strangelove: Auguste Escoffier

Auguste Escoffier can probably be referred to as the father of the modern restaurant kitchen. He is one of those chefs whose impact on the culinary world is undeniable and unmistakable. At the French Culinary Institute, his books, "The Escoffier Cookbook" (1903) and "Ma Cuisine" (1934) are sometimes referred to as "the Bible" and are the foundation of the recipes and curriculum. A quote I read about him: "He was the 'King of Chefs and Chef of Kings,' doyen of haute cuisine, one of the founders of London's famed Savoy Hotel, and probably the greatest cook of all time." Escoffier not only wrote recipes and taught technique, he revolutionized the kitchen itself. To put it simply, a restaurant kitchen is sectioned into stations which is called a brigade. Each station is responsible for different parts of the menu or types of foods. Each station is run by a chef de partie. As we start Level 3 at the FCI, we are separated into 4 different stations. Garde Manger (appetizers), Poissoinner (fish), Saucier (Meats and Poultry) and Patissier (desserts) and every two classes we move to the next station. This is a huge departure from what we were doing in Levels 1 and 2 where each student and his or her partner were cooking the same thing and also cooking it together. For the most part, each class we were cooking something new. New recipes, new ingredients, new techniques. But in Level 3 we are using all which we learned in the previous levels and learning consistency and refinement. In addition to the change in the way the kitchen works, we also have only 16 recipes (some of which are carry overs from Levels 1 & 2) the entire level and 4 of those will be on our midterm (more on that later). So we have been and will continue to make the same dishes over and over again:

Poached egg on a bed of diced vegetables with hollandaise sauce (oeuf poche sure macedoine de legumes, sauce hollandaise)

Beef consomme with garnish of spring vegetables (consomme printanier)

Grilled salmon scallop, white wine-herb sauce with spinach and rice (escalope de salmon grillee, sauce au vin blanc et aux herbes)

Striped bass cooked in parchment-paper envelope, tomato fondue, mushroom duxelle and julienne of carrots, celery and leek (filet de bar raye cuit en papillote)

Roasted chicken grandmother style with bacon lardons, mushrooms, pearl onions and potatoes risoller and jus de poti sauce (Poulet roti Grand-mere)