One Philadelphia homeless shelter used to have a major pea problem.
Bethesda Project’s My Brother’s House had an abundance of smooth Alaska peas for its clients, but demand did not match supply, Drexel Now reported.
“One of the problems we struggle with is how to be creative with food that was clearly designed for quantity and not quality,” Larry Russock, program coordinator at My Brother’s House, told Drexel Now, explaining that not too many diners had an appetite for the “heat and serve” canned vegetable. The facility was often forced to throw away foods, like the peas, that are less popular but affordable and available in bulk.
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But students who participate in the Drexel Food Lab are salvaging as much of the soon-to-be waste as they can through their culinary creativity. And they don’t let the fact that they’re students keep them from making a true difference.
“In many culinary programs, students learn to cook set recipes,” Director for the Center for Hospitality and Sport Management Jonathan Deutsch, who started the food lab, told Drexel Now. “But at Drexel they have the opportunity to solve real world problems, collaborate with the industry and learn by doing.”
