Newcomers are learning Dutch in the kitchen in Tervuren (Flemish Brabant) and not in a conventional language class. Municipal authorities keen to integrate the sizeable number of expats who settle in Tervuren have launched the course ‘Belgian dishes for beginners’ in conjunction with adult education centre Crescendo. Teachers, Dutch-speaking volunteers and people learning the language mix to create iconic Belgian dishes but also improve their knowledge of the Dutch language, spoken by a majority of the population of Belgium. In colloquial speak they are learning Dutch among the ‘pots and pans’. And it works, participants say with great enthusiasm.
Tina Rosenbauw from Germany has completed a Dutch language course at adult education centre Crescendo in Tervuren, but because she likes to cook, she says this is an ideal way to brush up her Dutch. ‘I almost always cook for the children at home, but it is often German cuisine. That’s why it is so interesting to get to know Belgian dishes. The cooking goes very smoothly, learning Dutch is much more difficult', she laughs.
Not only non-natives are taking the ‘Belgian Dishes for Beginners’ course but volunteers too lend a hand. They include Tony Dechamps: ‘I got into this via Café Kom Binnen, the conversation evenings with non-Dutch speakers allowing them to practise their Dutch and learn about our culture. The process goes even better when we are doing something together that we enjoy, like cooking!’
Cooking together and practising Dutch. It is a formula that has generated much enthusiasm among the course participants, if only because of the delicious menus. Tony: ‘It really looks delicious. As a starter we make chicory leaves, really Belgian, of course. As a main course, a pork roast with cranberries, and for dessert something classic as well: rice tarts.’
Under the watchful eye of teacher Gerd Swinnen, the pots do not boil over and only Dutch is spoken. ‘That is important, after all the people on the course are here to learn the language. We’ve discovered nothing works better than learning Dutch by trial and error. Just sitting there at a school desk, looking at words and pictures, that doesn't stick. But really experiencing it here, doing it, tasting it, smelling it, talking about it, does! It's a formula for success.’