Date: October 13, 2026 – 1:00 PM ET / 10:00 AM PT
CE Point: Competency 3.0
Title:
Don’t Reinvent the Menu: Build Better Flavour Through Technique
Description:
Great food doesn’t always require new recipes, expensive ingredients or a complete menu overhaul. Sometimes the biggest improvements come from understanding how to get more flavour, texture and appeal from the ingredients and equipment already in your kitchen.In this practical culinary session, Chef Kristy Olsen will explore techniques that foodservice teams can use to enhance existing menus while working within the realities of nutrition-focused and long-term care environments. Participants will look beyond salt as the primary source of seasoning and explore the use of acids, herbs, spices, aromatics and alternative sauces to build balanced flavour.The session will examine how heat and the Maillard reaction influence colour, aroma, texture and flavour; how different methods of preparing and using spices can change their intensity; and how taste perception can affect the dining experience. Kristy will also discuss practical approaches to starch preparation, lighter alternatives to traditional high-fat sauces, and ways to use existing kitchen equipment more effectively.Special attention will be given to the versatility of modern equipment such as combi ovens and how different cooking methods can be used to create better flavour and texture without unnecessarily increasing labour or complicating production.
Great food doesn’t always require new recipes, expensive ingredients or a complete menu overhaul. Sometimes the biggest improvements come from understanding how to get more flavour, texture and appeal from the ingredients and equipment already in your kitchen.In this practical culinary session, Chef Kristy Olsen will explore techniques that foodservice teams can use to enhance existing menus while working within the realities of nutrition-focused and long-term care environments. Participants will look beyond salt as the primary source of seasoning and explore the use of acids, herbs, spices, aromatics and alternative sauces to build balanced flavour.The session will examine how heat and the Maillard reaction influence colour, aroma, texture and flavour; how different methods of preparing and using spices can change their intensity; and how taste perception can affect the dining experience. Kristy will also discuss practical approaches to starch preparation, lighter alternatives to traditional high-fat sauces, and ways to use existing kitchen equipment more effectively.Special attention will be given to the versatility of modern equipment such as combi ovens and how different cooking methods can be used to create better flavour and texture without unnecessarily increasing labour or complicating production.
Presenter:
Kristy Olsen |
Kristy Olsen is a Red Seal Chef and Baker, restaurant owner, culinary educator and industry leader based in Southern Alberta. A graduate of Lethbridge College’s Culinary Careers and Baking program, Kristy has built a career combining professional cooking, entrepreneurship, mentorship and culinary education. Kristy is the owner and chef of Eden Restaurant 186, a private dining restaurant in Raymond, Alberta, where she develops multi-course dining experiences, culinary classes, special events and custom menus. Her work includes menu and recipe development, food costing, ingredient utilization, flavour development and adapting classical culinary techniques to practical foodservice environments. Education has remained an important part of Kristy’s career. Her approach to teaching focuses on understanding the “why” behind culinary techniques so cooks can make better decisions with the ingredients, equipment and menus already available to them. Over the next 10 months she is working on her Certified Chef du Cuisine Certification at SAIT.Kristy is also actively involved with the Culinary Federation, serving as President of the Lethbridge Branch and National Chair of the Recruitment & Membership Committee. Through her professional and volunteer work, she is particularly passionate about mentorship, skills development and strengthening Canada’s foodservice industry. She sits on the Apprenticeship Committee, and coaches provincial and National young chef competitors. Kristy believes better food does not always require more ingredients, more expense or an entirely new menu. Often, the greatest improvements come from understanding flavour, applying sound culinary technique and getting more from what is already in the kitchen. |