Rain didn’t stall chef Ray L. Duey’s fruit and vegetable carving demonstration

On Saturday, Feb. 28, Cerritos College played host to a demonstration, in the student center, of the culinary art of fruit and vegetable carving by renowned culinary artist, Chef Ray L. Duey.

Chef Ray L. Duey is a certified executive chef with over dozens of medals in competition and specializes in teaching the culinary art of fruit and vegetable carving. More widely known as Chef Garnish, his work is also featured in many television shows and movies.

Chef Duey showcased his philosophy and methods toward mastering the art of carving fruits and vegetables to those in attendance with a set-up of cameras, mirrors and music.

Unlike other casual ordinary demonstrations, Chef Duey encouraged participation from his audience all throughout the demonstration.

“Well it’s interactive, otherwise you’re just talking to them like you would children, if you get them to interact you’re spurring them to think and that’s the objective of college. Life is about visuals and being able to see what people are doing and getting people to come up and demonstrating and play with the tools, so that it’s immersive. If you want to learn to swim, you don’t read about it, you jump in the pool, feel the water and actually do it.”

The fruit and vegetable-carving specialist left audience members feeling inspired and motivated for their career in the culinary arts.

Fellow Cerritos College alumni Daniel Alcala, A.A degree culinary arts, reminisced on the seminar and conveyed a revolutionary sense to his approach to the culinary arts.

“I think the whole presentation by Chef Ray L. Duey was really amazing, it was eye-opening, it was definitely a change of pace from what I do as a cook. If there are opportunities like these where it can change your whole life around, even one little tiny step can change the way you see food or the way you want to be. It was more toward motivation to traveling the world to motivate myself to become a better cook, have a better career, have a better life, there’s always opportunities and we have to take initiative to take them no matter how small they are.”