Norwich Tech, Otis Library Fuse Foods to Inform

NORWICH — Braden Pink definitely was interested in the strawberry flambé with vanilla ice cream zabaglione at Food Fusion, a special tasting of several world dishes Tuesday at Norwich Technical High School.

“I’ve got to try that,” the 8-year-old exclaimed.

He also said he wanted to try the Vietnamese lettuce wrap and Baja fish combo served up to the 20 guests of the school’s culinary department.

But a few bites were all he could manage before rejecting the fish wrap. His sister Sydney, 11, gave the dish the thumbs up, however.

Otis Library and Norwich Tech teamed up to produce Food Fusion, Otis Community Engagement and Programming Coordinator Julie Menders said.

Otis has joined with various local groups in preparation for the upcoming Smithsonian touring exhibit, “Exploring Human Origins: What Does It Mean To Be Human?” which will visit the library in January.

“There’s nothing more human than food and eating, especially now. Even young people are getting excited about food preparation,” Menders said.

Norwich Tech Chef Jason Bentley, the school’s culinary department head, showed the audience of diners how each of the four dishes is made, sprinkling in his own observations and pearls of wisdom from his years as a professional chef and instructor. Culinary students made the dishes and served them to the diners.

Bentley said food fusion is nothing new.

“It’s kind of the American way. We are the melting pot,” Bentley said. Immigrants who brought their home country’s dishes over substituted some ingredients for others that were more available.

“Maybe they had a lot of pork there and didn’t here, so they used lamb,” Bentley said. “Everything changed a little bit.”

Bentley wanted to expose the diners to different food combinations, and also to teach a bit of food preparation.

He had participant Michael O’Keefe chop garlic for an Asian pulled pork quesadilla. O’Keefe, who has cooking experience under his belt, did it deftly.

“There aren’t going to be any vampires following him home tonight,” Bentley said.

http://www.norwichbulletin.com/news/20161101/norwich-tech-otis-library-fuse-foods-to-inform