Auxano Chef School

🥔🍞 From Potato Salad to the Perfect Sandwich 🍞🥔

Today's lesson begins with a timeless favourite—homemade potato salad.

Our students start by boiling the potatoes until tender before peeling and cutting them into bite-sized pieces. They then finely chop fresh carrots and combine them with the potatoes, adding the homemade mayonnaise they prepared earlier in the course along with seasoning to create a rich, creamy potato salad.

But the lesson doesn't end there!

The students take their potato salad to the next level by serving it on crispy toasted bread with fresh salad leaves, creating a delicious Potato Salad Sandwich.

Did you know? This simple yet satisfying dish is enjoyed around the world under different names. In Korea, it's known as Salada Ppang (potato salad bread), in Japan it's called Potesara Sando, and in Denmark, when served on traditional rye bread, it's known as Kartoffelmad.

It's a wonderful reminder that the same ingredients can inspire different culinary traditions across the globe.

Simple ingredients. International inspiration. Delicious results. 👨‍🍳🌍

🥗✨ Bringing the Salade Niçoise Together ✨🥗

The preparation is complete, and now it's time for our students to assemble their Salade Niçoise.

Starting with a bed of fresh salad leaves, they carefully layer the potatoes, green beans, tomatoes, carrots, cabbage, tuna, olives, and hard-boiled eggs to create a colourful, balanced dish.

To finish, they're using a special ingredient they made themselves earlier in the course—homemade mayonnaise. This creamy dressing ties all the fresh ingredients together and adds a rich, velvety finish to the salad.

Presentation is just as important as flavour, so every ingredient is placed with care before the final dish is presented for grading.

Fresh ingredients, classic techniques, and attention to detail—this is what culinary training is all about. 👨‍🍳🥗

🥗✨ Preparing a Classic: Salade Niçoise ✨🥗

Today our students are preparing one of the world's most iconic salads – Salade Niçoise. Before the dish comes together, every ingredient is carefully prepared using the principles of mise en place.

The ingredients include:
🥬 Fresh salad leaves
🍅 Ripe tomatoes
🥔 Baby potatoes
🫛 Green beans
🥚 Hard-boiled eggs
🥕 Carrots
🐟 Tuna
🫒 Black olives

The preparation begins by:
🔪 Washing and drying all the vegetables.
🥔 Boiling the potatoes until just tender, then allowing them to cool.
🫛 Blanching the green beans to keep them vibrant and crisp.
🥚 Boiling, peeling, and halving the eggs.
🥕 Peeling and slicing or julienning the carrots.
🍅 Cutting the tomatoes into wedges.
🐟 Draining and flaking the tuna.
🥬 Preparing the salad leaves as the base of the dish.

With every ingredient prepped and ready, the students have everything in place to assemble a colourful, fresh, and beautifully balanced Salade Niçoise. Stay tuned as they bring it all together in the next step! 👨‍🍳🥗

🍅🌶️ Bringing It All Together! 🌶️🍅

The preparation is done, and now it's time to transform those fresh ingredients into a vibrant, flavour-packed salsa.

Our students combine the tomatoes, onion, peppers, coriander, garlic, lime juice, fresh lemon juice, chilli flakes, olive oil, and seasoning before giving everything a few quick pulses in the blender. The goal isn't a purée—it's a fresh salsa with just the right consistency, where every ingredient still adds its own texture and flavour.

💡 Chef's Tip: Pulse the blender in short bursts rather than blending continuously. This keeps the salsa chunky and fresh, instead of turning it into a watery sauce. For even better flavour, let the salsa rest for 15–30 minutes before serving. This gives the ingredients time to meld together and develop a richer taste.

Fresh ingredients. Great technique. Incredible flavour. 👨‍🍳✨

🍅🌿 Mise en Place for Fresh Salsa! 🌿🍅

Every great recipe starts with preparation, and today our students are getting everything ready to make a fresh, flavour-packed salsa.

Before the mixing begins, it's all about mise en place—having every ingredient washed, measured, peeled, and chopped.

Today's salsa includes:
🍅 Ripe tomatoes
🧅 Red onion
🌶️ Fresh peppers
🌿 Fresh coriander
🧄 Garlic
🍋 Fresh lime juice
🫒 Olive oil
🧂 Salt and black pepper

The students carefully dice the tomatoes and onion, finely chop the peppers, coriander, and garlic, and measure out the remaining ingredients. Once everything is prepped, they'll combine the ingredients and allow the flavours to develop into a fresh, vibrant salsa.

Great cooking starts long before the first ingredient is mixed—it starts with preparation.

🥗✨ A Classic Vinaigrette from Scratch! ✨🥗

Great dishes are often elevated by great sauces. Today, our students are learning how to prepare one of the most versatile dressings in the culinary world — the classic vinaigrette.

Ingredients:
🫒 Olive oil
🍋 Fresh lemon juice or white wine vinegar
🫙 Dijon mustard
🧄 Finely chopped garlic (optional)
🧂 Salt
🌶️ Black pepper
🌿 Fresh herbs such as parsley, chives, or thyme (optional)

How It's Made:
🥄 Whisk together the lemon juice (or vinegar), Dijon mustard, garlic, salt, and pepper.
🫒 Slowly drizzle in the olive oil while whisking continuously until the dressing emulsifies into a smooth, glossy vinaigrette.
🌿 Finish with fresh herbs for an extra burst of flavour.

This simple dressing teaches an important culinary principle: balancing acidity, richness, and seasoning. It's a foundational skill that our students will use in salads, vegetables, marinades, and many of the dishes they'll prepare throughout their training.

Simple ingredients. Timeless technique. Endless possibilities. 👨‍🍳✨

🥚🥄 Mayonnaise from Scratch! 🥄🥚

Did you know that one of the world's most popular condiments is made from just a handful of simple ingredients?

Today, our students are learning how to make fresh homemade mayonnaise from scratch. This classic emulsion teaches an essential culinary skill—combining oil and egg into a smooth, creamy sauce through patience, technique, and precision.

Ingredients:
🥚 Egg yolks
🌻 Neutral oil (such as sunflower or canola oil)
🍋 Fresh lemon juice (or white wine vinegar)
🫙 Dijon mustard
🧂 Salt
🌶️ White pepper (optional)

The secret is to slowly whisk the oil into the egg yolks, allowing the emulsion to form gradually. Add the lemon juice, mustard, and seasoning, and you have a rich, silky mayonnaise that's far superior to most store-bought versions.

Sometimes the most impressive recipes are made from the simplest ingredients. 👨‍🍳✨

🔪👨‍🍳 Mise en Place – The Secret Behind Every Great Chef 👨‍🍳🔪

Before the first ingredient is cooked and before the first pan touches the stove, every great chef begins with one essential principle: Mise en Place.

This French culinary term means "everything in its place." It is the art of preparing before you begin—reading the recipe, measuring ingredients, chopping vegetables, gathering equipment, and organising your workstation.

At Auxano Chef School, our students learn that great cooking isn't just about creating delicious food. It's about planning, organisation, and discipline. A well-prepared chef works more efficiently, makes fewer mistakes, and can focus on what matters most—bringing every dish to life.

Success in the kitchen doesn't begin when the cooking starts.

It begins with Mise en Place. 👨‍🍳✨

🔥👨‍🍳 "If you can't stand the heat, stay out of the kitchen." 🔥👨‍🍳

Our students didn't shy away from the heat—they turned it up!

With new recipes to master, techniques to learn, and assessments around the corner, it's time to put their skills to the test. From prepping ingredients and managing the heat to perfecting flavours and presentation, every task is an opportunity to grow.

The kitchen is where confidence is built, mistakes become lessons, and passion is transformed into skill.

Now it's time to fire up the stoves, get cooking, and earn those grades! 🔥🍽️

💚👨‍🍳 Happy Father's Day!

Today, we celebrate the fathers, grandfathers, stepdads, mentors and father figures who lead with love, provide with sacrifice, and inspire with their example.

Thank you for the lessons, the laughter, the encouragement, and the countless ways you have helped shape our lives. Your presence, wisdom, and unwavering support are gifts that leave a lasting legacy.

May your day be filled with love, family, and of course, something delicious to enjoy! 🥐🍫☕

From all of us at Auxano Chef School, we wish you a blessed and joy-filled Father's Day.

💚 Made with love. Made for Dad.