Module 3 - Knife Skills
Knife Skills
After studying this unit
You will be able to:
Care for knives properly
Use knives properly
Cut foods into a variety of classic shapes
●One of the most important tools the student chef must master is the knife.
●Good knife skills are critical to a chef’s success because the knife is the
most commonly used tool in the kitchen.
Using the Knife Safely
Use the correct knife for the task at hand
Always cut away from yourself
Always cut on a clean cutting board
Do not cut on glass, marble or metal
Place a damp towel underneath the cutting board to keep it from
sliding as you cut
Keep knives sharp; a dull knife is more dangerous than a sharp one
When carrying a knife, hold it pointed down, parallel and close to your
leg as you walk
A falling knife has no handle. Do not attempt to catch a falling knife; step
back and allow it to fall
Never leave a knife in a sink of water; anyone reaching into the sink
could be injured or the knife could be dented by pots or other utensils
Caring for Your Knives
Sharpening
Whetstone
Steel
Washing and storing
Do not wash knives in commercial dishwashers
Always wash and dry knives by hand
Controlling Your Knife
Use a grip that is most comfortable for you
Keep the sharp edge of the blade on the cutting board
Grip the item being cut with three fingertips and your thumb
Use the second joint of your index finger as a guide
Use smooth, even strokes to slice the food
Do Not use a dull knife
Cutting with Your Knife
Slicing
Chiffonade
Finely sliced or shredded leafy vegetables or herbs
Rondelles or rounds
Disk-shaped slices
Diagonals
Oval-shaped slices
Oblique-cut or roll-cut
Small pieces with two angle-cut sides
Lozenges
Diamond-shaped pieces, usually of firm vegetables
Horizontal Slicing
To horizontal slice is to butterfly or cut a pocket into meats, poultry or
fish; it is also a method used to thinly slice soft vegetables
Chopping
To chop is to cut an item into small pieces where uniformity of size and
shape is neither necessary or feasible
Cutting Sticks
Batonnet
1/4 X 1/4 X 2 inches
Julienne
1/8 X 1/8 X 2 inches
Fine julienne
1/16 X 1/16 X 2 inches
Dice Cuts
Brunoise
1/8 X 1/8 X 1/8
Small dice
1/4 X 1/4 X 1/4
Medium dice
1/2 X 1/2 X 1/2
Large dice
3/4 X 3/4 X 3/4
Paysanne
1/2 X 1/2 X 1/8
Mincing
To mince is to cut items into very small pieces
he terms finely chopped and minced are often used interchangeably
Round Cuts
Tourner
Football-shaped pieces with seven equal sides and blunt
ends
Parisiennes
Spheres of fruits or vegetables cut with a small melon ball
cutter
Mandoline
The mandoline is a nonmechanical cutting tool
DAY 3: VEGETABLE CUTTING
Item Measure
Vegetables
Carrots 5pcs.
Potatoes 5pcs
Turnips 5pcs
Cucumber 5pcs
Onion 5pcs
Cabbage 5pcs.
Garlic 5pcs
Tomato 5pcs
Garbazos 5pcs
Lumpia Sauce
Soy sauce
Brown Sugar
Nuts, Peanut
Tofu
Cornstarch
Vegetable Oil
MEAT
Ground Beef
FRESH LUMPIA
INGREDIENTS WEIGHTS PROCEDURES
Cornstarch 2 cups For the wrapper, beat all together the
All purpose flour 4 cups ingredients and strain in a mixing
Whole eggs 6 pieces bowl.
Corn oil ¼ cup Cook in a Teflon pan.
Water 8 cup
Carrots 100g For the fillings, sauté garlic and onion
Ubod 100g and mix in the vegetables, season
Turnips 100g with salt, pepper, and soy sauce.
Salt 20g
Pepper 20g
Soy Sauce 50g
Garlic 100ml
Onion 150g
Sugar 2cups For the sauce, caramelize the sugar
Soy sauce To taste and pour in the water, mix well
Water To taste immediately until sugar melts, adjust
cornstarch To adjust consistency with cornstarch.
consistency
UKOY (SHRIMP AND SWEET POTATO FRITTERS)
INGREDIENTS WEIGHTS PROCEDURES
Small Shirmps 200g Wash shrimps, remover the head and place in
a bowl.
Camote (sweet 300g Add the sweet potato, and egg-whites.
potato) julienned
egg-whites 3
Carrot( julienned) 100g
cornstarch 75g Mix the cornstarch with a small quantity of cold
water and add to the bowl.
Salt and Pepper To taste Season to [Link] stir to blend.
Drain and remove excess liquid
Oil (for frying) Heat in the oil in a shallow frying pan and drop
in a tablespoonful of the mixture and press with
a spatula to flatten. Repeat
BUTTERED VEGETABLE
INGREDIENTS Weight Procedures
Snow peas 50 grams Wash the vegetable. Trim the vegetables. Set
aside
Bell pepper 1 piece Slice the into julienne cut
Carrots 1 piece Slice into julienne cut
Butter ¼c Heat the pan. Melt the butter. Stir fry the
vegetable
Salt and pepper to taste Season
STIR FRY VEGETABLE
Ingredients Weights Procedures
Vegetable oil 2 tbsp
Onion, chopped ½ cup Sautee onions in oil.
Chicken breast, cut 1 lb Add chicken and stir fry until browned. If not
in strips marinated, season with soy sauce and garlic
Cauliflower, cut to 2 cups Add vegetable except for baby corn and salt.
florets Stir for 3-4 minutes.
Broccoli, cut to 2 cups
florets
Red bell pepper, 1 piece
sliced
Yellow bell pepper, 1 piece
sliced
Celery, sliced 1 cup
Baby corn 1 can Add baby corn and soy sauce to change, if
desired.
Salt to taste
Soy sauce to taste
Module 3-Mise en Place
Part II- Mise en Place
After studying this unit
You will be able to:
Organize and plan your work more efficiently
Understand basic flavoring techniques
Prepare items needed prior to actual cooking
Set up and use the standard breading procedure
Mise en Place
French term, which literally means
“Everything in its place.”
Organize and plan your work.
The Prep List
A blueprint for how food production is going to be achieved during the work day
An overview of what needs to be done and how long it will take to do it
The order in which assignments should be completed
How each cook may interact with each other in the kitchen
Writing a Prep List
A prep list is not just a rewriting of recipes
It is reading through recipes and composing a written map of how to accom-
plish the tasks necessary to prepare the recipes
The first step in organizing your work is to read and understand the recipes
you will be using
Once each item is identified and quantified, the next step is to schedule your
tasks through prioritization
Selecting Tools and Equipment
All tools, equipment and work surfaces must be clean and sanitized
Knives should be honed and sharpened
Measuring devices should be checked for accuracy periodically
Ovens and cooking surfaces should be preheated, as necessary
Mixing bowls, saucepans and storage containers should be the correct size for
the task at hand
Serving plates, cookware, utensils, hand tools and other necessary small
wares should be gathered and stored nearby
Foods should be gathered and stored conveniently at the proper temperature
Expiration dates on foods should be checked periodically for validity
Sanitizing solution, hand towels, disposable gloves and trash receptacles
should be conveniently located
Measuring and Preparing Ingredients
Weigh and measure all ingredients
Clarify butter
Toast nuts and spices
Make bread crumbs
Prepare bouquet garni and sachet
Marinate meats and poultry
Prepare rubs and pastes
Steep dry ingredients
Using a Balance Scale
To use a balance scale to weigh an ingredient,
place an empty container on the left, then set a
counterbalance to that container on the right; use
weights and the sliding beam weight to add an
amount equal to the amount of ingredient needed
Place the ingredient on the left side of the
scale until the two platforms balance
Clarifying Butter
Slowly warm the butter in a saucepan over
low heat without boiling or agitation
As the butter melts, milk solids rise to the
top as a foam and the water sinks to the bot-
tom
When the butter is completely melted, skim
the milk solids from the top
When all of the milk solids have been re-
moved, ladle the butterfat into a clean
saucepan, being careful to leave the water in
the bottom of the pan
The clarified butter is now ready to use
Flavoring
A bouquet garni and sachet are used to introduce flavorings, seasonings and
aromatics into stocks, sauces, soups and stews
Marinating is a process of soaking meat and poultry in seasoned liquid to flavor
and tenderize it
Rubs are finely ground mixtures of dry herbs and spices used to season meat
and poultry
Bouquet Garni
A selection of herbs (usually fresh) and vegeta-
bles tied into a bundle with twine; a standard bou-
quet garni consists of parsley stems, celery,
thyme, leeks and carrots
Sachet
Made by tying seasonings together in cheesecloth;
a standard sachet consists of peppercorns, bay
leaves, parsley stems, thyme, cloves and, optionally,
garlic
Setup for Standard Breading Procedure