New World Cuisine

New world cuisine is all about cooking in the Americas. There are many types of cooking, but in this class we focus on Grilling, Roasting and Deep-frying. Sounds pretty American don’t ya think? Anyways all of these are actually dry-heat cooking methods….even deep-fat frying (which I was confused with).

Deep fry- to cook food completely submerged in fat (350-375°F)
Grill- to cook food with radiant heat below on an open grid

Roast- to cook food using dry, hot air in an oven or closed environment

For Deep frying, there are standard procedures one has to take. When frying, one can tell the product is done if the outside color is golden brown. The exception to this is if someone is deep-frying something large where the inside temperature doesn’t equal the safe internal temperature it should be at. In this case, the product(s) should be put in the oven until the internal temperature is safe.

Standard breading procedure for deep-fat frying:

Flour-seasoned to flavor profile

Egg Wash- water or milk added to eggs to thin out

Bread Crumbs- Panko (Japanese bread crumbs) work best because they don’t burn as easily as traditional bread crumbs

Minimun  internal cooking temperatures:
Poultry & Stuffed Meats- 165°F

Ground Meats & Sausages- 155°F

Beef, Pork, Veal & Lamb Roasts- 145°F

Fish- 145°F

The first two days in this class I was in the grilling group. I made an appetizer the first day which was a marinated grilled shrimp, and someone made the sauce which was a Mojo sauce. The main ingredient in Mojo sauce is cilantro. Day two I made the soup on the menu which was a red pepper bisque. A bisque is a very broad term that means soup with cream. With the soup I made a pesto which is mainly an herb (cilantro), nut (macadamia), oil, and seasonings. A pesto could be made with other herbs or nuts. For the soup I thinned out the pesto so I could use it as a garnish and drip it over the soup.

The next two days I was in the roasting group. I worked with a partner and we made brined, roasted pork. I didn’t know what brining was until I did this. I actually added water, shallots, thyme, apple cider or juice (we didn’t have any though), salt and sugar and that is boiled and simmered until the salt and sugar dissolve. After that, the brine is cooled and the meat is placed in there for at least an hour or two. For larger items like a turkey, it is best to brine overnight. Brining helps make meats more juicy and tender after they're cooked. As a garnish, I caramelized sliced granny smith apples to go over the pork.

On day two of roasting we made roasted chicken breasts. We let the chicken sit in a citrus marinade that we kind of made up, just throwing in some spices, herbs, and citrus juices. The sauce I made to go with the chicken is called a Buerre Blanc. It is a reduction of white wine. Heavy cream is added and reduced partially. Then about a pound of butter is added bit by bit into the mixture. It is essentially called a butter sauce. Paula Dean would enjoy this. I also made a pan-roasted corn side dish which included red and green bell peppers, onions, salt, pepper, and chili powder to give it a little kick.

The next day I was in the deep-frying group but I actually didn’t deep fry. I made the soup for service that day, which was a chilled watermelon soup with a scallop and bell pepper garnish with an additional garnish of orange zest frozen whipped cream. People said they enjoyed it a lot! I was happy.

Day six I made the salad for service. It was a grilled portobello, roasted tomato salad with bell peppers tossed in a roasted garlic balsamic vinaigrette.

I’ll post after my practical so I can tell you all about how that goes! Good Eats!