101 Things I Learned in Culinary School

“101 Things I Learned in Culinary School” was written by Louis Eguaras with Matthew Frederick. Louis is a department chair at the Culinary Arts Institute at Los Angeles Mission College, Chef Instructor at the Institute of Culinary Education, and a former White House Chef. I read this book back in 2023. This book is not a recipe book! Instead, it contains practical how-tos and interesting facts. Here are some of the many facts that stood out to me.

Guests seek more from a dining experience than to satisfy their appetites: comfort, prestige, value, relaxation, artistry, social fun, or perhaps just a good place to watch the game. Be clear why customers choose your restaurant. Prioritize what they most need.

Keep guests informed. Be open about errors and oversights – understaffed, dish running late, etc. Acknowledge mistakes!

Repurpose rather than reuse. Have multiple uses for every food item. Repurpose preparation scraps and use in stocks, soups, purees, etc.

Liabilities for restaurants: food-related illnesses, chemical hazards, physical hazards, property hazards, drinking hazards/serving too many drinks

School teaches you how to cook. Experience teaches you how to be a chef. A cook follows a recipe; a chef can intuitively modify a recipe. A cook knows how; a chef knows why.

Kitchen lingo:

“all day” = the total # of items to be prepared. Ex: 2 burgers rare + 1 burger medium = “3 burgers all day“

“dragging” = not ready with the rest of the order. Ex: “The fries are dragging.”

“drop” = Start cooking. Ex: “Drop the fries.“

“fire” = Start cooking, but with more urgency. Ex: “Fire the burgers.“

“on the fly” = with extreme urgency. Ex: “Get me two soups on the fly.“

Mise in place is a practice and a philosophy. Determine everything you need before starting a dish or shift – recipes, ingredients, utensils, pots, pans, stocks, sauces, oils, dishware, and anything else. This permits the most efficient use of a cook’s space and time and informs the disposition and posture of a chef.

Shake hands with a knife. To hold a chef’s knife properly, rest your thumb on one side at the juncture of the blade and handle, and let your middle, ring, and pinkie fingers grip the handle naturally on the other side. The index finger rests on the side of the blade, near the handle.

4 ways to tenderize:

mechanical (pound with a mallet before cooking)

marinade in an acidic bath for 30 minutes to 2 hours

salting/brining – coat with coarse salt and refrigerate for 1-4 hours, then rinse off and pat dry before cooking

slow cooking in liquid in a slow cooker

Food keeps cooking after you stop cooking. Allow for carryover cooking in meats by removing them from the heat source when the internal temperature is about 5 degrees Fahrenheit below the safe-to-eat temp. Let sit for 5-10 minutes and monitor the temperature.

Ways to thicken a stock, soup, or sauce:

reduction (remove the pan lid and simmer until desired thickness is achieved)

roux (heat butter in a saucepan, and slowly add an equal amount of flour, stirring constantly to produce a paste)

slurry (cornstarch for dairy-based, arrowroot powder for acidic sauces)

gelatin

A pepper’s name often changes when dried.

Fresh pimiento ➡️paprika

poblano ➡️ mulato (not ripened) or ancho (ripened first)

jalapeno ➡️chipotle (smoked)

Menu types:

static (common chain/fast-food restaurants)

cycle (changes daily/repeats weekly)

market (based on what is available for purchase by the restaurant daily)

farm to table, a la carte, prix fixe, etc.

Serve a just-enough portion. The protein should be about the size of the palm of your hand, and the vegetables should span about 2 or 3 fingers. A just-enough portion conveys that care and quality were elevated over quantity and that guests should eat more slowly to savor and enjoy. It also leaves room for appetizers and desserts.

Ways to make a plate look better:

vary plate shapes

use complementary colors

paint the sauce

design the negatie space

bed it – put it on a bed of lettuce, rice, etc.

I highly recommend this book to anyone who wants to learn more about culinary facts!