by Arvin Hernaez, September 14, 2018

As another quarter wraps up, I feel fortunate to have the tutelage given here at Kendall College.  Throughout this quarter, I have enhanced my skills and understanding of the culinary world through the classes I’ve taken.  There has been one class in particular though that truly captivated me as a student, and it was the Fish and Sauce class under Chef Michael Salzinski.

A big part of why this class was so exceptional was because of our instructor, Chef Salzinski.  Chef Salzinski exuded a passion for seafood that permeated our classroom.  He taught us not only the core techniques, but he also encouraged us to think creatively and to do more than what was just written in the syllabus.

For example, we were given a whole 20-pound salmon to fabricate.  We grilled the fabricated typical salmon fillets to hone our skills, but we were also given the opportunity to work with the trimmings that people wouldn’t really think of using.  We removed the salmon meat off the bones to create salmon burgers, marinated the belly strips to use for satays, and roasted the head and collar for a delicious little snack. From exercises like this, we learned to be innovative with our products and really attempt to develop our own flavor profiles.

This class taught core techniques and provided challenges to sharpen creativity.  I feel extremely fortunate to have been able to gain so much from this class, and I know it will definitely help me in my future endeavors.