Craziness in Cuisines of the Americas

As I?m sitting Indian style on top of a prep table in my downstairs dorm kitchen waiting for my eggs to come to a boil I?m wondering to myself how the hell I am now in Cuisines of Asia.  Was it not January 26th, the day I started here at The Culinary Institute of America, just a few weeks ago?  When did I become the person new students stopped in the hall to ask where the meat room was?  When did Chefs start knowing my name?

Time flies people.  It flies. But let us pause for a minute and take a look back three weeks.  I had BIG fun in Cuisines of America.  When it comes to practiced cooking technique, cooked food, and lessons learned, out of the six kitchens I?ve worked in since my arrival, the three weeks spent in Cuisines of America with Chef Kief were probably the best all around three weeks I?ve had at the C.I.A.

Case in point.

A pandemonium of tasting spoons, cast iron skillets (used for corn bread and fried chicken), marinated buttermilk chicken and a posting of mandatory and equally necessary, daily game plans and timelines.

Buttermilk Fried Chicken with Cornbread and Braised Collard Greens, Shrimp and Rabbit Jambalaya with Andouille, Stuffed Quail with Crawfish Sauce.

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Chef demoing the peeling and slicing process of a yucca root to make chips (as pictured above). Guava Glazed Pork Ribs (OMG. Drool.) with Jicama Slaw and Yucca Chips.  A few of my classmates in the process of plating Cuban Sandwiches with Sweet Potato Salad and Black Eyed Pea Salad.  The plating and cooking process of Jerk Chicken with Rice and Beans, and Tostones (fried plantains).  FYI:  I?ve jumped the cliffs of Negril, Jamaica, and these were right on the money.

Special class tastings of BBQ Shrimp with White Cheddar Grits and Key Lime Pie, while my friend Taylor shows off her lovely handiwork of the fried plantains for family meal.

Chef Demoing the grinding process of maize on a traditional Mexican metate before turning it into masa (for what eventually turned into homemade tamales).  Pork Green Chili Stew with Roasted Corn, Carrots, Cactus, Roasted Red Peppers served with Navajo Fry Bread and a sprinkling of Cotija cheese.  The plating of  Traditional Peruvian Ceviche, Leche De Tigre Ceviche, Toasted Peruvian Corn (glorified, homemade corn nuts), Peruvian Fava Bean Salad with Boiled and Sliced Sweet Potatoes.

I knew in the first five minutes upon entering the bright and roomy Americas kitchen (as shiny as it was beautiful?decked  out with a full grill, five stoves, a convection oven, restaurant slicer, restaurant sized panini press, etc.) that it was going to be an intense, but insanely fun block.  Chef Tom Kief not only graduated from the C.I.A with perfect attendance at the top of his class, but also has taught here for the last twenty-some years.  He?s been round the world learning cooking techniques and flavors indigenous to the Americas from the best of the best, experiencing true and authentic American food from the surrounding countries of the Americas, all so he can pass it on to his students.  Every three weeks.  Can I get a ?Yes, Chef!??  Mhmm.

We traveled through New England, the American Midwest, the South, Louisiana (where Cajun and Creole cooking shine higher than the sun itself), all the way to Mexico, the Caribbean, and South America.  I can personally attest that it was a damn tasty three weeks?although I tried my best not to devour the above pictured plate of plantains (among other equally delicious fried delicacies such as homemade tortillas, crab cakes, fried onions, sopes, taro root and yucca chips, tortilla chips with guacamole, Indian roti bread, Navajo fry bread, hush puppies, and well, yeah, you get the point.)  Living the hard life, eh?  But really, we did work hard.

While every kitchen has their one or two shoemakers, for the most part I am very pleased with my current group of classmates.  We move.  Yes, Chef Kief had his tendencies of pushing us, always getting up close and personal when we didn?t have our recipes written out, or the supplemental food order in  by a certain time (realizing you don?t have seven pounds of scallions for garnish fifteen minutes before service is never fun) and always proclaimed in  his extremely sarcastic personality, ?Do you know where this conversation is going?? when someone was obviously doing something wrong.  I thankfully only heard this phrase once or twice during the entire fourteen day block.  But Chef Kief was a good guy.  While he did call out individuals for their mistakes (or plain lack of common sense) in front of the entire class on multiple occasions, you could tell that he liked his job because he actually cared about our education.  He genuinely wanted us to learn everything we possibly could within the short three weeks about American cuisine, American history, while also contributing his two cents about what it takes to run and work in a professional kitchen, while also having a bit of fun.

That?s what the C.I.A. is all about?and that?s why I?m here.

xo!

p.s. Slooowly catching up on blog-land!  I hope you all understand.