In the kitchen with USA Rice
Apr 05, 2021
ISTANBUL, TURKEY – USA Rice, in cooperation with MYK Gastroarena, one of Turkey’s most popular culinary schools for young chefs, organized a one-day workshop here under the leadership of Celebrity Chef Ekrem Cagatay. Six student chefs were invited to participate in three live sessions broadcast on the social media accounts of both organizations.
During the workshop, Chef Cagatay prepared one dessert, one main course, and one soup featuring U.S. rice, and shared information on the high quality, sustainability, and consistent cooking characteristics that make U.S.-grown rice a perfect ingredient for Turkish dishes.
“In previous years, workshops for professional chefs were held in-person in major cities such as Istanbul, Antalya, and Ankara,” said Eszter Somogyi, USA Rice Director, Europe, Middle East and Africa. “This year, however, USA Rice invited a smaller number of chefs and broadcast the event online, in order to comply with COVID-19 restrictions on gatherings. USA Rice turned this challenge into an opportunity by organizing the first-ever livestream broadcast at the culinary academy, ultimately reaching a broader audience than that of traditional in-person events.”
The livestream webinars were viewed by 12,500 active followers of the culinary school. The workshop also was recorded and edited to a 4-minute video shared on MYK Gastoarena's social media that reached 13,500 unique viewers. Shorter versions of the recipe videos are available on USA Rice social media platforms as well.
“The webinar reached more than 25,000 young chefs with USA rice messages,” said Somogyi. “Our partnership with MYK Gastroarena gave us the opportunity to interact with this target group directly, efficiently delivering our messaging and educating them on the benefits of using U.S. rice in their professional kitchens.”