A Spanish experience

The students posing with a huge pan of paella after a cooking classs on the saffron rice-based dish.

WHAT better way to learn a country’s cuisines but to savour and experience it yourself.

A group of 19 students and alumni from Taylor’s School of Tourism, Hospitality and Culinary Arts recently travelled to Barcelona, Spain.

They spent 11 days there to see what they learnt in class come alive. It also fed their passion for the culinary arts.

The journey mostly covered the northeast and southeast regions of Spain from Barcelona and Montserrat of the Catalunya region, Valencia of the Valencia region, and to Madridejo and Alcazar deSan Juan of the Castilla La Mancha region.

It was specially designed and led by Chef Khairul Anuar Muhamad, a passionate chef lecturer at Taylor’s University, targeting his final diploma students with the objective to give them real-life experience that would enhance their understanding of relationship between the producer of food (farmers and artisans) and the consumers (the chefs and customers).

Chef Khairul said: “I try to expose all my students to these type of study trips because I believe by understanding the relationship between the producer and the consumers, the students will have a better appreciation of ingredients and this will help them produce a better final product on the plate.”

The study trip started in Barcelona where students learned about the process of production, origins and types of one of the most popular hams in the world.

They also visited the world’s oldest and famous producers of sparkling wine, with their underground cellars measuring 25km covering four levels.

At Valencia, the students learned to prepare the region’s famous “Paella”, a saffron rice-based dish which had become Spain’s national dish. The cooking class was taught by the region’s award winning Paella cook, Pablo, who with his family have won the coveted best Paella in Spain competition for the past 10 years.

One of the most memorable learning experience for the students was when they went off the beaten path towards the Spanish heartlands, the Castilla La Mancha region, into the saffron capital of the world. They had the rare opportunity to harvest and participate in the start to finish process of producing the world class saffron known as “red gold” for its high value. The region’s saffron flowers, locally referred as saffron roses, are considered the best and the most expensive in the world.

“Here at Taylor’s University, we believe that trips like these will ‘re-ignite’ the students’ passion for food.

“With a deeper understanding of a country’s cuisine, exploration of a new place and culture with a strong, long standing food tradition and heritage, such as Spain, will broaden the students’ minds as well as feed their passion for food,” said Chef Khairul.

Kim Leun Chen who is currently working as a sous chef in Kuala Lumpur, and also Chef Khairul’s former student, said the trip has helped to expand his perspectives on food.

“The trip reminded me on the importance of life-long learning and keeping an open mind in exploring the multitude of cuisines and ingredients available from around the world.

“It was interesting to learn and experience the process of how some of the finest ingredients in the world are produced and how it reaches our tables,” he said.

For Nur Diana Farisya, an Advanced Diploma in Patisserie & Gastronomic Cuisine student, one of the most memorable experience she had was the hands-on paella cooking class in Valencia.

“I learned that not all paella are the same, and it is much more than just a saffron-based dish.

“In Spain, it is a way of life as it brings the community together by instilling a sense of togetherness among friends and family,” she said.