Our First Food and Nutrition Practical Session

We had our first practical session today and on the menu was mini beef burger with coleslaw! Through this practical, we learnt some basic cutting techniques like julienne, brunoise (dicing), chiffonade (shredding) and mincing. It was an interesting experience to work in a top-of-the-art foods laboratory.

 

Here're the recipes that Mrs Stevenson provided:

Coleslaw

 Serves 6 to 8

Ingredients

1/2 cabbage

1/2 green capsicum

A stem of celery

1/2 large onion

1 carrot

4 tbsp low fat mayonnaise
1/2 tbsp lemon juice
2 tbsp raisins
1/2 red apple

Method

1. Shred cabbage.
2. Julienne green pepper and carrot.
3. Dice celery and red apple.
4. Brunoise onion.
5. Toss cut vegetables and raisins in a mixing bowl with low fat mayonnaise and lemon to mix well. Chill in salad bowl before serving.

Mini Burgers

 Makes about 6 to 8 mini burgers

Ingredients
150g minced chicken
150g minced beef
25g bread crumbs
1/4 large onion
1 tbsp tomato sauce
1 egg
Pepper and salt
1 tsp Wostershire
3 hotdog buns
2 slices of cheese
1-2 tbsp cooking oil

Method

1. Brunoise the large onion.
2. In a medium mixing bowl, combine minced chicken, beef and onions; season mixture with tomato sauce, Wostershire sauce, pepper and salt.
3. Mix meat mixture with bread crumbs and beaten egg to combine.
4. Divide combeined meat mixture into 6 to 8 portions (about the size of the palm) and shape into burger patties and place on a preparation plate.
5. Grease frying pan with 1 to 2 tablespoons of oil and heat on low-med flame.
6. When pan is heated, place meat patties on and cook each side for about 3 to 5 minutes before flipping. Ensure meat is cooked thoroughly and place a slice of cheese on each patty to melt the cheese slightly before removing from pan.
7. Cut hot dog buns into 3 sections and stack cooked meat patty in between.
8. Serve with a side of coleslaw.

Here're some pictures from today:

Our colourful ingredients

Shredding the cabbage

 

Practicing the julienne technique.

Done!

And while our coleslaw was chilling in the fridge, we worked on our mini burgers.

Ready to be cooked!
TIP 1: It is important to note that we should not press on the patties while they are being cooked to prevent loss of juices from the patties, which will ensure that the patties turn out juicy and tasty.
TIP 2: Place the slices of cheese on the patties just before removing them from the pan so that the cheese will be slightly melted.

Viola! Our finished products! :)