For the most part, the only changes in cheese making since the early days have been in understanding how we can control the complicated interaction of various biological agents and processes, all integral to cheese making. The basic stages in the modern production process are: • Milk and its pretreatment, including homogenizing, pasteurizing, or heating • Acidification of milk, to change ...

Here are three tips to help you cut to the chase as you're choosing a chef’s knife: [photo:15100] 1. Make sure the blade extends the entire length of the knife, including through the handle. Plastic or wooden handles attached to a metal blade can break over time. 2. Don’t be afraid to cop a feel before you buy. Hold several knives ...

Foie gras is one of the world’s great luxury items. The earliest records of foie gras go back to 2500 B.C.E. The tombs dedicated to Ti, an Egyptian counselor to the Pharaoh, show scenes of Egyptians hand-feeding figs to geese. The first published recipe for pâté de foie gras appeared in Le Cuisinier Gascon, a cookbook published in 1747. Jean-Pierre Clause ...

The term garde manger had evolved quite a bit since its original usage. Initially denoting the storage area in which preserved foods such as hams, sausages, and cheeses were held, it now also indicates the station within a professional kitchen where these foods are prepared, the cooks and chefs that preserve these food, as well as the specialization in culinary arts ...

Buffet design can be a challenge for any chef; with the Culinary Institute of America, Chef's Blade presents to you best practices for Buffet Design. Once the theme for an event is determined and you have made your best estimate of the anticipated head count, you can diagram the layout for tables, buffet lines, and stations. In addition, you can choose ...

Before you can develop healthy recipes, you need to create a menu for your operation. The number and type of healthy offerings will depend on several interrelated factors that center around the type of establishment and your clientele. Chefs today work in a variety of non-restaurant venues. You may work at a spa, on a cruise ship, at a resort hotel, ...

From the editor: Food preservation techniques have always been intended to control the growth of microbes, halting the growth of some and encouraging the grown of others. This article summarizes the ingredients used to preserve foods. 1. Salt 2. Nitrates and Nitrites 3 Seasing and Flavoring Ingredients Salt The basic ingredient used by the garde manger to preserve foods is salt. ...

Cure is the generic term used to indicate brines, pickling or corning solutions, or dry cures. When salt, in the form of a dry cure or brine, is applied to a food, the food is referred to as cured, brined, pickled, or corned. The term “corned” is less familiar now, but derives from the fact that the grains of salt used ...

An ice-cream float is the quintessential summertime treat in the good ol’ U.S. of A. To enjoy one is to experience a bit of nostalgia for all things Norman Rockwell, even if you’re too young to know exactly who Mr. Rockwell is. The root beer–vanilla ice cream combination is a diner staple, and I don’t know anyone who doesn’t enjoy the ...

Smoke has been intentionally applied to foods since it was first recognized that holding meats and other provisions off the ground near the smoky fires did more than dry them more quickly or prevent animals from getting to them. The hanging foods, treated to a smokebath, took on new and enticing flavors. Today we enjoy smoked foods for their special flavors. ...

I am sure that all of you have read about various chiles; be they fresh or dried. There are marvelous books out on the fiery subjects. This article is about one of the most common of the chilies: the Jalapeno Chile Pepper. This chile is used fresh in salsas, vinaigrettes, marinades, sauces, even stuffed and fried or eaten raw as a ...

Depending on their molecular structure, some fats are solid at room temperature, while others are liquid at the same temperature. Liquid fats are known as oils. Solid fats soften and eventually melt into a liquid state when exposed to heat. In addition to being a vital nutrient, fat performs a number of culinary functions. It provides a rich flavor and silky ...

Water is the primary substance in most foods. Fruits and vegetables contain up to 95 percent water; raw meat is about 75 percent water. At sea level, pure water freezes (becomes solid) at 32°F/0°C and boils (turns to water vapor or steam) at 212°F/100°C. Boiling leads to evaporation, which makes reduction possible. Water is a powerful solvent. Many vitamins, minerals, and ...

An emulsion occurs when two substances that do not normally mix are forced into a mixture in which one of the substances is evenly dispersed in the form of small droplets throughout the other substance. Under normal conditions, fat (either liquid oil or solid fat) and water do not mix, but these two substances are the most common ingredients in culinary ...

Foods can serve as carriers for many different illnesses. Use this guide, provided to Chef's Blade by The Culinary Institute of America, to learn everything you need to know about food safety. 1. Introduction 2. Food Pathogens 3. :/training/articles/229-regulations-inspection-and-certification

September is National Chicken Month! Don't miss out before it's too late! September is National Chicken Month and to celebrate, we worked with featured writer Danielle Turner to create a guide to the juicy, white meat we all love! First up, some quick facts on chicken! 1. Chicken Skin Color 2. Free Range Chicken 3. Determining "Doneness" 4. How Long ...

Tomato sauces of all sorts, from simply seasoned and fresh to complex and highly seasoned, are featured in cuisines around the world. Tomato sauce is a generic term used to describe any sauce that is based mainly on tomatoes. Tomato sauces can be made several ways. They may be raw or cooked, anywhere from ten minutes to several hours. In some ...

Since the largest part of hollandaise is butter, the success or failure of the sauce depends not only on skillfully combining egg yolks, water, acid, and butter into a rich, smooth sauce, but also on the quality of the butter itself. Hollandaise sauce is prepared by emulsifying melted or clarified butter and water (in the form of an acidic reduction and/or ...

Traditionally, beurre blanc is prepared as an integral part of the shallow- poaching process, using the reduction cooking liquid (cuisson). Another common practice is to prepare a reduction separately and make the beurre blanc in a larger batch so it can be used as a grand sauce on which derivative sauces are based. As with hollandaise, beurre blanc derivatives are prepared ...

Knowing food science principles will give you new tools to create exception dishes There are dozens of scientific principles at work during the cooking process. As an introduction to the topic of food science, this guide, provided to Chef's Blade by The Culinary Institute of America, provides an overview of these principles. Topics: 1. Egg Structure and Uses 2. Effects ...