Potatoes: Chunks are for Chumps

Beginner. Newbie. Neophyte. New kid on the block. These terms no longer apply to my culinary school status as I have officially completed Level 1 of the program and am one lesson in to Level 2. And although our first lesson was essentially an extension of our concluding session on braising in Level 1, everyone seemed to walk a little taller past our former kitchen into the "sophomore" kitchen next door. We smiled knowingly as we observed the new group nervously assessing each other and awkwardly adjusting their starched white coats. It's actually quite amusing given that was me just 6 weeks ago. I am, first, stunned at how quickly the time is passing and second, amazed at how much I have not only learned, but improved. The program is organized in a way that as you learn new techniques, you continue to practice and perfect old techniques, and practice really does make perfect with French cooking.

For example, we have learned the French technique of tournage (turning vegetables), which is essentially to take a chunk of vegetable and carve it into a faceted little oval barrel about 5 cm long (called a cocotte) with a paring knife. (Apparently, a diced potato or a chunk of potato is too pedestrian for French cuisine.) When we did this the first day, my hand cramped from the awkward motion and I produced what can best be described as potato turds that looked nothing like Chef Nic's perfectly straight spud gems. But we have done them so many times in class (and for homework) and prepared them in so many different ways that I actually got the ultimate compliment on my potato homework today.

Chef Nic: "Mmm...is good. Mmm...not bad. Not bad at all. The size is good. Sides could be a little straighter...but is good, no?"

Me: "No? I mean yes. Yes, Chef. Thank you, Chef."

As an aside, tournage creates a massive amount of potato trimmings that can be used for soups, mashed potatoes, gnocchi - if you use them relatively soon. You have to store them in water so they don't brown and if you wait too long, the water leeches the starch out and you get a weird texture. I have a hard time throwing away literally pounds of potatoes, so the soup stockpile continues in my freezer, although I did make four quiches last week with various vegetable trimmings and leftovers. Gnocchi is on the agenda tomorrow, but I think it will be a carrot-potato gnocchi since I have some carrot trimmings as well. I still don't see the value in having oval potatoes, but that doesn't mean I am not going to continue to crank out my best cocottes. If nothing else, I have become the queen of repurposing scraps.

So, here begins the next chapter in my culinary education and I have no doubt that it too will fly by with its conclusion bringing even more growth. To be honest, I want the whole process to slow down a bit. I am, for the first time in my life, enjoying school and all that accompanies it. I am forming friendships with classmates that I know will far outlast this 9 month program. (It's easy to bond over broken sauces, excessive sweating, and wearing rubber finger cots over cuts that look like miniature condoms and provide a whole host of opportunities for tasteless jokes that break the pressure and intensity of the kitchen.) I am enjoying the perks of being a student at FCI: the free demonstrations by world class chefs, the club events (I'm taking a tour of the Food Network later this month) and the library, which is stocked with every cookbook, magazine, and food related tome you can imagine. I don't want it to end! I know there's no reason that life after culinary school can't be just as sweet, but I am not ready for it just yet and plan to savor every moment.

Some of the moments I will be savoring this level are in fact not savory, but sweet. Our first four sessions wrap up our instruction on protein (including offal, or organ meats for the uninitiated, and eggs, which the cooking of is said to be the measuring stick of a good chef), before we spend the next 7 lessons learning pastry and sweet treats. After the last few weeks preparing hearty lamb, veal and chicken dishes with rich sauces in the heat of summer, I am ready to change things up and pastry could be the ticket. Level 2 also covers lessons on nutrition (which is hilarious after we've been taught to "add a little bit of butter" - picture a whole stick being added to a sauce pan), as well as food costing, menu planning and a whole lesson devoted to one of the other loves of my life - CHEESE! If you know me well, you know that cheese is my desert island food, the one I cannot live without. But I can wait on the cheese lesson, as it comes near the end of Level 2 and right now, I am in no rush, even if it means savoring kidney and tongue. The plus side is that it will probably be bathed in butter, the downside is that it will undoubtedly be accompanied by those damn potato cocottes.