Students gathered at the University of North Dakota’s Wellness Center to prepare appetizers as they learned kitchen basics in the center’s Culinary Corner last Wednesday, Jan. 15 at 5:30 p.m.
The Kitchen Basics Class instructs students on essential techniques, dish preparation, and nutritional advice. These free-of-charge classes will continue throughout the spring semester on Feb. 12, Mar. 5, and Apr. 16 from 5:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. where students can expand on their kitchen knowledge as they prepare more meals.
Meg Livers, UND’s Health Promotion Specialist, coordinates programs that are based on wellness and health for students, including the Culinary Corner.
“I took over the Culinary Corner pretty recently,” Livers said. “As Health Promotion Specialist, I’m there to educate students and promote wellness and health on a broad scale, not just physical or mental health. It’s everything.”
Annually, Livers analyzes surveys from UND’s campus to determine events to move forward with.
“A lot of it comes down to wanting to prevent bad behaviors,” Livers said. “We don’t want to focus on reactive programming.”
As Livers plans programming for the Culinary Corner, she shifts her focus to on-campus communities.
“Now, we’re trying to focus strictly on on-campus communities, so it’s open to faculty and staff as well. I think the biggest target is students,” Livers said. “They might not necessarily know how to cook. There’s also a worry of nutrition in school because they’re stressed out or they might not have the options for groceries.”
Livers considers these and additional factors while organizing the Kitchen Basics Class.
“Kitchen basics is meant to teach kitchen basics [like] how to properly handle knives, how to make sure the kitchen is clean, and how to handle raw foods,” Livers said. “Our instructors are very knowledgeable, and they’re simple recipes.”
The class has been led by Eliana Cole, a nursing student at UND, for the past year.
“We try to hire student employees because it’s relatable,” Livers said. “It’s also an education for the instructor as well.”
While the class continues throughout the semester, they do not reiterate the instruction.
“We try to have four classes each semester, so it always touches on some of the same things. With different recipes, you’re always going to learn something different,” Livers said. “With cooking, it’s always good to get as much exposure as you can. Especially, if you’re not sure how to cook.”
As the class progresses throughout the year, students can look forward to cooking knoepfle soup, egg rolls in a bowl, meat balls, and roasted parmesan green beans.
“I’m hoping students come to classes, see different ways of cooking, learn how to properly use instruments, and process the food,” Livers said. “Hopefully, that leads them down a road, like ‘hey, I can do this with this food.’ They’re going to gain confidence.”
Dylan Campbell is a Dakota Student Section Editor. He can be reached at [email protected].