Studio Kitchen Reflection

Visiting Studio Kitchen was a unique experience that allowed me to see a different side to what goes into making delicious and innovative dishes. Chef Shola's passion and love of food was inspiring. He was incredibly precise in his work and strived for perfection. He told us he is so careful because he feels that by not doing something right the first time he is just wasting his time. This was interesting to me because I have always seen cooking as a series of trials and error instead of something so methodical and precise. It was clear that Shola loves what he does and is very knowledgeable. He was able to answer our questions about our own projects and provide advice for dealing with certain ingredients that are not usually providing in cook books. I like how he has not conformed to the normal culinary path of training and moving through the ranks of various restaurants, but instead followed what he believes and is interested in to create his own work that he enjoys.

Shola had many different machines that we are not able to use in the classroom and it was cool so see them at work and the different ways he used them. He took something as simple as watermelon with a little salt on top and using his pressurized vacuum sealer he turned it into something with and entirely new look and texture. Then he went on to use the vacuum sealer to make an aerated chocolate mousse that rose before our eyes as the machine lowered the air pressure inside it to allow air to flow out of the seal on the mousses container. This was not only cool to watch but it also related to properties we talked about in chemistry and physics class at school. Shola also made fresh pasta in another machine. Using only flour and water he carefully created the perfect mixture in order to create a dough that could be compressed into little pieces of pasta. He showed us how each part of the machine worked and let use hold the metal die that created the shape of the pasta. The first pieces that came out were rough and he explained that if he put the dough back in it would come out smoother next time as the die heated up. The process of making the pasta and explaining it to us did not take longer than 15 minutes. This amazed because I have always though that homemade pasta took hours of work. Next he cooked the pasta and topped it with a bolognese sauce with tomatoes, carrots, celery, and grass fed beef. This sauce put my grandfathers homade bolognese to shame. He also made us a delicious margherita pizza in his wood fire oven. Chef Shola started with a dough that he has fermented overnight and carefully worked it into a circular pizza crust. He then topped it with a sauce he made with  tomatoes and imported Italian oregano. Next came the Parmesan cheese, fresh basil, mozzarella, and a drizzle of olive oil. He cooked this in the 750 degree oven for about three minutes and when he brought it back inside the smells that filled the air were mouth watering. We all fought over who would get the final slices. For dessert he served us the aerated chocolate mousse after chilling it in his blast freezer with a butterscotch mousse on top. Additionally he made cheese and lemon meringues using his whipped cream cannister and liquid nitrogen. This process amazed us because the low temperatures of the liquid nitrogen caused water vapor in the air to condense so it looked like there was fog pouring out of the bowls. After placing a spoonful of the lemon and cheese whip in the liquid nitrogen for a few seconds, he handed me a small meringue. I popped it into my mouth and imeddiately the cold, hard shell collapsed leaving a warm, liquid interior. Every dish Shola gave us amazed me and made me want to lick my plate clean. As someone who loves eating delicious and different foods this experience was a great one. When I got home last night I was so excited to tell my family all about my day. I have already convinced them to try to get a reservation at at Studio Kitchen for our next family dinner.