We all seemed to be in better spirits this week. I suppose we’ve all become use to the idea that we can’t take food home now, whereas last week it was cause for a lot of grumbling. We have moved onto meat. This week’s dishes were: chicken escalope holstein (an egg, anchovy and caper garnish) with beurre noisette, chicken stir-fry with noodles, and pork chops with apple sauce.

Chicken escalope holstein

Chicken stir-fry

Pork chops with apple sauce

As you would expect, I find myself learning new skills each week, but this week I also learnt that I like eggs with anchovy and capers. I’m not the biggest anchovy fan, although I will eat it. Chicken escalope holstein isn’t a dish which is commonly seen these days, so the combination of egg, anchovies and capers was not one I would have thought of trying. But I here I was eating it, and loving the taste of it; the crispiness and richness of the egg against the salty, slightly vinegary fish and capers. What a wonderful new discovery!

I sat with a fellow student for a coffee after class, and Chef happened to come by so he joined us too. I love his stories of his former life as a professional chef, whether it be at The Savoy, or the Five-Star Hotel he worked at, or the restaurant he once owned. This time round, he shared with us some of the trials and tribulations that he faced when he owned his own restaurant. I have the utmost respect for the people that work in the restaurant industry, especially those in the kitchen. The hours can be backbreaking, and the pay is often not great. And for those who own their own restaurant, where your livelihood depends on its viability, there is no getting away from the fact that your commitment to it must be 24/7. I also saw this first hand growing up in our family restaurant where work would start in the morning, and finish only late at night – seven days a week.

But then he moved onto some of the juicy stuff, the tidbits that I enjoy the most. Like how at one particular function that he attended, one of the fellow guests, who is a celebrity chef well known for his prowess as a ladies man (and something I too have read about in the press), caused all the ladies to swoon and ‘faint’ when he turned up.

Westminster Kingsway College:
Web: http://www.westking.ac.uk

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