Few programs at Emory require that you arrive to class with an appetite, but “The Real Dirt on Eating Green” did just that while teaching students how to eat and live sustainably.

Julie Shaffer, Emory’s sustainable food service education coordinator, spearheaded the program, which utilized the Few Demonstration Kitchen for the past three Wednesdays.

“We’ve discovered that students are really hungry, no pun intended, for some hands-on cooking experience,” Shaffer says. “I think a lot of people have gotten into cooking by watching food TV. There’s a renewed interest in cooking real, authentic food.”

The goal of the program, co-sponsored by Residence Life and Emory Dining, is to educate students on cooking and living sustainably through short discussions and instructive chef demos. Students then enjoyed a three-course dinner prepared by a guest chef.

The first session took place on the first Wednesday of September with a short discussion on making sustainable choices. Simple decisions such as not using a lid or a straw, going trayless in the DUC and drinking water instead of soda were mentioned as ways to reduce impact on the environment. For cooks, Shaffer suggested going meatless once a week over the course of a year to reduce food cost.

“You vote with your fork and your pocketbook,” she said before explaining that every time she takes her daughter to Chick-Fil-A, she asks for a cup not made of styrofoam. Fully aware that the nationwide chain doesn’t carry an alternative, she hopes that once enough customers make similar requests, the chain will give in. Students in attendance agreed, with some reprimanding the use of styrofoam during Dobbs After Dark.

When the discussion ended, the spotlight turned to French-trained chef Grant Buchannan, executive chef of Emory Catering. Students watched as he whipped up an Asian-themed dinner, starting with a cucumber-and-watermelon salad. The dish was as simple as it sounds, with Buchannan letting the base ingredients, not an overpowering dressing, be the star.

While students ate the salad, Buchannan prepared a baked pollock topped with breadcrumbs and a vegetable stir-fry with a sesame-ginger dressing. The fish was slightly under-seasoned and a tinge overcooked, but the stir-fry was excellent. Using a wok to fry an assortment of carrots, bell peppers and squash, Buchannan finished the stir-fry with a vibrant sesame-ginger sauce neither too salty and nor sweet. For dessert, Chef Buchannan shared his homemade ginger ice cream before handing out the recipe.

“This program lets you see that the people who cook in the DUC are incredible chefs,” Emory College junior Kailash Duraiswami said. “It shows that the quality of ingredients is what really determines, in the end, the taste of the food.”

The second session took place on Sept. 9th and featured Chef James Quinn, general manager at Cox Hall. Born in Chelsea, London, Chef Quinn treated students to an Italian-themed meal beginning with an arugula salad with heirloom tomatoes and balsamic vinaigrette. A sprinkle of salt brought out the sweetness of the tomatoes while a dash of pepper added just enough kick to a perfectly balanced vinaigrette. Chef Quinn then performed a culinary illusion, deceiving eyes but not taste buds with his next dish. A meatless spaghetti with zucchini, bell peppers and onions looked fairly simple but had an unexpected level of flavor and depth thanks to fresh tomatoes and basil. Students finished the night with tiramisu.

When asked where he sees American food culture heading, Quinn remarked that American food was becoming more sustainable.

“When I first arrived in America, the largest convenience was food,” he said. “It was more convenient to not even get out of my car to get food than to fill up my car with petrol. But over the last three to four years with the sustainability front and the farmer’s markets, food has changed a lot in America.”

Shaffer agreed and said, “Food preparation has never gone out of style in other cultures, but here it did. We let ourselves be fooled into thinking that cooking was drudgery, hence the fast food. Now people are starting to see that wasn’t such a good idea with obesity at an epidemic proportion. People are starting to rethink the way we approach food.”

Shaffer insisted that she isn’t a purist or a locavore who only eats foods grown locally within a 100-mile radius, cited that it’s unrealistic to go without chocolate, black pepper or olive oil but possible to make conscious decisions when purchasing them.

The final session last Wednesday featured Chef Michel Wetli, general manager of the DUC, cooking a Mexican-themed meal.

A graduate of the Culinary Institute of America, Chef Wetli himself comes from a family of chefs and has a resume ranging from Disney World to Robert DeNiro’s Tribeca Restaurant Group to Caesar’s Palace in Atlantic City.

Students enjoyed his authentic chicken tacos, which were packed with several distinct layers of flavor. The pulled chicken, which was finished with a peppy achiote sauce, struck the palette first before letting the pico de gallo with heirloom tomatoes, red onions and cheddar-monterey cheese uplift to bring together the dish.

“This is a great program for getting students involved in food sustainability. I’ve learned a lot about what Emory is doing with grass-fed beef, special corn cups, sugarcane, and much more,” said College sophomore Lisa Tocco, a participant in all three sessions.

It’s not every day trained chefs put on a show while discussing ways to a strong, sustainable foundation in the kitchen, and it’s unclear when the next “Real Dirt on Eating Green” session will be. Shaffer hopes that it will become a weekly program.

Plans to feature chefs from the greater Atlanta area and even the current three “Top Chef” contestants from Atlanta are in the works. As Emory offers no formal cooking classes, students should take advantage of this great opportunity to learn their way around a kitchen and about food sustainability.

— Contact Evan Mah.