Basic Professional French Cooking
On www.melaniff.com since 2016
Introduction to Basic Techniques
Session 2
1.Tournage - Technique of Shaping and Carving Vegetables
To ‘tourner’ vegetables is to cut them int traditional faceted oval shape. Tournéed vegetables have different names depending on their length:
Bouquetière 3 cm long
Cocotte 5 cm long
Vapeur 6 cm long
Chateau 7.5 cm long
Fondante 8 - 9 cm long
Like the traditional taillage cuts (e.g., brunoise, jardiniere), the purpose of tournage is to create a uniform product for aesthetic reasons, and to ensure even cooking.
To tourner, first the item must be cut into pieces of approximately the right size. Hold the piece firmly in one hand and with a paring knife in the other, slice off the side in one stroke. Turn the piece slightly and remove another slice. Work your way around until the entire piece has been smoothly cut into a regular, even product. The ideal is a seven sided end result.
2.Methods of Cooking Vegetables
A.Glazing (‘Glacer’)
Glazing is similar to cooking à l’etuve, but a small amount of sugar is added and the cooking liquid is reduced so that the butter and sugar form a shiny, slightly sweet coating on the vegetables. It can be cooked to two different degrees: à blanc and à brun. The technique is the same, but in glacer à brun the sugar is allowed to caramelize slightly so the glaze is darker.
-Place the cleaned and shaped vegetable in a sauté pan just large enough to hold them in one single layer. Different types should be cooked separately.
-Add water (as with cooking à l’etuve, the amount depends on the vegetable), salt, butter, and a pinch of sugar.
-Cover with parchment cut to the size of the pan.
-Bring to a boil, then continue so cook over low heat until all of the liquid has evaporated and only a thin syrup is left which coats each piece with a clear shiny glaze. If the vegetables are almost cooked and there is still liquid left in the pan, remove the covering so the liquid can evaporate.
-To glaze à brun, allow the syrup to cook longer so it caramelizes. This is usually done for vegetables to be served with brown sauces, usually shallots and pearl onions.
B.Rissoler
This is a common method used to cook tournéed potatoes. There is no equivalent English term.
-Just cover the peeled and shaped potatoes with cold water and bring to a boil. Drain immediately: do not refresh. Don’t use too much water or the potatoes will have cooked too much by the time the warm water comes to a boil.
-Heat oil (clarified butter was classically used) in a pan large enough to hold all potatoes in a single layer.
-When oil is very hot, add potatoes and sauté rapidly over high heat.
-As soon as the potatoes are almost cooked and golden brown, drain off all the oil. Finish cooking in the oven at 400 F / 200 C until the point of a knife penetrates with no resistance, then toss in a sauté pan with a small amount of butter.
-Salt and hold in a warm place until serving.
3.Preparing Artichokes
A.Whole - Before cooking whole, usually à l’anglaise, artichokes must be trimmed:
-Holding the artichoke in one hand and the stem in the other, twist to pull off the stem. This will eliminate and fibers.
-Cut off the top of the artichoke 1/3 of the way down.
-Cut off the sharp tips of the exterior leaves. It’s easiest to use scissors for this.
-Wash several times in clean water.
-Place a slice of lemon on the bottom where the stem was removed and tie it firmly in place with string. This will prevent the artichoke from turing brown during cooking.
-Cook à l’anglaise in well salted boiling water. Refresh and drain well.
-Remove the string and the lemon slice, and pull out the entire choke all at once. Serve on a doily covered round plate. Artichokes cooked this way may be served warm or hot with a hollandaise or mousseline, stuffed, or cold with a mayonnaise.
B.Bottoms - Cooked ‘en blanc’:
-Prepare a stainless steel bowl full of cold water, acidulated with half a lemon.
-Twist and pull off the stem.
-Cut off the small leaved at the base with a pairing knife, keeping a neat round shape.
-Rub the base with the lemon to prevent discoloration.
-Cut the leaves off just above the base and trim the bottom completely. Rub again with the lemon.
-Place each bottom in the acidulated water as soon as it is prepared.
-Cook them until tender in a ‘blanc’, a mixture with salt, flour, lemon juice, oil and salt, and allow to cool in the blanc. The flour and lemon juice bleach the articoke bottoms and help keep them white, and the oil forms a layer on top of the liquid to prevent air from coming in contact with bottoms. This technique can be used for other foods which discolor easily, such as salsify and calves heads. Artichoke bottoms can also be sautéed or fried in batter as beignets.
RECIPES