Practical Application

Day 40

Quartering a chicken, check. Filleting a fish, check. Preparing creme anglaise, check. Piping creme chantilly, check.

I completed all those tasks today, along with taking a written comprehensive test. I'm exhausted. I'm also ecstatic—chef posted our grades soon after class ended, and it turns out I'm heading to Level 3. Looks like all that practice paid off.

Despite my physical and mental fatigue, I found energy to celebrate. I went out to dinner at Back Forty with some friends, and we munched on pork jowl nuggets, yuca fries with red onion aioli, fried squash blossoms stuffed with goat cheese and fresh doughnuts with Concord grape sauce. We then headed to Grape and Grain, a lively neighborhood wine bar in the East Village, and ordered a couple bottles.

Level 2, check.

Playing Chicken

Day 38

So, what's for dinner—chicken or chicken?

One of my favorite movie quotes (from "Tommy Boy" for those who don't know) has become my life story lately as I prep for my Level 2 practical. On Friday, I have to quarter a chicken and fillet a fish in 30 minutes. I feel fairly confident about the fish, but the chicken is another story.

In order to get it down, I've been buying chickens at home and honing what skills I have. The result: a lot of chicken pieces. Roasted chicken was on the menu tonight, and later this week I might make chicken paprikash, a family favorite.

I have chicken coming out of my ears.

As mentioned in my previous post, today was "Flounder Your Way." It was exciting to see the diversity of recipes; I was impressed with my classmates' creativity and look forward to the upcoming levels when we get to experiment a little more in the kitchen. Personally, I was happy with my dish given the circumstances. With the provided ingredients, I decided on sauteed flounder, a carrot ginger puree, and potato zucchini pancakes with a roasted garlic mayonnaise. Note to self: Remember that flounder is the star of the dish—not potato pancakes. Make the pancakes smaller next time.

Tomorrow, wine is the star as we're tasting a dozen varieties. It's seems like a good way to relax our minds before the big exam Friday.

I don't mean to be a chicken, but I don't want to think about it.

Pep Talk

Day 33

Silence emanated from the school's theater today. I suppose that's what happens when a master's at work.

World-renowned chef Jacques Pepin demoed basic culinary skills to a full house, and the crowd watched in awe. There weren't many questions—not because onlookers knew everything, I imagine, but because they were fascinated by his presence. I know I was.

He made flowers from butter and tomato skin, deboned an entire chicken barely using his knife, and completed what will be our Level 2 practical in something like three minutes. (The practical entails filleting a fish and quartering a chicken in a half-hour; our class was told many don't finish.) I had to keep reminding myself how long I've been doing this compared to his experience.

Chef Pepin's knowledge, teaching skills and ability to capture the attention of everyone in the room reminded me so much of my class' current chef, who was also in Level 1 with us. I feel very fortunate to have had such a great instructor, and I know he'll be greatly missed when we head to Level 3.

But I'm not going to think about that right now (tear). We still have another week with him.

In class today, we prepared striped bass over lentils. I wasn't a huge fan of the dish, but it allowed me to practice my filleting skills, which I desperately need to improve. Minced flounder won't get me an "A" on my practical.

If only I could get a private lesson with chef Pepin...

Testing, Testing, 1, 2, 3

Day 20

My couch has never felt so good. In a few hours, my bed will feel even better.

Level 1 practical and comprehensive exam: I'm done with you. I made it through 90 minutes of hand-crippling tournage and taillage, followed by a written test covering the first sixth of the program. My back is stiff, my feet are sore and my mind is numb.

Going into the test, I wasn't sure what to expect. I mean, I knew what tasks were ahead of me, but I didn't know how I'd react to the time limits and pressure of the chefs' watchful eyes. I was visibly shaking during my first few cuts—as told to me by an observant fellow student who had to sit out because of a finger injury—but I made it.

The hardest part, for me, was taking apart the artichoke. I had a feeling it was going to give me trouble, and it did. Its prickly leaves (which can seriously hurt you, by the way) were flying everywhere as students used kitchen shears to expose the flesh. As I was evening out the sides with a paring knife (obviously a bit too quickly), I slipped and sliced a portion of the heart.

Hopefully, they didn't notice, 'cause I don't want to choke.

To celebrate our conclusion of Level 1, some classmates headed to The Meatball Shop on the Lower East Side. The beef meatballs with mushroom sauce, a side of polenta and an Ommegang were exactly what I needed to rest my brain.

Tomorrow begins Level 2. We have new books, new recipes, a new chef and a new kitchen. I'm pumped—especially because this section includes pastries, pasta and wine tasting. I'm ready for a new ball game.

And I could go for another one of those meatballs right about now...