Curriculum Development

Cross-Disciplinary Curricula

The culinary profession is becoming increasingly technical and cross-disciplinary. As a result, a career in the food industry now demands that professionals have a strong fundamental knowledge of the basic principles of science that influence the evolution of the culinary field.

Through evidence-based research in the culinary arts and sciences, the CIA Department of Menu R&D works to develop courses and seminars that integrate culinary techniques with their underlying scientific principles, as well as introduce the newest ideas from the world of science.

Curricula for Food Industry Professionals

Research in the culinary arts and sciences—and the curricula that flow from it—provides chefs with new tools to be even more innovative, to better serve their customers, and to carve out new career tracks that combine culinary tradition with the modern food system.

Online Menu R&D Courses

The CIA's online Menu R&D classes help corporate and research chefs translate science and technology into meaningful strategies that can facilitate efficient and successful product development in multi-unit foodservice.

Ideal for anyone who wants to broaden and advance his or her career in the food industry, these research and development-based courses include Marketing and Consumer Behavior, Food Science and Technology Applications, Operational Strategies, and The Culinary Art of Menu R&D.

On-Campus Professional Development Courses

The Department of Menu R&D is also involved in the development of CIA courses for industry professionals such as Culinary Science: Principles and Applications in Modern Cuisine. This course reviews the principles of culinary science and their career applications in the modern foodservice industry. And by comparing traditional and "modernist" techniques, it introduces participants to the mechanisms underlying the physical and chemical changes that occur during the preparation and cooking of food, and how they impact the sensory properties and enjoyment of a meal.

Curricula for Students Interested in a Career in Food

To launch a rewarding career in the food industry today, culinary graduates need an understanding of the basic principles of science that underlie the ingredients, techniques, and flavors produced in the kitchen. And that knowledge is not just for research chefs in culinary R&D careers—as modern techniques and other evidence-based culinary practices take hold in the everyday operations of foodservice, all chefs can benefit.

By integrating culinary science into key parts of the bachelor's and associate degree programs, the Department of Menu R&D is helping CIA students prepare for an exciting future.

Here are just a few examples of these curricula innovations:

Lectures in Culinary Science Fundamentals

Specialized lectures were developed by the Department of Menu R&D for students in the freshman year of the bachelor's and associate degree programs in culinary arts:

Heat Transfer
Microbiology
Ingredient Functionality
Flavor Reactions
Flavor Perception and Evaluation

These lectures introduce students to principles of culinary science that will help them understand and more effectively use culinary techniques. Aspects of chemistry, physics, microbiology, and psychology that underlie culinary techniques and traditions are discussed, and tastings and other experiential demos are used to help illustrate these principles.

Greystone Student Garden Project

Established with funding through the MRFDI to help students learn about sustainable agriculture, the Greystone Student Garden Project is now a successful, self-sustaining program at the CIA's Napa Valley, CA campus for students in the degree and certificate programs. Read more about the project in our News section: < link to individual articles >

Bachelor's-Level Culinary Science Course

Bachelor's degree students at the CIA are now offered a Culinary Science course designed to provide a foundation in chemistry, nutrition, microbiology, and sensory science and help them get a leg up in the competitive culinary R&D job market.

Developed by CIA faculty, and based on curricula created by the Department of Menu R&D, this elective laboratory course explores food in its most fundamental physical ways. It addresses proteins, fats, carbohydrates, and water, and the foods that contain these macronutrients. By the time students enter the junior year, they have already studied nutrition and learned how macronutrients affect our bodies and health. In this class, they learn how these same macronutrients form the structure of all food and react during cooking. In addition, they explore sensory evaluation techniques, preservation, food labeling, and current trends, and gain insight into the challenges and rewards experienced by industry research and development chefs.

Culinary Arts and Sciences Seminar Series

This popular series was established with funding through the MRFDI to bring well-known speakers from the food industry and academia to campus. It enables CIA degree program students to learn more about culinary science, consumer behavior, ingredient functionality, flavor perception, and health and wellness, and helps inspire an interest in culinary R&D careers and the application of culinary science in other careers in food.

Past and future speakers include culinary scientists, research chefs, university professors, and other subject-matter experts such as:

Brad Kinzter, R&D Specialist, Scharffen Berger and Dagoba Organic Chocolate, "Creating Chocolate Flavor from Bean to Bar."
David Levitsky, PhD, Professor of Psychology/Nutritional Sciences, Cornell University, "The Role of Caloric Content in the Obesity Epidemic"
Harold McGee, PhD, Author, On Food and Cooking: The Science and Lore of the Kitchen, "The Science of Deliciousness"
Howard Moskowitz, PhD, President, Moskowitz Jacobs, Inc., "Flavor Perception and Mind Genomics"
Dr. Moshe Rosenberg, Professor and Specialist, Dairy Engineering and Technology, UC Davis, "Cheese Design: What Affects the Evolution of Cheese Quality Attributes and What Governs the Culinary Opportunities with Cheese?"
Paul Rozin, PhD, Professor of Psychology, University of Pennsylvania, "Culture, Cuisine, and Health"
Ted Russin, MSc, Food Scientist, CP Kelco, "Hydrocolloids 101"
Kevan Vetter, Executive Chef and Manager, Product Development—Culinary, McCormick for Chefs, "Evolution of Flavor in the United States"
Brian Wansink, PhD, Professor of Marketing, Cornell University, "Mindless Eating: The Role of Culinary Context"
Chris Young, Co-Author, Modernist Cuisine and Senior Scientist, Intellectual Ventures, "Revealing the Mysteries of Heat in the Kitchen"

The Culinary Science and Research Society

A student club formed at the Hyde Park campus, the Culinary Science and Research Society gives students an opportunity to explore the world of culinary science and gain insight into culinary R&D career options in this field.

They read culinary science-based papers and journal articles, discuss their merit and application in the culinary field, and conduct sensory tests to better understand flavor perception and methods for objective evaluation of food and flavor.

Examples of discussion topics include:

How regional cuisines and diet play a role in health and wellness
The physical and chemical properties of foods
Perception of the various stimuli that foods present
The effects of cooking techniques on flavor and nutrition