French culinary phrase means “putting everything in its place’’. This refers to a set of preparations done before actual cooking commences such as chopping vegetables, blanching, marinating, par-cooking, brining etc.
We will be talking about knife skills, use of equipment, marinades, stocks, spice mixes and other topics that facilitate efficient and safe meal preparation.
The picture above is a mise en place visual from the last time I made Pad Thai, wouldn’t it be awesome to start every dish organised and relaxed?
To do your mise en place correctly, you need to check your recipes ahead, identify what you need(ingredients) and the process required. Then you need to make a plan, which includes what time you will serve and how you will serve, with consideration to the prep and cooking time.
Mise en place is a lifestyle for me and I have weeks and weeks of mise en place! I use my freezer, refrigerator and vacuum sealers heavily. In my freezer you will find stocks, sauces (tomato especially – hello pizza and pasta!), curry pastes (I make extra for next time each time I make it), filled pasta (tortellini, ravioli), cooked legumes (chickpeas, kidney beans), cookie dough, empanadas… and it goes on and on.
I tend to invest my free time on mise en place and I hope you will pick up this habit too.
Find below some mise en place tips:
- Read your recipe: Really understand what you need to do, this ensures you don’t get overwhelmed when you start especially if you have dinner guests. If you are roasting meat, it needs to stand at room temperature at least 30 minutes to help it cook more consistently in the oven.
- Make sure you have all your ingredients: It really flusters you when you are ready to cook and a key ingredient is missing. It’s not always easy to change plans. You become that neighbour calling for condensed milk, bread crumbs or parmesan cheese!
- Prep all your ingredients before you start: Is your pan burning and you haven’t seasoned the meat you are going sear off in it? Are you frying your onions while quickly mincing your garlic? Are you serving several burnt offerings a week? Having all your ingredients lined up can save you some heartache.
- Freeze ingredients in the portions you need them: When you buy meat, fish and other ingredient you plan to freeze, you should know in what portion you will cooking them. Filling your freezer bags with 2kg of meat when you cook for 2 is not logical. It takes longer to defrost and you will find yourself refreezing the extra which is not recommended. I usually buy a whole salmon (because it is cheaper. I filet it myself.) When I portion my salmon, I have ten fillets. I spread them on a tray and freeze quickly, then I pack the fillets in a zip lock bags. This ensures that they freeze separately. I can take as many as I want.
- Allow enough time for defrosting: Ever woken to a very frozen turkey on Thanksgiving? It is recommended to defrost food in the refrigerator to avoid build up of bacteria. In emergency situations, place under cold running water. Most good sized turkeys will take more than 48 hours in the fridge and a whole lot of water in the sink to defrost. Plan ahead. I always put frozen food in the fridge a day or two before I need it.
- Note tasks and dishes that must be done in advance: I usually marinate chicken overnight to get as much flavour as possible. If your recipe calls for marinating, you need to allow at least 30 minutes for it. Most desserts that contain gelatine need a few hours in the refrigerator to set. Plan ahead, so you dont serve a runny panna cotta.
- Plan ahead: This cannot be overemphasised. This entails detailing what needs to be done and in what sequence. Pastry dough for a pie (e.g. pumpkin pie) needs to be chilled, rolled, chilled, blind baked, filled and baked again. Are you inviting people over for pizza, are you all going to watch the pizza rising slowly? I wouldn’t! Make your pizza dough, let it stand at room temperature for 30 minutes and put it in the fridge. It will ferment slower and is good for up to 8 – 10 hours.
- Invest in a vacuum sealer: Since I got a vacuum sealer, my mise en place has been off the hook. I prep for the whole week. Sometimes I have trays in the fridge with sealed bags of fish, meat, cooked legumes and grain. I usually have an intense meal prep day, and spend the rest of the week in a chill mode!
Can we try our new mise en place skills for a week?
