Earn a chef’s cap

The Chinese Cuisine Training Institute provides more than 10 courses for students at different levels. (Courtesy of the Chinese Cuisine Training Institute)

By Barry Wu

Hong Kong. An eating heaven for most people living in, and visiting, the fragrant harbor.

With current food-borne diseases like bird flu, it is even more imperative that chefs in Hong Kong are well qualified in preparation and cooking.

This is what the Chinese Cuisine Training Institute is training chefs to be.

Established in 2000 by the Vocational Training Council, the institute is one of the Millenium Projects initiated by the Hong Kong Government.

Among the institute’s goals are to provide Chinese cuisine training for both aspiring and practicing chefs, to increase the status of Chinese, chefs and to improve the quality and hygiene standards of Chinese cuisine.

The institute has a demonstration kitchen, four training kitchens for different Chinese specialty cuisines, a training restaurant, a food science laboratory and a computer training room.

Chan Chun Hung, training kitchen instructor at the institute, said, “The institute provides more than 10 courses, including both part-time and full-time, for students from elementary level to master chef level.

“The general courses teach Chinese cuisines from all over the country – for instance, Fujian, Guangdong and Anhui cuisines.
“There are also specialized courses in northern Chinese cuisine, Sichuan appetizers and dumplings.”

The courses cost from $800 to $50,000. Scholarships are available.
Each class lasts 6 to 8 hours, and courses last from 3 weeks to 2 years.

Besides culinary skills, the institute teaches students about food science as well.

“We must have a comprehensive knowledge about the ingredients we are using in order to make a good dish,” said Mr. Chan.

The advanced microbiology equipment in the institute’s laboratory helps students achieve that. The food science laboratory is also where students receive lessons on food nutrition, food safety and workplace hygiene.

Besides making sure the ingredients go well with each other, chefs need to help staff members in the kitchen work well together.

Said Mr. Chan: “A chef should have knowledge of kitchen management and administration.

“This is especially important for senior chefs who need to manage the kitchen and supervise other chefs.”

Communication skills are important for building a chef’s professional image.

They can use such skills to present their dishes in competitions, and to their customers as well, he said.

“It is common for chefs of Western cuisines to introduce their dishes to the customers,” said Mr. Chan, “and we would also like to help our chefs do so.”

The institute is also hoping to elevate the status of Chinese cuisine chefs in Hong Kong by adopting a certificate system. It does not matter whether the chefs are students of the institute.

Lawrence Wong, director of the institute, said there are four levels in the certificate system – elementary, intermediate, advanced and master chef levels.

Starting from academic year 2003/2004, the institute implemented a “one test, two certificates” policy. This means that a chef will get two certificates, one valid in Hong Kong and the other valid in China, by passing a single test.

“The Hong Kong certificate is useful locally.

“In some parts of China, a Chinese certificate holder is recognized as a qualified chef,” said Mr. Wong.

So far, 120 chefs have won certificates.

Cheung Ha Hong, vice-dean of Kwan Sang Catering Professional Employees Association, supports the certificate system.

He has been in the catering industry for over 25 years and is one of four who received the master chef level certificate this year.

Said he: “In the past, most of Hong Kong’s restaurants followed an apprenticeship system.

“It was common for a new chef to do nothing but cut carrots for more than 10 years before learning something from a senior chef.”
He considers this a total waste of time and effort.

In the 1980s, Mr. Cheung visited Beijing and Zhengzhou and was impressed by their chef qualification system.

“In China, people show great respect to chefs. They consider chefs to be professionals because the government recognizes their qualifications.

“Mainland hotels and restaurants are able to select suitable employees according to a standardized criterion.”

Mr. Cheung added, “But in Hong Kong, employers are suspicious about the quality of their chefs because they are not certified.

“Therefore, I always encourage chefs, both new and experienced, to take the certificate tests in order to make the industry more prosperous.”

Not only is certification good for the overall industry, it is also good for a chef’s personal career growth.

Take Martin Yan, master chef and host of international cooking show Yan Can Cook. He started off as a chef’s apprentice in Hong Kong and China and later went on to receive a master Chinese chef certificate and a master’s degree in food science.

Now, he is a cookbook author, a restaurant owner and a television host.

Despite such successes, there is still much opposition from senior chefs.

Said Mr. Cheung, “They want to keep the apprenticeship system.

“This is because they want to preserve their high position in the industry.”

However, Mr. Cheung still believes strongly that it is time for seniors to accept the new system.

As master chef Yan always says at the end his shows, “If Yan can cook, so can you.”