Le Cordon Bleu - Instruction #16

When heated, an apron releases memories. As I was ironing smells of past practicals permeated the room. Brill fillets in white wine sauce. Poached hake in hollandaise. I was taken back – not necessarily in a good way.

Carolyn put it so well, “Fish tastes good, but smells horrible.”

And so the smells of fish-practicals-past remain.

The smell may live on, but the lessons do not. Instruction #16 marked the good-bye to fish (for now) and hello to meat. Red meat. Beef.

Naturally. We started with marinating boeuf Bourguignon. For the reason of how this dish has been exploited, I despise Julie and Julia.

Boeuf Bourguignonne Marinade

Place the following in a large stock pot. Allow to marinate over-night. Serves 4.

1.2 kg beef shoulder, trimmed and cut into medium-sized cubes (2.64 lbs)
1 liter red wine (4.2 cups)
150 g carrots (2/3 cup)
150 g onions (2/3 cup)
1 celery stalk
2 garlic cloves, whole and quartered
1 bouquet garni
30 ml cognac (1 oz)
10 g black peppercorns (2 tsp)

Cover the surface with parchment paper. Cover the container with plastic. Place in refrigerator.

Tomorrow we will see the completion of this dish. So, stay tuned…

Next on the agenda was beef with onions and carrots. A braised dish. To braise means to brown meat in a sauté pan; add aromatics (carrot, onion, celery, bouquet garni); cover the meat with a liquid (usually wine or stock); and finish in the oven at a very low temperature.

The one interesting part of this dish was that we added a calf’s foot which had been split in two. This made the finish sauce some what gelatinous, shiny, and smooth. If you can’t get a hold of a calf’s foot? Just omit from the recipe – we were told.

Our final dish of the day was roasted sirloin fillet with pureed potatoes. Like braised dishes we started out by browning the meat on a hot skillet. The skillet needs to be very hot to sear the outside of the meat. Chef suggests to season the meat with salt and pepper after you brown it. This will prevent the salt from penetrating the raw meat and exuding the juices.

The meat was roasted in a 200 degree Celsius oven for 6 minutes per side with some aromatics, bouquet garni, and garlic. The pan was deglazed on the stove with white wine and veal stock.

My practical for the sirloin fillet is this afternoon so I shall report how it goes.

Instruction #16 – Red Meats – Part 1

• Roasting: Roasted sirloin fillet, purred potatoes
• Braised: Beef with onions and carrots
• Marinating: Boeuf Bourguignonne