Daniel Boulud (Fussy Fussy)

Today we recreated some of the fussy French recipes of Daniel Boulud. Since there were three recipes for the four of us, I went halfsies on the Crisp Paupiette of Sea Bass in a Red Wine Sauce, with Roundhead making the sauce and me spending most of the time on the fish.

This dish is a fish fillet wrapped in a thin blanket of thinly sliced rounds of potatoes, sautéed and served with a rich buttery wine sauce. First things first, the fish had to be filleted and skinned, as the bones and heads were needed to make stock for the sauce. I had four large sea bass to run over with a fillet knife, saw off the sides of the fish from head to tail (without making it look too torn up but not wasting too much flesh), then getting the fillets skinned by running the knife against the skin and the table while pulling it towards me. Getting to do this 7 times in a row (after have Chef Al review with me once) definitely allowed me to feel more comfy around the fish.

Roundhead went off on making the sauce (which contained bones, shallots, mushrooms, thyme, chicken stock, red wine, heavy cream, butter, sugar and salt -- no, not a quiet thin sauce) and I cut the potatoes into ovals, then thinly sliced on the mandoline, just as with pommes maxim, pommes anna and all those other oh-so-Fraaaanch potato dishes. Using lots of clarified butter, made overlapping sheets of potato, 3 rows of 4, applied a healthy dose of salt, placed a piece of the fish in the middle, added more salt, then gently folded around the protein. This took a few goes, making the tato thinner and thinner until it bent under the weight of being dipped in butter then glue itself to each other. Once we had about 14 packets of fish in potato on the sheet tray, we placed another sheet tray on top to keep the whole shebang in place, and into the fridge to solidify all the liquid clarified butter that drenched everything.

About 20 minutes before service, we heated up four non-stick pans and quickly sauteed the fish packages, again having to play with the level of heat. At first, too little heat wasn't doing anything, just allowing everything to suck up more fat. Then too hot, browing the potato in a minute, when the fish inside needed at least 2 to 3 minutes on each side.

As we were working, Chef Al flitted around to advise us that we needed to keep everything close by our station by the oven, as if we were in a real restaurant situation, we'd be crammed in a small space with 10 other line cooks. Well, yeah, but we ain't in a real restaurant situation! He also recommended getting the cooked-off fish packets into the over till service, but we had timed it so there were only a minute between finish cooking, plating and presenting.

Since there were mushrooms in the sauce, I quickly sauteed a few shrooms in the butter, and did a simple plating. Due to my past experiences working with uncooperative potatoes, I was surprised how well the potatoes cooperated in packaging the fish.

Tomorrow, Tom Keller.

ADDENDA:
Riding my bike across 14th St., I hit a pothole and my left foot slid off my pedal. My weight went to my right foot, pushing the pedal down and backwards, sending the left pedal up and really hard into my shin. I kept riding till I noticed something wet on my leg. I look down, and I see two spurts of blood shooting out of my leg. Huh. I coasted, thinking what I should do. Well, if I'm healthy, it should stop bleeding. I have nothing to clean up with, so mucking about will just make a bloody mess. So I road to 101st St to my friend, cleaned up and all was well. I imagine getting shot is similar. A quick brief action, keep moving then notice something wet. Huh.

BREAKFAST: 6:30am, good granola with good milk, .5 bowl, hunger 3/5

AM TASTINGS: 11am, handful of carmelized almonds, two pieces of rack of lamb, scallops and truffles wrapped in puff pastry, the fish wrapped in potatoes with butter wine sauce, quart of water, 1.5 bowl, hunger 4/5
My pores were oozing butter and salt.

PM SNACK: 4pm, half a bag of fritos, seltzer, .5 bowl, hunger 4/5

DINNER: 7:15pm, green salad, half a buffalla moz pizza, small ramakin of cream anglais ice cream, 1 glass of wine, 1.5 bowl, hunger 4/5

EVENING WATERING: 8pm, quart of water