kitchen Angst!

First lets start with the uniform. The hat(or Toque) was the crowning jewel to a true classical chef, It showed his status in the kitchen. In the days of old the beginner would be wearing a simple hat(I like to call a pill-box), as you moved up in your ability’s you would get a new hat! One with more pleats! Traditionally as a chef in training you would get a pleat for every egg dish you mastered. The egg was the symbol of life, as well as the most delicate and hardest ingredient to cook(correctly) in the kitchen!
There are 100 egg dishes in classical French cuisine. This is why the “Chefs Toque” has 100 pleats! Now when your out eating dinner with your friends and they ask “why do cooks wear those stupid hats?” you will be able to say with confidence “They must know their eggs”. we should try brunch here next time!
Also a chefs hat has two reasons for being so tall. The first is obvious to me but maybe not to you. Recognition! The Tall hat is so that as soon as you walk into the kitchen you know how is in charge! Chefs have BIG ego’s and need to be the main focus in their kitchen. The second reason is all about comfort. The added air space in the hat allows the heat to escape through the holes in the top, keeping the wearer cooler. In modern days you will find this same principle, carried out in other ways. Most Executive Chefs have their name and title embroidered on their coats. This is the new way to know the who’s head honcho, this is an added expense normally only allowed the Executive and sous-chef(second in command).
Now on to the food aspect of todays entry: First I want to talk about Saffron, then I would like to discuss Truffles! These are two of the most expensive ingredients in modern cuisine. I would like to go into why this is, they are both natural and can not be duplicated in a laboratory(as of yet) in a way to lesson their value in the market place.Lets first look at saffron!
Saffron is a spice, it comes from a plant. The crocus flower and due to the fact it is only the three stigmas of the flower, it has to be hand picked. This is why it is “more expensive than gold” by weight! You know it as a main ingredient in Paella(a Spanish dish), using both meats and seafood in the same rice based dish! This spice is a staple in most High end kitchens even though it isn’t used very often. It has a very distinct flavor and needs too be shown the up most respect. You can ruin a dish by adding even the smallest amount of saffron, or you can knock it out of the park. You have to know how this spice will work with your other ingredients before you add it.
The next item I want to discuss is the truffle!The tuber not the chocolate confection! These gems are found growing under Oak trees. Traditionally hunted by pigs, they are now using specially trained dogs to do the job! Why dogs you ask? Well the pigs find this tuber as much of a delicacy as we humans do, so they would eat as much of them as they could when they found them. Holding back a hungry pig is tough! A dog(on the other hand) will only alert you when they have found them. These are now being cultivated by man on some level, but not to the point that the natural ones have to worry about loosing there draw! Cultivated truffles are only good for oils and butters, If you want a true, real truffle it has to be harvested from the soil, the old-fashioned way. Italy’s White variety(alba) is the most sought after, followed by the more popular black French(Perigord). Summer truffles are also found in South America, and China these have a black skin and white center. They don’t have the same strong smell, or flavor. but they will do in a pinch!
I hope this has been fun for you! I want to do more of this type of entries. Please give me your feed back,.