What's New in Rice Archive
Online Rice Education Center Now Available
The USA Rice Federation launched a new Education Center, to meet the evolving needs of chefs, foodservice operators as well as culinary professionals, educators and students. The center is an online resource for in-depth information on U.S. rice in a variety of formats including cooking demos, recipe fundamentals and culinary techniques that provide the building blocks for international cuisines. Also, download the new "USA Rice in the Culinary Classroom," a comprehensive and flexible teaching tool for educators.
USA Rice Introduces New Teaching Tool at Foodservice Educator Conference
USA Rice Federation introduced U.S. Rice in the Culinary Classroom to attendees of the Foodservice Educator Network International (FENI) Conference, an event co-sponsored by the USA Rice Federation and the California Rice Commission.
U.S. Rice in the Culinary Classroom is a teaching guide presented from the perspective of the professional chef, and is divided into four modules that can be used together for a full rice curriculum, or as individual units to complement an existing syllabus. Modules include:
• What is Rice - History and Production
• All About Rice - Science, Types and Nutrition
• Cooking Rice - Basic Methods
• Rice in Cuisine - International Recipes
Each section offers: outlined lesson objectives, lesson plans with specific topics, activities and timing, topic content and review/quiz questions.
The teaching tool served as the foundation for a 3½-hour Master Class "Rice: Ancient Grain in Today's Global Cuisine," taught by chef instructor Jason Labahn who demonstrated to educators the tool's flexibility for all levels of culinary instruction. The class was held at the renowned Le Cordon Bleu College of Culinary Arts in Las Vegas.
"Utilizing the teaching guide U.S. Rice in the Culinary Classroom helped me develop a lesson plan for a ½ day course that included lectures, demonstrations and hands-on techniques while maintaining a high level of engagement and fun," said Jason Labahn, Chef Instructor with Le Cordon Bleu College of Culinary Arts.
USA Rice Sponsors IACP Culinary Trust Event
Hundreds attended this year's International Association of Culinary Professionals (IACP) conference in Denver to learn more about the theme "Pioneering a Sustainable World." Sourcing sustainable foods has sparked widespread interest within the foodservice community and with consumers making everyday dining decisions. To support efforts to menu locally/U.S.-grown foods, the USA Rice Federation sponsored The Culinary Trust, the philanthropic partner of the IACP. The event explored opportunities to understand and act on critical issues in the world of food, like preserving America's resources. The evening featured regional foods of the great west at The Fort Restaurant, a 19th century fort replica situated in the Red Rocks of Denver. Recipes featuring U.S. Rice included Cilantro Rice and Whole Grain Rice Pilaf with Cranberries and Pecans.