Red Bridge Cooking School
Story and photos by Sandra Scott
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|  | Chef Thanh and fellow student John Scott make Eggplant in Clay Pot. | |  | Scenes of life on the Hoi An River on the way to the cooking school. | |  | Chef Thanh shows the class how to make tomato-rose decorations. | |
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|  | Fruits and vegetables on display at the Hoi Market. | |  | Red Bridge Cooking School student makes Vietnamese fan decoration out of a cucumber. | |  | Chef Thanh demonstrates how to make rice paper. | |
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| The images of the beautiful scenery and friendly people of Vietnam have stayed with me ever since my first there ten years ago. Many things have changed during the past decade: tourism has grown by leaps and bounds, but the country is still beautiful and the people still friendly. The city of Hoi An is great for exploring, shopping, dining and -- as I found out first-hand -- learning how to cook! On my first trip, I discovered my love of Vietnamese food, which developed into a love of cooking it. While many places offer cooking lessons, I had heard that the Red Bridge Cooking School had gotten rave reviews. . . and now I know why.
A group of 20 would-be chefs met at the Hai Café at 8:15 in the morning and became acquainted over ginger tea. With a woman named, "Het" as the guide for our group of six, we walked to the morning market where she showed us all the ingredients we would use in our recipes. She pointed out the fact that ginger and turmeric may look alike, but that turmeric is orange on the inside. She introduced us to fruits and vegetables I had never seen before such as banana flowers, dragon fruit, and bitter melon. As professional infomercial reporter, she showed us how to use the most essential, if inexpensive, Vietnamese cooking utensils, which of course, I just had to buy.
After the market tour, we boarded a boat for a 25-minute ride along the Hoi An River to the cooking school. The ride alone was worth the price. I loved watching the fishermen cast their nets and the chance to observe life on the river. We docked at a small town and walked to the cooking school, seeing freshly painted pastel-colored homes along the way. At the school, Het gave us a lesson in herbology as she described various herbs growing in the school’s garden.
Next, we situated in an open-air pavilion next to the river where we were given clipboards, recipes, and pens to take notes. Chef Thanh pointed to the mirror strategically placed about his table saying, "This is like Vietnamese TV. . . you can see everything. If you pay good attention you will make a good lunch. If not, you will have to do it again – but at home!"
We watched as Chef Thanh deftly sliced papayas, mangoes, lotus root, banana flowers, carrots, cucumbers and onions for the Seafood Salad, while telling us what can be substituted if we cannot find the traditional ingredients back home. He added sliced shallots, shrimp, squid, crushed ginger, and black pepper. In the end, he tossed everything together, exclaiming: "Okay, now you try! Go to your cooking stations!"
Each cooking station had a gas hotplate with all the ingredients and utensils laid out for us. The lesson continued in the same manner: Chef Thanh would demonstrate, and then we would cook. When we finished a recipe called, "Vietnamese Eggplant in Clay Pot," the chef admonished us: "Back to your seats -- watching a clay pot is very boring." The hardest thing to master was the art of making Fresh Rice Paper. I love eating fresh Vietnamese spring rolls, but I doubt I will ever be able to make the rice paper from scratch. It isn’t just preparing the rice batter that is the problem. A scoop of batter is placed on a piece of thin white cotton above a pot of boiling water, and is then covered -- the trick is in knowing exactly when the rice paper is ready. Only a few of us ended up with a perfect one! But the kitchen helpers made sure we all had one perfect one, even if they had to make it for us. I filled mine with the vegetable and shrimp mix, but was unable to roll it so it looked professional; it takes practice, to be sure!
The Hoi An Pancakes were much easier. Back at our frying pans at our cooking stations, we started with two capfuls of oil, "Vietnamese teaspoon," Chef Thanh quipped. "It is hot enough when you can smell it. . . if it smokes, it is too hot and you will be a human pancake!"
The last lesson dealt with food decorations. I will need more practice for this, too. Try as I might, I had trouble slicing the cucumber thinly enough to curl into a Vietnamese Fan. When one would break because it was too thick, Thanh would proclaim, "Eat your mistakes!" I ate quite a few.
We watched, we cooked, and we sampled, before settling into the dining area to dine on Vietnamese Eggplant in Clay Pot, which I had forgotten all about! It was finally ready, but by that time, most of us had already eaten our fill! Overall, it was a wonderful morning. Feeling sated and relaxed, I enjoyed the boat ride back to Hoi An with a more developed appreciation for Vietnamese cuisine, and the skill it takes to prepare it. For more information, go to: www.visithoian.com.
©2008 by Authors/Owners Sandra Scott, All rights reserved |
