A week and half ago we put on our first program for residents in the Living Learning Center. The program was similar to traditional opening residence hall programs, that is, a social welcome back BBQ. The difference is that the Living Learning Center RA’s, Hall Director, and I decided to take this program to the next level by adding an educational component. To achieve our objective we teamed with some very talented NDSU Animal Scientists to obtain local carnivore specialties from the NDSU meat shop operated by the meat science program and to educate LLC residents about agriculture, animal science, and food preparation. The educational program was a spin off of a wonderful NDSU extension program called the BBQ bootcamp (http://www.ndsu.edu/bbqbootcamp).
Our goals for this program were to provide a fun social event, support NDSU ‘local’ products, educate people about the art and science of food preparation, and provide opportunities for NDSU faculty members, staff, and students to interact. The menu included hamburgers, lamb bratwurst, veggie and fruit kabobs, Dr. G’s famous pickles, and assorted chips. The weather didn’t cooperate, however that didn’t thwart our ability to put on a successful program. With the assistance of the BBQ boot camp mega grill and a bit of instruction we were able to cook over 300 burgers, 11 lbs. of lamb bratwurst, and several hundred kabobs.
The program started with a short presentation by an NDSU Faculty member and several graduate students associated with the BBQ boot camp. They reminded us that everyone who eats is involved with agriculture and that food quality extends from the farm to the plate, something that many people don’t think about. They also informed us that the meat industry is the 3rd largest industry in the United States (behind automobiles and oil). From a food preparation standpoint they discussed the importance of searing meats and how that could be done without a grill and suggested that the best way to order pork chops in a restaurant is medium rare!
The program was very well attended by LLC residents and several faculty members/staff also attended (estimated attendance over the 1.5 hour program was around 225). What made this program successful was the fact that the entire LLC crew stepped up with different aspects of this program that included planning, advertising, shopping, pre-event food preparation, set-up, cooking the food, serving, and cleaning up. Everyone stepped up with ideas, time, and enthusiasm to get this done and to accomplish our objectives. It made me very proud to be part of this program and to work with the LLC crew and my colleagues from the College of Agriculture on this event.
PS-my pickles were a hit. I made two different types from my home grown organic cucumbers (I love to garden). Perhaps my next program will be about making pickles, part of a “chef on a shoestring series”.
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