Living Library Research and Development Project : Knowledge Management on Local Wesdom for Developing Careers in Traditional Dessert Making of Kudee-jeen Community, Wat Kalaya, Thonburi, Bangkok.
Abstract:
Living Library Research and Development Project : Knowledge Management and Local Wisdom for Developing Careers in Traditional Dessert making in Kudee-jeen Community, Wat Kalaya, Thonburi, Bangkok. Metropolitan is the qualitative research by applying the participatory action research (PAR) and this study of the problems of traditional artisans in the Kudee-jeen community, there were found to be some problems in transferring knowledge of three kinds of traditional dessert-making. The three desserts are Khanom Farang Kudee-jeen, Kussarang and Kuay-tus. The researchers have begun the process of managing the local wisdom of dessert-making by studying the history of the Kudee-jeen community. (near Wat Kalaya in Thonburi, Bangkok) Then they learned that it was historically a Thai-Portuguese community. The traditional dessert-making was taught by Portuguese and transferred from one generation to another. Nowadays there are theree houses still making Khanom Farang Kudee-jeen, and only two houses making Kussarang and Kuay-tus. the dessert makers have developed the processes and tools ; instead of doing so by hand, they use machines to mix the flour, eggs and sugar, which are the main ingredients. They have also modernized their ovens to make them more efficient. They have not changed the original recipe of Khanom Farang Kudee-jeen, but they now add various dried fruits as a topping. The recipe for Kussarang and Kuay-tus have not been changed either. They are still produced using the traditional processes.
Regarding knowledge management, we asked the dessert makers to teach and demonstrate their craft to Home Economics students of Dhonburi Rajabhat University. The students practiced and learned how to make Khanom Farang Kudee-jeen at the dessert makers houses. We also invited one of the dessert makers to teach and demonstrate how to make Kussarang and Kuay-tus at Dhonburi Rajabhat University. The students have been successful in making the three kinds of dessert. Moreover, the have developed standardized recipes (regarding proportion by weight) of Kussarang and Kuay-tus. The recipe for Khanom Farang Kudee-jeen has the proper proportions, so there was no need to develop it. The students created variations on the recipe of Kussarang by adding carrot juice and changing the topping of Kuay-tus from pine-apple paste to chicken (cooked like the stuffing in curry puffs). These variations add to the desserts. In addition, four package designs were made for Khanom Farang Kudee-jeen, two designs for Kussarang and two designs for Kuay-tus. Dhonburi Rajabhat University assists in marketing by putting the university s name on the package and selling them in some special occasion and activities of the university. The researchers have made a pamphlet and a VCD on Traditional Dessert-making in Kudee-jeen community to disseminate information to interested people. An informational website will soon be online. As a result of the research, we can take the tacit knowledge of the dessert-makers an process it by knowledge management so that it becomes explicit knowledge. This is another way to empower our databases, which leads to a valuable Living Library.