Culinary Arts: Making Stock
The junior Culinary Arts students at Roberto Clemente Community Academy have just begun their study of stocks, soups, and sauces. The students begin with stock, which is considered a principle part of any professional kitchen. Stock adds a natural boost of flavor to a dish without artificial colors or flavorings that are high in sodium. A great stock is the beginning of a great soup or sauce. Along with this, culinary students are learning French terms such as Mirepoix, Bouquet garni, Fumet and Sachet ďépices.
Students that are involved in Career & Technical Educational (C.T.E.) courses such as Culinary Arts have access to new laptop computers, which they use for research, planning presentations, and working on other group projects. Once students have had a brainstorming session, drafted a plan of execution, and submitted their written plan, students head into the lab to prepare their first stock. After the stocks are prepared, students properly cool, label and refrigerate their stock. Students then start the design process all over again to find uses for each stock, be it soup, sauce for an entrée, or maybe a side dish like “risotto” made ever-so-popular by Chef Ramsey.
Culinary Arts students are trained to work in professional kitchens, and are taught to develop a strong work ethic. Clemente’s students are also taught with a focus on a “world view”. Our students gain knowledge and experience to work anywhere in the world! The methods and techniques that the Clemente culinary students receive go beyond the norm of simple cooking. They learn to research other countries, to learn not only about their cuisine, but their geography, government, lifestyle, and citizens in order to develop a more complete international lens.
