|
The
Importance of Making Excellent Tasting Gravy
As you know I have been helping Food Service
Director's and their teams win (get to 10) since 1969. It has been a
fascinating 31 years now and over the years, one thing I've learned for
sure, is that it is not that difficult to be the best. As Emeril (my hero)
says, "It aint rocket science baby". Yet so many folks are
missing out on simple ways to dazzle the customer. For example, consider
how important it is to have a fantastic, mouth watering, gravy. Afterall,
it's served on most of our meats and even over our mashed potatoes, or
shall I say, it should be on the mashed potatoes.
Well, guess what? Lots of kitchens are not serving a
gravy that I would score at the 10 level. Most folks are using instant
gravy which varies in score from 4 to 7. While doing a routine, 1 week,
Destination 10 site-visit with "Top Gun" Regina Toomy Bueno in
New Jersey I recommended that she upgrade her gravy from instant to the
following:
Defatted Natural Drippings
High Quality Base (lots of it)
Water and Thickener of choice
As usual, the team nodded politely and made note of
the recommendation. Then 1 week after my on-site visit, Regina called to
say, "oh my gosh, I had no idea this simple idea could make such a
dramatic difference in the taste of our gravy and consequently meats and
mashed potatoes." Regina said it made all the difference in the
world. Congratulations to Regina and her team for following a simple yet
powerful idea. You see, winners always follow up. Losers will say -
"Oh we don't have time to make anything but instant gravy".
Guess what? The method I'm suggesting is still instant gravy. Bases are
convenience food designed to save time. So, the bottom line is that we do
have time to make a good gravy. In Destination 10 we say "you can't
afford to serve instant gravy if you're trying to win. Instant gravy will
doom you to mediocrity. I would avoid it if you're trying to get to 10.
So what's a quality meat base? A quality meat base
consists of meat and meat drippings listed first on the label. Low quality
meat base starts with salt first on the label.
But I can't afford quality base? Yes you can! It
doesn't make much difference (financially) in the big picture. Save money
someplace else.
If you want to win it's time to get
stubborn................................
What????????
Yes, stubborn about winning. To win you've got to do
the right thing. Offering a quality gravy is the right thing to do.
So what brands are good? My favorite and what I've
recommended in my cookbooks is Eatem Brand (1-800-68-Eatem). But, if you
can't get Eatem Brand try Minors or any reputable meat first brand.
For your information I was recently in a kitchen
where pork and mashed potatoes were served without gravy at all. Why not?
It simply wasn't ever listed on the menu that the cooks work with. In
light of this discovery, you may want to double check to make sure you're
offering gravy with your meats. As you know some of our meats need all the
help they can get.
Keep on striving for excellence (the 10 level). It's
the right thing to do.
Don Miller, R.D., C.E.C.
Nancy Yezzi, R.D., L.D.
Bill Klein, C.I.C.
Success Coaches
Don Miller and Associates
346 Crestview Drive
Bonita, CA 91902
(619) 656-2100 PST
(619) 656-1321 fax
chefdon@cox.net
http://www.chefdon.com
|
