French cooking class - Maison Pourcel

   Last week while out to coffee with my friend Joan, she mentioned that she had signed up for a French cooking class at a restaurant run by a Michelin stared chef. Of course this intrigued me and since the class was only going to cost 1 day's per diem I decided to sign up also. I knew that the class was being held a restaurant Maison Pourcel but wasn't sure what was going to be on the menu for the event. After a little research I found out that we would be cooking Foie Gras. Everyone knows what this is, right?! It is duck or goose liver that has been fattened traditionally by force feeding the animal. If you have never had it before I can describe it as a meaty flavored hunk of butter, which in my book is a tasty thing. I wan't really sure how practical this class would be for future meals that I cook but when else would I ever take a Foie Gras cooking class? Probably never! The class was held at 8:30am on Saturday morning which meant that I had to actually set an alarm...not something that I typically have been doing on Saturday's since arriving in Shanghai (sleep in on Saturday and get up early to run on Sunday). Waking up was easy to do, though, because the sun was shining bright and promised a beautiful day ahead. Once I was ready I rode my bike over the the restaurant. Upon arriving, I found out that Joan was going to be about 30 mins late...i figured that this meant that I would be the only amateur cook at the class for awhile and would feel a little out of place. I found the kitchen (after doing some troubleshooting of different floors off the elevator) and met the others that would be part of the class...everyone was an amateur so I would fit right in. Here's a little picture tour of how the class went down...

We were all given copies of the recipes that we would be cooking
so we could take notes as we went along.

On the menu:
1. Foie Gras Creme Brulee with Apples and Pears
2. Foie Gras pan-fried with Sesame Seeds, Hazelnut Polenta and its Emulsion
3. Cepe Ravioli and Foie Gras with Pumpkin Puree

Sous Chef, Ian Gelinas, was our instructor.

  

Left, learning how to prep raw foie gras. Right, starting to make our Creme Brulee.

Prepping the dishes to go into the oven.

This was my first time in a professional kitchen. They definitely
have gadgets and equipment to make food prep easy that a
home cook would never have room for or be able to afford. 

Learning to slice raw foie gras

Left, learning to pan fry Foie Gras (hot and fast b/c the product is basically

only fat. Any other way and it would just melt in pan). Right, Joan giving it a shot.

I get a chance to try also. My pan was a little too hot so my
piece of Foie Gras was a little dark.

Our final product

It was pretty cool seeing a chef plate a dish.
More time is spent plating then I would have thought.

  

Check out this dish! And we got to eat it!

Then we started the Ravioli dish

Cooking the Cepes (type of Mushroom) for the filling

 Learning to assemble ravioli

Step 1: place wrapper on work surface and stick a small amount
of filling in the center. Step 2: paint a little egg wash along the edges

Step 3: Place another wrapper on top of the filling
place in palm and release the air out of the ravioli

Step 4: Confirm that the edges are sealed and air is removed, then cut out into circles.

Left, we each make 3 pcs. Right, plating out raviolis.

Our finished dish. Joan and I enjoying it!

The class!

Finally our creme brulee came out of the oven and we got to eat this too.

Everyone taking pictures and making final notes.

   All this cooking and eating happened before 11:30am. I don't think I've consumed that much fat in one sitting ever in my life. The dishes were all SO delicious but it was too rich to finish. Sadly, a lot of foie gras was wasted. By the time I left the class the sun had warmed the air to about 70 degrees so I took a long route home, was there only briefly before heading back out on my bike to run errands and just ride around to enjoy the unusually warm weather for late November. I also managed to squeeze in my my long run that evening so I could sleep in on Sunday. I think that all the foie gras earlier in the day made me run fast!!