By Munira Al-Sultan
KUWAIT, Aug 30 (KUNA) -- The image of a chef might mostly be of an experienced male or female adult working in a prestigious restaurant preparing foods that would make people salivate before eating.
But what if that chef was a young 3 or 6 year old child? Now that is, first of all, surprising and to make the matter more interesting children in Kuwait could have a chance to achieve their dreams of becoming chefs.
Becoming true a chef is no easy task as cooking an omelet; even some adults are having trouble doing that and as for children in Kuwait, the Chef Young Academy -- a cooking school for children originating from the US -- is becoming a haven to cultivate the talent of children in cooking.
Speaking to KUNA, head of the Kuwaiti branch, Maha Al-Qatami said that the academy is a place "where children could seek cooking as a hobby".
The Young Chef Academy, established in 2003 with branches all over the world, enables children to learn about the art of cooking, said Al-Qatami who stressed that teaching a child how to cook was an important skill to learn and develop.
The Academy also provides other services for customers with the main aim being to provide children with valuable information and techniques about cooking, she said.
The whole idea would not be a success without children having a say in the matter and that was exactly what Academy student Fahad Sami,13, reflected when said that the experience was a "dream come true".
Sami said that he was very intrigued by cooking shows since he was a young boy, noting that he was learning how to be an expert chef in Japanese cuisine while at the Academy.
Also sharing the experience are the parents who are thrilled to see their young ones cook.
Khaled Al-Ali and Sajah Al-Nasser both enlisted their children in the Academy and they were happy to know that they're beloved children were learning how to cook.
Al-Ali said that establishing such a place for children to learn how to become chefs was an outstanding idea that would help the young ones learn some important values.
"Participating children will surely learn from the experience and hopefully they would carry that with them in life," affirmed Al-Ali.
Expressing similar sentiments, Al-Nasser said that she was very happy to see her nine-year-old son do things she did not realize he could able to do. She also mentioned that teaching children, from a young age, to be responsible and creative was sort of a mental development that would help the young ones in the future. (end) mfs.gta