Knowledge Base > Char Nolan - Ask Me Anything (Office Hours)

Ask Me Anything (Office Hours)

Char Nolan - Ask Me Anything (Office Hours)

This event was on Tuesday, September 19, 2023 at 11:00 am Pacific, 2:00 pm Eastern

Join Chef Char Nolan in her virtual office as she welcomes all of your questions. This event was created for you and we encourage you to ask anything – from cooking techniques to cou… Read More.

Recorded

Question:

What can I do if I have an assignment that uses oil, sugar or salt, and I don't consume them?

Answer:

I also did wanna just just say one thing. If you are someone who, uh, follows a whole food, plant-based diet without using, uh, oil, uh, sugar or salt, and, uh, you have an assignment in our program that might have oil, salt, or sugar in it, uh, there are a couple of ways to get around it. One is, when I was a Rouxbe student, I would begin every summary by saying this recipe was made without using salt oil or sugar. And I would put asterisk on either side and write it in capital letters so that, um, the instructor would see that, because food sometimes has a different appearance when you don't use those foods. So that's the first thing. And, um, I did every assignment that way except for one. And I, um, went to a friend's house and said, I have to make this thing. I know you have all these ingredients. I know you have coconut oil. Can I make this thing at your house? And, uh, I made the chocolate ganache tort, uh, which she and her family loved her house, had beautiful lighting. Uh, that was the only thing, um, everything else I made that way. And the other thing I wanted to say, um, I'm thinking about the lemon assignment. And that oftentimes, uh, it's a difficult assignment for some people because they may have a sensitivity to things that are sour or bitter. Um, find a volunteer, maybe a neighbor, maybe a friend, become an investigative reporter. Ask them the questions that are in the assignment. And then when you write your summary, you just say, I am not fond of bitter citrus. I went to my neighbor John Doe and here are his findings. So that way you still have an understanding about flavor and how it works and how people respond to it. And remember that lemons are an excellent, excellent, uh, source to layer flavors and dish. You'll see it used in the simple cabbage soup recipe, where at the end you add some mustard and some lemon juice, and that it totally elevates the dish. Just makes it delicious. Uh, instead of using salt, lemon works perfectly. So I just wanted to jump on that for a second, 'cause it was in the, in the back of my mind.
Char Nolan

Char Nolan

Chef Instructor

@char_nolan