Chúc ngon miệng!

Today was my intensive 4.5-hour Vietnamese cooking class at the Institute of Culinary Education in Chelsea.

The menu for our class was created by an award-winning Vietnamese Chef, Andrea Nguyen.  I did a little research and it turns out that Andrea and I have more in common than just our love for Vietnamese food!

Andrea attended USC for her undergrad and graduate degrees (go trojans!) and she has studied in HK, cultivating her Mandarin skills and her love for Chinese cooking – just like me! To read more about Andrea and to find some of her tips/recipes for Vietnamese cooking, click here.

After about an hour of reviewing our menu and learning some interesting tidbits along the way…

Did you know that Canola oil is actually rapeseed oil but the name turned consumers off so it was rebranded “Canola” after it’s Canadian origins – Canadian oil, low acid?

Did you know that 80% of Vietnamese people are in some way involved with rice production? And that 60% of the land is used for cultivating rice?

…we split up into 3 groups and divided up the menu.  My team was designated with creating the fresh asparagus and crab soup, the banh mi baguettes, and the catfish in caramel sauce.  We quickly began our mis en place – julianning, measuring, and cleaning our ingredients.

3 hours of prep and cooking flew by and next thing I knew, Chef was calling for us to clean up our stations so that our assistant could begin setting out plates and silverware.

Seated next to my fellow chefs, I dug into a plateful of this delicious food.

Shrimp simmered in caramel sauce

Chicken stir-fried with Lemongrass and Chile

Cucumber and shrimp salad

Fresh asparagus and crab soup

Summer rolls with shrimp

DIY Banh Mi Bar

It was quite a feast! I’d have to say my favorite dish was the chicken with lemongrass. It was very rich and creamy, delicious for a fall or winter evening.

I’m looking forward to taking another class…I wonder what I’ll be in the mood for next!

next stop: Vietnam!

I just signed up for a Vietnamese cooking class at the Institute of Culinary Education (ICE), and this is going to be my third class this year.  I’ve previously learned how to cook Korean BBQ, and the essentials of Thai cooking. 

Each class is an intensive 4.5 hour session with a complete hands-on approach.  The time is spent reviewing the menu, familiarizing ourselves with the ingredients, prepping, cooking, and my favorite – eating!  People often ask me if I recreate any of the dishes taught in my classes, but I have to sheepishly shake my head and tell them I mostly just go for the food.   

My first class, Korean BBQ, was taught by Youngsun Lee – a graduate of ICE who earned his chef’s jacket at the famous Momofuku restaurants.  He now owns his own New Korean restauraunt, Persimmon, but I’ve recently learned that it has shuttered.  Darn you, recession! Darn you!

The second class, Essentials of Thai Cooking, was taught by an ICE instructor.  We cooked a lot of common dishes and fortunately I befriended a fellow Thai enthusiast and wrangled some photos of our food out of her…bon appetite!

Summer Rolls

Chicken Satay with Peanut Sauce

Thai Green Chicken Curry

Pad Thai with Lime

I can’t wait for the Vietnamese class.  The menu includes:  

          Sup Mang Tay Cua (fresh asparagus and crab soup)
          Goi Dua Chuot (cucumber and shrimp salad)
          Goi Cuon (salad rolls with spicy garlic hoisin sauce)
          Banh Mi (baguette sandwiches) !!!!!!
          Tom Kho (shrimp simmered in caramel sauce)
         Ga Xao Xa Ot (chicken stir-fried with lemongrass and chile)
         Che Chuoi (banana, tapioca pearl, and coconut sweet soup)

I’ll be back with pictures of the feast on Sunday…now that I’m starving, I think I’ll go get a snack!