"We believe in giving our students plenty of practical experience and this means getting their hands dirty, or in this case, bloody!" laughed Chef Nadzri bin Alim, Senior Lecturer at Nilai University College's (Nilai UC) School of Hospitality and Tourism.
Chef Nadzri was referring to the butchery workshop by representatives of Meat Livestock Australia (MLA) - Rose Yong (Manager MLA Asia Pacific Region) and Jeremy Low (Manager MLA Malaysia Brunei). Also in attendance were two executive chefs who brought along their extensive knowledge regarding meat products - Chef Jasman Saidun (Former Corporate Executive Chef Carnival Cruiselines) and Chef Christian Heidenreich (Executive Chef Renaissance Hotel, Kuala Lumpur).
Not only did these well-travelled chefs bring their expertise but also some choice cuts of Australian meats for the students to practice their chops on (pun intended). The visit was to acquaint future chefs of tomorrow about the versatility and usefulness of non-loin cuts of lamb and beef. The visiting chefs explained that knowledge of these non-loin cuts allowed for greater savings, which is a vital part of running a cost-efficient kitchen. While Nilai UC hospitality lecturers have the expertise in this field, visiting lecturers do allow for some variation to the style of instruction as well as tapping a wider source of industry expertise.
The final year Nilai UC Culinary Arts students attended the workshop and were keen to test their skills on the meats. "Knowledge of butchery is key to any aspiring chef. Today, I learnt that by using non-lion cuts is an effective way to save costs and in with the right preparation, does not compromise on texture or taste," said Ong Tuen Wern, a final year Diploma in Culinary Arts student who hails from Seremban. "It was also very interesting to see lamb used in Chinese style stir-fry dish as lamb is rarely used in Chinese cuisine here."
Chef Nadzri was pleased to see the enthusiasm displayed by the students and said, "Passion to learn is key to being a successful chef. These students were eager to learn and this bodes well for their future careers. We at Nilai UC are committed t providing the best learning environment possible for our students and today's workshop is one example of that. Hands-on experience is invaluable especially in this field and we will endeavour to organise similar seminars and workshops for the benefit of students and staff alike. By keeping abreast of the latest trends and developments, we aim to produce the best chefs to ever pick up a wok!"
