All Courses & Ebooks

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This ebook is intended to give students a basic understanding of nutritional information and labeling in the baking industry. In particular, there is a focus on Canadian regulations regarding labeling and merchandising of baked goods, as well as baking for customers with special diets, allergies, and intolerances.

Nutrition and Labelling for the Canadian Baker is one of a series of Culinary Arts books developed to support the training of students and apprentices in British Columbia’s food service and hospitality industry. Although created with the Professional Cook and Baker programs in mind, these have been designed as a modular series and therefore can be used to support a wide variety of programs that offer training in food service skills.

Author: BCcampus, Canada

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Workplace Safety in the Food Service Industry is one of a series of Culinary Arts open textbooks developed to support the training of students and apprentices in British Columbia’s food service and hospitality industry. Although created with the Professional Cook, Baker, and Meatcutter programs in mind, these have been designed as a modular series and therefore can be used to support a wide variety of programs that offer training in food service skills. Workplace Safety covers British Columbia legislation and regulations for workplace safety, as well as an overview of general safety practices in commercial kitchens and other workplaces in the food service industry. 

Author: BCcampus, Canada

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This ebook is intended to give students a basic understanding of the various types of meat and poultry used in the food service industry, and of how the terminology used by retail, wholesale, and food service customers varies.

Meat cutting for restaurants and hotels differs slightly from meat cutting for retail. Restaurants and hotels sometimes use names of cuts on menus that are common in the kitchen vernacular or in other jurisdictions like Europe or the United States, while retail meat cutters are bound by Canadian regulations regarding labelling and marketing of meat products to consumers for retail.

Meat Cutting and Processing for Food Service is one of a series of Culinary Arts books developed to support the training of students and apprentices in British Columbia’s food service and hospitality industry. Although created with the Professional Cook and Baker programs in mind, these have been designed as a modular series, and therefore can be used to support a wide variety of programs that offer training in food service skills.

Author: BCcampus, Canada

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This video lesson covers different techniques for cutting vegetables.  Variety of vegetables are cut into different shapes.  Julienne is a french method of cutting vegetables into small sticks.  Vegetables like peppers, tomatoes, carrots, onions, and potatoes can be cut into julienne.

Brunoise is a method of cutting vegetables into fine dices.  Macedoine is a method of cutting vegetables into small cubes and is usually used for fruit salad preparation.  Dices are larger than macedoine and are cut into the same shape.  Paysanne is a thin, flat, and square cut of vegetables.  Chiffonade is a style of cutting vegetables into thin strips, usually used for salads.  Batonnet is a method of cutting vegetables into sticks, like butternut, carrots or cucumbers.

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This video lesson covers the cooking methods blanching and glazing of vegetables.  Blanching is a cooking method where vegetables are boiled in water above 100 degrees Celsius with a pinch of salt to maintain taste and colour.  Vegetables should be boiled for 10-15 minutes to make them edible and crunchy.  Blanching is a pre-preparation method for vegetables before other cooking methods like sautéing or pan-frying.

The video demonstrates how to blanch and peel tomatoes, spinach, cauliflower etc.  Glazing involves cooking vegetables in butter and sugar until they are crunchy and shiny.  Carrots can be cut into any shape desired before being grazed.  Cooling vegetables quickly after cooking is important to prevent bacterial growth.

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This video lesson covers the preparation of stocks.  Stocks are liquids that contain soluble nutrients and flavor extracted from vegetables, bones, and spices by prolonged simmering.  A good stock has fresh vegetables, herbs, bones, and spices.  Brown stock uses brown mirepoix (a combination of vegetables with carrots) while white stock uses white mirepoix (a combination of vegetables without carrots).  

Chicken stock requires deboning chicken and chopping the bones into small pieces.  Fish stock requires a white mirpua and fish bones or trimmings.  Fish stock is only used for fish and seafood dishes due to its strong flavor.  Salt and pepper should be added sparingly to avoid producing overly salty sauces or soups.  Stock is a foundation of cooking and can be used to produce many sauces and soups.

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There are a variety of vegetables available for sautéing, including carrots, spinach, french beans, garden peas, cauliflower, zucchini green pepper, and onions.  A range of condiments, including salt, white pepper, aromat, chopped garlic, chopped onion and fresh cream can be used.  Vegetables can also be grilled and roasted, these techniques are demonstrated in this video lesson. 

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This video lesson teaches how to prepare compound salads step-by-step, using egg Russian salad and Greek salad as examples.  It emphasizes the importance of balancing colour and ingredients, adding mayonnaise, salt and pepper to the dressing the salad, and adding a base and garnish.

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Soups are a great option for simple meals and are very nutritious.

Soups can be classified into thin soups, clear soups, cream soups, special soups, and national soups.  Making soups requires attention to detail and proper technique.  These video lessons gives a comprehensive guide to making different types of soups using a variety of ingredients.

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These video lessons demonstrate how to prepare meat, fish and poultry, namely grilled steak, grilled tilapia fillet, fillet fish in butter and roasted chicken.

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This video lesson covers the use of steamed rice to develop different dishes.  How to cook tumeric rice and oriential rice is demonstrated.

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In this video, the instructor demonstrates how to make two types of salad dressings: vinaigrette and tata sauce. For the vinaigrette dressing, he combines chopped onions, white vinegar, olive oil, salt, and white pepper. For the tata sauce, he uses mayonnaise, onion, parsley, capers, peppers, gherkins, and boiled egg white.  The instructor emphasizes the importance of harmonizing the flavors of the dressing with the salad ingredients and encourages viewers to experiment with different flavor combinations to create unique dressings.

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This video lesson teaches the concept of sauces and introduces the mother sauces, which serve as the foundation for many other types of sauces.  Mother sauces such as fish verte and basic brown sauce or demi-glace are demonstrated.  Other sauces such as chicken verte, bechamel sauce and veloute are also demonstrated.

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This video lesson demonstrates how to prepare steamed rice, which is the base for many dishes. The chef advises monitoring the readiness of the rice closely.  The video also talks about using steamed rice to make different varieties such as tomato, carrot, vegetable, turmeric, and coconut rice.

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This video lesson covers the preparation of Roux for mother sauces.  Roux is a combination of fat and flour cooked together.  Roux is used as a thickening agent in various dishes such as sauces and soups.  There are three types of roux: white, blonde, and brown.  White roux is used for white sauces and soups, blonde roux for velouté sauces, and brown roux for brown sauces and soups.  Different types of roux have different colors and flavors.

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This video lesson discusses the preparation and plating of fruits.  Fruits are an important food group and are full of nutrients, especially vitamin C.  Fruits can be prepared as individual plates or platters.  Different types of fruits include hearty fruits (green apple), citrus fruits (orange), soft fruits (strawberry), and tropical fruits (pineapple, papaya, mango).

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These video lessons covers the preparation of pasta.  Pasta is a popular Italian dish that has become international.  The video demonstrates the preparation Penne pasta and Spaghetti which are types of pasta, it also provides a step-by-step guide to making pasta with cheese sauce.

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This video lesson covers Roasting Potatoes and making French Fries.  Roasting potatoes involves combining two cooking methods: blanching and oven roasting.  French fries are made by cutting potatoes into thin, batonnet shapes and deep frying them.  Watch for a step-by-step guide on how to prepare them.

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Mise en place is a French term for having all your ingredients measured, cut, peeled, sliced, grated, etc. before you start cooking. Pans are prepared. Mixing bowls, tools and equipment set out.  By making sure ingredients are prepped and workstations are organized before you begin assembling a dish, you'll save time. And not only will you waste fewer minutes completing prep work, but you'll also eliminate unnecessary steps or duplicate work in the kitchen.

These video lessons provide a comprehensive guide in preparing and processing vegetables for use.

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This video lesson looks at simple salad preparations.  Salads can be simple or compound, and can be a meal or a course itself.  Salad ingredients can be raw or cooked, or both, and are usually served with dressing.  

There are two types of salads: simple salads and mixed or compound salads.  Simple salads have one ingredient with dressing and other components.  Mixed or compound salads have multiple ingredients with dressing and other components.  Salads can be served with dressing on top or dressing aside, depending on preference.

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One of the first steps in learning how to be a culinary professional is learning ‘professionalism’, the tools of the trade, recipe conversion and measurements, and the proper cooking methods and techniques including the various ways to cook. There are many to learn, and each cooking method has their advantages and disadvantages. You will begin to notice a trend when it comes to applying cooking methods to various food items. There are some methods and ways of thinking that are basic to the kitchen and the profession, some are more advanced. 

This course manual provides the culinary foundations you will need to progress in the field.

Author: Chef Randy Cheramie & William R. Thibodeaux Ph.D.

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Eggs are a versatile and nutritious food used in many dishes, providing texture, structure, moisture, and flavor.  Eggs are used in cooking as binding and coating agents, leveling agents, emulsifying agents and to contribute flavor and colour.  In this video the structure and use of eggs in culinary arts is examined.

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This video lesson explains the purpose of cooking as well as the different methods of cooking.  Topics covered includes;

• Definition of Cooking
• Aims and Objectives of Cooking
• Methods of Heat Transfer
• Effect of Heat on Food
• Methods & Techniques of Cooking

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This video lesson provide a detailed explanation about different types or classification of fish.  It also covers the selection, purchasing, cleaning and dressing of fish.

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The Youth Explore Trades Skills Activity Plans are teacher resources designed to help students explore careers in trades and skills-related disciplines.

These activity plans are specifically designed to introduce students to trades and skills through activities that provide valuable hands-on experience.  Through exposure to modules like these students will be able to make better informed career decisions.  

The activities in the Cook module exposes students to fundamental cooking skills as well as knowledge and attitudes needed for a career as a cook.  A cook typically has a lower rank than a chef.

In this module includes activity description, images, video links, terminology, lesson procedure, quizzes and assessment guidelines.

Author:  Industry Training Authority Apprenticeship Programs, British Columbia

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In this free ebook, we explore the fundamentals of kitchen management from the basic math and calculations you will need to use every day to an overview of the costs associated with operating a kitchen or any food service operation.

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Workplace Safety in the Food Service Industry is one of a series of Culinary Arts books developed to support the training of students and apprentices in British Columbia’s foodservice and hospitality industry. Your health and well-being are your most valuable possessions. Many laws and regulations exist to ensure employee safety, yet every year thousands of serious injuries occur. In many cases, these injuries have serious long-term consequences for both employees and employers. 

For those new to the workforce, or working in the foodservice industry for the first time, having a solid understanding of both the rights and responsibilities of the employer and employee and training in how to operate safely in the workplace are the keys to minimizing the risk of a workplace injury.

Author: BCcampus, Canada