For the Love of Cooking
Story by Salli Sablan and Sgt. 1st Class Carl Trujillo
California Military Department Public Affairs
Feb. 28, 2024
SACRAMENTO, Calif. – Every Soldier can recall memories of field training: dark nights, the chill of frosty mornings, and the gnawing hunger at day’s end. Then, despair upon the realization that the dinner is merely an MRE (Meal, Ready-to-Eat).
But occasionally, leaders might shout something that could warm the coldest Soldier’s heart. “Chow is ready!” — a call signifying hot food had been delivered. The real heroes in those moments are the individuals behind the meal preparation. Known affectionately as “Army cooks” their official title is Culinary Specialists, those who hold the Military Occupational Specialty code 92G.
Each February, National Pride in Foodservice Week celebrates the vital work that nutrition and foodservice professionals perform daily. This February, we interviewed two Army cooks from your Cal Guard who shared with us their passion for culinary arts and the MOS.
Sgt. 1st Class Derek Soto
Derek Soto has worn the Army uniform for 17 years. But in speaking with him, one gets a palatable sense that seven of those years stand out: his time serving as a culinary specialist in the California Army National Guard — an occupational specialty that paired all too well with his lifelong passion for cooking.
Soto may have inherited some of his passion for cooking from his mother, from Michoacan, Mexico, cooking was an extension of herself and her culture. Soto fondly recalls how her food filled him with love, hope, and happiness. It was his mother and those feelings, Soto says, that inspired him to cook.
“I wanted to share those feelings with the military community because I want everyone to feel good, valued, and appreciated by my cooking," he said.
With skills honed by both the Army and the civilian world, Soto’s culinary expertise and education run deep. Soto’s formal culinary education includes an associate degree in culinary arts and professional baking from Los Angeles Trade Technical College. Armed with that education, Soto was able to apply his skills in cooking for Soldiers in the Cal Guard as the Culinary Management non-commissioned officer for the 11th Forward Support Company of the 1-144th Field Artillery.
A combination of his civilian training and Army experience later afforded Soto a unique opportunity to showcase his skills in a prestigious setting.
“I also participated in a Garde Manger cookery competition in Fort Lee, Virginia, where I represented the Cal Guard," he said.
That competition gave Soto experience and exposure, which he credits with a serendipitous twist in his journey: a return to his alma mater, the Los Angeles Trade Technical College, where he taught Introduction to Culinary Arts. "I enjoyed teaching the basics of cooking, safety, and progressive cuisine," Soto said of the experience.
These days, Soto works full-time as the NCO in Charge of Plans and Operations at California Military Department headquarters. But reflecting on his identity as an Army cook in the Cal Guard, Soto says he found a sense of purpose in cooking and managing Soldiers.
“It made me happy to know that I could inspire younger Soldiers to become better versions of themselves by taking a leap of faith. It also enabled me to showcase the opportunities that Cal Guard offers for the culinary specialty MOS."
Soto’s other culinary achievements include earning the title of Certified Chef de Cuisine title from the American Culinary Federation — a benchmark of culinary skills, experience, and exceptional standards in food preparation. His hunger for learning, however, extends beyond the kitchen. Soto also holds a bachelor’s degree in art history and philosophy from Santa Clara University and a master’s degree in philosophy from California State University, Los Angeles.
As far as cooking outside the home, Soto says he enjoys periodically volunteering to cook at San Diego’s American Legion Post 826, for the Wounded Warrior Project, and other groups where it doesn’t necessarily always have to be complicated or intricate. After discussing his childhood and his love for cooking, Soto said, “I love my mother for sharing her passion for cooking with me. When I was a young boy, she taught me the importance of building a plate of food, even if it was just Mexican rice, beans, and cheese.”
Staff Sgt. Jeshmenia Escamilla
Escamilla says becoming an Army cook with the Cal Guard was the best decision she ever made. The path hasn’t always been easy, but the challenges forged her into the leader and mentor she is today, opening doors to her current career. It was the love and support of her family, especially her mom, that gave her the courage to pursue a culinary career in the Army.
Escamilla’s culinary roots run deep, nurtured by a family with a vibrant passion for food. With a catering and food truck business, Chinos Barba-Q, based in Salinas, California, they travel wherever business takes them. Escamilla emphasizes, “My family is my support channel. They have witnessed every chapter of my military career and have always been my biggest supporters, whether it was from miles away or right by my side.”
Looking back on her decision to become a Culinary Specialist, Escamilla says, “When choosing to be a cook, I went in [the military] ready to learn a new skill and to master it." But, Escamilla says, it wasn’t until she began training in the basics of the career field that she fell in love with the MOS.
It was after being assigned to her first unit that she learned to embrace both the good and bad times.
“There were days where I went to bed at 11 p.m. and had to be up at 3 a.m. to start breakfast chow," she said. "I vividly remember my peers handing me a cup of coffee and telling me, ‘Welcome to the good life."
Despite the hardships, Escamilla said that her team of fellow cooks always looked toward the positive and kept each other laughing.
“Looking back now they were the best times of my military career."
Escamilla credits her cook background to becoming the leader she is today, sharing how being a cook built her confidence and created opportunities to get noticed and recognized.
“Becoming an NCO as a cook has made me reflect on what kind of NCO I would have wanted when I was a private," reflects Escamilla, and says she's learned to properly train, mentor, and instill discipline in those under her care.
These days, Escamilla is a platoon sergeant at the California Military Department’s Grizzly Youth Academy where she leads and mentors teens at risk of becoming high school dropouts where she applies her leadership ethos, challenging others to set aside discomfort and push past their limits to find growth on the other side.
“This chapter of my life has brought me to help shape these young people into better versions of themselves that they couldn’t find in themselves,” said Escamilla.
As a leader, she shares wisdom gained through her own journey with teens struggling to adapt. “There’s going to be trying times where you will hate being up so early or late but there’s always a light at the end of the tunnel. I guarantee you that!” Escamilla helps them find that light.
Now, Escamilla says she is pursuing a degree in nutrition. Her family has a long history of obesity, diabetes, and cholesterol, and she wants to be able to help them and others like them. While school is challenging with her full-time work and unit requirements, there’s no doubt she Escamilla has the grit persevere toward light at the end of her own tunnel.
When asked what the most rewarding part of being a culinary specialist in the Army, Escamilla says it’s being able to give. She says that like a bowl of salad, or a hot cup of coffee early in the morning when in the field, it’s the simple things in life that can make times in the army better.
“It makes me feel happy to have the ability to brighten someone’s day,” she said.
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