Le Cordon Bleu - Instruction #28

With no associated practical, there was little note-taking by other students. I suspect senioritis will only get worse.

Still focused, Chef Terrien presented our third to last demonstration.

Instruction #28

• Flaked crabmeat and grapefruit jelly, pea pearls, honey and yuzu jus
• Beef tenderloin with duck foie gras and mushroom gratin, potato croquettes, buttered green and white asparagus
• Tonka bean panna cotta, lightly pan-fried cherries

If you mix algin – anionic polysaccharide – into purée. And drop droplets into a CH solution bath. Pearls form. With the consistency of caviar – formed skin and liquid/gel interior – this allows you to make chocolate or broccoli or even red wine bubbles. Unfortunately, Chef choose pea flavor. Resulting in a small ball that looked like it did in the beginning, a pea. But. We get the idea.

Agar-agar (algae based for warm dishes) and gelatin (animal based for cold dishes) have been flying through LCB these days. Gelling, firming, and solidifying all sorts of liquids. Today grapefruit juice slightly sweetened with honey, benefited from agar-agar’s amalgamable characteristic.

Pea pearls and grapefruit jelly made their way to a plate with wasabi-mayonnaise crabmeat. And dressed with honey, yuzu vinaigrette.

Yuzu is thought to be a Japanese fruit. Actually originating in China and later introduced to Asian neighbors in the 8th century. Rounding out not much larger than a tangerine, these little gems are a great addition to any dish. Try some in granita with ponzu on raw oysters. Or drizzled over grilled watermelon. The aromatic, citrus yield per fruit is low keeping the juice quite expensive. But, a little goes a long way.

Finishing the dish with an Asian note. Chef prepared potato crisps with Matcha green tea.

I am not a fan of beef. But. This was a killer dish. The jus alone was worthy of my bowl. Smothering beef tournedos topped with foie gras, mushroom mousse. I was delighted.

Fry a potato in any form and I’ll fight for the last one. Puréed potatoes with chives, breaded in crushed Japanese Somen noodles were no exception. (Without saying out loud I may have had three or four.)

Panna cotta, an Italian custard-like dessert, was given a rare flavor from tonka beans. Resembling old, wet wood, the aroma didn’t do it for most students. Cherries pan-fried in Kirsch didn’t win anyone over either. Unless you’re a diehard cherry fan I would skip this dish all together.