Saucy Behavior

"Oooooh my," Tashana squealed, as Jordan squeezed alongside her, carrying a stack of newly washed saucepans. "He just touched my butt. He could have asked, but no, he just went and did it." Jordan looks over his shoulder and gives her a big wink. My classmates are getting to know one another, the dorm-based ones especially, and they're saving places in the lunch line for one another and planning weekend adventures. Tanasha said she was "designated walker" in a group that went bar-hopping last weekend: "I like to tell them stories in the morning, of the things they did. Or didn't do!" Jordan is trying to organized fried turkey from KFC for those who are in town for Thanksgiving, but Silvia's not so sure. Our group is naturally breaking up into familiar archetypes. Rudy, the 35-year-old guy, is the study guy — his safety book is tabbed with at least 50 little colored post-its. Jim may be our first casualty. He was absent today, and he's been late every day, and Chef has repeatedly sent him out to suit up properly. Inevitably, he's been wearing a fancy Giants cap (different every day) instead of his white hat. Some hallway discussion this morning about whether he'll be with us for long.

I can identify everybody by name.

And it's great and freeing to be totally not worried about being in The Club. This is their club, their college years — I had mine, and I have my memories and friendships, but I've got a different kind of life now that suits me just fine.

We made sauces: first, chicken, veal, and fish veloutés (stock mixed with roux) which then served as the basis for sauce supreme (chicken cream sauce), allemande (veal, thickened with a liaison of cream and egg yolk), and white wine sauce (based on the fish stock) — all of which were "monted" (mounted/finished) with a good chunk of butter. Before we began, Chef Joseph directed us to "Taste it, taste it, taste it, at every stage, so that you are in control" and so we all had a half-dozen plastic spoons stuck into our sleeve pockets (with our pens and thermometers). I have to admit that I've been a poor taster up to now. I tend to rely more on appearance and smell and so here's a great (transforming?) learning opportunity. For instance, with sauce supreme, we tasted the chicken stock, then the stock with the roux added; then after it was strained, brought to a boil and enriched with cream; then after adding a few drops of lemon, then after the addition of salt and pepper, and finally, after incorporating the butter. With each addition, the flavor became more complex and stylish, and you can understand just how each process or ingredients impacts the final product. I can hardly wait to make turkey gravy. (Taste it, taste it, taste it!)