Mastering 4 Classic French Dishes

From a young age, I have always had an interest in food and cooking. At first, I was onlyinterested in eating and watching food videos but over time that interest grew more and it shifted from just the dining table and tv screens to the actual kitchen. I started trying to cook dishes that I wanted to eat. At first, I mostly made snacks like sandwiches then I learned to cook steak and various pasta dishes.

Whenever I cook, I am not very technical and I do not strictly follow recipes. Instead, I prefer to improvise and feel relaxed when I cook because I personally find cooking very therapeutic. I started to consider cooking something I could pursue in the future as I grew to quite enjoy it. However, I knew professional cooking follows the standard of classic cooking which is different to my cooking style at home so I wanted to explore this side of cooking. With that, I decided that my goal for my project would be to research classic French recipes and master 3 dishes from a famous French chef, then create a journal that documents my journey mastering each dish.

My experience in cooking is more casual and homier as dishes I cook have been adapted to be in its simplest form. I often take recipes then adapt it to fit a style that is most convenient for myself. With the goal of this project, I will master dishes that are of classic French origin which is a style of food that I have never attempted to cook before. Then I will create my own journal that completely covers my journey mastering each chosen dish which is new for me. With the given time and restricted circumstances of the Covid-19 pandemic, I must master all 3 dishes and create a good quality journal that contains all the relevant information in my journey that also might provide an introduction to classic French cooking to others who are interested and tips to help them when cooking on their own.

Global Context

My project connects to the IB Global Context, Personal and Cultural Expression. It is relevant to my project as I will be creatively expressing my personal interests in classic cooking through mastering my chosen dishes and creating the journal which will completely encompass how I am able to learn and find joy through exploring this style of cooking. Food is an art form I want to learn more about so I may creatively express myself through it. The dishes I will be mastering are all of French origin so it is connected to French culture and culinary tradition.

Product

My cooking journal, Journal: Mastering 4 Classic French Dishes is my final product. The journal shows that I have learned and mastered to the best of my abilities, 4 classic French dishes from Joel Robuchon’s book, The Complete Robuchon. The dishes were salmon with beurre blanc, beef bourguignon, steak au poivre, and crème brulee.

My journal is a high-quality product that achieves and exceeds my goal statement. Instead of just 3 dishes I was able to master 4 dishes. The journal I created has an appealing, clear, and organized design and it perfectly documents my journey mastering each dish. It has a selection of pictorial evidence and journal writings about my learnings from each dish, recognizing my mistakes, fixing those mistakes, exploring different solutions, and improving my cooking skills.

The journal responds well to my chosen global context because I creatively expressed my personal interest in classic French cooking by choosing to learn and master these dishes and create a journal which completely and perfectly shows how I am able to learn and enjoy exploring this style of cooking. The food and the journal are products of personal and creative expression.

Reflection

Personal project has given me the opportunity to explore my interest in classic French cooking and develop my cooking skills. The 4 dishes I mastered all included important elements in classic French cooking such as cooking proteins, making basic sauces, properly chopping ingredients mostly vegetables, seasoning appropriately, baking and many more. Interviewing professionals also provided me with more knowledge. Overall personal project has given me many opportunities to expand my knowledge and understanding on classic French cooking and graphic design.

Choosing to do a project on cooking was a great opportunity to creatively express my personal interest in classic French cooking and food, it has expanded my connection and understanding to my chosen global context Personal and Cultural Expression. Mastering the dishes showcases my interest to learn this style of cooking. Cooking is not only a fun hobby and pastime but it is also my form of self expression. I feel a connection to the food I make because of the hard labor and effort it takes to make a dish from the prepping, cooking, waiting, and plating. Learning dishes of French origin also allows me to learn more about French culinary traditions that connect to the country’s culture. Beef bourguignon is a dish that dates back to hundreds of years so it holds a historic memory. The sauces I learned are the bases of much more complex dishes throughout classic French food and culinary styles influenced by it. Food holds a cultural and personal importance for many people and is an art form.

The main focus of my project is to learn classic French cooking but because my product is a journal, I have also learned a lot about graphic design and the processes involved in it. From creating design ideas, formatting ideas, color schemes to use, to completing the entire journal there’s a lot that goes into graphic designing something from scratch.

IB Learner Reflection

As an IB learner, I have been developing my IB learner profiles for a decade now. Personal Project has been a great opportunity to further develop my profiles. Throughout the whole process of my project, I have implemented all the IB learner profiles but the most notable ones were inquirer, balanced, thinker, and knowledgeable.

Research is a very important component of my project. From the very beginning I had to utilize my inquirer profile to find ideas for my PP. Then once I found my goal, I did a lot of research. I read books, online articles, interviewed professionals, and many more to find knowledge and answers to the important questions I was seeking. Then by gaining new knowledge I am able to expand my understanding of classic French cooking and graphic designing, which gives me opportunities in the future to further expand and experiment with my knowledge.

Personal Project was one of many tasks that was required this school year. Aside from this important and very large-scale project, I still had all my other school assignments so learning to balance and organize everything was very important and not an easy task. I also still needed to make time for other things in my life and one of which was Muay Thai exercise that I do twice a week. Because of a balanced profile, I was able to properly execute my project as well as maintain a regular exercise routine.

Being able to think creatively and critically are absolutely essential to my project. Creating a cook journal from scratch requires creativity to develop design ideas, formatting of content, color schemes, and many more. Learning to master 4 new dishes involves critical thinking as without it I would not have been able to overcome obstacles that prevented me from perfectly executing the dishes and therefore not being able to master them. An example is how I fixed the crushing of peppercorns for my steak au poivre. The learner profiles are an important factor in the success of my product.