What we learned in culinary school this week - Week 7

Monday was a holiday, so on Tuesday we kicked the week off with potatoes. Potato pancakes, potato gnocci (which I didn't care for because the texture reminded me of soggy bread) and Pommes Anna (which I'd never heard of, but loved). We also got to read about How the Potato Changed the World.

Pommes Anna

Wednesday we went over legumes (beans), which I'm not wild about in general. When soaking beans, don't add salt to the water (it slows down the softening of the beans - can add salt later). Also, soak them in the fridge - if the water gets too warm the beans can start fermenting. We made hummus, which turned out pretty good.

Thursday we moved on to grains. Rice is the most consumed grain in the world. Rice can be stored indefinitely in the freezer. Always rinse white rice before cooking (except for arborio, which is used in risotto and paella). Rinsing helps keep the rice from sticking. Rinse until the water runs clear. When cooking: 1 part rice to 1-1/2 cups of liquid. 

Quinoa is like tofu - it takes on the taste of what it's cooked with.

Then there's corn, which is the most prolific crop on the planet. 

On Friday we took our ServSafe test after a very comprehensive review. I'm confident that I passed and in fact may have done pretty decently.