How do you deal with complex recipes?

Over the last year I've had the chance to tackle some complex recipes with friends and some by myself. These include but not limited too, French laundry, Alinea , Eleven Madison Park, the fat duck,modernist cuisine, some CS recipes , etc.

What's common with these recipes are the number of components. Which in the best case scenario can be 4-5, but can also be anywhere in the double digits. This means that you need to plan significantly up ahead.

However in the manner in which the recipes are articulated in the book, are challenging to read. With some recipes pointing to other pages. There's no order and you need to write down what needs to be done when. As some components could take days to finish.

A year ago i built some software to help me visualize these recipes. It was okay, but not great. I didn't have time to pursue it further.

The best attempt at this has been MC, but I think it can be done better.

So my question is, how are you dealing with this? Any ideas?

I would also be curious is how are they doing this at restaurants ?

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HammeredChef_DEFINITELY_does_NOT_work_at_22134

I appreciate the situation and don't have a quick solution...I have found that you have to actually study the damn recipe and EVERY ingredient. I started prepping on a Tuesday for a six person 8 course dinner on Friday. I had gathered every single freaking item on Monday. On Wed I was finishing prep for a course and found out it needed 10 f%$ing days to ferment..... NOW i study everything before hand and its it is really big and complex I use a Gantt Chart to set the whole thing up....I know some people won't get what we are talking about...(probably @John_Fisher_218893 'cause he only does easy stuff like @Todd_Shewman_38102 ) but I sure as hell understand how frustrating it is and Im retired and don't have anything else to do.. http://www.ganttproject.biz this will help a lot has has a low alcohol efficient learning curve....I mean, shit, I figured out how to work it...

tshewman

In the words of a colleague/mentor of mine, there's no substitute for home work. Depending on who and ow many I am cooking for, I take a look at when I need to serve the meal (days in advance etc), what I want to make, what I realistically can make and then consider the maybe I can get away with it category (this one is often way too full). Then look at what I have made, what I need to make and what can be made in advance. The first thing I always check are the stocks I have on hand, next I start to pick away at the dishes that I can do in advance and usually try to do 1-2 in an evening and do that for sequential days after kids have gone down (and sometimes before and have them help-but it depends on what it is as they are pretty young). Then the day of I email my self the prep/serving list of stuff (this is usually done while at the gym). I try to get it right, but ultimately somethings fall through the cracks even when I have it written down. What I don't do (but should) is rely on others for help/assistance. The best I've probably done was a 9 course menu for my SO's business colleagues...and I was told at 11am the day of, so I had to rely on mostly what I had on hand. As I understand it, recipes are portioned out in restaurants, one part of the dish is done by one chef and passed to the next chef for the next component and so on and then finally plated. Hence the need to ave stuff written down and everything weighed for consistency. I don't believe chefs take a dish from start to finish very often anymore (at last not at the higher end restaurants like some you listed-perhaps I'm wrong). Hope that helps and prep in advance is great Dominic Crenn does a nice job in her book of outlining what needs to be done when (including how many days in advance) and what can be "kept".

fisher23

Yep, I have a couple of Gantt Chart programs and apps. I am with you though, I don't know how many times it took me to learn to read and re-read making sure I have every ingredient and that the prep for each of those. I usually write mine down on graph paper first with a time line of how long in advance prep needs to be done in advance and then the items that can be done in advance and lastly what has to be done on day of service with the prep and cook times of each item. Then I start backwards from the time of service until the longest time that something takes for ei. the 10 day fermentation. Then I put it in a Gantt Chart and follow it like a map. It helps but I still find I miss things...like leave out something or I have even forgot and left a dish my spare refrigerator. I find that on the day of service get help and make very specific assignments with hard times for completion of tasks works the best for me. Or call Hammered Chef for advise, he is an amazing cook.

HammeredChef_DEFINITELY_does_NOT_work_at_22134

I too, but, more than once have gotten up the morning after, gone to the garage refrigerator and found six servings, Plated, of a kiwi sorbet or a 8 servings of hand cut steak tartare carefully plated and wrapped in plastic wrap. When I see such a thing I just open a bottle of Champagne and have one of whats there.....

fisher23

Chef's bonus course! Lol!

fisher23

Todd is great at complex recipes. Check out his post on Heston's IPOP chili recipe. He even ordered some of the chilis from Europe. I've gone down the rabbit hole, but Todd's been there a bit longer, lol.

tshewman

I blame @Chris Young ;-)

Shivam_Daryanani_92859

Thanks for your response.

I like the idea of homework, that makes sense.

I totally understand what you mean by some things don't go as expected. The last 9 course menu I did, I had to start cutting components because I overestimated the things I could get done in time. It was madness haha.

Yeah Dominic Crenn does a good job of that. So does TFL in my opinion(although that book has an issue with mentioning recipes all over the place).

I like what EMP does, it lists all the components in the final plating section, this way you can easily create a check list.

Reading these posts and thinking about my experience, it seems that it comes down to timing. How long is it going to take for x task? I think I am going to start putting time estimates against the tasks I have to do. (geez I feel like I am running a software project here).

What helped last time around, was writing everything on paper, and keeping that in front of me.

Shivam_Daryanani_92859

Yeah he's putting everyone to shame here with the amount he cooks, and the complex recipes

Inspiring, if I must say.

Shivam_Daryanani_92859

Thanks for your response.

Yeah studying seems to be the key. I am going to try the gantt chart approach.

Shivam_Daryanani_92859

I have forgotten a component or two many times. It's challenging for me to not try and push as hard as I can, which means tackling way too many things in the time I have.

FrankM_3301

In these larger and more complex restaurants, individual cooks are tasked with producing individual elements for a plate. The job of the chef is to do the advanced planning and assignment of tasks, then make it all come together at service. It's manageable when you have a team at your disposal....but, for us amateurs/home "chefs", perhaps another way to look at these recipes is that it is not always necessary to reproduce exactly what these chefs have already done. Stealing an element...or several, and reapplying them in new ways or with other ingredients allows you to understand elements individually. That also gives you a sense of timing and effort required. I find it also inspires creativity, and you build a repertoire of techniques and flavor combinations.

maxkapelus

I bookmark recipes I plan on using in meals and I try and give a practice run of the recipe before I have to use it just so I can get a feel for what it really takes to get it done. I've had countless recipes from books like you've mentioned take longer than anticipated or have steps that were really complicated and took an extra attempt. Nice to work out those potential issues before you need to time out a multi course meal

ChefsPassion_404784

I work at a michelin star restaurant and how it is done there is that the chef, basically, plates the dishes and gets components from the different stations.

When I prepare a multicourse dinner for 10+ people with complex recipes then the most important thing to do is planning, studying and learn the basics of most recipes you are gonna cook. I start thinking about the menu months/weeks before and start observing some recipes which could be a potential dish on the menu. When I composed the dish I will read them so many times again that I almost can dream it haha. Will make prep and planning lists for every dish, (re)write recipes in Word and make a sort of script with prep lists, grocery lists, list of the recipes and every recipe described for the people who need to help me. Normally I will start a few days ahead and do everything myself but when it is really to much then people can help me because I always have the script with me. There are so many components you can make in advance that it shouldn't be a problem to fire a 9 course menu with complex dishes. It only cost a few days of hard work.. But it is soooo much fun