BETTER DEGREE OF SAUCES AT UCL

Feeding tomorrow’s decision-makers No fewer than 21 Nobel prize winners have studied at UCL, which is currently number four in the world's top 10 universities, according to the QS World University Rankings list. Considered an academic powerhouse, nearly 22,000 UCL students, from engineers to artists and historians to chemists, contribute to the vibrancy of London as a leading city. What is quite distinctive is that the decision-makers of tomorrow who plump for full accommodation at the on-site halls of residence are fed by very separate catering teams, with Ifor Evans Hall run by a major contract caterer and Ramsay Hall, an in-house team. The challenges are pretty much the same, however. Namely, a remit to deliver top notch food to hundreds of students every day, with health one of the most pertinent priorities. At Ramsay Hall, chef manager Kro ‘Bam’ Gbamien and his team serve 480 students breakfast and dinner every day for 35 weeks of the year, with lunches also provided for delegates on business and training seminars during the university summer break. From a menu on a six week cycle, students have a choice of a red or white meat dish, a fish dish or a vegetarian option every day in line with Bam’s commitment to covering all nutritional bases, as well as satisfying individual tastes and dietary requirements. With such a significant number of covers to prepare, Bam is not averse to calling on help from outside if it means he can save some time with no compromise on quality, whatsoever. Sauces that make the grade As the base of sauces and gravies, stock provides the depth and balance of flavour in a dish. However, many college kitchens under pressure to serve up hundreds of meals a day are not in a position to spend time running a stockpot, whether this is because they are limited structurally, financially, have a low skill base or are pressed for time. Using a reputable, bought-in brand, at least as a base for your own creativity, is the most cost effective way to deliver great taste. Buying dirt cheap products, however, is a false economy when the stock component cost of an average dish is under five pence. Bam – who helped win The Fire Station Bar and Restaurant in Waterloo an AA Rosette for six years running – is one of many converts who calls on Essential Cuisine’s range of powdered stocks to make life easier without having to lower his standards. His staples are Essential Cuisine’s beef stock for shepherd’s pie, chicken stock for roasts, fish stock for pies and mushroom stock for vegetarian dishes, as well as Classic demi-glace for sauces. Like the rest of the Essential Cuisine range, the stocks taste just like kitchen-made product with a clear appearance, and each variant offers a superior yield of 50ltrs per 800g tub With suppliers urged to play their part in the Responsibility Deal and help caterers in the fight against obesity, Essential Cuisine has also strived to lower the salt content of its stocks, wherever possible, without taking away any of the naturally rich taste of the stockpot. Based on 50ml as a recipe ingredient, they contain just 0.28g of salt, or 5.6g per litre, as well as a low level of fat (c3%) and no MSG or preservatives. With a 12 month shelf life, there is no need to refrigerate after opening, and tubs are colour coded for easy recognition. “We are under pressure to make menus healthier without losing students’ interest and, with just two of us in the kitchen, anything that saves time is welcome,” said Bam. “It would take me a minimum of six hours to do a proper stock gravy, which is not always feasible. With Essential stock, I just have to add some rosemary to a lamb dish, for example, and I’m done. “We were using a competitor’s stocks until two years ago, but I found that, when we added them to our gravy, it became oily and we had to really skim it. Essential meets all our requirements and we get far better results now. The mushroom stock is probably our favourite, it works really, really well with what we offer.” Roux-dimentary A fan of the company’s chef-led approach in general, Bam has also started using Essential Cuisine Classic Béchamel Sauce Mix for his lasagnes, carbonara and pasta bakes. “It is cost effective and is as good as making your own, so it makes perfect sense,” he said. Essential Cuisine Classic Béchamel Sauce Mix combines flour and butter with the appropriate balance of onion, clove, pepper and bay. When made up with milk it creates the smoothest, rich roux sauce. Nigel Crane, Dorchester-trained chef and managing director of Essential Cuisine, said: “On the back of our growing reputation for the finest products made by chefs for chefs, we have introduced this easy to make up, premium white sauce base to take away some of the work, leaving caterers to focus on creating their final sauces with absolute confidence. We recommend caterers try it against their own or current brand to see how good it really is.” Classic Béchamel Sauce Mix is perfect for lasagnes, cannelloni, veloutes and soufflés, or as a base for a chef’s own creations, whether you wish to add cheese for a mornay or cheese sauce, parsley for a classic parsley sauce, mustard or mushrooms and cream. Each 1.5kg pot costs around £17 and makes 18 litres (add 80g to a litre of full or semi-skimmed milk). It has both superior bain-marie holding qualities and is freeze thaw stable.