Development of the Cook-Ed<sup>TM</sup> Matrix to Guide Food and Cooking Skill Selection in Culinary Education Programs That Target Diet Quality and Health
Roberta C. Asher,
Tammie Jakstas,
Fiona Lavelle,
Julia A. Wolfson,
Anna Rose,
Tamara Bucher,
Moira Dean,
Kerith Duncanson,
Klazine van der Horst,
Sonja Schonberg,
Joyce Slater,
Leanne Compton,
Roslyn Giglia,
Sandra Fordyce-Voorham,
Clare E. Collins,
Vanessa A. Shrewsbury
Affiliations
Roberta C. Asher
School of Health Sciences, College of Health, Medicine and Wellbeing, The University of Newcastle, Callaghan, NSW 2308, Australia
Tammie Jakstas
School of Health Sciences, College of Health, Medicine and Wellbeing, The University of Newcastle, Callaghan, NSW 2308, Australia
Fiona Lavelle
School of Biological Sciences, Institute for Global Food Security, Queen’s University Belfast, Belfast BT9 5DL, UK
Julia A. Wolfson
Department of International Health, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA
Anna Rose
School of Health Sciences, College of Health, Medicine and Wellbeing, The University of Newcastle, Callaghan, NSW 2308, Australia
Tamara Bucher
Hunter Medical Research Institute, New Lambton Heights, NSW 2305, Australia
Moira Dean
School of Biological Sciences, Institute for Global Food Security, Queen’s University Belfast, Belfast BT9 5DL, UK
Kerith Duncanson
Hunter Medical Research Institute, New Lambton Heights, NSW 2305, Australia
Klazine van der Horst
School of Health Professions, Bern University of Applied Sciences, 3012 Bern, Switzerland
Sonja Schonberg
School of Health Professions, Bern University of Applied Sciences, 3012 Bern, Switzerland
Joyce Slater
Department of Food and Human Sciences, Faculty of Agricultural and Food Sciences, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, MB R3T 2N2, Canada
Leanne Compton
Victorian Curriculum and Assessment Authority, Melbourne, VIC 3000, Australia
Roslyn Giglia
Foodbank Western Australia, Perth, WA 6105, Australia
Sandra Fordyce-Voorham
Mentone Girls’ Grammar School Melbourne, Melbourne, VIC 3194, Australia
Clare E. Collins
School of Health Sciences, College of Health, Medicine and Wellbeing, The University of Newcastle, Callaghan, NSW 2308, Australia
Vanessa A. Shrewsbury
School of Health Sciences, College of Health, Medicine and Wellbeing, The University of Newcastle, Callaghan, NSW 2308, Australia
Culinary education programs are generally designed to improve participants’ food and cooking skills, with or without consideration to influencing diet quality or health. No published methods exist to guide food and cooking skills’ content priorities within culinary education programs that target improved diet quality and health. To address this gap, an international team of cooking and nutrition education experts developed the Cooking Education (Cook-EdTM) matrix. International food-based dietary guidelines were reviewed to determine common food groups. A six-section matrix was drafted including skill focus points for: (1) Kitchen safety, (2) Food safety, (3) General food skills, (4) Food group specific food skills, (5) General cooking skills, (6) Food group specific cooking skills. A modified e-Delphi method with three consultation rounds was used to reach consensus on the Cook-EdTM matrix structure, skill focus points included, and their order. The final Cook-EdTM matrix includes 117 skill focus points. The matrix guides program providers in selecting the most suitable skills to consider for their programs to improve dietary and health outcomes, while considering available resources, participant needs, and sustainable nutrition principles. Users can adapt the Cook-EdTM matrix to regional food-based dietary guidelines and food cultures.