# Tasks you love doing!!



## kuan (Jun 11, 2001)

This is the companion to the tasks you hate doing thread. 

Me? I loved doing the ice carvings for buffets.


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## aprilb (Feb 4, 2006)

I love using my imagination and hands to create pastries, decorating cakes, mixing, blending, dipping strawberries, sculpting, using pastry bags. I love the tactile and touching and kneeding and artwork involved.

Definitely dessert and pastrywork. <final answer...:lol: >

 
April


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## mredikop (Dec 6, 2006)

I love prep! I love it! Give me my santoku knife and boxes of produce and leave me alone with my headphones blaring HIM into my skull and I will chop everything in the place. I love chopping and cutting everything and anything, meats, fish, veggies, fruits, people errrm I mean you know... stuff you eat like, yeah that's the ticket.:crazy:


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## nentony (May 7, 2005)

I'll second what Mike said. I also really enjoy making soups, the whole process.

Tony


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## jayme (Sep 5, 2006)

pizza dough- gotta agree with April on the fun of the tactile..
and presentation- saucing plates, arranging, garnishing- making everything look appealing. Don't mind prep either, esp. if you have someone to chat with or some good tunes.....:bounce:


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## sleepy_dragon (Aug 30, 2005)

Any kind of butchery, but the more whole the animal, the better.

Also agree about soups and sauces.

Playing with spices.

Knocking out prep and crossing things off the to-do list.

Seeing all the prep arrayed for battle!

And all your tournes are belong to me!


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## mikeb (Jun 29, 2004)

Making bread. Nice and relaxing.


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## kuan (Jun 11, 2001)

Hey that's the best feeling isn't it? Sit down, take a break before the rush. 

You know what I used to like doing? (I say used to because I'm a stay at home Dad now) I liked to do the specials using the whole animal. Chef would order in eight rabbits, or a dozen squab, or venison saddle. I could take my time and do things the right way. Those were the days when hotel restaurants were expected to put out top quality without worrying about cost too much.


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## cacook (Jan 18, 2006)

Definitely +1


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## blade55440 (Sep 9, 2005)

i may not be great in the bakery, but I can definately agree with you there.


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## panini (Jul 28, 2001)

I like making daily specials ie. lunch, soups, etc.
I love counting money. :lol:


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## shel (Dec 20, 2006)

I'm not a professional (hope I can post here), but thought I'd drop in and see what everyone likes to do. For me, it's making soup and stock, and I love going to the market to find just the right ingredients and the right quality ingredients.

Shel


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## the_seraphim (Dec 25, 2006)

know what i love about the job? i love it when the waitstaff bring back the empty plate plus a nice comment...

one i got the other day "tell the chef he really knows how to do a steak medium rare" and another one was "thats the first piece of chargrilled liver that wasnt torn up and tasted nice at the same time!" 

i like putting it all together on a plate adding the right kinds of garnish, even sometimes sprigs of parsley, i know a few dishes where chopped parsley adds to the flavour, and having it look nice when its sat infront of the customer and having an empty plate brought back. sometimes even the sprigs of parsley are gone !?!?

im gonna be moving into doing a carvery soonish, 2 or 3 months... ill get to be (hopefully) out front with the customers, for at least part of the time.


oh and as for santoku knifes and prep... well firstly ive been tired recently, and missed something and hit my finger... anyway a day later i hit the plaster i had over the wound with the same knife...i checked my knife and some git had chipped the blade slightly and it was holding onto the stuff i was cutting and i wasnt used to it (i sharpen it all the time, in the end i use an 8000 grit japanese waterstone) 
anyway i did so much prep yesterday that when i got in today about half an hour into service i still didnt need to do any prep hehe i love to prep... its satisfying knowing you dont have to panic...


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## tsblo (Jan 19, 2007)

I suppose I am the odd one in this thread, I despise prep. 
I love the 4-7pm rush though. Where I work, our line fills with orders fast, from both the bar and the dining room, and to keep track of 10-20 plates at a time is a huge rush for me. Getting them all out and right though is the reward.
I also love walking off the line, and walking out of the kitchen into the cool night air, after a busy night.


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## powers (Dec 7, 2006)

Putting out the same dish after 500 hundred times, in the middle of a rush, that I would if I had all day. The same quality, presenation and overall suane (sp?) 
I love watching the tickets line up, hearing nothing but orders being called, chopping, sizzling and the occasional chuckle. I lo9ve it all the end of the night when you grab a drink and reflect on how well you did that day.
Sitting down with fellow chefs talking about food(all night), writing menus, testing flavor combinations.
And last but not least.......dating my waitstaff and hostesses......
.................................................. ....just kidding!


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## erik (Jan 23, 2006)

I love making laminated doughs (croissant, puff, danish)

I know alot of people who consider them a pain, but I love them!


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## chefintraining (Jul 29, 2006)

I love the rush on the line and I love doing prep. I especially like slicing mushrooms for some reason, it's just one of those things


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## eponodyne (May 30, 2006)

I like mushrooms too. I just got a new Shun santoku; I can now get like twice the yield for salads as I could before. I would never in a million years tell Chef this, but I kind of like a stint in the dishpit every now and again. 

Soups too. "All Your Bisque Are Belong To Us!"


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## oldschool1982 (Jun 27, 2006)

Why cooking, of course! Plain and simple to elegant and extravagant and everything in between.:chef:


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## breton beats (Feb 21, 2007)

Roasting veal bones and making 50 gals. of stock then demi glace!
Making Charcuterie and meat fab
Laminating doughs and shaping croissants
Making icecream
Re-organizing the dry storage
Figuring out food cost
Shopping in foreign super markets ( I used to be a private chef in France - Carrefour rocks!)


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## cacook (Jan 18, 2006)

I like cooking at home or during a slow lunch hour. You get to really take your time. Perfect grill marks on the meat with perfect carmelization...the garnish perfectly arranged on the plate...the sauce draped right over the meat and not running all over the starch and vegetable...everything is perfectly neat and clean...plenty of pans and plates at your disposal...I love it. Don't get me wrong...plates should be perfect when it's busy also...but you guys have to agree they do look a little better when it's slower. 

The thing I love about cooking at home is you aren't in a rush to get something done. You can take your time and do everything exactly how you want it...try out new dishes without worrying if your chef is going to yell at you for using extra food and driving food cost up...

I just don't like using the housewife tools and pans that I've had since before culinary school. Funny thing is that they're really nice because I was making a lot of money before the culinary epiphany...now I make ten dollars an hour. At least I don't come home and stare at the tv for hours before I go to bed because I hate my job so much I need to get my mind off it!


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## eponodyne (May 30, 2006)

Braises; I have become a serious student of the art of the braise. I like doing anything that takes a while so i can multi-task and get stuff done. i take an imbecile pleasure in making metal shine, I kind of like to clean the stainless (Hot tip: Spend a week scrubbing the hood baffles nightly. After the week is over, just get in the habit of running them through the dishwasher every night or every other. It's a lot easier to keep them clean than it is to get them clean.).

I kind of like doing garnishes, fortunately we have a separate division for the banquets and I never have to prep for more than about 100 covers that way. 

Really enjoy picking up that check, especially after a pay period with a lot of overtime. Then I hear the waitstaff complaining about making "only" 250 a night and I want to murder them and braise their shanks and serve them to management.


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## entropy (Nov 11, 2006)

Making pasta is fun, esp cutting it at the end with the pasta machine, crankety crank!


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## elgigante (Mar 18, 2006)

I love being on the line of the open kitchen making food knowing that 90% of the prep is done and I can just cook (happens once in awhile). I also like coming in, grabbing a cutting board, my knife and steel and all my prep ingredients and working for those brief few moments before someone starts asking where to find something...


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## bizkit (Feb 6, 2007)

Plain and simple....VEAL STOCK!!! It makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside.


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## dmt (Jul 28, 2006)

CIT,
I take it things are better than they were last August??
Sounds like you're getting along well.
Glad to see that you're making headway.
Best of luck!!!


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## salliem (Nov 3, 2006)

I love going in early to work, being the only one there and just getting all of my work done before everyone else comes in...also enjoy being the main expiditer on a busy night..:talk:


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## peachcreek (Sep 21, 2001)

Cutting steaks off of a perfectly aged and marbled 1x1 striploin. Makes you wonder if your customers are worthy!


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## ras1187 (Oct 3, 2006)

Going home after a brutal day. (might not qualify as a task)

Flaming anything with alcohol. I consider myself to be a borderline pyromaniac, so fire is always something that amuses me.

Creating perfect grill marks on any piece of meat (no mediocre marks).

Making hollandaise. Each time I get better at it.

Plating for banquets. Concentrated rush.

Making a reduction of just about any liquid.

Making crab cakes. The house recipe was given to me by my chef, and I have tweaked it slightly to become my own.


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## shroomgirl (Aug 11, 2000)

Flaming anything with alcohol. I consider myself to be a borderline pyromaniac, so fire is always something that amuses me.

I just got a benozamatic flame torch from Home Depot...brulee is on every menu these days, it's so fun......I've not set off a fire alarm yet, but wonder what it would take to do so.....

ceramic, I love my ceramic knife.....it's a jewel, clean neat slices....no drag.

Making up shtuff on a menu then having to figure out what exactly I'm making (just seems like a stretching exercise)...ie cranberry tangerine topped brie. I took craisins, mandrian oj and passion fruit juice frozen concentrate cook, thicken and top the brie...

Having everything come together at an offsite event when you're wondering if sanity is in anyway part of the job description.


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## katiebour (Mar 14, 2007)

I agree, this is especially satisfying. 

I love cleaning up after the morning prep and buffet set-up- a place for everything and everything in its place.

I also love cooking one or two tickets at a time- not too busy but getting to do some fun stuff. 

Also making pizzas and running deliveries, listening to the music in my car and relaxing during a break from the sometimes stressful kitchen.


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## sgmchef (Sep 30, 2006)

Seeing the plates go out and come back clean!

Pairing new wines with food! (Drinking wine for free!)

Having people ask for the recipe.

Teaching others about why products turn out the way they do.

Salvaging some one else's problem product.

Working with leftovers.


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## cookie mama (Mar 6, 2005)

I love experimenting with recipes. I made at least seven or eight different types of cookies from one recipe. I love taking home empty dishes from the office and hearing people tell me to have my own buisiness. I had several people wanting to place orders! That is my favorite thing


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## shroomgirl (Aug 11, 2000)

I just taught a yeast dough class and having students (these were women of a certain age) work in a hands-on environment leaving knowing that they will continue making yeast doughs now. Or the AHA moment when they get whatever I'm trying to impart. I love turning others on to something wonderful....and in turn learning new shtuff myself.
One of my last students owns about 80 grocery stores.....kinda cool when they want to put your personal favorite ing. in their stores.


I took a food writer to some of my favorite ethnic stores Sat......Italian bakery, Volpi meats, Italian grocery store, German butcher, Cuban/Spanish grocery/deli......watching her was fun. 
My next prof. demo will be how to clean offal or weird critter bits.

Getting in my next piggy soon and breaking it down with another restauranteur (her husband wants nothing to do with it, she thinks it'll be a hoot)


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## psyco6stringer (Apr 16, 2008)

I love doing anything braised ..love the time and effort it takes to get it just right .The whole cook down process to have that lovely pan in sauce and tender fall off the bone loving ...oh yea.
And for some reason love fabbing down anything fish , chickens , beef etc ..just fun to me for some reason. Maybe that for one I can take my time a bit :lol:


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## the_seraphim (Dec 25, 2006)

it gets so hot in our kitchen on a sunday, that if the fire alarm hasnt gone of at least twice, its not actually busy


i like keeping everything clean all night so that at the end, its a quick wipe to finish

i like training the new staff, then they do things properly and cost effectively.

i like trying new things, i especially love trying things that are quick, cheap and easy

- edit oh and i like burning all the cardboard waste... and im not a borderline pyro, im just a normal pyro


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## tessa (Sep 9, 2007)

yeah im with you on that score, but anything to do with preping and then cooking the final product, serving up and making it look good, taking a real pride in what i have just done , i am also doing some volunteer teaching of cooking at the hospice a couple hours a week and it is just so much fun , im loving teaching these people how to cook, sharing my skills and knowledge with others and sharing their skills and knowledge with me is just incredible


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## buonaboy (Sep 5, 2007)

Really, no joke, I find mirepoix incredibly therapeutic. Even after 15 years, when I have a large prep day at the restaurant, I like to pour a coffee, set up my station and do all the mirepoix I need for the whole day. I'm absolutely not O.C.D in the rest of my life, but in this one area, I just zen out. I love seeing perfect little squares of carrot, I love having a knife so razor sharp that it glides through an onion with almost no pressure... and the smell of it sauteing is familiar and comforting. It makes even the most daunting prep list go smoothly.

Butchering is another one of my fav's, but that usually creeps people out . 
-ciao


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## chef.esg.73 (Dec 10, 2007)

Not exactlly a task, but I love to sit around with other Chefs and swap all the war/battle stories of the kitchen...other than that i love to go in a cooler and just look at all the rolloing racks filled with all the prep and displays for all parties....


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## bazza (Apr 2, 2007)

I love filleting fish, I find it really relaxing. Does that sound odd?
Making stocks, very rewarding.


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## saltydog (Mar 16, 2008)

Getting to work early on Saturdays. No phone answering, no purveyors, no deliveries, no check writing, no cooks to direct. Just me and my dog doing my thing in the kitchen. (which is all of the above)


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## salliem (Nov 3, 2006)

Getting to work early, getting all of the prep work done. I have my own prep kitchen, the only people I ever really see are the beer delivery guys, the bar backs getting their ice and ever once in awhile the chef comes back to tell me some little tidbit. Always done by 3 p.m. and then get to relax a bit before the rush.


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## stellasmomma (Dec 26, 2007)

cleaning the freezer gives me secret joy... don't tell my cooks!


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## boar_d_laze (Feb 13, 2008)

any kind of knife work
sharpening the knives

steeling the knives -- making a little chef music -- "tzzzzzing, tzzzzzing"

toss turning

pan reductions

butter finishes -- love the swirling and see structure starting to appear

whisking lots of air in by hand with the big balloon (no smacking the bowl -- learned that by being yelled at in a brigade -- stupid really, but a point of pride now)

kneading dough, feeling it change in my hands

making biscuits, and "turning" them for layers without beating down the gas -- just mindless, eye-closed, finger tip sensation through the pin. I stop when the dough starts to feel stiff under the pin, or heavy when I pick up an edge to fold it. Can always get one turn (6 layers), can I get three (216)?

cream colored ponies and crisp apple strudels

doorbells with sleigh bells and schnitzel with noodles

wild geese that fly with the moon on their wings

these are a few of my favorite things,
BDL


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## adamm (Jul 16, 2005)

Butchering pieces of meat

Doing prep work, especially slicing mushrooms.

Sharpening knives when im not rushed.


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## youngbuck (Oct 23, 2007)

I really love working saute during the rush putting together the organized and composed plates. Also, I love doing the prep for the next day when the place is closed and its just me and maybe the sous chef jammin out and being able to take our time. I hate having to take shortcuts to get stuff out.


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## tchef (Mar 13, 2008)

every morning, chosing my fish from the days landings,,,,,,bliss and i always learn from the dudes as well,,,,,heaven:lips:


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## chefboy2160 (Oct 13, 2001)

I love being the chef, the one who plays the music for the dance with our food! I also love employee relations as far as building good crews. Heck I just love this biz..................


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## ras1187 (Oct 3, 2006)

I love doing Inventory </sarcasm>

Actually it looks so far that we are gonna finally hit that food cost weve been aiming for, and we re-organized our cluttered freezer so it looks really nice right now. I expect this look to last for about 72 hours before I go back to being disgusted with how cluttered the freezer is.


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## chefraz (May 10, 2007)

I love banquets large 500 / 600 banquets preping, dishing and seeing it out.


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## shroomgirl (Aug 11, 2000)

finding wild mushrooms....emphasis on finding.

shopping. There is nothing like discovering something in a proveyer's walkin that looks interesting, or out on a farm and the guy is raising tiny brussel sprouts that would have been culled if I hadn't said I'll take them, or just the ripest fruit/cheese......
showing up at the fish shop and seeing the first of the season soft shell crabs.


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## mrdelicious (Aug 28, 2006)

My favorite thing to do is figure out how to do things differently... use a soup mix as a marinade? Make a sauce from leftovers, or just light candles while enjoying ice cream!!


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## durangojo (Jul 30, 2007)

i love just about everything in the kitchen( with the exception of cleaning the greasetrap), but most of all i love the 'zone' a kitchen gets into when its really humming along..you are totally prepped up, so are fearless..you know that your ingredients are fresh and your hands are ready...you have made the same dish 40 times that night and its still something you are proud to present and eat yourself...love it when the empty plates come back with fingermarks throughout...when customers come 'visit' with me in the kitchen and at the end of the night when my husband gives me the dollar total! going to bed tired but happy and wondering how long i can pull this off for..then its 35 years later and still repeating the performance and asking the same question..kinda reminds me of being onstage night after night after night..performance after performance..except no flowers!..its all good though!!!
joey


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