Time for Cooks to Fire Up the VCR : Instructional Videos Are Spiced Up With Entertainment

Cooking videos seemed gimmicky, at best, when introduced to cookbook buyers. On one hand, they provided the cook (or non-cook) with a means of visual instruction that could be given in the home, much the way cooking lessons are given in the classroom, only the course could be repeated until thoroughly understood.

On the other hand, the idea that cooks would take a television screen and videocassette recorder into the kitchen for simplified demonstrations appeared to be a luxury reserved for the elite.

Then, technology made kitchen-size televisions standard equipment and a simultaneous reduction in the cost of a VCR made it affordable enough so one could have an extra VCR around the kitchen. The medium was on its way.

Even for those who watch the cooking demonstrations in their living rooms or dens, take notes, then return to the kitchen to try what they have learned, the cooking video quickly became a practical approach to learning how to cook. A lesson could be viewed for a one-time fee, often at half the cost of traditional classes, then repeated over and over again for free.

Wide Range of Topics

Initially, videos covered a wide range of topics. Most were geared toward specific themes such as holiday cooking, regional fare, garnishes, pasta and desserts. There was also a group of videos that showcased members of the culinary upper crust, such as Julia Child and Craig Claiborne. Others focused on cuisines perceived as mysterious and difficult--Japanese and Chinese cooking were demonstrated in full-fledged instructional kits derived from previously released cookbooks.

Today’s cooking videos are little different, although the cast of characters has changed and there is a wide assortment of new subjects. In some cases, though, format has taken a bit of a turn--a few have spiced up their cooking classes with entertainment--but most of the current videos available remain instructional.

Here are just a few of the new releases available for Christmas giving.

Wolfgang Puck, with the assistance of five Hollywood celebrities, brings the glamorous food of his renowned Sunset Boulevard restaurant, Spago, into the home via “Spago Cooking With Wolfgang Puck.” Unlike instructional videos that provide basic recipes and simplified cooking techniques, this video features Puck, sometimes known as the “chef to the celebrities,” in a series of quick demonstrations on how to put together some popular dishes from the restaurant.

Help From Joel Grey, Vincent Price

Celebrities participate as Puck prepares various parts of a menu: Kate Capshaw is featured in the appetizers segment; Christina Ferrare helps out with pastas and pizzas; Joel Grey and Vincent Price join him in the entrees segment and Robert Townsend winds up the group with desserts.

There are recipes for mandarin steak salad, ravioli stuffed with three cheeses, prosciutto and goat cheese pizza, veal medallions with onion marmalade in port wine sauce and a chocolate souffle.

It’s the perfect gift for those who have never been to the famed restaurant, as well as for those who are regulars and would enjoy having a little Spago magic in the home. It’s not designed with the non-cook in mind, however, as there is no detailed instruction in the fundamentals of cooking--most of the chopping and measuring has already been done. And you won’t find Puck helping his co-hosts figure out which side of the grater is the right side.

Instead, this video is more like a chatty, talk-show cooking demonstration laced with a few helpful hints on garnishing and substituting less-expensive ingredients. Suggested retail price for the video, which comes in VHS and Beta formats, is $29.95. It is available in gourmet and specialty stores and wherever videos are sold.

Candy Making Made Easy

Wilton, the cake-decorating and candy-making equipment manufacturer, has introduced four new videos, “How to Make Icing Flowers,” “How to Make Wedding Cakes,” “Cake Decorating, Easy as 1, 2, 3” and “Candy Making, Easy as 1, 2, 3.”

“Candy Making” is a highly instructional introduction to the basics of making candy. It teaches the methods for making a large number of confections, including filled candies, lollipops, hollow shells and easy candies such as turtles and rocky road.

The video identifies the tools of the trade and the required equipment, such as a double boiler and a microwave, and all the essentials of making candy at home are covered. Instruction in how to melt and flavor candy is given. Other subjects include how to choose between candy melts (confectionery coating) and chocolate; modeling with candy for use as roses, leaves and for piping; cooling down the candy, and when to remove from the refrigerator.

The video is enhanced with close-up photography that gives the viewer a perfect vantage point. Plus there are lots of hints and tips to make working with candy easier. It comes with an instruction guide, which includes recipes for a ganache glaze, no-fail fudge and tempting truffles--all made with candy melts.

The videos, which retail for $19.95 each, can be purchased at department or craft stores or by mail from Wilton Enterprises Inc., Woodridge, Ill. 60517.

Columnist Merle Ellis aspires to elevate the use of cutlery from its current post in the kitchen to the glittering position it once maintained in the dining room in the “Mastering the Art of Carving” video.

The cassette begins with an overview of the carving tradition, which Ellis presents in a formal setting reminiscent of a Gothic dining room, giving a historical perspective to the elegant art of carving.

The following introduction presents the wide array of knives available today and their uses. Sharpening and knife care are also covered. As part of this introductory segment, there is also a demonstration of the revolutionary knife sharpener, the Chef’s Choice Diamond Hone, introduced last year. Ellis then proceeds to instruct viewers on classic carving techniques as well as some easier, more contemporary methods of carving beef, lamb, pork and fowl.

In the beef section, Ellis demonstrates carving a standing rib roast and finding the grain in grilled flank steak. With today’s interest in reducing calories and fat in the diet in mind, Ellis also includes a discussion of how to remove the T-bone from Porterhouse steak to serve smaller portions (top and tenderloin pieces) to diet-conscious guests.

In the pork segment, Ellis shows the viewer how to make chops or medallions from pork tenderloin and how to carve a pork leg. Finding the unusual joints in waterfowl, carving grilled chicken and the holiday turkey are also featured.

Available in VHS and Beta, “Mastering the Art of Carving” can be purchased in cutlery sections of major department stores as well as in gourmet, specialty and cutlery shops for a suggested retail price of $29.95.

Children in the Kitchen

“Kids Cooking From Kraft” is presented with today’s trend toward children in the kitchen in mind. It features young beginner cooks in the kitchen with an adult “cooking coach” who directs the child through the basics of menu preparation. Kitchen safety, cooking terms and basic skills are emphasised through simple recipes geared toward a child’s tastes.

The first lesson features vegetable salads--corn relish and carrot raisin salad; lesson two gives instruction on making breakfast; lesson three on bread baking features peanut-lovers’ bread and that favorite, banana bread.

Lesson four is based on oven main dishes; lesson five teaches sauce making for the microwave. Lesson six, on broiling and grilling, includes bagel pizza and a grilled cheese specialty. In lesson seven, smart snacking is covered; quick sandwiches such as savory sloppy Joes and lunchtime egg salad are featured in lesson eight.

A glossary of basic kitchen tools is featured in the recipe booklet included with the video. A list of simple instructions, such as washing hands before getting started and turning off the pilot on the stove, are covered in sections titled, “Before You Begin,” “While You Are Cooking” and “When You Have Finished.” There’s also an explanation of the proper use of knives demonstrated through an analogy--various knives and their cutting duties are compared to the use of a basketball in a football game.

Because this video is designed for children or for the non-cook, it is highly instructional and tends to move a little more slowly than the more sophisticated videos in which a demonstration is actually being given. The fundamentals of cooking are detailed; these include the proper method of measuring ingredients, why a cutting board is used instead of a counter top for chopping, and the proper use of a shredder.

Unfortunately for gift-givers, “Kids Cooking” is only available by mail from Kraft and takes six to eight weeks for delivery. To order, send $14.95, which covers postage and handling, to “Kids Cooking From Kraft,” P.O. Box 68618 Dept. R, Indianapolis, Ind. 46268. Specify VHS or Beta.