FARM FRITES!

took part in d FRAM FRITES INTER-COLLEGE COMPETITION last saturday.. 27/3/2010.. I HAD LOADS OF FUN!!! I WANNA JOIN MORE COMPETITION!!

i made rose shrimp thai salad with crinkled fries and crinkled fries wrapped in pandan chicken.. [i hafta use ONLY crinkled fries and turn it into a dish.. theme was asian contemporary cuisine]

my first cooking competition as junior chef... AND I WON A CONSOLATION PRICE OF RM100!! i cant believe i actually beat more seasoned chefs!!!! hahahahahaha XD

seriously.. i really felt d adrenaline rush when i joined d competition.. AND I TOTALLY LOVED IT! i didnt sweat at all during d entire competition.. until judging time.. hahahahha!

i had quite an audience dat day.. rite in front of me were a group of outsiders who were attending d pastry class.. lol.. even d photographer said m like celebrity chef.. hahha! i was having fun!

d head judge said i need to improve my plating.. which i totally agree! first time wey.. kelam kabut a bit.. hahahaha! but m glad chef amir asked me to join.. THNX CHEF FOR D OPPORTUNITY! competitions really push me to my limits.. and dat really helps me to perfect my journey to perfection~ ;)

overall.. it was an enjoyable day and experience... wud i join more cooking competition? SURE BRING IT ON! it doesnt matter if i lose or win.. i juz love d adrenaline rush! LOVE IT SOOOO MUCH!!!

dats all for now~ =D

grilled beef with aromatic red wine reduction, sauteed mushrooms with buttered zucchini and capsicum puree, pomme au gratin et horseradish

last 29/3/2010 was my last assessment day.. we hafta cook beef..

supposedly i wanna make grilled tenderloin with bordelaise sauce.. but.. i didnt have my beef stock.. so.. last minute improvise to red wine reduction sauce with herbs.. frankly.. not a fan of wine for my sauce...

made potato gratin.. if i have proper equipments and perfect ingredients.. i cud make better gratin.. but i think d taste was ok.. horseradish has a very sharp flavor but i subtle it down with d cream.. taste quite good~

the mushrooms... sauteed with some butter, garlic and thyme.. dats it.. and buttered zucchini.. i need to season my zucchini nxt time.. zucchini has a bland flavor.. i shud have knwn dat.. nvm.. nxt time i'll season it~

capsicum puree was d easiest thing to make... juz roast d capsicum whole.. and puree it.. i prefer not to add so much flavor to it.. coz i feel dat d capsicum is sweet by itself.. but chef said its better if u add some flavors to it.. i think it depend on wat u r serving/ur dish..

beef.. i think.. i need to be a lil' more careful with my beef's doneness..

overall.. i finished d first! hahahaha! i guess d farm frites competition really boost my competitive spirit! hahahahaha XDD.. i'm done within...... say.. 1 hr and 15 mins? hahahah XD

dats all for now!

-naddo-

-signing out from grilled beef....-

chicken mousseline in beet root ravioli, cream of spinach and oven dried tomatoes

last 15/3/2010.. it was our assessment day.. i tried to do things outside d box by making chicken mousseline in beet root ravioli with cream of spinach and oven dried tomatoes.. taste was good.. but apparently i cant serve my main course in a bowl? i agree on my portioning.. dats my bet coz i dont have a bigger mould to make my ravioli.. so.. it appears a lil' smaller.. the cream of spinach was not wat i expected it to be.. i thought they r gonna provide me with baby spinach.. but ended up with some asian spinach which were so fibrous.. but i pulled it off newayz.. the tomatoes were a flop in d sense of color.. we were given unripe tomatoes instead of d ripe red ones.. but nevertheless.. the taste overall was good..

the not so good part, i got cut down marks literally to zero with my food presentation, portion and sum other stuff.. i forgot.. so there goes my f-ing 9 marks! this is wat happens when i tried to go outside d box.. i really dont get it.. y cant i serve with the bowl??!! its different! chef said he wants us to serve on a platter/dinner plate.. bcoz we r serving main course.. but... its so boring... i wanna do sumfink different.. hm~ juz not my day dat day~ its ok.. i've analyzed my mistakes and i'm amending them.. :)

the beet root ravioli was not wat i expected it either.. i shud puree d beet root and add more to my pasta dough to intensify d color.. my chicken mousseline was ok.. so.. hm~

overall... i'm not dat satisfied with my marks.. i dont knw d overall points.. but if i were to do it again.. i wud do d most perfect chicken dish! its ok.. better fail now and learn from it than fail later on and regret on it~ =D

-naddo-

-signing out from chicken... -

BAA BAA... ROAST LAMB~

first of all.. i think i shud be reading some photography books... seriously... i'm quite bad at taking food pics.. heheh ;P

the classes are getting ever more challenging week after week... I LOVE IT!!

last class, which was on the 1/3/2010.. we hafta cook lamb... of all the things.. LAMB RACK! holy mozzarella... it was the toughest thing i've ever handled in my whole entire culinary life!.. for a first timer... i think.... i did quite ok... juz average rating... i definitely want to practice more and needed them... ;p

this time.. i made persillade lamb rack served with jus, roasted summer vegetable, carrot puree and Moroccan couscous..... i tried to be a lil' creative by serving the lamb with some appetizer.. supposedly... but it didnt match well with the lamb.. but the chef said my idea was good! yay! =D

personally.. i think i need to upgrade my level of presenting the food.. definitely.. and i also need to learn how to manage the ingredients even if they dont provide most of the ingredients in the fiche technique... item86 is a norm in our kitchen.. but juz sometimes.. ;P

time management i think i have improve a lot.. as well as the organization of my workplace.. for dat.. i'm quite proud of me self.. heheh XD.. overall.. i think i can improve my way of organizing and managing my menu! i knw i can do it! LEARN IT, LIVE IT, LOVE IT! J'AIME CUISINE!

-naddo-

-signing out from BAA.. BAA.. ROAST LAMB~ -