‘Science is delicious’: Students learn cooking skills at SAB class

Home Culture ‘Science is delicious’: Students learn cooking skills at SAB class
‘Science is delicious’: Students learn cooking skills at SAB class
Junior Danae Sollie and sophomore Liana Guidone pose with avocados at SAB’s “College Cooking Hacks” event last Tuesday. Courtesy | Student Activities Board

After last week’s college cooking hacks class, sophomores Jack Hall, Jonathan Burton, and Juan Hernandez are thinking about starting their own cooking show, perhaps on Instagram.

“It’s a lot of fun to cook with others, it’s a fun process to have, I want to make it more routine,” said Hall.

Last week the Student Activities Board debuted a new event called “College Cooking Hacks,” as a way for students to learn how to cook with inexpensive ingredients and enjoy a feast with friends in the process. At the event on Feb. 19, eight teams of three each stood behind a table set up with the tools and ingredients needed to prepare several Mexican dishes.

The SAB team said they came up with the idea from the cooking event that SAB used to put on called “Charger Chopped,” in which participants competed to prove their skills in the kitchen.

Senior Jared Gohl explained how he and SAB teammate senior Makenzie Self enjoyed that event their freshman year and wanted to revamp the concept.

“Makenzie and I both like cooking a lot, and we know a lot of people who say they’d love to learn to cook but don’t have the opportunity,” Gohl said. “So we figured this would be a way to give people that opportunity to learn some basic skills.”

The event attracted students of all skill levels, from those who came with no cooking knowledge, to those who came to show off their cooking experience. Junior Emma Clifton said she was glad to have the occasion to develop her skills.

“I don’t cook much, so I’m looking forward to learn a little bit more and have fun with friends while doing it,” Clifton said.

Gohl began by teaching the teams how to pit, cut, and peel an avocado in preparation for making guacamole. The students laughed as they learned to properly cut onions, tomatoes, and cilantro. They worked hard to smash the slightly unripe avocado into a smooth dip.

After enjoying the fruits of their labor with tortilla chips, the teams get back to work, learning how to make chicken tacos. Self taught students to saute onions before adding the chicken to cilantro, lime, and enchilada sauce. Some students added their own twists to the recipes: sophomore Juan Hernandez opted for tomatoes instead of enchilada sauce with the chicken.

For the dessert, Gohl taught the teams to make a Mexican chocolate pudding that was seasoned with cloves and cinnamon.

Hernandez, who came with previous cooking experience, said it was a good opportunity to improve on working as a team.

”I learned that I can work with others while cooking,” Hernandez said.

Junior Danae Sollie said she enjoyed the challenge and the results of the labor.

“I learned that cooking is basically a science,” Sollie said. “And that science is delicious.”