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'And finally the French touch," says Chef Franck before pouring a large glug of cream into the dish he's making. The French touch also encourages the copious use of butter. It is lurking in all kinds of dishes, from béarnaise sauce for steak frites to hollandaise poured over perfectly poached eggs. Just unwrap a new pack of butter, melt into liquid - and serve.

I am back at the Cordon Bleu for the second term. I feel closer to chefdom every day. Kind of. I have yet to make a sauce that is "just right." Too reduced - check. Too watery - check. My lowest point was an effort described by Chef Luac as "watered-down cream seasoned with too much salt." I'm not sure if that is 0 points out of 5, or 1 point out of 5 for at least spooning some liquid over my salmon paupiette.

I have survived the Iron Chef-style "mystery basket" and the basic cuisine exam, and am ready to begin French regional cooking. We've moved on from simple dishes and rudimentary cooking techniques to concentrate on the local dishes and flavours of France.

The French love to cook food within other foods. They will mash up guinea fowl thighs and make a mousse, then roll that into a guinea fowl breast. They will roll trout into braised lettuce and scallop mousse into salmon. What to call these rolls has been a hotbed of French culinary debate since the 1800s: paupiette or roulade? You say ballotine, I say galantine. Some prefer the term dodine.

But one thing is clear - it was not the Americans who came up with the "turducken" concept. The French have been deboning fowl for decades by skillfully pulling the skeleton out from the bird through one small incision on its back. Then they insert a pigeon into a poussin and a quail into the pigeon, et voilà, French Thanksgiving!

The unconventional Chef Franck is back. Despite my early apprehension about his teaching, at Christmas I concluded that he was a pretty good cook after all once I'd tasted his homemade foie gras.

But he is still prone to cooking mishaps, and highly entertaining. People in class take turns shouting out warnings such as, "Chef, have you checked your pastry?" Chef Franck will pause and say, "It is fine," but then turn around and check it.

Then he carries on with a story about the food we are making and a bit of its history. His stories, about growing up in France, and his grandmother, help link the recipes with the real people and communities from which they originated.

In one demo, Chef Franck soaks some bread in water to use as a liaison (thickening agent) for a stuffing. He cautions that the bread mixture is very bland and you must always test a bit of stuffing in the pan to determine whether it needs more seasoning. To emphasize the importance of this, he adds: "My grandmother, she used to soak hard bread in plain water and give it to the rabbits. They ate it, but trust me - they were not happy."

Another time he demonstrates how to make a bread from Brittany called kouign amann, which is made from a caramelized yeast dough with apples. Its name translates into "cake butter" and it is intensely delicious. Apparently, this is still a popular breakfast treat, given to children when they go off to school.

In addition to basic yeast doughs, sweet and savoury pastries and choux and puff pastries, I can now make my own fresh éclairs. I find the precision and the pace of baking relaxing.

What I don't find relaxing is relentlessly beating egg whites by hand. One day, I almost dissolve into a tantrum. I want to toss my stainless steel bowl across the kitchen - except my forearm has gone numb and I can't move it. As my wrist technique falls apart, the whisk gets caught on a button on my chef's jacket and it pops into my bowl. I cannot find it in the puffy meringue and it ends up baked into my dessert.

My spirits lift a few classes later when we arrive at the French dish I dream of on winter evenings: cassoulet toulousain. The preparation takes commitment, but it is worth it. Cassoulet is a French stew with a haricot bean base and chunks of duck confit, garlic sausage, lamb and pork belly.

The origin of cassoulet is fiercely debated in France and its preparation is taken very seriously. Elizabeth David, the British food writer, tells the story of a shopkeeper who would close his store when cooking the three-day dish by simply putting up a sign that said: "Closed for cassoulet."

When Chef Franck declares my cassoulet "pretty good, actually," I feel as if my own grandmother has given me two thumbs up.

Eventually, our focus turns to the region of Provence. Not only are we allowed to use olive oil, but in two hours I learn how to clean and fillet a fish. Who knew there was so much blood in the blood vein? (Who knew there was a blood vein?) You scrape it out with a tablespoon.

As much as I enjoy ripping the guts out of fish, there is a certain adrenaline rush in swinging a cleaver. Which brings me to my ultimate calling - butchery.

Once I have deboned a lamb shoulder and mastered a real butcher's knot, I develop a passion for animal carcasses. Suddenly, I find myself on the way to the butcher curious about how much a pig's head costs and how it will fit in the fridge.

In our demo, Chef David butchers an entire lamb down to all the various cuts of meat. He uses a handsaw to cut through the spine and a cleaver to chop the ends off the ribs.

Butchery is not just a skill, it's an art. Intrigued, I take a couple of butchery courses on my own, and get a sweet insider tip from a staff member of the renowned restaurant St. John Bread and Wine: If you add a pig's trotter to your braisage, it gives fantastic flavour to your jus. Note: Jot down "pig's feet" on my next shopping list.

Our glorious week of cooking with olive oil ends with marinating duck legs for the preparation of duck confit. The recipe begins with the words: "One kilogram duck fat."

Thank God we've moved on from using all that butter.

Next week: All you've ever wanted to know about cooking a pig's head, and Sue confronts her fear of sauces.

*****

Bons mots

Roux

A mixture of cooked flour and fat (such as butter) used to thicken liquids such as sauces

Béchamel

A white roux sauce with milk, one of the base sauces of classic cuisine

Bouquet garni

A combination of herbs (traditionally parsley, thyme and a bay leaf) tied together in a leek leaf and used to season dishes while cooking

Mirepoix

A roughly chopped mix of carrot, onion and celery (or leek) used to flavour liquids such as stock

Confit

Dishes cooked by immersing them in vinegar (for vegetables) sugar or alcohol (for fruit) or fat (for poultry or meat)

Deglaze

To add stock, water or wine to a pan in which food has been cooked in order to use the sediments for a sauce or gravy

Fond

The browned and caramelized sediments stuck to the bottom of a skillet after cooking a piece of meat. The skillet is then usually deglazed

Beurre blanc

A light, white butter sauce flavoured with shallots, vinegar and white wine, usually served with fish

Crème anglaise

A fresh egg custard used as a sauce that can be served over cake or fruit or eaten on its own

Crème patisserie

A thickened egg custard used to fill desserts such as tarts, éclairs and profiteroles

Court-bouillon

A well-flavoured liquid used to cook fish, shellfish or offal

French food, cross-country

Alsace and Lorraine The proximity to Germany is evident in many dishes of this region. Choucroute alsacienne is pickled cabbage flavoured with juniper berries and served with sausages, bacon or pork knuckle. Many savoury pies and tarts come from this part of France, the most famous being Quiche Lorraine. Munster cheese, spaetzle and cooking with riesling and gewürztraminer is also common.

Normandy This area is famous for its rich cream and thus many cheeses come from Normandy – one of the best known is camembert. Apple dishes are popular, as are calvados brandy and cider. Seafood is a popular choice due to Normandy's close proximity to the coast (the English Channel) and is usually served with a cream based sauce. Brioche bread is said to have originated here.

Brittany Brittany is famous for its butter, which is flecked with large course grains of salt.

Also from this region come crepes, typically made with wheat flour and filled with both sweet and savoury fillings.

Bordeaux and Burgundy This area in central France produces honest, hearty food. The recipes from here make ample use of their famous wines to create dishes such as beef bourguignon or coq au vin. The capital of Burgundy is Dijon and the famous mustard is also a key ingredient in cooking. This region boasts the biggest escargot in France and they are also famous for their marrons glacés (candied chestnuts).

Champagne and the North Aside from the famous drink, much of the food of this region is influenced by being on the Flemish border – Carbonnade de Boeuf is a classic dish (beef slowly braised in onions and beer) and the city of Lille is a big producer of charcuterie, beer and gaufres (waffles). You cannot leave Lille without having a classic dish of moules et frites or trying a flamiche – a sweet or savoury tart, the best known is made with leeks.

Languedoc-Roussillon, Gascony and Basque This region lies on the Spanish border, so its food has influences of tomato, pepper and spicy sausage. Poulet Basque is a famous dish of chicken, tomato, onions, peppers and white wine. The famous Bayonne ham comes from this area. Perhaps most well-known, cassoulet originated in Languedoc. Geese are a popular dish and the people cook using goose fat and lard as well as olive and walnut oil. Roquefort is made in this southern region of France and is often referred to as “the king of cheeses.”

Provence Specialties from Provence are ratatouille, salade niçoise and possibly its most famous dish, bouillabaisse – a hearty soup full of different types of fish, lobster, mussels or clams. It is served with bread and rouille – a spicy mayonnaise.

Key ingredients are olive oil, fresh herbs, garlic and fresh fruit and vegetables

Sue Riedl