This week some of the students have begun to feel the strain brought on by their commitment to a new life. Questions like “Can I make it?” or “Do I want to make it?” surface now. Some will recommit, others will return to old life styles. One thing we know for sure is that recovery is an inside job, we cannot force it on someone.
The big lesson this week is chicken fabrication or cutting up the bird. This class caught on quickly to the process, everyone fabricated at least two chickens each and they all ended up with correct number of parts! Once the chickens went from whole to pieces, the students learned the correct three step breading process and prepared killer fried chicken.
The thrill of the week was our participation in the Capitol Food Fight, the year’s biggest fundraiser for DC Central Kitchen. In this exciting event, big name chefs compete in an Iron Chef type of culinary cook off. Of the many exciting things which happen that night are tastings from some of the best Restaurants in the the area. The students were assigned to assist chefs at restaurant booths throughout the venue. At the end of the evening, the whole class was called up on the stage to cheer on a live auction. Their cheering resulted in an additional 10 grand for the kitchen!
The week ended with a Steak Off on Friday. The group was divided into teams and created recipes and presentation for flank steak. Team work is a real test of success in a commercial kitchen. I always tell the students, you don’t pick your birth family and you don’t pick your co-workers in a kitchen. You get what you get and you have to make it work. With only a couple of small exceptions, the teams worked well, egos were kept in check and the good of the whole was respected.
Chef Linda Vogler
