MasterChef Gary MacLean to be guest lecturer at MDISMDIS in the News

The school has launched a new baking and culinary studio, as part of a partnership with the City of Glasgow College

MasterChef Gary MacLean is slated to be a guest lecturer at the Management Development Institute of Singapore (MDIS) in the future.

“It’s an exciting place to be,” he said of MDIS, which has launched two new cooking studios — a baking studio and a culinary studio spanning over 2,000sq m. The Glasgow-born chef, who has been teaching at the City of Glasgow College for around 13 years, will be here as part of a partnership between the college and MDIS.

“There are teams and people who work really hard to make (this partnership) happen. It’s exciting to be part of that,” MaClean said.

MacLean, 45, won BBC’s MasterChef: The Professionals last year. He was up against chefs who were in the industry, and was the only finalist whose primary role was in education.

Clearly passionate about teaching, he added: “As a chef, (this partnership) supersedes everything else I’ve done in MasterChef. MasterChef is great, but this is where we actually make a difference in young people’s lives.”

MacLean qualified as a chef 29 years ago, working in top restaurants in Glasgow before joining the college as a lecturer. He applied to be on MasterChef three times before succeeding. His winning menu — which he had to create within three hours — comprised a razor clams starter, a Highland roe deer main course and a chocolate pistachio ganache pudding.

Curriculum head for food at City of Glasgow College, Willie McCurrach, will join MacLean as guest lecturer at MDIS.

The duo were here to lead two workshops at the studios on Tuesday (March 28), where they taught invited guests how make chocolate fondant with berry compote, and also demonstrated classic knife and cutting skills to MDIS students.

Four to five diploma programs, including a Diploma in Culinary Arts, are expected to be introduced at MDIS by this year, said Jesline Wong, assistant director of corporate and student development. She added that the school aims to have 30 new programmes by 2020.

***

WATCH: Learn how to make a SUPER chocolate fondant with a berry compote from MasterChef: The Professionals 2016 winner, Gary MacLean.