Chef Gary Whitecotton is a cook who teaches others how to hone their craft.
After 30-some years in the hospitality industry as a chef, Whitecotton said he now finds “more passion in the giving back and teaching young people how to do this.”
That’s why he left the Country Club of Virginia eight years ago to join the staff as culinary arts instructor at the Richmond County-based Northern Neck Technical Center (NNTC) & Governor’s STEM Academy. After working with Positive Vibe Foundation in Richmond, which prepares people with cognitive or physical disabilities for paid employment in the food service industry, he said “I felt that’s where my heart was going.”
Whitecotton, who grew up in Richmond and lives in New Kent, spent much of his childhood cooking and gardening with his grandparents. His grandfather raised hogs and cured meats.
“I was fascinated by it and I liked good food,” he said. “I’d eat raw green beans right out of the garden. And that’s when I realized people cooked their food way too much. They were ruining it by overcooking it.”
He started working in a restaurant after school when he was 14. After high school, he got a sales job in Virginia Beach and realized he hated it. A local restaurant owner took a chance and hired him and “and that’s when I really decided this is what I want to do for the rest of my life.”
Although a self-taught cook, Whitecotton studied culinary arts through online courses and is a certified executive chef with the American Culinary Foundation. He spent 20 years as a chef at private country clubs, including 13 with the Country Club of Virginia where he managed two properties and seven kitchens. It was there he got involved in externships and mentoring youth in culinary programs in the Richmond area. His volunteer work with Positive Vibe also helped open his eyes to what he could accomplish in the classroom.
His students at NNTC leave his tutelage as highly skilled cooks and hospitality workers. The dining room at NNTC center is getting a remodel. Throughout the school year, the culinary arts department offers food items for sale to students, staff and county employees in Warsaw, caters meetings on-site and holds special dinner functions. The students even learn operation of point-of-sales systems.
“This gives them an opportunity to find out if culinary school or hospitality management is or isn’t for them,” he said.
A team of his students placed first in the culinary category at the Virginia ProStart 2022 invitational at James Madison University and went on to finish 24th among 42 teams in the national competition in Washington, D.C. The students, with Whitecotton’s guidance and input, created a three-course meal which started with a sea scallop appetizer with cilantro vinaigrette. The students called it Awesome Scallops “because it was awesome,” he said.
Awesome Scallops
Serves 2
Ingredients
- 3 slices cooked and julienned bacon
- 1 small apple, diced
- 1 small Roma tomato, diced
- 1 small avocado, diced
- 1 thinly sliced green onion
- 1 lemon
- 6 scallops
- 3 tbsp. olive oil
- 1 tsp. minced cilantro
- 1/8 oz. micro-greens
- Salt and pepper to taste
Preparation
- Cook bacon in a saute’ pan until crispy. Remove and drain on a paper towel.
- Combine apple, tomato, avocado, green onion and julienned bacon, along with salt and pepper, in a stainless steel mixing bowl. Add the juice of half the lemon and one tablespoon of the olive oil. Mix and set aside.
- In a small bowl, season scallops with salt and pepper. Cook scallops on medium heat in the same pan used to cook bacon. Cook on one side for 2-3 minutes and flip. Cook an additional 2-3 minutes. Place scallops on paper towel to drain.
- Take half of the avocado and apple mixture and place in a mound on center of plate. A small mold may be used to help form. Place scallops on top and garnish with micro-greens.
- In a small bowl, combine the remaining olive oil and juice from half of the lemon. Season with salt, pepper, minced cilantro and whisk. Drizzle on top of micro-greens.
