This is a slightly different post, but I just had to share it! The chap in the photo below is Scott Bradley, a former chef and a current Food Tech teacher in Stockton on Tees. He runs food science courses for teachers, and I just had to attend. For those interested in such courses, this is his Event Brite page.
We took over The Lomond School School in Helensburgh for a day of culinary trickery! First up was preparing our salmon ceviche, and then our own ketchup:
And the big introduction for me was the dry ice! For something as simple as blanching, I think kids in my class will go wild for this! Keep reading to see what else we did with it!
After making my ketchup, my own hollandaise, creating liquid pearls, deep frying some avocados and learning how to make sun blushes tomatoes (without the sun)…it was time to plate up the starter! Here is my effort:
Salmon Ceviche with Sunblush Tomatoes, Apple Caviar, Tempura Avocado, Hollandaise & Ketchup
I don’t like ceviche – I’ve tried it a few times and I just haven’t enjoyed it at all. Strangely, making my own was better! Also – tempura avocados are fantastic! I could’ve eaten a plate of them with the hallandaise sauce!
Chicken Leg stuffed with Black Pudding, served on a Chocolate Orange Soil with Carrot Foam, Honey Caviar, Pineapple Chutney and dehydrated fruit.
I hit a total wobbler when it came to de-boning the chicken. I used to have a horrible fear of meat and sadly it caught up with me. I can handle raw meat and cut it up, but the butchering is beyond me despite wishing I could do it! One day! This dish sounds very bizarre, and it is, but it tasted really beautiful. Pineapples caramelised and then cooked in balsamic vinegar is a winner – a seriously delicious idea!
Sous Vide Duck Breast, Seared Plums, White Chocolate & Popping Candy Snow, Cola Caviar, Basil Popcorn on a Chocolate ‘Splat’
This was my favourite! Duck with chocolate sauce and seared plums is a truly gorgeous mix! The duck was cooked in the sous vide water bath and then pan seared. Absolutely delicious!
Caramac Creme Brûlée topped with Chocolate Soil & Popping Candy and served with Chocolate Ice Cream and Dehydrated Meringue.
This is where the dry ice came back – it was added to a simple chocolate milkshake and whisked to form ice cream! Magical! My favourite element was the gorgeous creme brulee which was cooked using the sous vide bath – it was utterly gorgeous! There were more elements to this dish but they didn’t work for me personally so I chose to leave them out!
If you have an interest or passion for food, I totally recommend Scott’s courses. Despite being aimed at teachers, I think they make for an awesome day out – with a 4 course meal included!
