Program Goal and Outcomes
Program Goal: To prepare students to prepare meals for friends, families, and others, while also beginning students on their journey to starting their own catering business.
Program Outcomes:
Upon completion of the program, students will be able to:
- Know the services commonly offered at catered events and identify a wide range of styles of events
- Recognize market research, management styles, branding, and how to create written agreements
- Recognize many types of alcoholic beverages, the history of beer and wine, and the characteristics of the most popular categories of wine
- Identify the elements of buffet design and setup
- Understand the basics of food and nutrition and of monitoring food safety and sanitation practices
- Understand the basic principles of modifying and converting recipes
- Comprehend what is needed to choose the correct equipment and tools
- Know how to plan menus, ensure quality of meals, and season and cook food according to recipes
- Understand preparation, cooking, garnishing, and presentation of food
Instruction Set 1
Starting Your Program
Succeed by learning how to use your Penn Foster program. Understand how to use your Student Portal. Access the Penn Foster Community and use it to find answers. Connect with Penn Foster on various social media sites.
Introduction to Catering
Catered events; levels of catering; assessing clients' needs; written agreements.
Instruction Set 2
Dynamics of Catering
Wine and beverages; table service; beverage service; importance of etiquette; fast cleanup.
Food Styles of Catering
Garnishing techniques; food presentation styles and design techniques.
Alcoholic Beverages
Marketing strategies to maximize profitability; efficient bar layout and operation; intoxication warning signs; legal concerns.
Instruction Set 3
The Gourmet Kitchen
Kitchen layout and design; buffet presentation; buffet design and setup; goals of presentation; simple garnishes; basic and advanced presentation.
The Culinary Professional
French kitchen brigade; food-borne illnesses; balanced diets; developing a foundation of flavor; nutrition and food science; food and kitchen safety; measuring ingredients; converting recipe yields; calculating edible portion quantity and cost; identifying kitchen equipment and its uses.
Textbook: The Professional Chef
Video: Chef Skills
Supplements:
• Cooking Lab: Seared Beef
• Cooking Lab: Caramelized Onion Frittata
Instruction Set 4
Stocks, Sauces, and Soups
Identification and uses of bouquet garni, sachet d'épices, mirepoix, and clarified butter; preparation of stocks and sauces; soup ingredients and preparation.
Fruits, Vegetables, and Herbs
Identifying fruits, vegetables, and herbs; basic vegetable preparation; decorative techniques; cooking methods for vegetables; effects of herbs in recipes.
Supplement: Cooking Lab: Stir-Fried Beans
Video: Stir-Fried Beans
Instruction Set 5
Meat
Mise en place for beef; elements of beef fabrication; basic beef cuts and cooking methods; basic veal cuts and cooking methods; cuts of lamb and pork; cooking methods for lamb and pork; elements of lamb fabrication; braising; principles of curing pork.
Supplements:
• Cooking Lab: Chateaubriand
• Cooking Lab: Rack of Lamb
Video: Filet with Red Wine Mushrooms
Instruction Set 6
Poultry and Game
Poultry cuts; poultry fabrication and trussing; roasting, deep poaching, and sautéing poultry; identifying types of game.
Supplement: Cooking Lab: Stuffed Chicken Breast
Video: Stuffed Chicken Breasts
Instruction Set 7
Fish and Shellfish
Identifying fresh and saltwater fish and shellfish; cleaning and preparing fish and shellfish; cooking methods.
Supplement: Cooking Lab: Striped Sea Bass
Video: Seared Tuna
Instruction Set 8
Grains, Legumes, and Pasta
Identifying grains and legumes; cooking, simmering, and sorting grains; using dried and fresh legumes; cooking pasta; making fresh pasta.
Supplement: Cooking Lab: Sesame Shiitake Noodles
Instruction Set 9
Baking and Pastry
Functions of baking ingredients; cooking sugar; whipping egg whites; yeast breads and quick breads; dessert sauces and creams; preparing pastry doughs and cookies.
Supplement: Cooking Lab: Phyllo Pear Tart
Instruction Set 10
Breakfast, Garde Manger, and World Cuisines
Dairy products and eggs; cooking methods for eggs; omelets, souffles, and quiche; primary elements of garde-manger; creating charcuterie; culinary traditions of the Americas, Asia, and Europe.
Supplement: Cooking Lab: Preparation of an Entire Meal |