Skills Institute

Thursday, 26 July 2012 - 3:33pm

Tasmanian specialist food producers have joined forces with the Skills Institute to help train tomorrow’s top chefs to prepare, cook and serve some of the state’s finest food and produce.

About a dozen of the Skills Institute’s third year cookery apprentices held special breakfast and lunch events, showcasing their cooking skills as well as some of Tasmania’s best produce to the hospitality industry and general public.

Skills Institute Cookery Teacher Greg Hillier said the apprentices had visited a number of the state’s specialist food producers, sourcing prime Tasmanian ingredients to put together a delicious menu especially for the events.

“The menus featured products from several producers who kindly gave up their time and opened their businesses to assist, including Elgaars Organics, 41 degrees South Salmon and Ginseng as well as Tasmanian Truffle Enterprises among others,” Mr Hillier said.

“Tasmanian products and producers have always had a great reputation for quality, which has only been heightened in recent times by the recent exposure on popular reality cooking show Masterchef.

“It’s a win-win for our apprentices, producers and the hospitality industry because our students are learning to cook with some of the finest products available, while showcasing these products through beautiful cuisine to some of the state’s most renown restaurateurs.

 “This not only benefits the producers, but also helps to lift the quality and standard of menus in restaurants across the state and importantly provides our apprentices with the added benefit of being able to network with these industry leaders.”

 Mr Hillier said the event allowed producers and diners to see the apprentices in action through a live open kitchen, adding to the pressure for the apprentice chefs.

 “This of course gives our apprentices a feel for the pressure that comes with cooking in a real commercial kitchen, under the watchful eye of head chefs and sometimes customers,” he said.