Consulate Activities
2023/6/22
The Fukuoka – Hawaii Youth Culinary Exchange Program / Students from Japan and the U.S. collaborate to develop original recipes
On June 9, as part of a youth exchange program between Fukuoka Prefecture and the State of Hawaii, a culinary competition for students from Japan and the U.S. was held at the Kapiʻolani Community College (KCC) with our Resident Chef, Chef Makino participating as one of the judges.
Fukuoka Prefecture and the State of Hawaii have been sister-states since 1981, and have been establishing exchanges in various areas, including economy and education. This year, they launched a new youth exchange program in the culinary field. Fukuoka Prefecture sent six culinary students to Hawaii for a six-day program in early June to learn about Hawaii's food culture through lectures and companies visits.
The culinary competition was held on the last day of the visit to evaluate the outcome of the program. Three teams were made up of two Fukuoka students and two KCC culinary arts program students. They each had 90 minutes to create a dish based on the theme of "Hawaii Inspired and Sustainable". Each team was given three local ingredients to prepare their dishes, such as taro, breadfruit, or kaffir lime. During the tasting, students introduced their dishes to the three judges and also described how they used the knowledge they gained from the program to create their recipes. The dishes students presented were as follows:
After the judging, Team 2, which presented the Rainbow Plate, was awarded first place. The judges encouraged all of the students and commented as follows: "I could feel all the students’ passion and it reminded me of the time when I wanted to become a chef," and "I hope that they will continue learning to become a cultural bridge between Japan and Hawaii through cooking”.
In addition to the program in Hawaii, students from KCC will visit Fukuoka in July, 2023 and continue participating in exchanges with the students from Fukuoka.
<Event Detail>
Title: Hawaii Inspired and Sustainable Cuisine Mystery Basket Competition
Host: Fukuoka Prefecture
Date: Friday, June 9, 2023
Venue: Kapiʻolani Community College (KCC)
Judges: Chef Yuta Makino (Resident Chef at the Consulate General of Japan in Honolulu)
Chef Alan Wong
Mr. Yohei Takahashi (President of Dean and Deluca Hawaii)
Participants: 6 students majoring in culinary arts, nutrition at universities or vocational schools in Fukuoka Prefecture,
6 KCC Culinary Arts Program students
Fukuoka Prefecture and the State of Hawaii have been sister-states since 1981, and have been establishing exchanges in various areas, including economy and education. This year, they launched a new youth exchange program in the culinary field. Fukuoka Prefecture sent six culinary students to Hawaii for a six-day program in early June to learn about Hawaii's food culture through lectures and companies visits.
The culinary competition was held on the last day of the visit to evaluate the outcome of the program. Three teams were made up of two Fukuoka students and two KCC culinary arts program students. They each had 90 minutes to create a dish based on the theme of "Hawaii Inspired and Sustainable". Each team was given three local ingredients to prepare their dishes, such as taro, breadfruit, or kaffir lime. During the tasting, students introduced their dishes to the three judges and also described how they used the knowledge they gained from the program to create their recipes. The dishes students presented were as follows:
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| Team 1: A one-plate dish with Hawaiian Chicken Nanban (fried chicken), Papaya Salad and Musubi | Team 2: A plate of seven colorful side dishes that evoked a Hawaiian rainbow, included tomato salad and blue rice colored with butterfly peas |
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| Team 3 : This sweet potato dessert with haupia sauce, was created with the idea of incorporating the differences between the Japanese and American idea of what "sweet potato" is. In Japan, "Sweet Potato" is the name of the baked dessert made out of sweet potato puree, while in the US sweet potato means the actual potato. |
After the judging, Team 2, which presented the Rainbow Plate, was awarded first place. The judges encouraged all of the students and commented as follows: "I could feel all the students’ passion and it reminded me of the time when I wanted to become a chef," and "I hope that they will continue learning to become a cultural bridge between Japan and Hawaii through cooking”.
In addition to the program in Hawaii, students from KCC will visit Fukuoka in July, 2023 and continue participating in exchanges with the students from Fukuoka.
<Event Detail>
Title: Hawaii Inspired and Sustainable Cuisine Mystery Basket Competition
Host: Fukuoka Prefecture
Date: Friday, June 9, 2023
Venue: Kapiʻolani Community College (KCC)
Judges: Chef Yuta Makino (Resident Chef at the Consulate General of Japan in Honolulu)
Chef Alan Wong
Mr. Yohei Takahashi (President of Dean and Deluca Hawaii)
Participants: 6 students majoring in culinary arts, nutrition at universities or vocational schools in Fukuoka Prefecture,
6 KCC Culinary Arts Program students
Students giving presentation on their dish
Judges tasting and asking questions to the students
Chef Makino giving awards to the students
Together with all the participants and judges
First place winner, Team 2 presented a “Rainbow Plate”