Course Reflection: Level #3

Fundamentals of Cookery

Name: Mark Enomoto Date: March 4, 2010

Philosophy:
My philosophy entering this course was to learn the fundamentals of cookery – just as the name of the course simply explains. That philosophy hasn’t changed. I’m still a firm believer that real skill development is only as good as the fundamental skills that it’s built upon. From the untrained eye the fundamentals are the boring stuff, the tedious stuff, the pain in the butt stuff. But any experienced person will always see past the flair, and straight into the fundamental skills. If you never learned to walk, you wouldn’t have learned to run, skip, or jump.
Goals:
It’s amazing. I now realize that if you take full advantage of the experiences that life gives you, things can change in a huge way.
In the summer of 2009, after a temporary hiatus, I realized that I belonged in the restaurant industry, and if I was going to make it a career I wanted to cook. So, I began looking into culinary schools. Preferably, I wanted to leave home and experience a new life away from the comforts (or discomforts, at the time) of home. But, figuring out how I was going to fund it looked impossible. But, with God’s blessings my family stepped forward and decided that I was never given a real chance at school, and that they’d help me out at Kapiolani Community College. To this day, I get emotional about it. It’s truly a blessing, and an acknowledgment that I’m heading in the right direction.
My goal in my first semester back in school was to get the best culinary education I could. I had thought of schools like the Culinary Institute of America, Le Cordon Bleu, and the Art Institute, but they seemed unreachable to me – especially the Culinary Institute. I asked an instructor about her thoughts on me looking into the C.I.A., but her advice was to finish KCC and start working because it would be too hard at my age.
But, as my initial goal led me into Chef Leakes CULN 120 – Fundamentals to Cookery – it in turn, opened up a whole new goal. Being a C.I.A. graduate as well, Chef Leake encouraged me to go despite any fears I might have had. But, all I needed was a little encouragement, and I was requesting a packet from the C.I.A., not in California, but from Hyde Park in New York!
So, my next goal… New York!
Expectations:
The expectations I had coming into Fundamental to Cookery were high. From what I had heard from other students was that it was hard, that you had no life, you did a lot of writing, and you have to be in class extra early. In all truth, they were right. But, in all honesty, that is why I took the course. From my past experiences, I know that the industry is hard – that is why I left it behind me in the first place. So, with that understanding, if real life work is hard, why start off easy? I wanted to be blanched and shocked! And if I could handle it, and still be passionate about a culinary education and career, I knew I’d chosen the right path for myself.
I will probably receive an “A” for the course, but it wasn’t without mental, physical, and emotional challenges. But, in return I believe I’ve developed in those areas as well – mentally, physically, and emotionally.
Reflection of Experiences:
Funny, I must be an adult now because I loved and appreciated all my time in this course – from being disappointed to receiving unimaginable compliments. Each moment was a learning process. I was relieved to hear Chef say today that the things we experienced can’t be learned over night, but in know in my heart that they are things that I need to continue to work on.
One experience I have mentored visiting students on is that, besides teaching fundamental cooking skills, this course will teach you the importance of time management. I’ve shared them my challenges and failures in the class, so that they can mentally prepare themselves to be challenged as well. My time management skills were challenged up until the very last few minutes of “mystery basket” exam day. So, in reflection it’s a good reminder that it’s a skill that I need to continue to sharpen.
Positive Experiences:
I think my most positive experiences in this past eight weeks were my worst. Some that come to mind are soups, stocks, and sauces. Then, there was what I called the “three strike brown rice.” And finally, breakfast cookery.
There was so much to learn from these experiences, and for the most part I did learn, and that’s always a plus. Had I not learned, it would have ended with it just being a bad experience and nothing more.
The first few weeks of this course went fairly well, with very little disappointments at all. But, that would all come to a halt when I started soups, stocks, sauces. But the lessons I learned were these:
• I control the heat.
• Develop an eye for reduction.
• Patience with others is an opportunity to develop two at once.
“Three strike brown rice” was my worse day of the course. Frustrated, I kept saying to myself, “I can’t even make rice!” But, at the end of the day, putting the frustrations aside, there were lessons to learn. A few were:
• Don’t take simplicity for granted.
• You may not know what you think you know.
• In every failure there’s opportunity.javascript:void(0)
And in breakfast cookery:
• How to manage my failures by staying positive and not giving up.
• Try again.
• Do it better than the last time.
Besides turning bad experiences into positive ones, I’ve also had experiences that were just purely great. Making new friends is definitely one. I’ve befriended some positive people, who are good influences to me while in school, and possibly in the future as well. In the book ”Coaching Culinary Champions: You, the Team and Competition” by Chef Frank Leake, I believe Chef Lance Nitahara said it best, saying, “I am the product of the sum total of individuals whom I have met throughout my life.”

Humbling Moments:
“Mark, this is one of the most amazing Practical Finals that I have ever read. You are thorough providing essential details for all your tasks. You are methodical, have excellent skills, a positive attitude and you are honest. These positive attributes are reflective throughout your final plan as they are in all that you have pursued during this class. I would like to have your permission to use your plan for teaching and learning of future students enrolled in my classes. Your final plan will provide a new level of learning to these students. Your permission please? Excellent work!” –Chef Leake
You would think that a praising comment like this would put me up on a peddle stool, or boost my confidence through the roof. But, every positive comment I received from my Chef floored me. Initially I’d be confused thinking, “I don’t understand?” Maybe it’s because it’s I know I’ve got so much to accomplish and learn. Maybe because I know confidence is shattered as fast as it’s built. Or maybe it’s hard to except because I know that expectations will be higher when I go to the C.I.A. where I’ll be amongst the best of the best. What ever it is, it stirs up emotions I can only believe is that I’m carrying what I’m suppose to do in life, and people believe that I am capable of doing it. I’m thankful for it, and I respectfully accept these compliments from my mentor Chef Leake. Thank you Chef.