DAY EIGHT STEWING

Stewing Meats and Soup Making
Hungarian Goulash
Spaetzle
Specialty Soup:
Shrimp and Sausage Gumbo with steamed rice
Marinade Coq au Vin

Unfortunately this day I had a Doctor’s appointment the good news is that my lungs are much better now, the bad news are that I could not do the production for this day. I will look forward to have the skills on Saturday to do it. At this moment I will write the recipes according to the book and a little history behind them.

HOMEWORK DUE TODAY

1. Why are tough cuts of meat used for stewing/ simmering?
Tough cuts are used when it is not necessary to brown the item and it can be kept cooking for a longer period of time while simmering.
Also to stew an item is an effective way to tenderize it, bringing a though meat to a desirable tenderness.

2. Describe in detail the proper procedure for stewing/ simmering meats.

• prepare the meat seasoning, and collect all the other items needed
• Start a broth or boiling liquid with mirepoix
• Place the meat in the cooking liquid
• Reduce the heat to simmer and keep it without boiling
• Simmer or stew until the meat is soft
• Serve the meat with garnishments


3. What is the main ingredient in Goulash?

The main ingredient is always a boneless meat. It can be veal meat; beef or pork. The seasoning with Hungarian paprika will give the name to Hungarian Goulash.

4. What are the differences between Cajun and Creole cuisines?

Creoles were originally descendants of early French and Spanish settlers in the New World. The term "creole" became very popular in the colony. It was used to apply to people and things native to the colony. Thus the food style became Creole to refer mainly to this area, although eventually it became synonymous with the race of people found in Louisiana
Cajun used to be a term to reference people from French ascendance, but in the present it refers to a wider group of people from different who are descendant of different countries such as France and Germany and defines a style of a group of people found in Louisiana. The food Cajun style will be different from Creole in the slightly difference of the groups of people who create this type of season for the food.

5. Describe the different characteristics/levels of Roux and how each stage affects the cooking process.
A roux is a combination of flour and fat in an equal ratio. The difference between a White Roux, a blonde roux and a brown roux is the time cooking this combination of flour and fat (usually butter).

A slightly colored (color cream) roux will be a White Roux and will smell like popcorn. The delicate flavor of this roux is used for sauces made out of dairy products mainly such as the mother sauce Bechamel, and secondary sauces such as mornay.

A light mocha colored roux will be a Blonde Roux and will give away the smell of browned popcorn. The flavor is more developed than in the white roux and it will be used for combinations with brown stocks such as veal, for the production of Veloutte sauce and secondary sauces like the supreme.

A dark colored roux will be a Brown Roux and will give away a scent of burned popcorn. This roux with a stronger flavor is employed to do sauces that will have stronger flavors as well such as the Espagnole and its secondary sauces such as Madeira.

6. Write a short 1 paragraph essay on the history of Gumbo.

Gumbo derives its name from Ki Ngombo (okra) in an African dialect. Is a technique that is about thickening a sauce using a roux or thickening agent such as okra. Due to slavery it was exported to America from Africa and became a cooking technique employed by the slaves in colonial Louisiana. It combined with the time with the French technique for cooking with French bouillabaisse and with the Native American use of ground sassafras.