China's first barbecue college in Yueyang, Central China's Hunan Province Photo: Screenshot from Jiupai News

China's first barbecue college kicked off its first session of the 30-day course in Yueyang, Central China's Hunan Province, on Tuesday, where 30 trainees will learn to make not only barbecue but also ginger-spiced dishes and marinated food. A key founder said the college plans to train 10,000 barbecue chefs who learn in Yueyang and can work nationwide within three to five years, according to media reports.

According to Jiang Zongfu, a key founder of the college, the training course lasts 30 days with a tuition fee of 5,800 yuan ($843). The 30 participants of the first session were selected from over 4,000 applicants, most of whom are from provinces apart from Hunan, including Hebei, Shanxi and Zhejiang provinces.

A woman surnamed Zhang, one of the trainees from Wuhan, Central China's Hubei Province, told Jiupai News that she had no prior experience in the catering industry. She signed up for the course after seeing the college's enrollment information online. The 30-day program includes theoretical lessons, on-site practical training and in-store internship, running roughly from 9 am to 9 pm each day. 

According to the secretary-general of the Yueyang barbecue industry association surnamed Qiao, trainees follow a six-day study and one-day rest schedule. Strict assessments are implemented throughout the training, including checks on attendance and compliance with college regulations. Tardiness, early leave and violation of management rules will all affect final graduation scores, and graduation evaluations cover not only barbecue skills but also Hunan cuisine expertise, Qiao said, per Jiupai News.

The 30 selected trainees come from diverse backgrounds, the secretary-general said. The youngest was born in 2001, while some are seasoned catering veterans aiming to create distinctive dishes by combining local flavors with Yueyang specialties. There are also complete beginners with no catering experience, as well as young college undergraduates who voluntarily applied for the course, she said.

According to a previous report from the Hunan Today, after graduation, students can not only verify their college or undergraduate academic degrees on the national education certification platform, but also take the vocational skills appraisal examination for barbecue chefs under the category of Chinese culinary chefs.

Global Times