Le Cordon Bleu Basic Exam is Completed

The exam has come and gone. I really don't think that I have ever been this stressed before.

I was in the third group, starting at 12:30 p.m. Upon arriving to school I was greeted with the news of what the dishes were. Brill and duck.

Gathering in front of our practical room Chef Tivet called us in one at a time to draw a colored chip. Blue was brill. Yellow for the duck. Not quite sure which dish I wanted - I was feeling equal about them - I pulled a blue chip from the bowl.

The kitchen was set up with all the ingredients at the work stations. Alternated between the two dishes. Wanting my usual station I was delighted to see brill sitting there. I proceeded to set up and then it was right to work.

Two-and-a-half hours for this dish seemed doable. First I scaled, gutted, and trimmed the fish. Filleting came next. Once I had the skeleton - minus the gills that were ripped out - I started making a fumet. The base for my upcoming butter sauce.

Lining a pan with butter, finely chopped shallots, onions, and tomatoes, salt and pepper I place the fillets in. Seasoned the upside of the fillets. And filled the pan with fumet. Into the oven for 6 minutes.

I placed the cooked fillets in a pan to rest while I reduced the cooking liquid. When it was reduced enough I Incorporated 125 g of cold butter - emulsifying. Into a butter sauce. Finished with parsley.

Somewhere in the middle of this I turned and cooked two artichokes - our technical test. And I turned 12 potatoes, Anglais-style - the accompaniments for the brill.

By the end the 2.5 hours whisked by. Chef was screaming about how much time we had left. Adding stress to the room. I worked fast, but in a tizzy, to get my work finished, plated, and presented to the judging panel.

Four chefs from outside LCB came to taste judge our dishes. With only a number on the plate the scores were truly unbiased. After all the dishes were graded we were called in for some general comments.

One person's potatoes weren't cooked. Another's jus too salty. Overall the fish dishes were good. But the duck needed more cooking time. This was scary. To say-the-least.

Then it was all over. We packed out knifes and left the kitchen. Sweating, tired, and exulted. For some Monday will bring Intermediate. A new level. A new chance to cook. For others, this marked the end of their LCB time. Some students only did the Basic level and will return to their lives - or start a new one. Hugs and keep in touches were exchanged as we all closed this chapter.