As we make our plans to visit Burgundy, one of our first things that we want to know is whether Ma Cuisine will be open for us to dine. The restaurant has varied days of operation, usually opening on average 4 days per week. It is a MUST on our list, and we always look forward to the food and wine that Fabienne and Pierre will offer us, not to mention their smiling faces and warm welcome.
Comme nous faisons nos plans pour visiter la Bourgogne, l’une de nos premières choses que nous voulons savoir, c’est si Ma Cuisine sera ouvert pour nous pour diner. Le restaurant a changer ses jours d’ouverture, d’habitude ouvert 4 jours par semaine. C’ est un incontournable sur notre liste, et nous avons toujours hâte de voir ce que Fabienne et Pierre vont nous offrir, sans parler de leurs visages souriants et l’accueil chaleureux.
Calling all Chefs to the new & improved Chefs Under Fire 2010! If you thought last year was fun, wait ’till you see what’s in store for 2010. More events, more prizes, more chefs, and of course, more heat!
Beginning tonight at midnight, we will officially be accepting entries to compete in Chefs Under Fire 2010! Do you think you have what it takes? Prove it! Do you know someone in the food biz that you think can take the heat? Recommend Chefs Under Fire to them!
Follow Chefs Under Fire on Facebook and Twitter, sign up for email updates at www.ChefsUnderFire2010.com, and keep checking back here for the latest news and developments.
Title Translation: Making fancy French cooking techniques less scary.
Have you ever been skimming through recipes, trying to find something to “inspire” you to tie on the apron, roll up your sleeves, and start creating a world of mess in the kitchen? You find something mouthwatering, and just as you’re approaching your “I got this…Here we go!” moment, you read the recipe a little more closely and find some fancy French technique that you’ve never even heard of, let alone attempted, which completely deflates you of any kitchen confidence you may have had. As if those snooty chefs behind that recipe are sticking their noses up at you, smirking at the fact you even entertained the idea of doing their recipes justice. Well Chef David Bull (who does not fall into the “snooty chef” category), is a master at making these fancy techniques approachable, one term at a time. Training, shcmaining! You should be able to open a cookbook (or login to a cookbook, in Chef Bull’s case) and cook whatever you want, whenever you want, without a culinary degree.
In this particular case, we’re talking about the term concassé. You’ll see it in numerous recipes referring to tomatoes primarily. The direct French translation is “to crush”, but as a culinary technique, it’s a little more detailed than that. Some may say that it adds an element of precision and sophistication to a recipe, but the bottom line, according to Chef Bull, is that it’s a fancy way of saying “blanched, peeled, seeded, then diced.” Well now that’s not so hard – I can do that in my sleep! Well, maybe that’s a stretch, but still – very doable. I may not execute it with the same grace and accuracy as someone with a degree under their belt, but by gosh I’ll get it done! (Re-inflate the confidence here.) In this video, Chef Bull demonstrates his technique for a tomato concassé, even offering a “mess free” way to seed your tomatoes.
Chefs Under Fire™ 2010 planning is under way! Thank you for your time and help in making Chefs Under Fire 2010 even better than last year! By participating in this survey, not only will you help us decide on the Chefs Under Fire ticketing service, you will also be entered into a drawing for a Dinner for 2 at Chef David Bull‘s Bolla Restaurant at the Stoneleigh Hotel & Spa in Dallas. To be eligible, please provide a valid email address for us to contact you.
Four new Bull’s Eye on Food recipes now feature instructional videos directly from Chef Bull’s cooking classes! If you weren’t able to attend his February cooking class, we’re now bringing the class to you through these videos thanks to the cooperation of Central Market Austin Cooking School! For those of you who were able to attend his class in person, the videos included in Bull’s Eye on Food are an on-demand refresher of all of the helpful tips and secrets you may have missed or forgotten.
For a taste of these videos, take a look at How to Trim an Artichoke by Chef David Bull. Chef Bull told the Keeper Team, “If you’re anything like me, the task of trimming artichokes is daunting and tedious. From my experience in restaurants when I’ve had to trim cases of artichokes at once, here is a quick and simple technique to help you out.” This video, among others, can be found in Chef Bull’s Crisp Sea Scallop with Artichoke Ragout recipe.
Hmmm…what do you do when your neighbor comes home with 10 pounds of mackerel and offers you half if you’ll cook all of it and share with his family in return? Jamison, my daughter, and I wondered the same thing – what could we do with this bounty? As you may or may not know, Jamison is my #1 sous-chef (don’t tell anyone in the kitchen at Bolla, they might be jealous), infinitely wise and talented at the ripe old age of 4. She can chop and prep like a pro not only from my lessons but from the knife skills she inherited from me!
Follow Keeper!