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Basic

Preparations —

Mise en Place

16

Objective

• Summarize mise en place and its role in the professional kitchen.

© Goodheart-Willcox Co., Inc.

Permission granted to reproduce for educational use only.

Mise en Place

• Mise en place (meez ahn PLAHS) refers to

– having all foods and equipment ready for a specific preparation before beginning

– a state of mental readiness


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Mise en Place

• Mise en place includes

– reading and understanding a recipe

– assembling all ingredients for a recipe

– verifying that all necessary pieces of equipment are available

– setting up your station prior to service


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Mise en Place

• Mise en place ensures that kitchen work is orderly and carried out efficiently

• Coordinating the efforts of many different cooks is also necessary

• The entire staff should know the end goal and plan to get there

• This will prevent errors in food preparation that may be too late to remedy



Objective

• Execute the techniques for peeling, julienning, and dicing an onion.



Peeling, Slicing, and Dicing an

Onion

• Onions are one of the most commonly used vegetables in a professional kitchen

• An onion must be peeled before it can be sliced or diced

• Remove the skin, stem, and root

• All cooks must become skilled at peeling, slicing, and dicing onions



Technique: Peeling an Onion

1. Cut the ends off the onion. Be careful to remove only a small amount of each end.

Notice that the onion has two distinct ends — the stem and root end.

2. Cut the onion in half by cutting lengthwise through the stem and root end of the onion.

If onion rings are desired, then skip this step.


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Technique: Peeling an Onion

3. Remove the peel from the onion using a paring knife.



Technique: Preparing Julienne

Onions

1. Place peeled onion halves cut side down on the cutting board.

2. Remove the remaining root of the onion by making a small triangular cut with the tip of the chef knife or paring knife.


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Onions

3.

Slice the onion into ⅛-inch wide slices using the proper knife technique.


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Onions

4. When the onion becomes too small to hold, lay it face down on the cutting board and continue slicing.



Technique: Dicing Onions

1. Place the peeled onion half, cut side down, on the cutting board.

2. Place your guiding hand on top of the onion half. Be sure that the root end of the onion faces away from the knife.

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3. Position the guiding hand as needed for slicing. Slice the onion lengthwise by drawing the knife backward instead of in the usual forward motion.


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3. (continued) The slice should begin just short of the root end of the onion so that the root end remains intact. Do not cut through the root end core of the onion either.


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4. Continue slicing until the onion has been evenly sliced except for the small area on the root end of the onion.


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5. Reposition the guiding hand so that it is placed on top of the onion either with fingertips curled under or with the palm of the hand resting on top of the onion. Be sure that the fingertips are up and out of harm’s way.


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5. (continued) The knife blade will be parallel to the cutting board to make the next slices.

Drawing the knife backward, cut slices that are parallel to the cutting board. These slices begin at the stem end and stop before cutting through the root end.

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6. Reposition the guiding hand on the onion.

Slice the onion crosswise, perpendicular to the previous cuts and beginning at the stem end.


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6. (continued) As the onion becomes difficult to hold safely, lay it down on the cutting board. Cut this small piece of onion into a dice by slicing and then cutting across the slices.

7. By changing the width of the cuts in steps

3, 4, and 5, you can adjust the size of the finished dice.



Objective

• Execute the techniques for mincing parsley.



Mincing Parsley

• Minced parsley is often sprinkled on food as a garnish or added to sauces, soups, stews, and dips

• Minced parsley can be wrung out to

– remove moisture

– make the parsley easy to sprinkle

– increase its shelf life

– prevent green color from discoloring other foods



Technique: Mincing Parsley

1. Wash the parsley in cold water. Dry between paper towels or in a salad spinner.

2. Separate the parsley leaves from the stems.


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3. Roll the leaves into a tight ball. Cut finely with a chef’s knife.

4. Mince the parsley using the same technique as for garlic.


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5. To wring out the parsley, place the minced parsley in a piece of cheesecloth.

Gather the ends of the cheesecloth together and twist the cheesecloth tightly.


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6. Store parsley in a covered container in the refrigerator until needed.



Objective

• Explain the chiffonade technique.



Chiffonade

• Certain leafy vegetables and fresh herbs can be cut into a chiffonade

– Stack five to six leaves

– Tightly roll the stack

– Cut thin slices across the roll

– Unroll the cuts to reveal the chiffonade



Objective

• Execute the techniques for preparing leeks.



Washing and Cutting Leeks

• Leeks are members of the onion family

• The white and light green portion of the leek is used most often because it is more mild and tender

• The dark green leaves have a strong flavor and tougher texture and are often used for stocks and soups



Technique: Preparing Leeks

Trimming Leeks

1. Remove the dark green leaves one at a time using a paring knife. Only cut each leaf where the dark green begins.

2. Trim the root end of the leek.


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Washing Leeks

1. Cut the leek in half lengthwise stopping short of completely cutting through the root end. If the leeks are very large, it may be necessary to cut the leek lengthwise into quarters.


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2. Place the leek, cut end up, under cold running water. Open the leek as the water is running on it. This removes the dirt that is trapped between the leaves.


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3. After washing, verify that all the dirt has been removed from between the leaves.


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Washing Chopped or Julienned Leeks

1. Cut the leek completely in half lengthwise.

Cut the leeks according to the desired shape.


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2. Place the cut leek in a large container of cold water. Agitate the water so that the dirt is loosened from the leeks. Let the leeks sit undisturbed in the water for 10 to 15 minutes.

During this time, the dirt will settle to the bottom of the container.


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3. Scoop the leeks off the top of the water using a spider.

Do not agitate the water any more than is necessary.

Never pour the leeks and water into a colander as this deposits the dirt back on top of the clean leeks.


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4. Verify that leeks are free from dirt before using.



Objective

• Execute the techniques for peeling, seeding, and dicing tomatoes.



Peeling, Seeding, and Dicing

Tomatoes

• Professional chefs must know how to peel, seed, and dice tomatoes

• Peeling tomatoes requires a special technique

• There are two techniques for dicing tomatoes

– concassé

– fine dice



Technique: Peeling Tomatoes

1.

Remove the tomato’s core using the tip of the paring knife. Cut an “X” through the skin of the opposite end of the tomato.


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2. Plunge the tomatoes in boiling water for 30 seconds.

Scoop the tomatoes from the boiling water using a spider or pair of tongs and place them in ice water.


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3. When the tomatoes are cold, remove them from the ice water. Using a paring knife, pull the skin from the tomato by grabbing the skin where the “X” was initially cut in the tomato. If the skin of the tomato does not come off easily, repeat step 2. This may be necessary if the tomatoes are not ripe.



Technique: Seeding Tomatoes

1. Cut the tomato (most often tomatoes are peeled first) in half. Do not cut through the core, but rather through the middle of the tomato.


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Technique: Seeding Tomatoes

2. Squeeze the tomatoes gently so as to push seeds and excess moisture from the tomatoes. Inspect each tomato half to be sure that the seeds have all been removed.



Technique: Dicing Tomatoes

Technique 1: Concassé

1. Flatten a peeled and seeded tomato half slightly with the palm of the hand.

2. Cut into strips and then a dice using a chef knife.


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Technique 2: Fine Dice

1. Using a small knife, trim the flesh from a tomato that has been peeled but not seeded. As the flesh is trimmed off, the seeds should remain inside the tomato.


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2. Cut each of these trimmed pieces into strips and then dice. The center of the tomato can be seeded and cut into a concassé.



Objective

• Execute the techniques for peeling and mincing garlic.



Peeling and Mincing Garlic

• The flavor of garlic varies depending on the preparation method

– intense flavor when raw

– mild when cooked

– sweet when roasted

• Garlic is one of the most common flavorings in foodservice



Technique: Peeling and Mincing

Garlic

1. Place the head of garlic on its side on a cutting board. Position the palm of your hand on the head of garlic. Press firmly until the head breaks apart into individual cloves.


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Garlic

2. To peel the garlic, place a clove on the cutting board. Place the side of a chef’s knife on the clove. Press firmly on the knife until the clove breaks.


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Garlic

2. (continued) It may be necessary to tap the side of the knife with the guiding hand.

Remove the loosened skin from each clove.


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Garlic

3. Cut each clove in half and remove the germ if it has a green tint. If not removed, the garlic will taste bitter. Also, trim a small amount of the root end of the garlic if brown.


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Garlic

4. To mince garlic, begin by coarsely chopping the peeled cloves. The garlic is then minced using the mincing technique.


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Garlic

5. Some recipes call for garlic paste. To make a paste, sprinkle the minced garlic with a pinch of salt. Using the side of the knife, reduce the garlic to a paste by repeatedly dragging the knife across the garlic. The salt acts like an abrasive and helps make the paste.

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Garlic

5. (continued) Using the side of the knife, reduce the garlic to a paste by repeatedly dragging the knife across the garlic.



Objective

• Explain how to make clarified butter.



Clarified Butter

• Clarified butter is a kitchen staple

• The butter’s water and milk solids are removed

• Clarified butter is ideal for higher temperature cooking


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1. Place a metal container of butter in lightly simmering water. As the butter melts, the water and some of the milk solids sink to the bottom of the container. The rest of the milk solids —in the form of white foam—float.


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2. When the butter is completely melted, skim the foam off the top using a ladle.

3. Gently lift the container of butter out of the water. Carefully pour the fat from the container into another container. Stop pouring when the water becomes visible.

Ladle any remaining fat from the water’s surface.



Objective

• Explain how to prepare mirepoix and its role in the professional kitchen.



Mirepoix

• Mirepoix (mir eh PWAH) is used for making sauces, stocks, soups, braises, stews, and roasts

• White mirepoix is a variation of mirepoix


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Mirepoix

• The “parts” in mirepoix refer to a weight measurement

• The size of the mirepoix varies depending on how it will be used

• The three vegetables should be cut to the same size so pieces can cook evenly



Review

• Explain what is involved with mise en place.

– Being in a state of mental readiness

– Reading and understanding a recipe

– Assembling all ingredients for a recipe

– Verifying that all necessary pieces of equipment are available

– Setting up your station prior to service continued



Review

• Briefly describe the technique for peeling an onion.

1. Cut ends off onion

2. Cut onion in half lengthwise

3. Remove peel using a paring knife


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Review

• Why is minced parsley sometimes wrung out?

– to remove moisture

– to make the parsley easier to sprinkle

– to increase its shelf life

– to prevent green color from bleeding into other foods


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Review

• Briefly describe the process of washing leeks.

– Cut leeks in half lengthwise or in quarters and rinse cut end up under running water.

– For chopped or julienned leeks, place cut leeks in large container of cold water. Scoop leeks off the top using a spider.


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Review

• Briefly describe the process of peeling tomatoes.

1.

Remove the tomato’s core and cut an “X” through the skin of the opposite end.

2. Plunge tomato in boiling water for 30 seconds.

Remove tomato and place in ice water.

3. Remove from the ice water and pull the skin from the tomato using a paring knife.

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Review

• Describe how you turn minced garlic into garlic paste.

1. Sprinkle minced garlic with salt

2. Repeatedly drag the side of the knife across the garlic


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Review

• What is the difference between a mirepoix and a white mirepoix?

– Mirepoix is two parts chopped onion, one part chopped carrot, and one part chopped celery

– White mirepoix is two parts chopped onion, one part chopped leek, and one part chopped celery


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Review

• Why is clarified butter ideal for high temperature cooking?

– At high temperatures, the water in whole butter will sputter, which can be dangerous

– The solids in hot butter quickly turn from brown to black



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Basic

Preparations —

Mise en Place

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