Welcome back to Feature Fridays! Find out more about The Kettle Gourmet and Temasek Polytechnic’s collaboration back in 2018. We were featured in our local Singaporean news agency, THE NEW PAPER.
Having graduated from Singapore Management University, Zac started his business as he set off on the path of an aspiring entrepreneur. Zac executed his business plan and founded The Kettle Gourmet in July 2017, which originated from his passion for popcorn.
With The Kettle Gourmet, Zac wanted to challenge the creative boundaries by creating innovative flavours that don’t conform to the norm. Hence, leading to the start of the production of a wide range of local flavours unique to Singapore.
The Start of a New Collaboration
Recognizing how the younger generation can bring about a new and fresh perspective to his business, Zac reached out to Temasek Polytechnic’s Diploma in Nutrition and Culinary Science students to craft two new flavours that differed from the norm.
The two students, Sheena and Marcus, eventually settled on two creative local flavours which are Chicken Rice and Chilli Crab respectively. Chicken Rice is a well-known and highly loved national dish in Singapore while Chilli Crab is the must try seafood dish for everyone visiting Singapore. These two flavours were highly anticipated to be popular amongst the masses.
The R&D Process
Source: The HoneyCombers
Zac allowed the students to innovate and develop the recipes and cooking methods according to their own creative insights. This enables them to demonstrate the talent and skills they have acquired in the culinary arts without any fixed restrictions. Zac also offered feedback along the way for the students to take into consideration on how they can improve the recipes.
The students spent a month doing research, sourcing for ingredients and developing these new innovative product flavours. After many trial and errors, Sheena and Marcus eventually came up with the finalised recipes for these two flavours, with the help of their culinary instructors.
Internship Opportunities
This one-month collaboration left Zac impressed with the students, whom he then offered an internship position at The Kettle Gourmet. The internship would allow them to go beyond their diploma and reach greater heights. This helps them to develop their entrepreneurship skills and identify business ideas to achieve better results and success in their future business ventures. Hence, enabling the students to excel and achieve greater potential.
Launch of the 2 New Flavours
Source: Joel’s Food Adventures
The Chicken Rice Popcorn was first launched, followed by the Chilli Crab Popcorn, which launched shortly after. The flavours could be found online and purchased from a pop-up event, Artbox Singapore in 2019.
Previously, The Kettle Gourmet has released many other popular local flavours such as Bak-Kwa Popcorn, which sold out in the first four days of Chinese New Year, as well as Teh Tarik popcorn. Local flavours produced were only available for a limited period. Some of the flavours were also released in celebration of festive occasions such as Chinese New Year.
While the Chicken Rice Popcorn is no longer available, the Chili Crab flavour can still be found in our online store and various sales platforms. Not only that, it is even one of the more popular selling flavours of the six. Who knows? More local flavours might be released in the near future so stay tuned to The Kettle Gourmet News for more updates!
It does not matter whether you are studying a diploma in culinary or business or visual arts. Do reach out to us if you want to challenge your potential and learn Zac’s secret to his successful businesses. Email us at zac@thekettlegourmet.com to secure an internship position at The Kettle Gourmet!