Students learn healthy eating habits through cooking demonstration Students learn healthy eating habits through cooking demonstration

Northwestern’s Office of Off-Campus Life, NU Dining and NU’s Center for Student Advocacy and Wellness hosted a live cooking demonstration for students living on and off campus, in the Shepard Hall kitchen Thursday.

At the “Eat Well, Live Well” event, organizers taught students how to prepare “heart healthy turkey chili” in honor of February being American Heart Month. The event started with a brief history on heart disease, pointing out that it is the leading cause of death in the United States, then transitioned into how healthy eating is key to a healthy heart.

CSAW Assistant Director of Wellness Daniel Delgado said he hopes that through the live demonstration, students learned more about how they can take care of their heart health related nutrition.

First-year Integrated Marketing Communications graduate student and attendee Xin Qi reflected on how, as someone who lives off campus, not having a Northwestern meal plan can be difficult.

“If you are living in a dorm, there’s always more options, but if you live alone off campus and you have to cook all the time after coursework and exams, it’s just harder,” Qi said. “Sometimes you have to microwave noodles or order delivery, which doesn’t make people healthier.”

NU Dining Campus Dietitian Olga Goumas and Delgado cooked ground turkey, explaining that unlike beef, poultry must be fully cooked to be consumed safely.

Delgado also gave students a tutorial on how to safely cut bell peppers, dice onions and mince garlic for the chili. Goumas added that for busy students, purchasing pre-minced jarred garlic can be a time-saver.

“Some of our tips are obviously beginner tips, but even myself, who’s a little more experienced, learned things from Olga that really helped my own cooking skills,” Delgado said. “Northwestern students are really busy, so being able to find a time sensitive meal is important. There’s a lot of one-pan meals that take very little prep and cook time. Google is your best friend.”

Delgado and Goumas also explained the health benefits of the ingredients, such as garlic, which strengthens the immune system and lowers blood pressure.

After combining the ingredients and cooking everything in one pot, Delgado and Goumas let the meal simmer on a low heat to intensify the flavors.

Weinberg sophomore Alyson Font said she particularly enjoyed seeing the step-by-step process of cooking up close.

“Watching the event in a low-stakes environment was really fun and helped me learn new techniques,” Font said. “It was also helpful in making me aware of the health benefits of the ingredients I am buying.”

While waiting for the chili, Delgado and Goumas led a “Myth or Fact” activity, asking students whether they believed various statements on how food choices impact health.

Conversations during the activity covered nutrition topics like cholesterol, heart disease, fats, fiber and sodium. Attendees then enjoyed a bowl of turkey chili and received a spatula to take home.

“This event really gave us a chance to get educated on the nutritional facts of cooking,” Qi said.

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