Sapporo Teppanyaki Chefs - 16th October 2009

Year 11 BTEC Hospitality and Tourism students wished staff and pupils at Salford City Academy “Meshi Agare” (good appetite) with their Japanese sushi dishes prepared alongside professional Japanese chefs from Sapporo Teppanyaki, the Manchester teppanyaki, sushi and noodle restaurant.
The BTEC students welcomed Head Chef Uthai Hannarona, Sushi Chef Prayat Khottha and Duty Manager Jesney Chong alongside Marketing Manager Hazel Liu, into their Hospitality and Tourism lesson on 16 October.  The restaurant had been invited to initiate students in the art of Japanese Sushi and to help students build upon their fish preparation and cooking skills with the added dimension of working with raw fish.
Julie Larkinson, Director of Work Related Learning and Food Technology Teacher organised the visit in conjunction with the Salford Business Education Partnership (BEP). She said “This was a fantastic opportunity for students to work alongside professional chefs and to gain confidence in and learn about a new style of foreign food and cooking.  Our budding chefs also had the chance to gain news skills in creativity, communication and problem solving.”  
Students were introduced to the art of Sushi with a demonstration in making Tuna Maki and the restaurant’s signature dish, the ‘Manchester Roll’.  Ingredients included raw fish, Japanese rice, seaweed, pickled ginger, and wasabi (Japanese horseradish).
Pupils also established the skills needed to use bamboo rolling mats and chopsticks as well effective, artful presentation for sushi.  Fun was had by all as students challenged Prayat to prepare a Tuna Maki in record time – 30 seconds was the fastest achieved! Students were also surprised to learn that it takes up to 2 years for sushi chefs to learn how to cook and prepare perfectly seasoned sushi rice.
In the tourism side of the course, students have been on a whistle-stop world tour in the classroom, gaining knowledge and understanding of various restaurant roles around the globe.  Working alongside the chefs gave students an authentic cultural experience of working as a sushi chef.
An additional challenge for the day was using communication skills to overcome the language barrier with the chefs and to work effectively to observe and understand the demonstrations given and put into practice the sushi dishes.
Julie said “All our students overcame the language barrier, engaging in the new experience of Japanese cooking and dining; many had never tasted sushi before and although a few were nervous, all of them thought the dishes were delicious as did the rest of the school! The day has been an eye-opener for students interested in exploring careers in foreign catering.”    
Year 11 BTEC Hospitality and Tourism student Otis Bell said of the experience “I enjoyed hearing about the restaurant; it sounded like a lively place to work.  It was hard to communicate with the chefs but I followed the demonstrations closely, looking especially at what they did with their hands and this helped me produce my sushi. I was really proud of my sushi and enjoyed making it. It’s made me confident enough to try it again at home.”
Hazel Liu, Marketing Manager for Sapporo Teppanyaki, said “We were delighted to be invited to Salford City Academy to share our culture with these food technology students and found it to be an extremely rewarding experience. It was a great day for learning about each other’s cuisines as our hosts prepared a traditional English gift for us to take home – some scones!”

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