News- ACF Pressure Cooking
This excerpt was originally published in the Missoulian (March 5, 2003).
Pressure cooking By ROB CHANEY of the Missoulian
Local chefs prepare meals for colleagues to practice for culinary competition A professional chef may prepare dozens of meals a night for picky, grumpy customers and remain as cool as the fish fillets in the walk-in freezer. But cook for a few colleagues with clipboards? Suddenly the hand that holds the knife starts to shake. University of Montana Chef de Cuisine Carla Roe and Doubletree Hotel Dinner Chef Tom Dolenar took the challenge Monday. They each prepared dinner for four as part of the local American Culinary Federation chapter's practice competition Monday afternoon.
The word "practice" got a workout Monday. Neither Roe nor Dolenar had competed in full-scale chef's competitions before. And the Missoula ACF chapter hasn't ever held one here either. The cooks wanted to test their skills under pressure. The club wanted to see what it needs to present an accredited cook-off next year in Missoula. And the small group of fellow chefs, cooking students and other food lovers wanted an apron-free demonstration of some professional techniques.
"Anybody who's got the drive to do it is qualified to compete," said Toby McCracken, head chef at the Stock Farm in Hamilton and one of Monday's judges. But while good food is the obvious goal of the event, judging standards are based on restaurant requirements.
For example, McCracken checked Dolenar's tray of lamb racks to see if it was sitting on a bed of ice - making sure it stayed at properly safe temperatures while he prepared his polenta with sun-dried tomatoes and fresh basil.
Across the kitchen, Roe was reducing a saffron-carrot sauce in one pot while a marsala wine/balsamic vinegar sauce bubbled in another. Retired Doubletree head chef Klaus Schuhbauer shook his head at the proposed flavor combination, doubting it would work.
Cooks have the option of preparing their own creations, but risk a judge's disapproval of the idea. Or they can prepare a traditional specialty, but then must make it exactly as the tradition demands.
"You can have competitions where everybody gets a gold medal, or everybody gets bronze or everybody gets nothing," said judge Paul Bowles, head chef of the Shack Restaurant. "They're competing against a standard of excellence."
They're also competing against the clock, in a strange kitchen, with their professional peers poking spoons and thermometers into everything as they go. Roe had brought a disposable pepper grinder that was too small to be effective. Dolenar forgot his basting brush and had to smear his braising sauce on the lamb with a spoon.
As their allotted hour ticked away, Dolenar got distracted with his polenta and allowed the vegetables to overcook. Roe got all her recipes rolling, and then had about 15 minutes to putter. In the critique, she was docked for that downtime. McCracken suggested she should have used it to whip up some flat bread or cheese crackers to add to the dish.
Former Red Bird Restaurant owner Christine Littig was there to watch.
"I just did dinner for eight in my home kitchen, and watching this has me itching to get back," she said. "I'm amazed at how calm they are. I watched the food show in Spokane and they were all over the place. One guy's mise en place (cooking setup) was a wreck from stem to stern."
The judging covered preparation skills, "plating" or presenting the meal on the plate, and actual eating. McCracken, Bowles and Schuhbauer retired to a separate room to taste the results, leaving Roe and Dolenar stewing in the kitchen.
"It's good experience, but just to do it gives me the jitters," said Dolenar, who's had 18 years experience in professional kitchens. "I did three trials this week. Actually, I'm getting kind of lambed out."
Reporter Rob Chaney can be reached at 523-5382 or at rchaney@missoulian.com