Cooking classes

As a renowned Chinese culinary teacher, Dorothy Huang has taught thousands and thousands of students to experience the joy of Chinese cooking. Her gorgeous cookbook, Chinese Cuisine Made Simple, is the most sought-after cookbook in Chinese Cuisine. It contains160 mouth-watery recipes that emphasize nutritional values, easy preparation, and taste appeal.

Nick Castelberg as chef at George Ranch Historical Park for 12 years has been putting his heart into his job, which is an amalgam of food preparation, teaching and hosting. Nick Castelberg is confident he is doing exactly what he was called to do. "I can't imagine myself being happy doing something else," he said. The park, a living history museum based in Richmond, gives guests a hands-on look at Texas history dating to 1824. Castelberg helps tell that history through food, from weekly lunches to special presentations. Texas is an iconic state," he said. "Our food is iconic, too." Food has had a special place in Castelberg's heart since he was a 6-year-old living with his family in Singapore, where open-air food stalls were part of the cityscape. "You're smelling ginger and onion and garlic being sautéed," Castelberg said. "At a very young age I realized the smells of these things being cooked made me feel a certain way, and I wanted to pass that joy on to others." By his high school years in Houston's Spring Branch area, Castelberg was cooking for his friends and family. People encouraged him then to become a chef, but he adamantly opposed that idea. He equated professional cooking with stress, long hours and little opportunity to see his guests enjoy their food. Instead, he pursued military life after high school. He spent 5½ years in the U.S. Navy, serving in Desert Storm and in Operation Southern Watch, launched in 1992 to enforce United Nations sanctions against Iraq. After his military service, he and his wife settled in Katy, and he found work as a mechanic, building on his skills as an ejection seat mechanic with the Navy. "It was OK," Castelberg said. "But I didn't feel I was on the path meant for me." Those close to him continued to encourage Castelberg to become a chef, and he continued to resist. "I was afraid I would do it and hate it," he said. And few things could be worse, he imagined, than hating one's passion. Ultimately, though, he decided to at least give a career in cooking a try and began the culinary program at theArt Institute of Houston. He enjoyed the program but found it overwhelming to juggle full-time work, long nights at the institute and family life. Though he left the program before graduating, he did pursue work in food preparation, beginning at a now closed fine-dining restaurant in Katy. He also installed security systems for a while. He still remembers the day he returned home from work, noticed a local newspaper in the yard and read the ads. That's when he saw George Ranch Historical Park was looking for a chuck wagon cook, someone who could cook with Dutch ovens and liked kids. Castelberg knew he qualified on both counts. Shortly after, he was on site interviewing for the job and touring the park, where he immediately felt at home. "By then, in my mind, I had already accepted the job," Castelberg said. "What's not to like? It was the best of everything." His first challenge was the creation of an authentic historic Saturday meal for guests. He prepared the food over an open fire during those early years. "I found cooking over an open fire with 30 mile winds outside is different than cooking inside with gas," he said. But he embraced the park, the guests and the challenges. The original Saturday Chuckwagon meal comprises stew, beans, biscuits and cobbler. It's a tangible lesson on late 19th century life in Texas. Later, Castelberg was allowed to create menus that represented other eras in Texas history, from Texas-style barbecue at the 1930s Bachelor House - where single ranch workers once lived - to the food of 1830s pioneers, who lived in this area when it was still Mexico. Castelberg is involved in every step of the food preparation, beginning with the food purchases. When he prepares brisket for the Bachelor House meals, he cuts the meat and stacks the wood for the smoker himself. "So when I light that barbecue, I already have quite a bit of myself invested," Castelberg said. The barbecue sauce gets the same loving attention as the meat, he added. "When people thank me and say, we can tell you truly care about what you do, that is the highest compliment I can receive." Castelberg loves interacting with his guests, from students to out-of-town dignitaries brought by the Greater Houston Convention and Visitors Bureau. "I've taken groups from all over the world - Argentina, Russia, Japan - and there hasn't been a person who didn't come away completely wowed," said Jorge Franz, vice president of tourism for the GHCVB. Franz said he considers Castelberg a Houston treasure. "He does something so unique through the food program at George Ranch Historical Park. He embodies the Texas spirit in so many ways. He's just invaluable." That one-on-one interaction, that opportunity to see his food bring people joy, is at the heart of Castelberg's love for his job. "When you see it, and it puts a smile on their face, even if it's one person, it's worth it," he said. "I've always wanted a position that effects people in a positive way."