Teaching Tips

Nov 11, 2024, 5:40

Houston, Texas (Part 2):

Wednesday, 02 September 2009 13:31
  • My students, traditionally, have had little exposure to the wide variety of foods and cooking ingredients available. Many eat “fast food” on a daily basis and few have experienced fine dining. I like to introduce fresh produce groups (fruits, vegetables, herbs and spices and salad greens) by presenting a wide variety of items and having a tasting party. Students are given a tasting chart to complete as I introduce each new produce item. They then write comments under columns for description (can illustrate and color), aroma, taste, how used. I try to select the more common herbs and spices—sage, oregano, basil, chives, bay leaves, cilantro, ginger, cloves, cinnamon sticks, etc. As students examine these and complete tasting chart, they make a herb collection to take home for their family to used in cooking. (KB)

Denver, Colorado (Part 2): 

Wednesday, 02 September 2009 10:33
  • Let the students plan blind taste tests. Any products they want (pizzas, cookies, etc). Compare by price, low fat versus regular, sugar free versus regular…whatever. This allows them to guess first what the customer will choose and why, and then go through the process and learn the true results. Let them run it any way they want. They learn a lot about appearance, brand power versus taste, etc. (JF)