Pam’s Fruit and Vegetable Carving, Inc.
7800 SW 24 Avenue Gainesville, FL32607
pam_maneeratana@hotmail.com
www.fruitcarving.com
Since ancient times, in the beautiful Fareast Kingdom of Thailand, the art of Kae-Sa-Luk has been passed from one generation to the next. Keeping alive an entry could leave beautiful art form for centuries. Today, only a handful of artist has practiced this delicate art. Pam Maneeratana, one of the last masters to be taught us passes her skills onto you, through this series of video lessons. Learn now from one of the few remaining masters, this art of turning ordinary vegetables into things of beauty, to grace, and decorative formal dinner or a casual party. Now with lesson number one Carrot Pine Cones, here is Pam.
Pam: So this is a knife that we used in a carving Thai fruits and vegetable design. This knife is very especial because it is thin and very small knife. We have one size, sharp in its inside curve, it is sharp bread. We need to keep this knife very sharp. Where we sharp the knife? We sharp it by the very fine stones. We will put some drops of cooking oil on a stone. Then we will place the knife on a stone. Lift up the back of the knife a little bit so the edge of the knife will touch the stone and then we will do so quick supposed as 10 times on the right hand side clockwise then turn knife over for the counterclockwise another 10 times.
The way of holding knife correctly and pushing the knife forward from your body is grapping three fingers around the handles of the knife. When you need to push the knife, you will push your thumb on the back of the knife and generate the pressure through the thumb. Have this finger available for helping to stop the blade wherever you want it to be.
So we will press knife on a carrot with some angle and then, you can push your knife have your finger on a carrot a little bit far from the knife. And then you will push the knife toward your finger. The art of step of holding knife we call ‘two-hand pushing.’ We will use right hand to hold knife only. We do not push anything by right thumb. This is the only way to do this, just hold it tight.
And now, begin to use the left thumb to push the knife forward this is how we do it. Press a knife with some angle and then we have to lift them on the back of the knife. And then push your knife by your left thumb, your right hand do nothing but holding your knife very tight.
Female: The right hand is for guiding and controlling and the left hands supplies the power.
Pam: That is correct. After you had done this and practice this until you can control your knife automatically and very well control. We can go for the Carrot Pine Cone.
First of all, I need to make five spaces around the carrot. After we get five spaces around the carrot at the bigger part of the carrot begin to make a petal by pressing your knife with some angle and push it forward and stop it before you cut it—a little bit away from the core. The next petal, before you make a petal, we need to skin off a little bit of the carrot in order to make the next petal we lower then the first one. So, it will look like partially overlapping to each other. You do the same thing to the very next petal—skin off, then a petal, skin off, then a petal, skin off. The last petal would be underneath of the other two on each side.
In order to make each petal be away from each other and keep them a space to stand out when we dip it in the water and take that gnash off before making a petal, then a petal, a gnash off, then a petal. Remember to make a petal you need to make a consistency thickness if you have your petal a too thin the petal will fall down, supposed this one, is the one is the one that is not a standard thickness, you may see that the petal is not stay the way we expect it to be. It will be fall down it will be go to a different direction. So, in this case we can correct it by just cut it off and make another petal out of that place and we will make it, just slide this all the way.
And then a petal is made by pushing your knife along the curve and then straight in along the core not into the core.
Now, when you get ready to the tip of it, you have to change the position of the knife. You can not use two hands pushing anymore because there is no carrot left for you to hold it. So we can use a peeling stick. Have your knife and your hand. And now, we can use the pressure from the right thumb and press it.
Now, we use the very tip of the knife. Move your knife back into your palm. So what we do is make a gnash off by one and then a petal. This part is very crucial, usually people hate it, but it will make your flower look very real and you earn praise from your audience.
In order to make a stamen stand in the center, we need to layer this off. So the stamen would be away from the last layer of the petal. So what we do is just skin off some carrots and then how to make the stamen more attractive, let’s begin to make a shaker sharp, sharp straight into it. Make one sharp and then turn, we make an across sharp again. Have your fingers against the carrot. If you cut deep enough to inside to the last level of the petal, this stamen will fall out in the water. And this should keep in ice water.
Female For how long do you leave it in the iced water?
Pam: It is about one hour before you can use it. And these kinds of thing, you can use in two ways. One is garnishing on your plate. The other thing we will do it like the flowers. We have a stick to stick into it and then arrange it as a flower. And then when you had it display for every two hours you need spray water in.
Today, we begin to make a leaf out of the carrot. But we can make leaf out of many kinds of vegetable. Most of the times, I will make it from acorn squash because the green color is so attractive and, once when you finish it from acorns squash, you can keep it for long time, to reuse it again.
Female: It has a good contrast.
Pam: It has a good contrast, a good color. But when you start to do the leaf, you choose to start with the carrot. When we get the range of the carrot about three or four times out off the width. So this is how we measure it. And then peel the carrot and slice the carrot 1/3 of the thickness. We cut the carrot along until to the end of the cut. When we have a piece of carrot, get some thickness of not to thick and not to thin, 1/3 of the carrot a whole size. And then you just hold a knife, grab a knife like we’re going peel it. Have your thumb on the back of the knife.
First of all, we have to make a body shape, a leaf shape. Let the bigger part towards your body, hold it with your left arm then roll off the near corner on your right hand side, on the same side from the top is about 1/3 of the length. Slice it to the opposite corner. Then turn the carrot around from that point. You just make a half circle-cut out off the first half of the length. Then on the same side, you just make of roll-off of the four corners. At this time, you will have a rough body shape. Then we need to see which part is still too fat. Then we take that part off, like this part is too big and too wide, we can just skin it off. Make a nice shape of the leaf. So these kinds of things are just like a touch off to make it small perfect shape. Now we get a very nice shape of the leaf shape, it should be this way.
First of all, we need to make a vein line in the center of the leaf. We have to draw a line holding a knife change the position of holding knife right we can do hold knife like a pencil. Have the middle finger on the side of the knife close to the tip. Then place your knife right in there.
Female: And the tip and point.
Pam: You point it towards your body then off the center line, On the right hand size slant your knife about 45 degree of angle with some thickness, have the other two fingers on the carrot. And then drive backwards with some pressure, your knife still slanted along the body line towards the tip. But you will stop before you reach to the tip about 1/4 of an inch away from the tip. Then turn the carrot around. Again with the knife, the position of the knife and the angle would still be the same. From the point that you just pull your knife out, make a cut on the right side of this, the formal cut, and draw it backward like a parallel line. When you draw it backward make sure you have a steady pressure from the beginning to the end of the cut. You will be able to take one piece of it out. Then from the tip, draw another line, slant your knife the same angle.
Female: This is how you peel on the side of the vein.
Pam: Right, and then along with the body, toward the bottom of the leaf.
Female: Turn the carrot around on the right side of the formal cut.
Pam: Again, make another cut on the right side of the formal cut—the same angle and thickness and depth. You will be able to take a piece of it out. Now we have to make a zigzag edge. Change the position of holding knife grabbing like we are going to peel it upright your knife. So tips still toward you body, has the finger with the carrot. And the left hand fingers will grab the point that you are going to cut. Then place the knife about half inches, at least, away from the tip. And make a nice curve in toward the line, the nearest line. Then a straight cut in make a meeting cut. So you will be able to take a triangle out. Do not cut into the line, we just cut toward the line, but not into the line, then point to point do the same thing, make a nice curve cut in toward the line. Then a straight cut in, to make a meeting cut. The evenly size of the edge is a must and it will come from your practicing.
We do it just like this, point-to-point, all the way down to the bottom. On the other sides still grab the knife like peeling upright your knife and have the finger against the carrot opposite from the cut that you happen to make it. But have all the thing at that point so will get more control. The beauty of leaf will come from this evenly size of the zigzag edge and very sharp point of the zigzag edge. We do it like this until to the end of the leaf.
Female: And the pressure comes only from the thumb.
Pam: From the thumb. And if you can push it to easy then we can do, we cut the carrots on your left palm.
Female: Then, at this point, lay your leave on your palm at the fingers and change the position of holding knife by a pencil, slant your knife, draw off from the centerline toward the tip, flip the knife over from the centerline with the same depth and same angle. You will be able to make a meeting cut underneath. And we have to draw along the edge of this tip.
Pam: I will always move my carrot backwards so I get more control. Let all the fingers support where I’m cutting.
On the other side, then we have to change the position so that side point, we taught you again. Still holding knife like a pencil, do the same thing. When you place your knife draw and start from the vein line. Press your knife with some angle and depth, draw it toward the tip, flip your knife over with the same angle and depth. You will be able to take a triangle shank-out, the wedge out.
When we finish with each of the carrot leaf, we have to place it in iced water.
Female: How long does it take for it to get crispy again?
Pam: It would take about 10 to 20 minutes. And this is the way to preserve the carrot, every piece of carrots—under the water.
To make a container, we have to cut the bottom off just a little bit in order to let it sit on the tip and then we can do hold a knife like pencil, use a drawing process. First of all, we draw a leaf shape, by slanting your knife and draw it backward. Flip the knife over with the same angle and the same depth; draw it backward until you will be able to get a piece out. Then a vein line is not that deep and slant a knife a little bit not to far just take a nice thin piece out. We do this on each ways. The leaf is should be fine so when you place the acorn squash in front of you and you will come to do the part that you cannot see the bottom anymore on every which until you cover it. And then the second layer of the pattern became to start one leaf shape right in the middle of the two leaf shape. Slant your knife on both side with the same depth and same angle in order to make one line and then a vein line.
When we have to make a zigzag edge of the leaf, we have to start from the point, draw a curve cut toward the line then a straight cut in, point-to-point you make a nice curve cut toward the line in the middle then a straight cut in. The other side is the same thing, draw it, you carve in toward the line then straight it in. Every time when you draw the line you have to redraw it with some angle and we take a wedge off on the sides point, place the side point toward you, place your knife with some angle from the centerline, draw it backward toward the tip and then flip your knife over and do the same thing. You would be able to take a wedge off.
After we do this layers al around then the next layer which is the third one, we slip right in the middle of the two above.
For the third layer, we need to make upside down leaf by making a bodyline on both side like we did on the second layer. Then turn it around to make the vein line. Then again, point away from your body. Make a nice curve cut in toward the vein line point-to-point.
When making the zigzag edge, the most important thing is, you need to slant your knife on each cut. In order to make a meeting cut underneath, so the wedge will puff-up.
When you had finished all the details in pine cone container, it’s time to cut the top off. Insert your knife straight right in through the section you have to slant your knife then on the other side. Follow the body line of the first layer. It would not come all very easy. For some type of acorn squash, it is very hard to push through. You need to use a longer and bigger paring knife. Then, it is time to scoop it out. Usually, I will have malleable scooping.
Cut some meat of the acorn squash on the edge off, when you scoop it out, try to get a very soft part that connects to the seed out as much as possible. In this way, you have bigger container to contain so deep and then skin off some of this top. To preserve the acorn deep bowl, it needs to be wrapped by plastic paper. To keep it in the refrigerator is also can be reuse again. Just to have two wash it out after it is been used, dry it with paper towel, then wrap again.
Now, we are going to make the flowers, a rose out of the beets. I picked up the beets since it gives a very red color out of it. First of all we have to cut the stem out. Then peel it to the second layer of the skin not a thin peel, you have to make a thick one out of it.
After you have peel it, clean it up, then it is time to shave it up. This is the most important part to make a rose. So we have to make a half-circle-shape. At this point, we get a very nice shape, the half-dome-shape. Then turn it over. At the flat part, we have to make a nice roll off this edge. Roll it, smooth it and make a touch off a slope downward so at this point we get a very nice flat-dome-shape. Flat it one part and like a round shape on the other side. So to start the first layer of the petal, we need to make upside-down, turn it upside down as so at the top of the dome-shape will sit of your palm. Be sure that when you make a petal you will not lift up the beets, you will let the beets laid there flat.
Hold one knife like you are going to peel the carrot, size there’s core off the beets. It is around 1/3 of the width. At the edge of the core, you place the knife right with some angle. Push it in and make a couple push. This is the first push in, pull it out. The second push, you just push only halfway. Then push the back of the knife by your thumb to the right side, right into the edge of the core. Pull it back then layer off underneath the petal.
Female: Slice off the wedge.
Pam: Slice off the wedge and then make a nice touch up again for the next area. Again, underneath of the formal petal press the knife for one hard push. Then make a sowing motion, the first push in, pull it out. The second push in, just only halfway. Then push the side of the knife right into the edge of the core. Every time that I have to make a new petal, I have to make a nice touch off, make a smooth area ready for it.
The first layer of the petal should be at least five, if you have very big beets, this can be six or seven, but it never can be four. The last petal of the beets, both sides will be underneath of the petal of each side. So flip the beets over. Change the position of holding knife like a pencil. Let the thumb is on the side of the knife. Pre-shape it again to make a nice smaller dome shape in front of the dome shape. Sit right in the middle. Then I have to reshape the dome, I tried to reach the bottom of the dome as much as I could. So after you done it, it will look just like this dome shape it set right there. It is not connected with the petals. From this time on, we do not call it layer at all. We will going to let the petals wrap over each petal on and on until you go right into the center.
We hold our knife like a pencil again, then, take a look at the last petal. Right in the middle of the last petal from the bottom draw a line, nice like curve to the top, not to the top of the done at the widest part of the dome. And make some sowing motion couple of push against the outer part. Allow curve around the corner. Then down to the bottom. Slant your knife at the hand, towards you. Skin it off underneath of the petal that you just made. Then, reshape it.
Again, underneath of the petal, the formal petals, draw a line make a couple of push against the outer part of the dome shape, curve it around the corner down to the bottom at nowhere. It does not have to be right in the middle of the next petal underneath.
Female: So you’re under lapping.
Pam: Under lapping.
Now, right in the middle we are going to make a spiral. It is just like a small bud sit right in the middle. How to make a spiral petal? Let’s just make or start just like you are gong to make a petal. Draw a line from the bottom come to the top and stop just right there. Pull your knife back and slant your knife, layer off underneath of the cut that you just made. Then at the cut, you just pull your knife out, make one more push again.
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