Singapore Hawkers Food cooking class with Red Hot Spatula
Posted by | Categories: Chinese, Events, Featured, Malaysian, Perth, Recipes, Singapore
If you live in Perth and have attended any food festivals or hawkers markets, you will probably will have heard of Red Hot Spatula. Lead by Yvonne Bleach with additional help from her family members, they have become one of my guaranteed sources of a gluten free dish when at a food festival as often, unfortunately, this can be a little lacking from other stall holders.
I first met Yvonne a couple of years ago at Perth’s famous Cake Club. Since then we have become great friends and will often cross paths at the various food events we both attend. In addition to feeding the market-loving masses, Red Hot Spatula also provides a catering service in addition to running a variety of cooking classes in their commercial kitchen located in Middle Swan. Topics of these classes range from Asian cuisines such as Chinese Dim Sum and Malaysian, to Spanish Tapas and making pasta.
My last Red Hot Spatula class that I attended was about a year ago before she had her own kitchen to work in. I haven’t had the chance to attend one of her classes since, so when she kindly invited me and a guest to her Singapore Hawkers Food cooking class it was an offer that was too good to refuse. I invited Colleen who is one of my close friends from work to join me. Her parents lived in Singapore for years and she is a big fan of Hawkers food.
The classes are conducted in small group sessions of no more than ten people. I recommend that you make sure to arrive with a big appetite as you will leave the cooking class feeling very full. For our Singapore hawkers food cooking class Yvonne and her mum demonstrated to us how to prepare five different dishes which were served up over the course of the evening. Our first course was grilled crisp tofu pockets (Tahu Bakar) with Rojak sauce.
Grilled crisp tofu pockets (Tahu Bakar) with Rojak sauce (GF)
To prepare these the tofu puffs are cut in half and grilled over hot pan before being stuffed with a flavoursome filling made from roasted shrimp paste, chilli and tamarind along with some fresh bean sprouts, cucumber and then topped with roasted peanuts. These tasty morsels didn’t last long!
Rolling up the Ngoh Hiang (GF)
Our second course was Ngoh Hiang, which I can basically describe as kind of a Hawkers version of a sausage roll, but much tastier! The meat stuffing is made from minced pork belly, dried shrimps, coarsely chopped prawns, water chestnuts, carrot and soy.
Rolling up the Ngoh Hiang
The stuffing is wrapped in bean curd skin before being steamed and then deep fried. It was mesmerizing to see how neatly Yvonne’s mother could wrap each roll in succession with every roll matching the exact size of that before it.
Our next course was one of my favourite South-east Asian street foods, otak otak. It is a snack that I know will always be gluten free and tastes amazing. For those not in the know, otak otak are a type of fish cake which wrapped in banana leaves and baked.
Otak otak (GF)
Otak otak (GF)
They are made using blended white fish combined with egg white, rice flour, coconut cream and a variety of spices including turmeric, candlenuts, kaffir lime, lemongrass, garlic, belacan (dried shrimp paste) and chilli.
Having successfully worked our way through three entrées it was time to move onto our main course, Rochor mee or fried Hokkien prawn noodles. Being mindful of the risk of contamination with gluten for cooking Yvonne was very kind to make up a gluten free batch of noodles for me first by omitting the wheat noodles before going onto cook the more traditional style for the remaining guests.
Gluten free adapted Fried Hokkien prawn noodles (Rochor mee)
I always thought noodles were just a quick, almost lazy dish made with a bunch of ingredients all thrown into a wok with a dash of soy and a splish of fish sauce. Maybe that’s why I was never really a big noodle eater. But these noodles were out of this world! I found out that the secret trick that makes these noodles so incredibly delicious was that they were cooked in a homemade prawn stock.
Fried Hokkien prawn noodles (this is not the GF version)
Yvonne showed us how to prepare the stock before cooking up a big batch of noodles for the gluten eaters with both the rice noodles and the wheat noodles. She also tossed in bean sprouts, fish cake, fresh prawns, squid rings and pork belly. Despite serving up a huge plate, everyone managed to eat every last morsel.
Ondeh ondeh (GF)
Despite groans around the table of fullness followed by a lot of belly patting, it didn’t take long for us to find some room for our final course, little bite size sweets called Ondeh ondeh. These are made from pandan flavoured glutinous rice flour and filled with liquid palm sugar which bursts into your mouth when you bite into them. Despite having already eaten so much, there were hard to resist.
As the night drew to an end I was thankful I had only eaten a small lunch as we had certainly worked our way through a lot of food. I was amazed at how easy it was to prepare Hawkers food gluten free. Each class participate received a full list of recipes from all the dishes so Colleen and I promised to each other that our next catch up will have to be trialling these recipes out for ourselves!
Disclaimer: Chompchomp and her companion Colleen were invited guests of Red Hot Spatula. Red Hot Spatula Cooking Classes Unit 5/5 Toodyay Road, Middle Swan, WA 6056 | www.redhotspatula.com.au
Eat Drink Perth Gluten Free Cooking Demonstration at Perth City Library
Posted by | Categories: Events, Featured, Perth
I have gotten right into the spirit of the Eat Drink Perth vibe this year and have been busy attending as many events as is sanely possible considering I also work full time, own a business and have two fur-children and a husband who hate being left neglected at home. Although my calendar this month is already chockers, when I saw a free gluten free cooking demonstration was to be held at the Library, I successfully swindled, bribed and coerced my colleagues into giving me some time in lieu so I could attend.
I arrived at the State Library a good fifteen minutes early so I could fiddle around with the settings on my new and somewhat unpredictable camera. After wandering around searching for the demo unsuccessfully, I asked the reception counter where it was being held. Showing my total naïvety I was quickly to learn that the State Library in the Perth Cultural Centre is NOT the same as the Perth City Library! With heavy camera gear, work clothes and hand bag in tow I ran across the city through the train station and down to the other end of the mall to arrive at Perth City Library flustered, sweating and puffed out. So much for having some time to adjust my camera settings!
The Library staff were so sweet and had reserved a seat for me in the front row knowing that I was with Eat Drink Perth. They welcomed me warmly as I took my seat only minutes before the chef Rebecca Kerr started her presentation.
The audience was made up mostly of people who had very little knowledge of what constituted a gluten free diet however they were keen to learn more about it. When Rebecca asked for a show of hands who in the crowd had Coeliacs or gluten intolerance there were only a couple of us.
She wanted to share with us her discovery of Masa Lista; a special type of flour made in Mexico from corn by using a process called nixtamalization. This is where the corn kernels are soaked and cooked in an alkaline solution which helps break down the glue like component of the corn’s cells walls. The end result is a flour that when added to water alone becomes very dough like and doesn’t need any additional ingredients to bind it together.
Without any need for special equipment or time to allow the dough to rise, Rebecca made little flat breads by combining the masa lista with water in a bowl and rolling them into balls. Each little ball was squashed flat and toasted on a hot grill until they were lightly browned on either side. Once they were cooked, the breads easily split in the middle with a knife to create a pocket which was then filled with some prepared home-made salsa, ham and cheese. For those with a sweet tooth Rebecca also brought some gluten free rum balls for us to try.
I had to dash straight out to work afterwards and had no time to grab myself lunch so I jetted into Maison Saint Honour and snuffled up some macarons to eat on the go.
Inspired by the simplicity of these stuffable tortilla-like things, I decided to try and hunt down some masa flour myself. I wanted to recreate this dish using a stuffing that was vegan, fructose friendly, and gluten free but most importantly was good enough to warrant topping with some lovely Pemberton Finger Limes the Boy bought as a gift for me on the weekend.
After a bit of fiddling around in the kitchen I came up with a bean free, vegan “mince”, added a tomato salsa, avocado purée and drizzled the lot with a coconut “yoghurt” and finger lime pearls. Head over to my blog post for the recipe!
Chompchomp is one of the official bloggers for the Eat Drink Perth Festival 2014. This cooking demonstration was free to attend for all. More of Rebecca Kerr’s recipes can be found on her Facebook page Australian Gluten Free Cooking.
Cambodian and Thai Cooking Classes with Red Hot Spatula at the Accento Home Kitchen, Claremont
Posted by | Categories: Baking, Events, Featured, Perth, Recipes, Thai
My first experience of Red Hot Spatula’s cooking was at the Clandestine Cake Club last year. Yvonne made these amazing gluten free Asian cakes called Kuihs that were steamed cakes made with rice flour, green bean flour and tapioca flour. I greedily ate a number of them that day before I physically had to stop myself from over eating my welcome. In fact I loved them so much that a few short weeks later I ordered a batch of my own to be delivered to work to share with my colleagues.
Since then Yvonne and I have crossed paths at many foodie events, markets and degustation evenings and I have grown to appreciate her passion and drive for success. Her business has grown from strength to strength and it is so inspiring to see someone reap the rewards from so much hard work.
Spring rolls with Jicama, carrot and Blackwood ear fungus
Yvonne cooking Cambodian sausage
She recently conducted a series of cooking classes themed on Asian and Exotic food at the Accento Home Kitchen in Claremont. I chose to attend the evening titled “Cambodia and Thailand – The art of balancing flavours from fresh herbs to chillies”. I invited one of my close friends Tara to join me knowing she would enjoy this style of girl’s night out as much as I would, especially as it included wine!
Cambodian sausage & spring rolls
For the duration of the evening we all sat around the exquisite gourmet kitchen in a very relaxed manner laughing, giggling and sharing stories about food. Each course was carefully matched with wines from Swan Valley Wines, a boutique family winery that has produced wines in the valley for over twenty years.
Making the Khao Soi (Spicy noodle soup)
Khao Soi (Spicy noodle soup) made especially gluten free for me
We were all provided with detailed recipes for each dish including tips on where to obtain the freshest and cheapest ingredients around Perth. For someone who has very little spare time in the kitchen, I was impressed with how easy each dish was to prepare and felt confident I could take the recipes and new skills straight home with me and prepare something delicious for the Boy and I to enjoy together.
Fresh Holy basil
Beef with holy basil & papaya salad
Beef with holy basil & papaya salad
I offer a word of warning about these cooking classes; make sure you arrive with an empty belly! I was glad I had prepared for such a feast and eaten a very light lunch. By the time we got to the dessert we were all pleasantly full. Needless to say that didn’t stop Tara and I reaching for the bowl of sauce for the sweet sticky rice and scraping out the least dregs with our spoons grinning childishly.
Sweet sticky rice
The next round of Red Hot Spatula’s cooking classes kick off from October 2013 and will be held at their new facilities in Middle Swan. She will be covering a variety of popular topics including gluten free cooking, how to make healthy lunch boxes for fussy eaters, how to use super foods to promote better health and how to pull together the perfect High Tea.
For more information on their upcoming events and contact details head over to Red Hot Spatula’s Facebook page.
The Accento Italian Cooking Master Classes Media Launch
Posted by | Categories: European, Events, Featured, Italian, Perth, Recipes
I originally starting blogging as a natural progression from my love of food photography and eating out. Finding a restaurant that caters for peeps like me with food intolerances without compromising the wow factor rocks my world. Naturally over time my blog has morphed to begin to include the occasional recipe. Whilst I have never claimed to have talent in the kitchen I do enjoy cooking things from scratch and my need to alter and change recipes due to my intolerances has developed into a passionate love of cooking. When I received an invite to the launch of the Accento Italian Cooking Master Classes I was intrigued and excited to see what these classes were all about.
Accento showroom & kitchen
Scallop carpaccio with mango
Preparing the antipasto
Pumpkin and smoked cheese dumpling
Cooking classes are a fabulous way to improve your skills and what better way to learn than from the masters themselves. The Accento Italian Cooking Master Classes are an initiative organised by the Italian Chamber of Commerce & Industry.
Prawn and pesto sauce
Welcome speeches from Marco Maro from the ICCI
The Chamber has recently just finalised their list of certified Italian restaurants in Perth that have qualified for the internationally recognised Ospitalita’ Italianana quality assurance seal. This is a certification recognised by the Italian Government to protect the traditions of Italian agricultural and food products and value Italian gastronomic culture. The guidelines to achieve accreditation are very strict and amongst more than 1000 certified restaurants around the world, 11 of those are here in lil’ Western Australia!
The certified restaurants in WA are:
- * Galileo Buona Cucina, Shenton Park
- * Gargano Restaurant, Nedlands
- * Italians, Dianella
- * Maretti Caffe Cucina, Mosman Park
- * Maurizio’s Restaurant, Perth
- * Millioncino, Perth
- * Modo Mio, Crown Casino
- * Osteria Dei Sapori, Nedlands
- * Paradiso Restaurant, Attadale
- * Perugino Restaurant, West Perth
- * Villa D’Este Restaurant, West Perth
In true Italian style, there was far too much food for the evening launch and we were thoroughly stuffed with all the finger food before it even got to the main dishes. Not that it stopped any of us of course. Although a lot of the food was not gluten free, the smooth talking waiters made sure the suitable options kept heading my way. I feel rude turning food down and when it all tastes this good, well what can you do?
Bacala (cod) and potato fritters
Mozzarella balls ready to go
Deep fried mozzarella balls
Prawn and pancetta with balsamic
The prawn and pancetta prawns were the absolute bomb. Sticky balsamic drizzled over crunchy prawns wrapped in crisp salty pancetta. I’m sure I downed at least half a dozen of these babies.
Egidio from Event Style Catering with Giuseppe Pagliaricci of Perugino Restaurant
Gnocchi with gorgonzola, apple, parmesan and pine nuts
Ravioli filled with potato, cheddar and prosciutto de San Daniele with a pumpkin sauce and a dash of béchamel
The first two mains of ravioli and gnocchi were off the menu for me and I got a lot of sympathetic looks from the others as they slurped and scoffed down what I can only presume was really good!
Chicken with olive oil, mint, garlic, parsley salt & pepper
I made up for it with the following main dishes which resultantly meant I ended up with very little photographic proof as I was too busy stuffing my face. The rack of lamb was the biggest winner for me; marinated in olive oil, lemon juice and oregano they were the juiciest chops I have ever eaten (and that is a big call). I ended up eating way too many.
Macadamia Pannacotta with white chocolate sauce & Pistachio pannacotta with berry sauce
The night ended with some perfectly set pannacotta and without waiting for all those chops to hit the bottom of my stomach I downed one of each flavour. My favourite was definitely the pistachio pannacotta with berry sauce. What a total pig. I was glad the Boy drove us home as I slipped into a little nap on the drive back.
The Accento Italian Cooking Master Classes are held at the Accento Showroom, 256 Stirling Highway in Claremont. There will be 6 evening classes each hosted by one of the local chefs from the Ospitalita’ Italianana certified restaurants.
The cooking classes run from the 20th May until the 9th September 2013. All classes start at 6.30pm and you will all get to enjoy you meal at the end of the class. The cost per class is $90 and includes matched wines, or it’s $500 for the full course of six. Click here for more information.
Chompchomp was an invited guest of the ICCI and was able to enjoy this feast free of charge. Getting a free feed does not however buy my praise and I strive to ensure accurately documenting my experiences without bias.
