Cooking: Mise en Place & Clean as You Go · Society of Ordinary Gents

Cooking: Mise en Place & Clean as You Go

I've often mentioned a term and brief (to me) description of a concept in all cooking called "Mise en place". Generally translated from French means "putting in place" or "gathering". I'm making this post to check myself with the "curse of knowledge" that some people are just starting out with cooking.

This principle goes beyond the kitchen, to just about anything you do; hobbies/jobs requiring multiple parts and processes, getting materials together, even preparing your clothes for the next day or preparing your shave. It's a way to get yourself organized.

Why?

Well, being organized means you keep better track of your inventory, you have a tried-and-true process by which you do things (by muscle memory and habit, rather than having to think about it), you know the order you do the things in, and generally make the process more efficient/less chaotic.

This saves on time, resources, and in some cases, even money. It also frees your mind to prepare things ahead of time so all you have to think about is the actual doing of the task.

I won't go too deep into this, but if you're interested from a culinary perspective, you can read an article on this site about it.

All else I'll add are some pictures of my own examples from this morning when preparing steak, eggs, and salad (if you're interested in the actual post, just look it up searching posts under "Cooking"). As you'll see, I set up:

A prep station on the right for the steaks (pat dry, then season on both sides, keep one steak out to cook and put the rest away to form a pellicle from the seasoning to cook the next day),
Seasonings I'll use right there ready to grab
Cooking range ready to go with skillet (with olive oil, butter, and some light seasoning, all I have to do is turn the heat on) along with spatula and tongs, and a plate with paper towel to lay the steaks on and drip excess juice
And plating station to the left; where I have the plate I'll eat off of, the final garnish (parsley), the eggs I'll crack and put into the pan after cooking the steaks, and a pre-made salad kit bag I can quickly add to the plate after the steak and eggs.

Then, it's just a matter of process.

After seasoning the steaks, I'll heat up the skillet.
Once hot enough, I'll place one steak in it, then put the other steaks in the fridge.
I'll cook the steak(s), then place on the plate with paper towel, then turn the heat on the skillet down for the eggs.
While that cools, I'll quickly wipe down and put away seasonings I won't use, and same with utensils. I'll rinse off anything like plates, then place them in the dish washer.
I'll then cook the eggs, turn off the heat, and place them on the eating plate with the steak.
While those sit on the plate, I'll rinse out the skillet and let it sit in the sink, then wipe down the range and countertop with a Clorox wipe, rinse off cooking utensils and put them in the dish washer, then wash my hands.
After washing my hands, I'll add the salad, then put the remainder in the fridge, then eat.

Once I finish my meal, I won't have to worry about the mess after (just wiping out the skillet with some olive oil, then putting away, and rinsing off the plate and putting it in the dish washer). If you don't have a dish-washer, yes, this complicates things. You'll just have to put remaining utensils in the sink (hopefully you have a double-basin sink), and wash them after the meal.

The goal, though, is to clean as much as you can while cooking, and not leave a daunting mess after. Doing this helps to make regular maintenance cleaning easier, and not some big all-day task you keep putting off while things get worse.

Yes, this takes practice, but so long as you make a consistent effort to think about how to do better next time, you'll create your own routine. Mine is simply an example as a template to build your own method on.

I might be a trained chef, but at one point, I also didn't know much beyond boiling water. Like everyone else, I had to put the work in.

Also, if curious, that thing next to my knife is a "honing steel" (the link is a guide to using one). Mine is actually both a honing and sharpening steel. It's used to both sharpen and straighten the edge of your knife (though traditional honing steels/rods only straighten the blade), and should be used before every meal prep.

Finally, why do I post about cooking so much/often?

Well, it's a valuable skill every refined gentleman should know. Also, it's one of the skills I have invested considerable time into, and wish to share my knowledge with you to help develop said skill and not have to pay for it like I did. Please don't be intimidated by my knowledge - there are NO stupid questions. I welcome them with patience.

LEGAL DISCLAIMER

Though I am an experienced chef, I am not a licensed professional culinary arts teacher. Please always practice safety with all tools and appliances used.

It should go without saying, but clearly do not misuse a knife, do not put anything metal into appliances such as toasters or microwaves, be careful around hot surfaces like ovens and ranges, be careful around cookware that may be hot, be certain to use oven mitts for both gripping hot items and laying hot items onto surfaces such as tables (or else you'll risk burning yourself on said surface).

Always be certain to check your food for spoilage and thorough cooking to recommended internal temperatures as per the OSHA and HACCP standards.

All items and procedures outlined in this and all other cooking-related posts are to be replicated at your own risk, and I, the poster, am not liable for any misinterpretation of instructions which result in physical harm, or harm in any other form.

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