Eddie\’s Bloggage –>

I have obtained the certificate from the previous module. However there is just one more module left in which thankfully, only contains one level. In this module, some of the things I learnt were mastering the basics of cooking, how practice makes perfect and finishing techniques. I guess what this module encompassed was everything that I have learnt from module one with a few new things to add to the cake.

What I learnt was self explanatory. It was interesting to see how cooking can be such a technical skills to learn. It is not: turn stove on, and cook your meat. In fact, there is more to that than meets the eye. From this learning online course, I have experinced both theoretical and practical implications and its application.

In addition, there was also a test. The test comprised of fifteen question, which had five more than the usual ten like from each level in module one. After two attempt, I was able to successfully complete the whole online mastery of cooking course. I think I can be the next  iron chef. Actually no, not yet.

Anyways here is the my certificate of my achievement:

http://img87.imageshack.us/img87/5158/certificatebg222wx9.gif

- By the way, I personally dislike the layout of the certificate created from BBC. It looks like the maker of the certificate just woke up and was given a few minutes to do it. It looks dodgy to my liking. Oh well, its still a certificate (but it looks fake). LoL.

Module Five was the last module for level one, which gave a good sigh of relief. In this module, it was the most fun as it was practical and related to making desserts. The module was in regards to patisserie and presentation. Some of the techniques I used and learnt in this module were presentation for desserts, finishing techniques and using garnishes.

I enjoyed this because in relation to my work which caters for a wide range of desserts including pancakes, I can see how presentation makes a big difference to the appeal of wanting to eat it. I noticed that when ever I worked, if the desserts were made carefully and nicely with bright colours, the customers would be very satisfied and they would crave for the dessert.

In addition, I also took part in some practical work. One of the main desserts I made was covering the side of an ice cream bowl with chocolate sauce then I carefully scooped some vanilla ice cream of equal size and proportion and placed it nicely in the bowl. For the finishing touches, I drenched the topping with a lucuious coating of raspberry coulie with a garnish of strawberries on the side. I took a picture and will post it up later.

I also did the test and it was the easiest and most fun. An easy ten was on the sheet. What this meant afterwards was that I have finally completed my online course. At the end of the page allowed me to download the certificate to verify that I have successfully completed the course.

Overall, I have quite learnt quite a lot. Even though there were some general stuff I already knew, there were some things that opened my eyes for example the amount of bacteria that can be found in knives etc. I hope I can use this knowledge and transfer what I have learnt to teach my girlfriend

Here is my certifcate of my success:

http://img144.imageshack.us/img144/1308/certificatebg111dg3.gif

It was a nice day today and I just did extra on continuing doing the online course. I am currently doing Module Three which deals with knife handling and safety.Some of thing I learnt in this Module were cutting, cleaning and storing knives. From a personal perspective, I thought this was an important topic because I can cut food with knives but I do not know the effective way of cutting properly and with the right certain knives.

Another major thing I learnt was how using the same knife to cut for example chicken and afterwards another meat such as beef. Of course I already knew that it can spread bacteria but it showed a picture of the amount of bacteria that is caused by cross contamination due to use of knives. I shall be more careful next time I’ll be in the kitchen and cut some meat up.

Again I did the test. Just like on Module Two, I had a few answers wrong so i had to correct my answers before continuing to the next Module. This again was quite vigorous and took some time because of the perfect score needed to advance to the next module.

Module Four. This is the second last Module for level one. This time things got a bit difficult. The module was in regards to purchasing and budgeting. I didn’t learn much from this because it doesn’t interest me. I know that in restaurant this is vital for the success of the company and to ensure that they make money. However, everything I learnt from this did not kick into my head straight away. It seemed too many short cuts was taken when undertaking this module.

I guess it can be seen after the completion of the test. It was so funny because I only got three out of ten question. It was a pretty lousy effort but I still needed to redo the test or I wouldn’t be able to get to the next level. To cut things simple, I redid the test four times before I successfully perfected the score. It was frustrating because some of the question included calculation which meant I had to use my brain to add stuff up and I wasn’t in the mood. Overall, this Module took too long. I think it was about an hour of my time that was consumed doing this. Ohh.. the stress but it was worth it.

Today I started on the online learning course. It started with a bit of procrastination but then I was able to get a start on it. Module One’s main focus was food hygeine. Some of the concepts I learnt in this module were bacteria, cross contamination, handling and storing of the food. I thought that it was a great idea that Module One started off with hygeine because cooking is not all about the nitty gritty so to speak of how to cook. Other things that surround it such as hygeine, bacteria and how we store/prepare food is critical because without doing it properly, that would mean there would be no ingredients to cook any food what so ever.

 I learnt alot from this Module because I personally work in a busy restaurant that is open 24 hours. Therefore, it was critical for me to know these kinds of things and how to prevent things such as food poisoning and bacteria spreading.

The Module easily took at least half and hour and that is just doing the reading. Took some time but it was intersting. Afterwards, I conducted the test for Module One. The test was very easy as I read all the theory very carefully as to make sure that I fully understood everything. Afterwards, came Module Two.

Module Two was in relation to receiving and checking delivery. The importance of this Module I think was the fact that sometimes restaurants are receiving deliviery in bulk and it is essential for the goods to be in good condition, such as differnt types of meat in separate bags, expiry dates etc. I found some of the things I learnt in this course to flow with Module One. For example, temperature quality, meat and poultry storage, quantity and stock rotation from what I can remember. Again, from what I have learnt in this Module I can relate to my work. At my workplace, we have all variety of poultry including pork, beef and chicken. We also have seafood. With the amount of food that we go through to cook is unbelievable. We would usually do stock once every week and this would mean that we need to thorough research as to roughly how much we need to stock up without the chance of it being unused or expired.

After doing the Module Two test, it was apparent that I did not fully understand strongly in regards to checking deliveries as I work on the floor and the bar. Out of ten multiple question, I only got seven correct.

One of the annoying things I learnt after doing this test was that I could not continue to do Module Three until I had successfully completed a perfect score. Therefore, I conducted the test again and thank good ness after my second attempt I managed to get a perfect ten.

I felt that this became frustrating for me because you really needed to learn your stuff before doing the test. I think this module took approximately fourty five minutes to do and became quite stressful. So now I will rest and the other modules later on.

The online learning course that I have decided to complete is a cooking course obtained from: http://www.bbc.co.uk/food/tv_and_radio/masterchef/modules_index.shtml

The reason as to why I have chosen this is because I have always had a passion for cooking. I would usually cook a variety of food at home but I wouldn’t consider myself to be a top chef. Therefore, I think that by undertaking this online course I will benefit with a variety of new skills and attributes that I can bring next time I make some mean fried rice. Better yet, the course is free.

Before starting on the course I wanted to make sure that it was the course I wanted to do and that it met the requirements of the assessment. Firstly, it had to be at least a four hour course. This course did meet the requirements as it was broken up into two levels. The first level comprised of five modules with each taking about half an hour to complete. Then level two was the advanced level which one had one module. After both levels were completed, it continues by saying that if i was successful, I will be able to obtain an online certificate to show that I have passed the course.

Another aspect was that it needed to be half practical and half theoretical. This again met the requirements as there was theory in regards to storing raw meat, knowing when meat is cooked etc. Also, how to present your dishes after making some desserts. This can be linked to my learning style as I did not want to do something that would not allows me to learn my preferred way.

Some of the objectives I want to achieve is to learn a different ways of preparing and cooking food. I want to fulfil my skills and knowledge so I can confidently apply it next time. Another objective is to gain an insight on chef mastery and attributes.

From the looks of what I have read about the course, it seems to be a wise decision and seeing as though I have gotten it approved by the teacher, I will in the next coming days start on this course. I really look forward and can’t wait to learn something new. Hopefully, I can gain some new knowledge in the process so that maybe I will be able to teach somebody else, maybe my girlfriend perhaps.