One of the highlights of our Vietnam trip was the cookery session. We decided to join the Red Bridge Cookery School based in Hoi An for a half day cookery lesson.
The day started of with us relaxing with a fresh fruit drink in the Red Bridge Cafe. Here, we got briefed on the day's schedule. We were put into a group of 6, my hubby, husband and I with 2 other ladies and an American guy. Our guide for the day is called Nhat (pronounced 'hat'), she is a small Vietnamese girl with a big voice and probably younger than us.
Our first stop was at the local market in the ancient part of Hoi An. Nhat introduced various fruit and vegetables we don't usually see out of Vietnam. These include green Vietnamese oranges, banana flower, bitter melon, beetle nut and Vietnamese basil. After walking through a busy market where local women buy their food for the day, we stopped at a kitchen utensils stall. Here, Nhat talked to us about various cutting tools Vietnamese use. We were so impressed with the simplicity look of the tools and what it can do, that we bought a set and also got more freebies with it, without the other group members knowing! :-)
Our next stop was a boat ride to the Red Bridge cookery school. We cruised along the river in a motor boat passing fishing boats and local people going about their daily affairs. Many locals were in the fishing industry and we saw many moving their stock around and selling them on boats and in the markets. The weather was hot but breezy and refreshing as our boat moved along.
After half an hour, we arrived at the cookery school. It was situated in a small village like area but the cookery school was very nice. The whole place was all bamboo and palm trees. I guess it has to look good and a bit commercial to attract tourists. There was also a herb garden where a lot of the herbs like lemon grass, banana flower and some chilli plants grew. What I can remember, there was a herb plant and its leaves smelt of fish, very interesting indeed!
We were shown into a large room and waited for our chef to come so we can start out lesson. The chef did not give a name but was a smug guy. He was funny and entertained everyone. We were a class of around 20 people, all non Asians apart from my hubby and I. Everyone was very excited and holding on to our clipboards containing our lesson papers.
The first dish we had to make was the Asian Eggplant in Clay Pot. Recipe in later post.
Then we tried making fresh rice paper spring rolls. This dish was an experience as we have never made fresh rice pastry before. The chef demonstrated beforehand how to use the steamer and cotton cloth over the top where the rice flour mixture was spread. My hubby and I successfully made our rice paper first time, which I am really impressed about.
Throughout the cookery lesson, I took loads of pictures, see my flickr site for pics!
We also tried carving vegetables into a fan and tomato into a rose. Let's just say, mine was was more presentable than my hubby's. :P
Another dish we made was the Hoi An Pancake, again lots of fun there! Recipe in later post!
After our lesson, we were sat down to have lunch. The food was the same dishes as we tried to make, but how it should be! I especially like the Asian eggplant dish. So I have decided to try and make this dish at home!!! My hubby will be in for a nice/scary surprise!!! :P
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