The workers are few!
From time to time the kitchen thins out, and I mean thin like stretching.
We have some important guests coming from the states, a pastors conference, and a few other events that will be happening on board in the coming weeks. And during this time the galley will need to do its daily job feeding the crew and keep up with visitors, special requests, functions, and a few other meals.
This is not so bad, except that right now we have two rotating cooking teams (and thats normal) with only 2 cooks on each one (thats not normal).
This is what the cooking teams ‘look’ like right now: 1 Team Leader (cook), 1 Cook (or assistant cook), 2 salad prep, 1 baker, and 1 dishwasher…and yes, we are still feeding 400+ (approximately). And of course I cook and help out where needed.
As Chief Cook (my title right now, it changes to Galley Manager) its my job to run the kitchen and to work with both cooking teams as they are on a rotation (2 on, 2 off, 3 on, 2 off, 2 on, 3 off - thats a 2 week schedule) working long days, 10 1/2 to 12 hours and maybe more if there are special events or functions. These days are long physically and mentally draining and most of our workers are new to food service(and some are new to working this hard).
The most amazing thing is that these people are volunteers, people who have given their time (crew fees & insurance) to come help the less fortunate. You know what else? They will probably never get direct credit for helping out the people we try to serve in these countries and medical situations. Why not? Because we are behind the scenes, and thats where some of us are happy to stay…and because we support and build the framework for keeping the body (organizationally and physically) fed!
I don’t really know why people would come to do this specifically in food service…dedication, passion, compassion, sympathy, because they can, etc…??? Or maybe their just willing to do it wherever they are placed and can be of help/service to keep the body strong and support in whatever way possible.
Its easier to realize why I do it, this is my background, my passion. And who wouldn’t want to really feel and/or be able to make a difference?
But really its because I’m crazy. There I said it. I feel better.
Winner Update
*Congratulations to Tatyana, winner of the Culinary Challenge. Tatyana directed the cooking team in preparing Curry Chicken with rice, vegetables, and a cabbage & pasta salad. Thanks to all of the contestants; Tatyana, Mark and Peggy, and the team of Peter and Josh for their hard work and creativity. Thanks are also due the crew for taking the time to vote (and eat) and to the cooking teams for all of their work in helping the contestants prepare their meals. You all helped to make the Culinary Challenge a smashing success. We hope to hold another one in the future, perhaps with a bit of a twist
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[*Edited from an internal article announcing the winner, and many thanks for all involved...just in case you missed it]
Mustard Oil, Outlawed? Dangerous? Conspiracy?
Today I used some mustard oil to toast (fry) some sesame seeds to use in an Asian BBQ sauce because I wanted that sesame taste and as a twist I used the mustard oil to do it…worked great!
About a month ago I found about 4 or 5 bottles (4 or 5 bottles is not enough to do anything real big so I keep stuff like that in the office with the other odd & ends) of Mustard Oil and I thought ‘hmmm, I never remember working with this or what It tastes like…’ so I did a little research on it.
The following is information from Wikipedia (again I freely edited so as not to bore you), pay attention to the 3 and 4th paragraphs:
This oil has a strong smell, a little like strong cabbage, a hot nutty taste, and is much used for cooking in India and Bangladesh…
Mustard oil is composed mostly of the fatty acids oleic acid, linoleic acid and erucic acid. At 5%, mustard seed oil has the lowest saturated fat content of the edible oils.
In India, mustard oil is generally heated almost to smoking before it is used for cooking; this may be an attempt to reduce the content of noxious substances such as erucic acid, and does reduce the strong smell and taste. , Mustard oil is not considered suitable for human consumption in the United States, Canada and the European Union due to the high content of erucic acid, which is considered noxious, although mustard oil with low erucic acid content is available. To get around the restriction in Western countries, the oil is often sold “for external use only” in stores catering to Indian immigrants, as in North India, mustard oil is also used for rub-downs and massages (see ayurveda), thought to improve blood circulation, muscular development and skin texture; the oil is also antibacterial.
In India, the restrictions on mustard oil are viewed as an attempt by foreign multi-national corporations to replace mustard oil with canola oil, a variety of rapeseed with a low erucic acid content, but often from a genetically modified canola. The East and North Indians have been using it for ages and deny that there is enough evidence for the toxicity of erucic acid, instead maintaining that mustard oil is beneficial to human health because of its low saturated fat content, ideal ratio of omega-3 and omega 6 fatty acids (15g of omega 3 fats per 100g serving), content of antioxidants and vitamin E, as well as being cold-pressed (extracted at 45-50 degrees Celsius).
In northern Italy, it is used in the fruit condiment called mostarda.
If that wasn’t enough for you, then check out the conspiracy! ~
FindArticles - The Mustard Oil Conspiracy
Ecologist, The, June, 2001, by Vandana Shiva
And of course if Wikipedia is not a valid enough source for you, here is the FDA (Food and Drug Administration) Import Alert from 1999 a quote from that report:
Expressed mustard oil is not permitted for use as a vegetable oil. It may contain 20 to 40% erucic acid, which has been shown to cause nutritional deficiencies and cardiac lesions in test animals.
Learn something new everyday, huh?
Apple Corer used for Pineapple?
I want to give credit where credit is due. One of my Team Leaders (cooking teams) Ernest, from Ghana, showed me how he likes to use an apple corer (is corer a word? guess so, spell check didn’t catch it).
The handled apple corer which only ‘drills’ out the core (but doesn’t slice) has many application so it has been deemed a multi-tasker and thus gets respect among my kitchen tools. But one of those ‘fancy’ handled corers that helps pre-slice the actual fruit? Seemed like a waste of time and space considering my knife skills. And even some of you may feel you can slice pineapple rings faster than using a fancy apple corer…but it still doesn’t take away from the fact it was a pretty ingenious idea!
From slices to tidbits…turn this one into Cooks Illustrated tips and techniques!
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