Photo By Damany Coleman | Mark Allison, the dean of culinary arts at the Charlotte campus for Johnson and Wales...... read more read more
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MARINE CORPS BASE CAMP LEJEUNE, N.C. - Did you know that pasta, and even spaghetti has origins in China? Some experts believe that pasta and noodles have a starting point in The Orient more than 40 centuries ago, and have traveled the word to be tailored to various cultures’ diets.
Not only did culinary competitors get a brief history lesson on the noodle, they were also required to whip up their best pasta and noodle based meals at the third quarter, Culinary Team of the Quarter Competition, at Mess Hall 411, aboard Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune, Oct. 18.
Mark Allison, dean of culinary arts education at the Charlotte campus for Johnson and Wales University, said he was excited to be a judge for his first culinary competition aboard a Marine Corps installation.
“This is my first event for the Marine Corps,” said Allison. “I’ve been in the culinary field for 33 years, and I’ve been judging in competitions for the last 16. This is the first time I’ve been on a Marine Corps base.”
Allison added that he was very excited to be a part of the event and just by looking at the tables that the competitors set up for their presentations, he knew it would be a good contest.
“It looks like everybody is taking this seriously, which a completion should be,” said Allison.
Wade Smith, A Sodexo production manager with Mess Hall G-640 aboard Camp Geiger, said that although attendees arrive to the mess hall and the food is basically ready to eat, there is a plethora of preparation that goes into it behind the scenes.
“What you see today is hours and hours of work,” said Smith. ‘Our Competition has grown over the last few years and even Parris Island and [Marine Corps Installations] in California have modeled their competitions after what we do.”
Smith added that the four teams competing for the event were taken to a workshop where they were educated on the in’s and out’s of pasta.
“We challenged our teams and challenged them to make their own pasta – no spaghetti, no lasagna,” said Smith. “We have four judges here, but we told the competitors the only judges they should be concerned about are the judges that are standing on the other side of the chow line, three times a day. They are the Marines that we feed. Every day at your mess hall, there is a competition and these troops are judging you.”
This time, the judges decided that first place and the People’s Choice Award would go to the Marines from Mess Hall 4013, aboard Marine Corps Air Station New River, who showed their pasta proficiency with a home-style fried ravioli, stuffed with a blend of ricotta and Parmesan cheese; a lightly fried eggplant rollatini, layered with prosciutto and seasoned ricotta; a crab carbonara with ribbons of crab meat tossed in pancetta and ‘Mommas Old Fashioned Bread Pudding.’
The team that in second place, chefs from Mess Hall 303, made a luscious lobster and orzo stew; fettuccine pasta made from scratch with Alfredo and marinara sauce; stuffed chicken breast with a side of spaghetti squash and zucchini tomatoes; topped off with a white chocolate and raspberry cheesecake.
“We trained for this over about two and half months and practiced everything on our menu six times,” said Cala. “When we were told what the theme was, I felt I had to do it. This is my background. I’m 100 percent Italian and I had all my ingredients imported from Italy. It showed today – we won first place.”
Cala added that they searched the internet and ask his mother for thoughts on what dishes to prepare for the competition.
“We also had a practice Culinary Team of the Quarter cook-off, so we would know what to expect so we could handle the situation appropriately,” said Jackson.
The team plans to use the same theme and menu for their next competition, with a few tweaks here and there, of course.
“Nothing was perfect today and there is always room for improvement,” said Cala.
The fourth quarter, Culinary Team of the Quarter Competition is scheduled to be held this winter aboard the base.
| Date Taken: | 10.18.2011 |
| Date Posted: | 10.26.2011 17:39 |
| Story ID: | 79053 |
| Location: | CAMP LEJEUNE, NORTH CAROLINA, US |
| Web Views: | 153 |
| Downloads: | 1 |
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