Reflective Writing

Reflecting on Challenge - Roulade of Salmon with Halibut Mousseline and Salmon and Halibut Mosaic wrapped With Nori.

During Lab 11 our Advanced Culinary Techniques,  we had to prepare Salmon with Halibut Mousseline and Salmon with Halibut Mosiac wrapped around with Nori Sheet, we also had to prepare black rice, white wine Sabayon, Baby Bok Choy as our side dish with Pasta ring as a Garnish and unique element of the plate. 

This was particularly a challenge lab for me as we had a lot of elements on our plate and this was something that was really new to me as I had never poached a fish before, especially one that were wrapped in leeks, and the other other with nori sheet. What was challenging was making sure the fish is cooked to the right temperature without it undercooking or overcooking, and without letting any water seep into it. I, along with my teammate Dalpreet, were able to cook the fish eventually, while not coming out perfect we overcame the challenge and were able to get it ready within plating time. One of the other challenges that I faced were with the Pasta ring, as I was not able to make a perfect pasta ring at first and even kept it in the oven too long which lead it to burn. But we did our best and re-did the pasta ring, only this time we were able to get it done better than the first time. In the end we were  able to get everything ready within the given time frame and came out strong, overcoming the challenge. This was truly a good experience and something that I learned a lot from, about timing, temperature and more.

Reflecting on a Successful Dish - Vegan Cheesecake, with Pistachio Streusel, Blueberry Lemon Coulis and Fruitleather.

During our Lab 13 of Advanced baking and pastry techniques, we were faced with the task of preparing Vegan cheesecake Crust (made with dates), Strawberry Salsa, Pistachio Streusel, Fruit leather and Lemon Coulis. Even though this was one of the labs that would be considered to be moderately easy, I choose to reflect upon this dish as I found it very intriguing how baking can be simple sometimes yet seems to provide many different flavors at the same time. This plate has has many flavors - coconut, dates, pistachio, lemon, blueberry and on top of that it provided a great opportunity where I was able to plate much better than some of the other labs that I were a part of. 

It definitely did test skills on time management,   precision, and whilst showcasing how it is important to also have a good eye for plating, even though this is common for plating all dishes, this one personally stood out to me the most.

Reflecting writing - Personal Growth and skill Development.

It has been over an year now since I have been in Durham College and reflecting upon my growth and development I have to say that I have been provided with many opportunities and a lot of support, at first it was difficult to adapt to the change of surroundings since I am an international student, but with continuous change and structure of the program such as field placement program in second semester where I was placed at The Lake Grill, I have been able to learn a great deal about professionalism.

I have been able to grow my overall character with the help of my mentors, whilst also learning a lot of new skills that can be applied to both work and real life practices such as time management skills, organizational skills, teamwork, cooperation and more. I have been able to build a stronger sense of responsibility, confidence and resilience, moreover, these experiences helped me to be able to step out of my comfort zone, take initiative and embrace new challenges rather than shy away from them which is what I was aspiring for . I have been able to focus and learn many new skills such as knife skills, plating skills, and learning about different ingredients, cultures and cuisines. Nevertheless, I believe that it this is a continuous process, and I am committed to continue growing both professionally and personally.