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Kitchen Chronicles: Your kitchen provides a fertile vineyard for sour grapes!

Why do you sit there looking like an envelope without any address on it? (Mark Twain 1835-1910)

I had a week from hell which ended on Friday. It’s a complicated story of trying to run a kitchen on an isolated island with a very resentful staff. One of my clients was footing the bill and they insisted on having me in control of the cooking operation. I agreed on the hotel's promise of the kitchen staff helping me prepare the meals for this large group. The hotel also agreed on providing all of the necessary ingredients we have requested. Needless to say they didn't provide the promised help, and 60% of the requested ingredients were missing. So, I had to run the show by myself with the only help of two of the best students from the Academia de Artes Culinarias I took with me. We re-designed the menus to use the limited ingredients we had on hand. It was tough task.

Although at times I though we were not going to make it, I can proudly report that we performed a miracle through all the foot-dragging, antiquated equipment, and sabotage.

My client's team doesn't have the foggiest idea of the vivid inferno we went through. We worked non stop from 5 AM through 10-11 PM at night almost every day. At the end of the last day, we could barely stand up. One of my helpers suddenly fell on his knees while he was preparing some fish. I asked him, ..."what are you looking for down there?" With a pale look and still holding tight his chef's knife he told me he could not stand up, his legs were failing. He was exhausted.

There was a point when I forgot my own exhaustion. My automatic pilot was on, run only by the love I was putting on my work and the compromise we had with the client. I was not going to run away, it is not my style. It was obviously not an option.

Trying to get some fresh air, I headed out of the kitchen a few times, looking to find some comfort with the fresh air caressing my hot sweaty face. And always when the saddened tear was coming out, growing with despair, feeling abandoned by the mean hotel's kitchen crew, there was a moment lost in time when God whispered to my ear that everything was going to be fine. And it did.

To my helpers Luis and Eliécer:

I thank you from the bottom of my heart because you both worked by my side all the time. I feel proud of you, and now you have proved you are capable of working under fire, under the worst possible conditions. Creativity and love are the secret. Always love what you do, otherwise do not do it, OR you will end like those disgraceful cooks at that hotel who turned their backs on us hoping we would gave up and fail. But, we didn't.

Isn't that beautiful?

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by Chef Melissa
March 18, 2007
2:48 pm

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Categories: Disheartening, Kitchen from Hell, Food & Drink, Cooking Schools in Panama
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Panama: Mother’s Day Message & 1 Delicious Recipe!

Today is Mother's day in Panama. It seems to me that not even in a day like this I can stop talking about food. Maybe that's good, because it will give me the opportunity to tell you a little story. Here I go:

Many, many years ago, when in Panama City you could purchase a delicious "shaved ice" for five cents or less, there was a beautiful woman with a bright smile and big eyes full of life. She was quite young and madly in love. One day, she woke up to find her heart all covered with "chocolate dipped red rose petals". She was "expecting."

She was so happy, but somehow the chocolate melted and disappeared along with her lover. Then, all by herself, she" baked the bun." Eventually the lover came back and they baked together more bread; everyone knows that. But, the first one was especially difficult: she was all by herself, the oven was new and came with no instructions.

That was the story of my mother, the "accidental baker." I am really grateful she baked that first bun to the end! I am also grateful she let me snack on her roses and didn't tell my great grandmother that I was eating hers too

mother's day dia de las madres panama cookingdiva chef melissa de leon charlie collins elena hernandez academia artes culinarias happy mother day feliz recipes cake carimanoras yuca cassava fritters mandioca tapioca

We want to send all our love to the "Panamanian Mothers" in Panama, and all over the world. We thank you from the bottom of our heart for all of the work, time and love involved in bringing your children to this world and raising them to be people of goodness. Que Dios las bendiga a todas! Special hugs to Kelly , and to Yovanna's mom.

There is something else for you: a very special recipe, one that is traditional and loved until the last bite! This time it has been dressed up to the occasion by Chef Charlie Collins, one of Panama's top chefs and owner of "Ma Cuisine". (Gracias Charlie! por la receta). The photo was taken at the "Academia de Artes Culinarias" owned by Chef Elena Hernandez. (Gracias Elena, y felicidades a ti tambien en el dia de las madres!)

You will learn how to prepare Carimañolas. It is a typical Panamanian - Colombian fried food served at breakfast in our homes, or as appetizers in parties. The shape is oval, it resembles a kibbe.

CARIMAÑOLAS DE CARNE CON SALSA PICANTE
(Cassava and Beef Fritters with Hot Sauce)

Fresh yuca is available in most Latin American markets. This root with a tough brown skin ranges from 8 to 16 inches in length and from 2 to 4 inches in diameter. When peeled, yuca reveals a crisp white hard flesh, which turns ivory in color when cooked in salted water. It is widely used in Panamanian Cuisine particularly in soups and in carimañolas.

Makes 12 carimañolas

For the yuca “masa”:
2 pounds fresh yuca
Salt to taste
Flour
Vegetable oil
For the meat filling:
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 teaspoon annatto paste
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 medium Spanish onion, finely chopped, approximately 1 cup
½ pound ground lean beef
2 teaspoons dried oregano leaves, crumbled
2 fresh coriander leaves, chopped
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon scotch bonnet hot sauce, optional*
1 teaspoon salt, or to taste
Freshly ground black pepper to taste

Directions:

Cut the yucca root in cylinders 4 inches in length, and then peel the thick brown skin off. Cut each cylinder in 4 sticks and place in a bowl with tap water while you peel the rest.
In a large pot bring salted water to a rolling boil. Add the yuca sticks and cook for approximately 15 to 25 minutes, or until it is tender but not mushy. Remove form the fire and strain allowing it to cool for about 1 hour. Cut the yuca sticks into small cubes.
In the bowl of a food processor fitted with a steel blade, process the yuca in two or three parts, until it is completely mashed to a smooth, thick consistency. Place the purée in a large bowl and keep covered until ready to form the carimañolas.
Prepare the meat filling. In a medium skillet, heat the oil with the annatto paste. Add the garlic, onion and ground beef and cook until the meat is slightly brown. Add the rest of the ingredients and season with salt and pepper to taste. Cook the filling at medium heat until most of the meat juices have evaporated and the filling is moist but not juicy. Remove from the heat and let the filling cool completely.
To form the carimañolas, wet your hands with a little oil and take a small amount of the mashed yucca in the palm of your hand. Roll the yuca between both hands and work it to the shape of an egg. Press your finger in the middle to make room for one teaspoon of the filling. Press the the filling in, close the carimañola, and finish giving it an oval shape. Dust with flour and place in a baking sheet lined with wax paper. Repeat the process until you have made 12 carimañolas.
In a large skillet, add enough oil and heat to about 350°F. Fry the carimañolas turning them often until they are light brown. Drain over paper towels and serve hot with Salsa Picante!

To get other delicious recipes using "cassava", take a moment to visit Chef Melissa's Recipe Index

Tags: cassava, recipe, cookingdiva, chef, panama, yuca

by Chef Melissa
December 08, 2005
9:00 am

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Categories: Tropical Fruit and Vegetables, RECIPES: desserts, RECIPES: appetizers, General, Cooking Schools in Panama, Clases de Cocina en Panama
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Cocinemos como el Chef: Clase de Sushi del Chef Rafael Matsufuji

Un HOLA! afectuoso a todos mis lectores, aqui les reporto mi ultima aventura culinaria en Panama. Ayer tome una deliciosa clase de cocina Japonesa por el Chef Rafael Matsufuji, del Restaurante Matsuei, como parte de la oferta Culinaria ofrecida por Guadalupe Ramirez en "Cocinemos como el Chef".

El Chef Matsufuji, demostrando toda su destreza culinaria y carisma, compartio con los asistentes recetas y las tecnicas para preparar Furai Roll,California Roll, Spicy Tuna, Sushi Mixto...entre otros.

Realmente nos divertimos mucho, al mismo tiempo que aprendimos a elaborar paso por paso cada uno de los platos, al igual que a decorarlos con vegetales tallados.

Para mas informacion sobre los programas y clases de cocina ofrecidos por Guadalupe Ramirez en "Cocinemos como el Chef", los invito a visitar su website!

A continuacion comparto con Uds., algunas fotos de la clase.

Abrazos,

Chef Melissa

El Chef Matsufuji demostrando la tecnica para preparar rollos.

Sin duda alguna, deliciosos y muy atractivos!

by Chef Melissa
July 07, 2005
11:03 am

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Categories: RECETAS - Pescados y Mariscos, Ethnic Cuisine: Asian, Cooking Schools in Panama, Cocina Etnica: Sushi, Clases de Cocina en Panama
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