Potato Chicken Patties

My own imbento recipe please forgive the quantity, everything to me is eyeballed when I'm cooking. Teehee. Enjoy!

Patties:
1 kg potatoes, boiled with skin
1 and 1/2 pc shredded chicken breast, boiled or steamed
1 to 2 eggs
grated cheese, to your taste
salt and pepper

> Peel and mash potatoes while hot.
> Add chicken, cheese and egg.
> Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Garlic Mayo Sauce:
1 cup mayonnaise
2 teaspoons chopped garlic, may add according to taste
1 teaspoon pickle relish
1 teaspoon finely chopped onions
parsley
salt and pepper
grated cheese (optional)

> Mix all ingredients. Season to taste. Set aside in chiller.
_________

Procedure:
> Make potato mixture into patties.
> Bread in flour, eggs, italian breadcrumbs.
> Pan fry in clarified butter or fresh butter until both sides are golden brown.
> Serve with garlic mayo sauce. Best served hot.

Chillax in the chiller...

I have been hangin' out in the chiller. It's too freakin' hot in the kitchen, especially when we have tons of ala carte orders! I have been put in charge of the pantry when Chef Larry is on day off.

Anyway I got quite a few things that's ticked me off while working. I've been wondering where the other peeps have learned how to be a would be Chef. Especially those who are on OJT. Well for one, I learned at school that the kitchen staff, from the EC down to the apprentice are a team.

I remember Chef Mike always said "You're only as strong as your weakest link." And we, Section A always tried to work as a team. But it seems that my colleagues aren't aware of this. The OJT's only do what they are asked to do, they don't have much initiative to help out. One OJT in particular would stand around with his mouth open. Doesn't know what mustard is, I'm surprised he knows what cooking oil is. DUH. And he chooses what he works on, and then he complains that the other OJT's don't work hard enough. And he doesn't help out even if he sees that people are already busy as it is.

The other OJT "feels" like he's already a chef. He bosses the practicums and fellow OJT's around. And is a pain the you know where know it all. I know I'm not perfect I made mistakes. I made booboos, there was a time I didn't know anything but I always try to be the best that I can be for my team.

Plus the thing that annoys me is sometimes they leave their mise en place incomplete. So instead of being able to move on to another job we still have to complete their mise. I mean hello? It's not so hard to do mise en place?!

I swear! Plus I don't really like the politics there. HEHE But oh well I love the kitchen...maybe it be hot as hell or as cold as January. And I don't really have to waste time on these idiots. But if I was an EC they definitely wont have a place in my kitchen.

Hello! Commis!!!!

Finally!!! I have a job! I am now a casual commis 3 for Dusit Hotel Nikko's The Cafe. And I am not only thrown into one corner peeling sacks of carrots or onions but I am actually out on the buffet line serving noodles at the noodle station! HAHAHA

The kitchen was a bit of a nasty shock for me. I've become accustomed to the standards at school that I thought it will be sort of the same at work. Well it isn't. My Chefs are a bunch of kids! They're like grown ups playing in a sand box that is the kitchen. They find it amusing that I only nod and look at them while they joke around or kid around with me.

Seriously, it was kind of surprising. But when service time comes, there is not much joking around until after the food has been bussed out. It's tiring! Hot kitchen, heavy clogs and eight hours of being on your feet! But it's all worth it. At the end of the day I am satisfied of the work I've done. I feel like I was very productive.

Although I had a first day booboo! I didn't bring my clogs on that day!!! What a first impression!!! So I was sent home to get some proper work clothes and was thrown into the afternoon shift!!! I am working 6 days a week from 2 PM - 10 PM. My day off is on a Monday. Which leaves me no time for my other new found hobby and source of inspiration and another creative playground, photography. But oh well, I will find a way!

I love it! I love everything about my new found passion! It's my miracle. And I will be forever grateful to God for giving me this oppurtunity.

My best comment of the day.

I made cupcakes today!!! And my best comment is.

Graaaabeee!!! Your cupcakes are soooo goood! Galing! Thanks!

- Tita Meli

I hope she's not pulling my leg!

Dusit, cupcakes and everything else in between.

I had a trade test at Dusit Hotel a week ago. Darn it, I wonder if I got in. I haven't gotten a call from them so maybe I didn't.

Okay pessimistic. Not good.

What is taking work so long? Am I stupid for not applying to the cruise ship gig? Shit. Anyway I hope there are other things for me. I'm pretty sure there will be.

I am a cupcake queen right now. All of a sudden my cupcakes are selling pretty good. Hehe. And to think I used to do them for a friend before.

Maybe I should really get into this. After all whether I'm cooking or baking I'm still happy. I have some really good ideas right now...

On Saturday I am making 100 pcs of my cupcakes for a wedding. I really need to buy some more muffin pans. My mom and I are scrambling to unload, and cool the 4 pcs of muffin pans that we have. Hehe.

I am stunted.

I am waiting for that job thing to come through. At least I wanna know if I got accepted or not, so I may know what my next step is. The first job is the hardest to land. Well...I will tell you about my being a commis. But first I need a job!

Grah.

Grades...

I got my grade yesterday, yes it wasn't low, but it wasn't high either. Average.

I know it was my fault, because I made a decision to do well and to push myself to do well too late. I already had average marks exams and even if doing well on some it wasn't enough to pull my grades to the point I wanted to reach.

If only I hade made a decision the moment I stepped into school.

I officially have 3 regrets in life, which I dont plan to dwell on...

1. Not writing to Pope John Paul sooner.
2. Architecture...I should've gone straight to Culinary. But still being able to discover that this is what I wanted is still a miracle for me.
3. Not getting better grades.

I was used to settling with the grades I got in Architecture school that I still applied it today. Argh.

From now on in being a commis or future Executive Chef, I cannot be average. I will be better.

Antonio's Pictures.

You can now view pictures from the Antonio's at my flicker site please reber to link on the sidebar.

I will need to find a way to post pictures more effectively, but for not please bear with me. :)

Finals...fucked up.

Don't get me wrong I have been studying and I mean it. I haven't had a decent sleep or a decent waking hour not thinking about the finals written exams and what do I do? I fuck up on the second day. I thought I breezed through the first day okay.

Today is a really bad day. I prepared myself well. I don't know what happened. Costing - Moussaka, dammit it was supposed to be easy!

Mistakes:
1. Correct solution, wrong summed up answer.
2. Didn't answer the waste, service weight part. I thought it wasn't relevant.

And to think I finished first. I even re-computed my answers, reviewed my papers over and over, making sure I didn't miss aything but I still did. Fuck it! I am so depressed! What if I fail? Shit, there goes that medal I wanted. Now I feel that all my hard work has gone down the drain and I wanna stop studying altogether.

Antonio's Lunch.

Whoppeee field trip at Antonio's Tagaytay! Finally a break from all that smothering heat in the kitchen and Chef Mike's endless shouting (I'm joking, chef! I love you!!!). We trooped in a rather small and claustrophobic bus to Tagaytay to have lunch at Antonio's. And my classmate and I agreed that it was one of the best meals of our lives. Photo ops started upon sitting down on the bus. Yes, we're a bunch of camwhores. HAHA When we got to Tagaytay some of us opened our windows to let some of that cool air in as the bus was eekk, humid. I will post pictures later on. I need to get the pics from a classmate. I didn't feel the need to bring a camera. When we finally got to Antonio's we roamed around, marveled at the baby carrots freshly uprooted from the ground, stuck our noses at the shrub of oregano and had pictures taken with Chef Norbert and Chef Hans.

And finally lunch. Our menu was specially prepared for our group.

Smoked Duck Breast with Mesclun Green and Truffle Lemon Vinaigrette
Kohlrabi and Pancetta Bisque with Lavosh
Pan-fried Scallops Set on Artichoke Ravioli with Lumpfish Caviar Sauce
Green Mango Sorbet
Grilled Tenderloin Medallion, Gratinated with Mushrooms and Mashed Potatoes
Tartufo Nero with Grand Marnier and Espresso

With an unlimited supply of fresh dalandan juice, a slice of tapenade bread and coffee or tea at the end of the meal. The food was great! Each dish is delicately prepared, creatively plated and just sumptuous. I personally don’t like duck but I can't help but enjoy my duck breast! The scallops were cooked just right, the artichoke ravioli really went with the scallops well. And for someone who doesn't like caviar, the sauce sure was tasty! The bisque was creamy, with a touch of sweet and salty. I also enjoyed the green mango sorbet. It is refreshing and it sort of tones down all that rich flavor from the last course.

The tenderloin was very nice and really tender. I liked the way that even if it was not well done the blood doesn't run on your plate. The mushroom sauce was nice but doesn’t over power the beef. And the braised cabbage was really good, tangy and sweet, just right.

Dessert was the best! Semi sweet chocolate ice cream rolled in cocoa powder with grand Marnier and espresso poured on it. Very nice combination with the slight bitterness of the espresso and the sweet orange liqueur. We all devoured the dessert too soon. And lastly to finish the meal I opted for the tarragon tea, which was actually the first hot tea I ever drank that actually got me into drinking tea.

With all that food at Php 1,000. It was not bad at all. As usual, the relaxing ambiance and music at Antonio's lets you enjoy your food without hurry. And they serve each course with a 10-15 minute lull for you to really enjoy it without being too full for the next course, chat with friends and let the food settle a bit in your stomach that it doesn't crowd up all at once, which is very different from the way we Filipinos usually eat our food.

As we were reading the menu, we can't help but comment that it looked as if we were all prisoners on death row and this was our last meal before our execution. WE HAVE FINALS EXAMS STARTING ON MONDAY! That was a great way to jumpstart our reviewing!

And since we were generally a bunch of nosy people, we decided to watch the chefs at work in the kitchen. Its like how the chef's at school wants us to work. Organized, QUIET, and productive. Everyone was on his toes at work. And when it was time to serve they were organized and quiet, while plating our food. In school we're always noisy. "DRESSING!, SAUCE!, BEEEEF!" And then Chef Mike will go "AY LANSAK!" HAHA.

When I go back to Antonio's, I really have to order the raclette. I've been salivating over it the first time I ate there! I've been looking for raclette since Tamarind Grill closed down!

Starting out commis.

Hi all! This blog will follow my upcoming new adventure...the life of a commis. But I can't always be a commis...I want to become a chef. A mighty good one at that.

I will post not only rants about work..but also recipes, food reviews, restaurant reviews and what have yous!

See yah! :)