Photo By Staff Sgt. Michael Pryor | Sgt. Orlando Serna of Fort Bragg prepares peach and blueberry cobbler during the Field...... read more read more
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FORT BRAGG, N.C.- Sgt. Orlando Serna has a bone to pick with anyone who thinks cooking is nothing more than throwing a few ingredients together in a pot.
"It's a science. Everything is a formula," said Serna, a cook with the 1st Squadron, 73rd Cavalry Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Airborne Division.
Serna's precision and attention to detail inside the kitchen enabled him to clean house at the 34th Annual U.S. Army Culinary Arts Competition held at Fort Lee, Va. this March. Serna won three individual awards and helped the Fort Bragg team claim Installation of the Year honors. Additionally, Serna was selected to join the U.S. Army Culinary Arts Team – the culinary equivalent of the Olympic Dream Team.
"It's huge," said Serna, a 32-year-old native of Atlanta, Ga.
Serna and the rest of the USACAT will face off against army cooks from all over the world during the Culinary Arts Olympics in 2010.
Serna's recent accomplishments in the kitchen had humble beginnings. When he first joined the Army in 1998, the only thing he knew how to make was cookies, he said.
But after a three-year stint as a cook with HHC, 1st Battalion, 325th Airborne Infantry Regiment, during which he helped Fort Bragg to an Installation of the Year title in 2000, Serna knew he had found his calling. He got out of the Army to pursue an advanced degree in culinary technology. In 2008, armed with new skills and new techniques, Serna joined back up again, and he has been cooking his way to the top ever since.
Serna's area of expertise is baking. He can sound like a NASA scientist as he rattles off butter ratios, browning-point temperatures, caramelization differences between sugars, and the technique required to get the perfect consistency on a chilled chocolate mousse.
"I like the geek stuff," Serna said.
That painstaking attention to detail is what separates Serna from the rest of the pack. At the Culinary Arts Competition, a dessert centerpiece he created portraying the Muppet character "Animal" took 36 hours of work to craft, but in the end it won the "Most Artistic Exhibit in Show" award.
Despite his individual achievements, Serna was quick to give credit to the Soldiers at his unit Dining Facility.
"At the end of the day, it's not just you, it's your whole DFAC behind you picking up the slack that allows you to succeed," he said.
Serna was also proud of the performance of his teammate Sgt. Michael Williams, who was his apprentice during the competition and won a Bronze Medal.
"He has a long future out there," Serna predicted.
Like any Soldier in the Army, Serna said he knows he will be judged on how well he passes on what he knows to his subordinates.
"You can't keep that knowledge to yourself," he said.
The one group that won't be benefitting from Serna's expertise in the kitchen is his family. At home, he said, he keeps the cooking simple. What does he eat the most of?
"A lot of cereal. Quick and easy, you know?" he said.
| Date Taken: | 04.01.2009 |
| Date Posted: | 04.01.2009 12:49 |
| Story ID: | 31873 |
| Location: | FORT BRAGG, NORTH CAROLINA, US |
| Web Views: | 296 |
| Downloads: | 269 |
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