Virginia Tech Culinary Training Program Hosts Chef from Mexican University

BLACKSBURG, VA., June 9, 2006—Student Programs welcomed a rare opportunity for cross-cultural exchange during its annual culinary employee training program. Chef José Luis Aranda Puente, from the Instituto Technológico y de Estudios Superiores de Monterrey in Monterrey, Mexico, traveled to Virginia Tech to participate in the five-day course led by Chad Tyler Brodkin, executive chef of Student Programs’ Personal Touch Catering.

The partnership between universities began in 2003 when representatives from Monterrey Tec visited Virginia Tech as part of an informational study of peer institutions in the United States. Rick Johnson, director of Housing and Dining Services, visited Monterrey Tec in February of 2004 and initiated a cooperative agreement for Aranda Puente to attend the formal Culinary Skills Training Program, where he could experience on-campus dining at Virginia Tech and learn about managing an employee training seminar.

Aranda Puente toured the dining facilities, attended the week-long Culinary Skills program, and led a demonstration on preparing traditional Mexican recipes, like chilaquiles and chicken with mole sauce. He was very interested in the centralized production at Southgate Food Center and the state-of-the-art marché-style serving stations in D2 and West End Market, according to translator Nancy Becerra-Cordoba, an urban affairs and planning doctoral student at Virginia Tech.

As the chef in charge of the Monterrey campus’ 14 dining centers, Aranda Puente said he plans to remodel some of them according to the marché style in the near future. He also shared his plans to invite Brodkin and other Student Programs chefs to a similar culinary seminar at Monterrey Tec.

Both Brodkin and Aranda Puente said they were pleased with the culinary training program and grateful that the collaboration worked out so well.

“The whole week went smoothly, and this has been a great experience for everyone involved,” Brodkin said. “It has been a great opportunity to learn from each other and share ideas from another culture.”

Class participants prepared the Mexican foods highlighted in Aranda Puente’s demonstration for a special luncheon held the last day of the course. Guests included Brenda Dehoyos, a Monterrey Tec employee participating in the Global Citizen Partnership Program (a leadership and community development exchange program); Maj. Gen. Jerrold Allen, commandant of cadets for the Virginia Tech Corps of Cadets; and guests from the Virginia Tech Service-Learning Center.

The culinary training program, created 10 years ago, offers skills training for Student Programs staff members who prepare food in the on-campus dining centers. Participants learn everything from knife skills to specialized cooking techniques, and the course features chef demonstrations, hands-on skill lessons, and video instruction provided by the Culinary Institute of America.

For more information about Housing and Dining Services and the dining program at Virginia Tech, visit www.studentprograms.vt.edu.

 

 

 

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