Archive for April, 2008
We are pleased to announce that we are accepting applications for our 2008 Summer Internships.
The Internships are unpaid, though accommodation will be provided.
Work experience will be within the Central Kitchen, Sushi and Pastry sections.
The candidates that we are looking for should have some catering experience either in hotels or restaurants, be able to work well under pressure and willing to learn.
The time frame can be suited to individual needs, though there is a requirement of a minimum of 6 weeks.
Contact information can be seen at the end of the LCTV presentation below.
We get strange looks when this Amuse Bouche is placed on the table.
“Tomato Soup with Grapes”, present our Service staff.
“But where is the Tomato?”, quiz our guests.
It is only when they taste it do they realise that it is packed with Tomatoes.
It is a wonderful way to start a dinner, this chilled soup is easy to make and leaves a lasting impression.
It all begins with the Service Staff telling the diners that it is a “Tomato Soup“. Immediately you think that it should be reddish, or you think that the staff are playing a joke on you 
, or have made a mistake :oops: .
The surprise arrives when you actually taste it, as as I said above, it is packed with Tomato flavour.
The Grapes have been peeled and deseeded, then placed in the freezer for 20 minutes.
The clear chilled Tomato soup added, this too has been chilled in the freezer for the same amount of time.
Spain probably has some of the best Hams in the world. Known locally as Jamón (pronounced “Hammon”) it is sold in nearly every tapas bars, local restaurants and eateries.
There are many different types of Jamón available, though the acorn fed “Jamón Ibérico de Bellota” is without question the “King of Jamón”.
Some of the best Jamóns are cured for more than two years, and their flavour unrivalled.
What we are concentrating on is the fat.
This is no normal pork fat, it has a delicious nutty aroma, and when thinly sliced, just melts in the mouth. It is taken from the thickest part of the Jamón, which acts as protection for the wonderful ham during the curing process.
When preparing the Jamón, a large wedge of fat is normally sliced off and reused to cover the exposed part of the meat to stop it from drying out.
We used paper-thin slices of fat to cover our Marinated Sardines.
It is always a pleasure to work with great ingredients. One of the front runners has to be Caviar.
Inspecting the contents of a whopping 950g tin.
Expensive, but well worth the money, and needless to say it is one of my favourite “things in life”.
What I would really love to serve is Sturgeon Sushi topped with a spoonful of Caviar, but sadly we cannot get hold of fresh Sturgeon here.
In the meantime we use Caviar to adorn some simple dishes.
Caviar Moscovite, a dish that I recently learned to make uses potatoes that have been cooked, had the flesh scooped out which is then mixed with cream, salt and white pepper to make a creamy puree and piped back.
It is then topped with a spoonful of Caviar whilst still warm and served immediately.
(Thanks to Dries (prounounced Driss), one of the hotel cooks for the recipe) :)
Another great way to serve Caviar is simply on toast, with some Sour Cream.
We served this as our Amuse Bouche tonight, which went down a treat. ;)
***
This week our Sushi Chefs have been busy.
Sushi Boxes featured in our local “Feria de Tapas” (Tapas fair).
Our two Sushi Chefs, Saki and Kuchi prepare the boxes.
We served up the small boxes with Salmon, Tuna and King Prawns. The boxes sold for 5€ each alongside some Spanish Tapas that were available.
At the same time Saki and Kuchi were preparing Sushi for a buffet at the hotel.
Our Fishmonger has been happy with us this week. :)
Talking about fish, it is not only served raw at the restaurant.
Seabass, filleted and simply grilled and served with vegetables.
The green oil is made from Coriander and Olive Oil with a touch of Garlic.
We like to fillet the fish and debone it at the last possible moment. Luckily our Sushi Chefs tend to the job in a matter of seconds.
Another “sea” ingredient that we have used over the past week is our Octopus Chips. Fried in abundant sunflower oil, they puff up and have a wonderful crunchy and light texture.
The process of making the chips takes about 4 days, which includes the “drying out” time. Paprika Salt gives them a “Spanish touch”.
Many people eating them can be forgiven for mistaking them for factory made Prawn Crackers, but the flavour is more pronounced and “homemade”. It is easy to rip open a packet and plunge it in to the fryer, but the satisfaction that you get from making your own is overwhelming and immensely satisfying.
Sometimes it is the simple things that make you pay attention. Like restaurant made bread, or grissini or even a tapenade.
We even smoke and marinade our own Salmon, which is used for our breakfast buffet. That way we can control the quality and flavour. That is one of the pleasures of working in a Five Star Hotel, we have all the best equipment and ingredients at our disposal, which in turn, we hope produces the best quality for our guests.
Talking about Salmon, the other day I was reminiscing about London and the fantastic Smoked Salmon and Cream Cheese Bagels that you can find at the all-night bakery in Whitechapel (I often remember the food before I remember the place ;) ). It has been years since I had a Bagel, and I had just finished making a batch of Salmon, so I thought “why not” and made up a batch of Bagels for the Laocooks.
Okay, lets be honest, Cream Cheese is not a flavour that the Laocooks like, but at least I enjoyed them…. ;)
Prawns with Apples was a combination that materialized during a small birthday lunch for Jopi (pronounced “Hopi”), one of our Service staff.
King gives Jopi a Birthday kiss…
After lunch at a local restaurant, we returned to Jopi´s place for some afternoon drinks. As the “quick drinks” carried on in to the night we became hungry and Jopi´s boyfriend Greg decided to grill some King Prawns.
“Langostinos a la Plancha” are a typical way to grill King Prawns, all you need is salt and a hot plate/grill/plancha.
King seeing that the others were discarding the heads decided to use the “head jus” to make a sauce, and the the only thing at hand at the time was a bowl of apples.
So in a small pot we pressed out the liquid from the heads and mixed them with diced apples. The combination was lovely, the sweet and sourness of the apples went well with the strong sea flavour. Immediately we knew that we would have to share this flavour and decided to create it next day in the restaurant.
A smooth Carrot Puree (sweet), blanched King Prawns (delicate), diced Granny Smith Apples (sour) and a shot of the “head jus” (sea-full).
It is strange how ideas come to you when you least expect them to! :)
***
I like to decorate our dessert plates “a la minute” or “at the moment”. Using melted chocolate and fruit coulis are an easy way to dress up a dish.
The liquid Chocolate acts as a border for the colourful fruits coulis.
Green = Kiwi
Yellow = Mango
Red = Forest Fruits
The designs are very simple and also edible! :)
Khamhoung after watching me “plate” a birthday cake decided that he wanted to have a try, but he didn’t have an idea of what to draw, so I told him to draw whatever “came to mind”.
A few minutes later he came back with this.
Through muffled laughs we asked him what it was.
“Vang Vieng!”, Khamhoung replied and further added “Don’t you recognise the mountains and the trees?”…
Come to think about it, he has a point… ;)
Our Fish Markets are now full of fresh Sardines. They are so easy to prepare and we especially love them simply grilled on a BBQ (or even better, on the beach) or briefly Marinated.
Not only do they taste good, they are also healthy (food speak: they are rich in Omega 3 Fatty Acids, Calcium, Vitamin D and B12 :) ).
Sardines on Toast is something that I grew up with back in the UK, however, at that time we could only get hold of tinned Sardines, normally packed in Oil or a Tomato Sauce. At that time I had never imagined that they could be eaten fresh, in fact, I had never even seen a fresh one! :shock:
For some reason when some fresh Sardines arrived to our kitchens yesterday, it brought back memories of traveling through France, where I enjoyed a more grown up version of Sardines on Toast at a local Brasserie, served on grilled country bread and a bed of Ratatouille.
This gave me the idea of making a similar version, this time using Jéow Mhak Lhen, or Lao Style Tomato Chutney as an inspiration.
The Sardines were cleaned and filleted before being covered in Salt for 15 minutes, after the salt is removed they are then covered with a Yuzu Vinaigrette for 10 minutes before being stored in Extra Virgin Olive Oil before serving. The process is quick and ensures that the fish are not “over-cured” and lets the fillets retain their natural tenderness.
I love Bloody Mary´s. They are quick and easy to make and very enjoyable on a sunny afternoon. ;)
There are 1000´s or recipes and variations, but the two most important ingredients are Tomato Juice and Worcestershire Sauce. It was whilst looking at a bottle of the latter that the idea of “Anchovies in Tomato” was born.
I have always fondly called Worcestershire Sauce the “European Padek Juice” because it is a fermented liquid condiment that contains Anchovies.
For my version, fresh Anchovies were cleaned then briefly marinated in Yuzu Juice.
They are used to line a shot glass that is then filled with a Virgin Mary mix (not all our clients drink alcohol).
They are then topped with a Citrus Foam and served immediately.
I don’t know if it will catch on, or whether a “Bloody Laocook ” will be seen in any bars, but it will definitely be featured on our “Aharn Menu”.
***
Before any work can begin in our kitchens, we have to get our tools ready. The cook´s best friends in his workplace are his knives. A blunt blade is dangerous one.
Khamhoung, Kuchi and Saki tend to our knives. Sharpening cannot be rushed, there are no short cuts for quality.
Khamhoung gets our Ducks ready for one of our new dishes.
The Duck must pass a taste test before t reaches any tables.
Our Duck is based on the Chinese Roast Duck cooking method, though we have used more of a Laotian marinade that contains Lemongrass and Garlic. As with the Chinese version, the Duck will benefit from a few days hanging before roasting.
We serve our Duck medium rare, and only use the breast for this dish. The legs will be used in a Red Curry, the stock being made from the carcasses.
What looks like noodles, are actually Elvers, expensive little things from the near by town of Trebujena.
Normally in Spain, Elvers are cooked in Olive Oil with Garlic and sometimes Dried Chillies, they then take on a “noodle-like” texture.
These small Eels are a delicacy around this region, and fetch high prices in the local Tapas Bars.
They are best purchased alive, and are treated to a bath of Marlboro Lights. What? You read right…. :shock:
Tobacco is removed from a cigarette, wrapped in a cloth then placed in a container filled with the swimming Elvers. Within minutes they are ready to be placed in to the hot oil, otherwise they would splatter (basically jump) everywhere if you dumped them in to the hot fat. Why do we use Tobacco? Who knows? It was a handy tip that I got off a cook in one of the famous bars in the nearby White Village.
Hey, if it works for him, it works for us… :)
We served our Elvers on top of a Cauliflower and Phö Jelly with some Garlic, Olive Oil and Chillie Crumbs.
***
The same Garlic, Olive Oil and Chillie Crumbs also topped our Jade Noodles with King Prawn, however this time we added a dash of Sesame and Grapeseed Oil, to Jade Noodles that have been tossed in a Yuzu Vinaigrette.
The Prawn is first shelled and cleaned before being blanched in a light Vegetable stock for a few seconds (yep, never overcook Prawns!), that way they retain their lovely texture and sweetness, which goes well with the scent of the Garlic and Sesame Oil.
We are thinking about making a menu of “Mini Aharn” for the summer, a kind of “Ghem Lau” or “Drink Snacks”, perhaps a 9 or 10 course meal consisting of some of the small dishes that we have made during this season.
10 dishes sounds like a lot, but they are small, and there will be plenty of Wine to go with it! ;) :)
Seeing as your children are cooks, it seems only natural to visit their place of work, and pay special attention to the work that happens behind the scenes.
It seemed only natural that my parents wanted to inspect the kitchen, it is, after all, the heart of the home (or workplace in our case).
Junior discusses the finer points of cuisine with Monica.
A kind of hush falls upon the kitchen as my mother enters.
My father quickly has a look at “What is going on…”
A sigh of relief as we are given the “Okay, good job, carry on..” speach… ;)
***
We prepared a special menu for my parents, letting them try the “New Style” followed by the “Old Style”.
One dish that they commented on was our “3 Way Mushroom” Amuse Bouche.
Smoked Butter Sautéed Shimeji, “Boletus” Cream and Mushroom Foam.
White Truffle Oil is added at the last moment to give it an added “Earthy” taste.
The Foam is made with Mushroom scraps that have been simmered with a light Chicken Stock throughout the afternoon. It is then strained and reduced further, before we add some Double Cream cut with Whole Milk (60%-40). A hand blender is then used to “froth up” the sauce before spooning in to our bowls. The resulting “Foam” is light yet full of flavour.
Happily, we got the “Seal of Approval” from my parents. Looks like we must be doing something right… :)