In collaboration with the Jordanian Embassy in Japan, the Royal Academy of Culinary Arts welcomed the Japanese Chef Ichii Kaoru from Hiroshima, Japanfor the very first time in Jordan on the 30th and the 31st of October 2022.
During the visit, chef Ichii had a session with our students where he introduced himself, his famous dish “Okonomiyaki” and the history behind its creation. Later on, the students joined him for a hands-on demonstration of cooking the Okonomiyaki, and on the following day, a cooking competition was held between the students to do the Okonomiyaki, supervised by chef Ichii.
RACA’s semester 4 students Marwan Hallaq and Obada AbuTaleb won the first place in this competition for the Okonomiyaki they cooked. “It was a very nice experience learning from chef Ichii. We cooked our own version of Okonomiyaki with a Jordanian twist, adding Arabic flavors while maintaining the original identity of this Japanese dish; and this what made us win the first place in the competition.” Marwan and Obada happily stated.
Chef Ichii expressed his thrill being among future chefs at RACA: “This is my very first time cooking my famous Okonomiyaki from Hiroshima here in Jordan, I am very happy with this experience as I’ve only demonstrated the instructions once and students were able to pick up all the details and cook it individually right after. It was heartwarming watching them taste this dish for their first time and cook their own versions of it in a professional manner.”
RACA would like to express its sincere thanks to Her Excellency Mrs. LinnaAnnab, the Ambassador of Jordan to Japan and all the team in the Jordanian Embassy in Japan for organizing this activity and enriching experience for our students on campus.