure to chop the mirepoix in about 1/2" pieces which allow for even cooking.

Roast veal bones in a 400 degreeoven. Remove the bones from the oven after darkened and add to stock pot. If you

would like to add some extra flavor, add some heat to the sheet pan which held the veal bones, and add a splash of water, and deglaze the pan. cover the bones in the stock pot with water and let simmer.

One of my favorite techniques to adding flavor to a stock or soup is a sachet. It is cheesecloth filled with a bay leaf, thyme, and parsley. It is tied

tightly with twine and added to a stock. The great part is that you can remove it when you have the optimal flavor desired. Once the veal stack has reduced, aprox 5-6hrs, strain bones, mirepoix, and sachet. You now have a base for soups, sauces, and an extra flavor add for anything that requires liquid; simply reduce down and add meats and veggies. We made a great French Onion soup with

this stock!

Here's another useful tip for the home chef. If you ever find yourself with extra butter, I would recommend clarifying it. Clarified butter has a much longer shelf life and a higher smoke point; which makes it great for sauteeing! Simply melt butter with a slow simmer, and when the edges start to brown, you can skim off foam. The butter has separated from the water which has settled on the bottom of the pot. Slowly pour off butter until you see where the liquidy butter/water is. It's a great substitute for olive oil, and delicious on popcorn!!