And that's why the first formal preliminary competition
practice was held January 10 at EVIT.
Right off the bat, Chef Nicole de Kruyter, administrative
chef and assistant to C-CAP Arizona, noticed something.
"Practice shows," she says, pointing out how
easy it is to spot those aspiring chefs who've had time to practice the
competition salad and those who haven't yet even read the recipe.
Heck, even the blogger can see which students are still
having challenges with cutting, dicing - and talking and prepping at the same
time.
(Why is talking and cooking at the same time important? Because, during competition, the judges will talk to you. They'll ask questions, and expect answers. They also expect that competitors will not stop food preparation. Plus, there will be photographers and flash bulbs. Keep cooking!)
Forty-five junior and senior culinary students from across
Arizona, along with several parents and culinary educators in tow, attended
first practice.
Chef Nicole, a C-CAP grad herself, and Chef Jelani Port,
also a C-CAP grad, teamed up to demonstrate, supervise and critique.
During his careful demonstration of technique, tips and
specific steps to follow, chef Jelani told the students to "Just breathe. And practice."
He also recounted how he'd prepared for his competitions.
"You need to learn how to practice the recipe in your
head," he suggests.
"My mentor, Chef Dean (Wilberscheid, MetroTech) told
me how to do this. You close your
eyes and picture every single thing you intend to do, every motion, exactly the
way you do it with a knife or spoon in your hand.
"When you can see it perfectly, then you do it for
real. And you do it until
everything - your mind and your actions - are together."
Chef Nicole agrees.
"Right now, students need to focus on perfecting knife
skills and techniques, learning the recipe and learning each step to take to
complete it."
Watch for a list of steps and tips for both salads and
omelets - right here - before next week's practices!
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