LHS Culinary Arts

This is also known as “Cooking Class” or “Home Ec’ (Economics)” in some human (Outlands) schools.

 

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Table of Contents:

  1. Introduction
  2. Progression
  3. Vocabulary
  4. Basic Principles
  5. Advanced Cooking
  6. Recipes of Our Restaurants
  7. Recommended/Required Reading (Images Begin)
  8. Conceptual/Presentation Images
  9. Recipe-memes, Etc.
  10. Nyotaimori
  11. Recipe Videos

 

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Introduction:

They say “the kitchen is the heart of the home”, and we here in Inisfree have gone to great lengths to make sure that every kitchen in this home-realm of ours is as good as it gets.  By the time you leave this course, you’ll know how to cook just about every kind of meal you could ever dream of wanting for yourself.  Also, as always here in Inisfree, we have veganized everything –if it wasn’t naturally vegan already.

 

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Progression:

Students here first learn the basics; cooking terms and utensils (only for vegans, of course), then simple recipes which they practice making, and finally chef “flare” and presentations (such as nyotaimori).

  1. vocabulary (of food, drinks, ingredients, crops, cooking tools, cooking processes, etc.) plus the origins of those words’ roots
  2. basic principles (such as why we only allow vegan in our realm) and techniques for healthy ingredient selecting, cooking, plating (or serving nyotaimori; all female students take their turn getting naked and having food arranged atop their chest and thighs), and preservation/refrigeration
  3. advanced cooking such as sous vide, molecular gastronomy, veganizing dishes/recipes, determining which healthy things will produce similar or even virtually identical tastes to whatever is being improved/veganized, etc.
  4. ServSafe certification/s

Graduates of Inisfree’s cooking classes know not only how to make decent meals, but the best meals.  They have hands-on experience to rival that of line-cooks and world-class chefs.  They even understand where the best ingredients come from, how to manage a small kitchen, and what molecular gastronomy is.

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By School-grade:

  1. vocab’
  2. food-safety temperature-ranges; for storing (cool to cold), for buffets/serving for hours (warm to hot), etc.
  3. focus on the tools (not yet the techniques with each tool)
  4. observing and taking notes about all the basic techniques
  5. hands-on; starting to practice all memorized basic techniques
  6. sous vide
  7. molecular gastronomy
  8. veganizing anything; understanding vegan equivalents which produce nearly-identical flavors, textures, etc.
  9. plating; presentations –incl. nyotaimori (at the end; after normal on-plates plating)
  10. reading recommended/required cookbooks –with Auz’s as the final reading assignment for this school-year
  11. pairing or tripling up with fellow students in this course; requesting spontaneous things be cooked and served in different ways by one another, then offering constructive criticism, etc.
  12. easiest ways to cook the kinds of things which will be findable in the wild
  13. Exodus
  14. discussing which cooking methods worked last year
  15. drafting menus for different occasions (small vs. large events, personal/friends vs. formal/clients)
  16. preparing a sampler-feast for the class by school-year’s end (not normal portions, as every class-member will be cooking up the same)

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Earning a version of the BeVeg certification becomes possible for graduate-students of this course.

  • “BeVeg is the most Internationally accepted and recognized vegan certification trademark.”
  • For reference:  further reading

 

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Vocabulary:

Food Vocabulary:

  1. after-taste
  2. bland
  3. bitter
  4. broth
  5. cheesecake
  6. cook vs chef:  A cook uses preexisting recipes.
    A chef modifies recipes or even makes entirely unique ones.
    “To simply answer this question, a chef is an individual who is trained to understand flavors, cooking techniques, create recipes from scratch with fresh ingredients, and have a high level of responsibility within a kitchen. A cook is an individual who follows established recipes to prepare food.”
  7. curry
  8. custard
  9. cutlet
  10. dal
  11. Danish
  12. Dutch Baby (bowl-shaped pancake)
  13. filet
  14. frosting (thicker than icing, and tends to stay spreadable)
  15. gravy
  16. hoagie
  17. hors d’oeuvres
  18. icing (thinner than frosting, and sometimes hardens as it dries)
  19. lasagna
  20. meringue
  21. muffuletta
  22. poached
  23. quiche
  24. rich
  25. roast
  26. salty
  27. sauce (and examples; alfredo, barbecue, cocktail, honey mustard, horse radish, hot, marinara, pasta, soy, taco, tartar, etc.)
  28. savory
  29. scrambled
  30. sits well
  31. spicy
  32. soup
  33. sour
  34. stew
  35. stuffing
  36. sub
  37. sweet
  38. taco sauce
  39. tart
  40. topping
  41. whet

Drinks Vocabulary:

  1. alkaline
  2. carbonated
  3. champagne flute
  4. cider
  5. club soda
  6. cocoa (hot chocolate)
  7. cocktail glass
  8. creamy
  9. juice
  10. meal replacement
  11. milk
  12. reverse osmosis
  13. smooth
  14. smoothie
  15. sparkling
  16. spring (water source)
  17. tap
  18. tea

Ingredients Vocabulary:
(not because all of these should be ingredients, but in order to discern if a product has harmful ingredients)

  1. acidity regulator
  2. anti-caking agent
  3. batter
  4. citric acid –questionable; sometimes derived from black mold
  5. cream –fine if coconut, for example; as long as it is vegan
  6. essence
  7. (food colors) –sometimes chemical coloring; unhealthy/unnatural
  8. fructose
  9. granulated
  10. herbs (see this webpage for a complete list)
  11. iron (i.e. that it should not be an ingredient; no one needs iron powder in their food)
  12. lactic acid –bad
  13. monosodium glutamate (MSG) –debatable, but generally regarded as unfit for consumption
  14. natural flavor/s
  15. non-GMO
  16. nuts (ground vs tree, etc.)
  17. organic
  18. preservative –few things need this if in the ideal environment
  19. sodium benzoate (a carcinogen; never include/ingest)
  20. sucrose –or other sugar alternatives
  21. vitamin D –sometimes extracted from pig flesh; never allow

Crops Vocabulary:

  1. aubergine
  2. canola (vs healthy/normal cooking-oils)
  3. clove
  4. ear of corn
  5. eye of potato
  6. head of cabbage
  7. husk
  8. shallot
  9. tuber

Cooking and Dining Tools:

  1. air fryer
  2. baking sheet/tray
  3. blender
  4. bottle opener
  5. bread bin
  6. bread knife
  7. bread maker
  8. butter knife
  9. can opener
  10. cheese cloth (for tofu)
  11. cheese knife
  12. colander
  13. corkscrew
  14. crock pot (for slow cooking)
  15. cutting board
  16. deep fryer
  17. draining spoon
  18. foil
  19. food thermometer
  20. garlic crusher
  21. grater
  22. grill
  23. heating drawer
  24. hot pad
  25. ice-cream scoop
  26. kettle
  27. ladle
  28. measuring cup/s
  29. measuring spoon/s
  30. microwave
  31. microwave-safe
  32. mixing bowl
  33. non-stick
  34. nutcracker
  35. oven
  36. oven mitten
  37. ovenproof
  38. pairing knife
  39. pan
  40. pasta server
  41. peeler
  42. pizza cutter
  43. pot
  44. potato pusher
  45. pressure cooker (for fast cooking)
  46. rice cooker
  47. rolling pin
  48. rotisserie
  49. scissors
  50. serving spoon
  51. sieve
  52. slotted spoon
  53. slotted turner
  54. solid turner
  55. spatula
  56. stove
  57. tea strainer
  58. tea towel
  59. tofu press
  60. tongs
  61. vacuum sealer
  62. watermelon slicer
  63. wax paper (baking parchment)
  64. wine-bottle opener
  65. whisk
  66. zester

Cooking Processes:

  1. air-fry
  2. al dente
  3. bake
  4. baste
  5. beat (beaters)
  6. blanch:  a cooking technique that calls for quickly scalding foods in boiling water, and then immediately dunking or “shocking” them in ice water to keep them from overcooking. The process seals in color, flavor, and texture by halting the enzyme activity that occurs naturally in fruits and vegetables when raw.
  7. blend
  8. boil
  9. braise
  10. broil
  11. caramelize
  12. deglaze
  13. dice
  14. emulsify
  15. fillet
  16. flambé
  17. freezer burn
  18. fry
  19. garnish
  20. glaze
  21. grill
  22. grind
  23. julienne
  24. marinate
  25. mince
  26. mise en place
  27. parboil
  28. plate (plating; presenting) –such as on a ‘living platter’; nyotaimori
  29. poach
  30. preheat
  31. puree
  32. reduction
  33. roast
  34. roux
  35. sauté
  36. sear
  37. simmer
  38. slice
  39. steam
  40. stir
  41. temper
  42. thaw
  43. whip
  44. whisk

3 Distinct, Not Synonyms:

  • Jelly is made with strained fruit juice. There are no pieces of fruit in jelly.
  • Jam is made with mashed fruit.
  • Preserves have whole fruit or large pieces of fruit.

 

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Basic Principles:

Why we only allow vegan in our realm:

  • against harming any innocent or defenseless sentient being, whether it is regarded as relatively sapient or not
  • compassion for those who deserve it
  • endless proof that only the vegan diet leads to / maintains health
  • karma
  • love for developing peaceful solutions to the ridiculously complex/complicated and pointlessly-violent/-harmful nonvegan way/industries
  • vegan products are almost always superior in many, if not all, ways when compared to nonvegan alternatives/firsts
  • zero reason to be nonvegan, especially with all we have learned/found and demonstrated

 

Techniques for healthy ingredient selecting:

  • electrodermal screening; finding your own best diet (as opposed to assuming the nonsensical Food Pyramid taught by corrupt schools cowing down to a government lobbied by entrenched “food” industries works for everyone)
  • knowing ingredient legislation; inappropriate intentionally-misleading terms/pseudo-synonyms/codewords
  • what actual food ingredients should be
  • how to determine if something is actually organic and healthy, not just labeled that way
  • which farms and farming practices are legitimate/healthy
  • ways you can test groceries for true ingredients; sometimes those listed are not that accurate
  • where to find natural ingredients you can harvest (in the wild) or plant and grow yourself
  • plant –and plant health/disease– identification
  • our recommended encyclopedic knowledge of edible/useful herbs and other plants

 

Cooking:

  • chilling
  • food-prep’ in general
  • pressure-cooker safety considerations/checks
  • staging; mise en place
  • timing completions to align for plating and serving

 

Plating (or serving nyotaimori):

  • artful arrangements based on color/contrast, which things stack well, etc.
  • nyotaimori; arranging food that is neither hot-to-the-touch or chilling/cold atop a naked female model’s chest and thigh-fronts
  • which type of dish/plate is for which type of food/presentation

 

Preservation/Refrigeration:

  • containers that are food-safe
  • food-covers that are food-safe
  • refrigeration; refrigerator and freezer types and settings
  • walk-in freezers and refrigerators

 

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Advanced Cooking:

Sous Vide:

  • “a cooking technique that involves vacuum-sealing food in a bag and cooking it in a precisely regulated water bath.”

 

Molecular Gastronomy:

  • “the scientific discipline concerned with the physical and chemical transformations that occur during cooking. The name is sometimes mistakenly given to the application of scientific knowledge to the creation of new dishes and culinary techniques.”  IOW:  This is a branch of food science that focuses on already-established/-discovered aspects of different ingredients during the processes of different recipes; we are not adding recipes or cooking methods, but helping students in Culinary Arts understand much more about existing ingredients, recipes, and techniques.
  • IOW:  what will cause different ingredients to change colors, consistencies, flavors, etc., making them suitable in combinations, structures/layering, etc.

 

Veganizing Dishes/Recipes:
(Everything we teach is vegan, but we start with easy recipes which were already vegan, then progress to knowing how to easily veganize any nonvegan recipe you might encounter in the Outlands or remember fondly from a pre-vegan childhood.)

  • all the things which can be made into vegan bacon
  • all the things which make great egg replacers
  • mushrooms as chicken or steak replacers
  • plant-based milk-like beverages/liquids
  • vegan cheeses
  • vegan gravies

 

Determining which healthy things will produce similar or even virtually identical tastes to whatever is being improved/veganized:

  • BBQ flavor sources
  • nutritional yeast
  • umami/seafood flavor sources
  • and we never use artificials/chemicals; only natural normal ingredients that you can grow and harvest yourself

 

Acupuncture-related:

  • choosing ingredients and recipes or food-preparation types/techniques based on a patient’s current energy/chi-needs

 

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Recipes of Our Restaurants:

We’ll teach you how to make all of your favorites from all of Inisfree’s restaurants.

Appetizers:

  1. Baked Battered Zucchini Wedges (not fried)
  2. Boneless Wings
  3. Coconut-crusted Shrimp
  4. Dips
  5. Flat-bread
  6. French-bakeds with Sprinkled Feta (a.k.a. ‘Greek-fries’, instead of French-fries)
  7. House-made Guacamole
  8. Jalapeño Poppers
  9. Mini Tamales
  10. Pop-overs
  11. Potato Skins (loaded)
  12. Salads
  13. Salsas
  14. Sampler Platters (pick your own combinations)
  15. Sliders
  16. Soups (by the cup)
  17. Stuffed Mushroom Caps

 

Main-course Menu:

  1. Burgers (veggie patty options on giant pretzel buns)
  2. Cheeses by the Block and Wheel! (with a great rotating-wheel melting-&-spreading option)
  3. Chicken Noodle Soup (with wedges from whole chicken breasts, never little clumps like you find in the canned soup of the Outlands)
  4. Couscous
  5. Crab Cakes (big ones always, and never with anything crunchy in them)
  6. Crêpes (choose your toppings; my favorite is finely shredded cheddar)
  7. Croque Monsieur
  8. Curries (pick your spiciness)
  9. Dolmas
  10. Earth-tones Bread-weaves (like Challah but with more colors; brown, tan, and white)
  11. Kabobs
  12. Lettuce Wraps
  13. Mushroom-bun Burgers (with the Juicy Lucy option; melted cheese on the inside)
  14. Mushroom-patty Burgers (with the Juicy Lucy option; melted cheese on the inside)
  15. Omelets (choose your fillings, egg-white base is optional, “JUST” vegan egg-like mix is the norm, and a vegan gyro filling is now available)
  16. Paleo Pizzas (including the thin-crust chicken, sweet corn, and light curry spice one from the Polish Italian restaurant in Scotland –dipping sauces include cilantro mint chutney)
  17. Pancakes (with infusion options, such as with chocolate chips or turkey bacon)
  18. Pesto Pastas
  19. Pot Roasts
  20. Ribs (the lamb ribs with mashed potatoes infused with garlic and feta, of Axios in Denver)
  21. Rice Bowls
  22. Sandwiches (on giant pretzel buns and other breads)
  23. Soups (by the bowl, including a variety of Pho –with brown rice in creamy tomato soup added in 2022)
  24. Stews (by the bowl)
  25. Stingray Steaks
  26. Stuffed Bell Peppers
  27. Swordfish Steaks
  28. Tamales (no-lard, made with masa, and a Salvadorian plantain-husk with olives option)
  29. Tofu Pot Pie
  30. Vegan Shepherd’s Pie
  31. Vegetable Chili with Broccoli-cheese Soup, Beet Crackers, and a Milk Chocolate
  32. Vegetables Tray with Hummus

New Sandwich of 2022:  Smoked Tofu Panini; with portabella mushrooms, spinach, vegan goat cheese, chipotle aioli, on ciabatta, with garlic fries and slaw

 

Drinks:

  1. almond milks (such as with chocolate)
  2. blends
  3. coconut drinks (juice, water, with or without pulp, and sometimes served in the actual coconut)
  4. every juice there is (all natural, nothing added, pulp included, with mixes optional)
  5. flavored waters (always via only natural juices)
  6. floats (have them made from any of our many ice-cream flavors)
  7. horchata
  8. lemonade
  9. limeade
  10. rice milks
  11. shakes (have them made from any of our many ice-cream flavors)
  12. smoothies
  13. teas (hundreds of kinds, all listed and described)
  14. water (the purest you will ever taste)

 

Desserts:

  1. Cheesecakes (as many as are available at The Cheesecake Factory)
  2. Chocolate Fondue Fountain
  3. Gelatos (dozens of flavors)
  4. Lava Cake
  5. Mille-feuille (‘Napoleon’)
  6. Oreo-crust Ice-cream Pie
  7. Pastries (such as Bear Claws; almond-paste filled and icing drizzled)
  8. Pies (all the classics:  apple, chocolate, pecan, pumpkin, and sweet potato; my favorite)
  9. Whole Watermelons (sliced or sculpted)

 

2024/+:  Being Considered/Reviewed

 

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Recommended/Required Reading:

All of these books will be available via our libraries.

Also:

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Conceptual/Presentation Images:

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Recipe-memes, Etc.:

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Nyotaimori:

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Recipes:

Also see:

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