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| Root vegetables for Yankee Pot Roast |
Today we had the same menu we cooked yesterday, but with different assignment. I was responsible for vegetables for Yankee Pot Roast. Our roast was good, but not great. There were a number of reasons: the meat we got probably was not the best choice for roast; due to mistake at the beginning we had too much tomato paste (and I noticed, that tomato does not help to tenderize meat, I think it because of acidity). At the end pot roast was close to 'fork tender' but a bit dry. By the way, when we speak about doneness and use term 'fork tender', it means that we are able to insert fork into meat easily and more important easily remove it.
Vegetables for garnish we used an assortment of different root vegetables. We used carrots, turnips (yellow and white), parsnip, peas, and pearl onion. We pre-cooked them in boiling water and then, just before service, reheated in a glaze (mixture of chicken stock, lemon juice, butter, salt, pepper, and sugar).
What was interesting, is that the recipe called for battonet cut for everything but parsnip, which should be cut oblique. Many people asked why we did not cut parsnip the same way as other vegetables.
Turkey for today we brined yesterday. I did not taste big difference. First of all it was a big bird and brine had no opportunity to penetrate the whole bird, may be 1 inch of flesh at the best. Second and more important it was in the oven slightly too long. So if you want to brine turkey (or other meat), allow enough time for brine to penetrate flesh. In case of turkey about 25 pounds it might take 4-5 days. Also if you cook it too long, brine will not cover your mistake. Always keep in mind carry over cooking time (the bigger piece of meat carry over will increase temperature more).
Today I was introduced to one of our chef at the school, who is doing menue research and development and special conferences. Going to work with him in the middle of June. It should be interesting.
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