You better WORK.

So my day as group leader was the most fun I've had at school yet. We finished our prep early, & we did well. (So where were our props, Chef Instructor G? I mean, let a person know sometimes.) I actually wish we spent more time doing prep because I'd actually like to get to the point that I'm not questioning my technique. I mean, that's primarily why I chose to go to school instead of working from the bottom up in some grimy kitchen. The lectures are just so completely dull & ramble-y I wish I could peace-out of them without failing. I mean, tell us something we can't learn on Wikipedia!

I also find myself biting my tongue a lot during lectures so that I don't sound like some shit-heel know-it-all. Por ejemplo, he spoke about white pepper & wine, but didn't even mention rotundone, a chemical responsible for the fact that I think white pepper smells of cat feces. I learned that by subscribing to the Dining & Wine section of the NYT on my Google Reader, homies.

No matter. The humbling thing about devoting yourself to learning about food is that if you lived in every moment of humanity's doomed existence, you still wouldn't have learned a tenth of it. As many times as I hear, "It's all been done before," I can't help but think, "Good thing most of us don't know about it."

Aside à propos of nothing: Everytime he demonstrates with his hands the difference between the sides of a sauteuse & sautoir, he reminds me of RuPaul. "Sauteuse, sautoir," might as well be "Sashay, sauté!"

Picture yourself as a weed whacker...

You guys ever hear the phrase "in the weeds"? It's an oft-used phrase in kitchens to describe the lonely, anxious state one finds his/herself in as they struggle to complete tasks they are not doing fast &/or good enough.

It was also how Chef Instructor G described my group today.

I will preface this with an admission of guilt: I did not have my mise en place list prepared for tomorrow, when I'm group leader. Pulling the products from the walk-in was easy, but quickly & accurately forecasting every piece of equipment nearly was ridiculous. I had to make an extra trip to the stockroom (not very economical with the movements, are we?). When I went to the second quarter chef instructor for my protein, I was thrown a curve ball. The menu's protein was changed, so I had to exchange equipment & products, not to mention dig like mole to find enough pork tenderloin. THIS IS EXACTLY WHY PREPARATION IS KEY. Had I come prepared, the protein switcharoo wouldn't have been as much of a set back.

This evening, as I prepared my plan of action for the group tomorrow, I realized I hadn't forgotten to pull anything. That means I won't start my day with what Kathy Griffin refers to as "pre-diarrhea", which for someone like me, could turn to actual diarrhea that I won't have time to deal with!

Tomorrow will be an easier going day, or so I hope.

Things get interesting.

Blogger's block! I need to be more diligent about this.

So the first quarter of the program works out thusly: when you aren't in classes, you're spending time in the kitchen prepping, assisting second quarter students, bussing, stocking, doing dishes, filling in where you're needed most in any of those groups (tournant), or acting as the sous chef. Yes, 95% of it is bitch work, & that's a point. I get nervous knowing I won't be spending a lot of time with my knives. I have a knife competency looming above me at the end of the quarter scares me when I take two minutes on one onion. However! I rock at suprêmes, so there's that.

I spent most of last week in the second quarter kitchen. I decided not ask for things to do, but find things to do. If you have to ask, I think it's more of a statement that you don't know what you're doing. I may grab the wrong utensil or take too long to sautée carrots, but I'm inspiring more confidence that if I was standing around looking flummoxed, ya know?

So I wasn't sure if the second quarter students I wound up under were entirely disinterested in my extra pair of hands, or if they just weren't organized. I found myself gravitating to other students to answer questions, or demonstrate something for me. That is, when they weren't stepping in to do so without solicitation. It's kind of nice knowing who's going to be your rock when shit hits the fan. I also appreciate that never at any time has someone mocked my unhoned skills.

At least not to my face, which is also awesome!

The more rocky experiences were valuable exercises illustrating the importance of preparation (mise en place really is everything) & learning economy of movement. There's a reason why the good ones make it look easy— because they spend a good deal of time planning every aspect of every dish down to the peppercorn. I wouldn't even be surprise to know if they learn to time their bowel functions to avoid interruption.

Tomorrow, I'm back to prep in the first quarter kitchen, which I admit to being relieved by.