Cutlery to crab: NCK Tech culinary students learn ins, outs of food industry

Margaret DePiesse and Emily Corbett work on dishes during a lab at the NCK Tech culinary school at the Hadley Center in Hays.

By CRISTINA JANNEY
Hays Post

The NCK Tech culinary program allows students to participate in a nine-month program that opens up opportunities for jobs without a college education.

The food industry is the second largest employer in the United State behind the medical field, said Philip Kuhn, program director and chef.

The culinary program was moved from Beloit to Hays’ Hadley Center three years ago when Kuhn took over as director. Kuhn is from Hays but has worked in restaurants, conference centers and a casino.

He also owns and runs The Press restaurant in the Hadley Center. Although the restaurant sometimes hires students after graduation from NCK Tech, The Press is not connected to culinary arts program.

Katherine Keene, 23, culinary student places salmon in a teriyaki marinade.

Job opportunities vary greatly for culinary graduates, Kuhn said. They can work on cruise ships or at resorts, casinos, mom-and-pop restaurants and corporate restaurants. They also can work on the other side of the food industry and sell food, working for corporations such as Cisco or U.S. Foods, or with chemical companies that supply restaurants.

“There are tons of jobs out there,” he said. “It is where you want to go and what do you want to experience. And how involved you want to be too, because (working in) restaurants is not an easy job. There is a lot of time spent. If you are going to go to a cruise ship, its 12 hours on and 12 hours off, six to seven days a week. … I was a food and beverage director of a casino. I worked anywhere from 80 to 90 hours to 110 hours a week. Most people don’t put that in in two or three weeks. …

“It’s a lifestyle. It is a fun lifestyle. You get to meet fun people. You get to work with food and interesting types of cuisines.”

Kuhn loves banquet cooking. In Hays, you might cook for 500 to 600 people at a time, but in a large city like Las Vegas, a chef might coordinate a meal for as many as 12,000 people.

Line cooking is more of an adrenaline rush, he said. You might have a list of 25 possible menu items, and you don’t know what is going to come at you.

Philip Kuhn, NCK Tech culinary arts teacher, oversees students in the lab.

Students in the program learn about preparation of a variety of food dishes, including meats, poultry, seafood and vegetables. They also do units on desserts and baking.

Instruction is a combination of reading, workbooks, lecture and lab work, during which students prepare dishes.

At present, the students are working on a seafood unit, something that Kuhn said many Kansas students aren’t familiar with because they are from a landlocked state. Kuhn said he tries to expose students to ingredients they might not deal with in home cooking, but might deal with in their professional careers. This could include lobster, scallops, Kobe beef, foie gras, softshell crabs or caviar.

During the week the Hays Post visited, the students prepared a teriyaki salmon, rosemary grilled shrimp, shrimp wrapped in potato, catfish and lobster bisque. They also learned how to roll sushi.

However, food prep is not the only component of the program. The students also become ServSafe certified, which is a state and nationally recognized program on food safety. The students learn knife skills and about food purchasing.

“Me personally, I walk into restaurants all of the time. I like to go out to eat, and I see a lot of health code violations when I go out to eat. Anything I can (do to) help that go down, I will,” he said.

The program has been trending about 12 to 13 students per session, with classes ranging from as large as 18 to as small as six this session. Some students come into the program right out of high school, and other students come to program with experience.

Emily Corbett, 20, culinary student, peels carrots for a dish in the NCK Tech lab.

Katherine Keene, 23, culinary student, said she hoped to own her own restaurant in 10 to 15 years. She has worked in the restaurant industry before.

“I love cooking,” she said. “You can learn to cook on your own, but it is nothing like learning from someone who has experienced it, who knows from past experiences what works and doesn’t work. It’s a lot of fun.”

Emily Corbett, 20, culinary student, came into the program right out of high school. She said she wants to gain some experience and travel, but she wants to eventually open her own bakery.

“I really like baking. I’m getting a lot of other experience, but I am excited to learn more about baking.”