U.S. Pork, Beef and Lamb Focus of Culinary Training in the Philippines

Working to educate decision makers in the Philippines about the quality and versatility of U.S. pork, beef and lamb, USMEF conducted a culinary training camp for 40 chefs, restaurant owners and foodservice managers from the Manila metropolitan area. The two-day camp held in Tagaytay, which has become a leading food destination in the Philippines, was funded by the USDA Market Access Program (MAP), the Pork Checkoff and the Beef Checkoff Program.

Chefs, restaurant owners and foodservice managers study cuts of U.S. red meat during a USMEF culinary training camp in the Philippines

Like previous culinary training camps, USMEF invited sales staff members from local importers to attend. Top Philippine customers of U.S. meat customers also participated.

“The goal of these USMEF culinary training camps is to share knowledge about U.S. red meat and the variety of cuts available, along with the quality and many uses for each cut,” said Sabrina Yin, USMEF director in the ASEAN region. “We also provide participants with market updates and a look at the latest trends in the food industry that can help them grow their businesses.”

Yin and Monica Regaspi, USMEF representative in the Philippines, described USMEF’s work around the world and U.S. pork, beef and lamb production. They emphasized the culinary advantages of U.S. grain-fed red meat as well as its nutritional attributes.

Sabrina Yin (right) at a U.S. pork cutting demonstration at a USMEF culinary training camp in the Philippines

The first day of training was focused on U.S. beef and featured a cutting demonstration using top blade muscle, chuck eye roll, rib-brisket finger, bone-in short ribs and outside skirt. Participants then sampled U.S. beef dishes prepared in advance, including grilled outside skirt with chimichurri sauce, coffee-glazed brisket fingers and Texas-style roasted short ribs.

Participants sample U.S. red meat as part of the USMEF culinary training camp designed to introduce chefs, restaurant owners and foodservice managers to the quality and versatility of U.S. pork, beef and lamb

Following the sampling, a session was held on preparing the cuts for cooking. Participants were encouraged to use their creativity by marinating the cuts they would later grill for dinner.

“In the evening, everyone assembled for a barbecue, which we described as an American tradition for gatherings and celebrations,” said Yin. “Grilling stations were provided to grill the items that were marinated earlier. The participants really enjoyed the dinner, as the concept was new to most of them.”

Monica Regaspi, USMEF representative in the Philippines, explains USMEF’s role and the services it provides to U.S. red meat customers

The second day of the camp focused on U.S. pork and lamb. Yin gave an overview of U.S. production practices, described many different cuts and shared information about U.S. processed pork. This was followed by a pork and lamb cutting demonstration and product explanation. Featured items included U.S. pork shoulder and shoulder end-cut and U.S. lamb shoulder riblets.

Cooked samples of U.S. pork and lamb were distributed as U.S. pork shoulder end-cut loin with mushroom ragout, U.S. pork shoulder beer stew and baked U.S. lamb riblets.

“Participants were impressed with the quality of U.S. meat and had many positive remarks about the helpfulness of the technical training, and overall organization of the seminar,” said Yin. “Through events like this, we hope to convince more chefs and restaurant owners to introduce and popularize different cuts of U.S. red meat and feature them in new menu promotions.”