Tagged along with my fab friend Ted one Saturday for Chinese Cooking class entitled “Authentic Cantonese Dishes in Stylish Presentation” at the Pearl restaurant of the JW Marriot Jakarta. Is it worth it signing up for one of their classes?
The very accommodating Chef John. We were impressed by his skills in the kitchen. He not only uses his 2 hands but also uses his leg to control the levers of the massive stove!
Master Chef John Chu was our guru for the day and we learned to cook 3 dishes:
- Fried prawns with crispy potato coated with wasabi mayonnaise
- Wok-fried beef tenderloin with shimeji mushrooms and black pepper
- Crispy black and white sesame ball with peanut paste & macadamia nut
It sounds easy enough and most people, myself included, think that Chinese cooking is just frying and sautéing. Boy was I wrong! There is so much preparation that goes beyond the seemingly simple dishes and so many unique ingredients that for me it is a whole new level up. I guess that’s why I cook mostly western dishes hehe
The class was dominated by the Chinese ibu-ibus. Ibu means mother and, here in Jakarta, massive imeldific hairstyles are quite popular among them.
Many steps led to this simple-looking Fried prawns with crispy potato coated with wasabi mayonnaise.
Nothing smells more delicious to me than that of frying garlic in butter
My favorite dish of the day was the wok-fried beef tenderloin with shimeji mushrooms and black pepper. The sauteed ingredients sit and wait for a second round of frying.
Doesn’t it look like a work of art? It tastes even better than it looks!
Time for the sesame balls! Here chef is kneading the sesame mixture – that’s a lot! I was happy because I LOVE sesame!
All those ingredients are perfectly sculpted into this yummy ball
…coated with more sesame and then deep-fried. The “students” tried their hand at it, but obviously more practice is needed =P
Chef John gives us a jolly pose
Ta-DAAAAA!
The best part about cooking classes are the meals after. Not only do you get to eat the food in class, but more dishes are added. This one was composed of 7 COURSES! Crazy right? Not bad at all for the price! And yes they tasted as good as they looked. Enjoy drooling over them!
Crispy potato coated king prawn wasabi mayonnaise, Peanut cream with foie gras “cyawan mushi,” and BBQ chicken rolls with honey sesame sauce
This was absolutely delicious! Steamed snapper with chinese herb and superior soy sauce
Fried lobster with turnip cake and spicy sauce. Drool.
Surprisingly small serving of Wok-fried beef tenderloin with shimeji mushrooms and black pepper. All-good though because by this time I was bursting at the seams already!
Egg noodles with green vegetable wrapped in egg skin. Basically gourmet pancit canton. I love pancit canton and I wish I had more space for this dish! And such creative presentation!
Crispy sesame ball, Ice cream and mixed fruit. We were already amazed at the presentation of Chef John’s lunch but we were all WOWED by this! As dessert was served, everyone ooohed and aaaahed because of the simple yet dramatic addition of dry ice that caused the platter to emit “smoke!” This also ensured that the tear-drop-shaped ice enclosing the ice cream didn’t melt too fast.
I highly recommend this cooking class if you like chinese cuisine. Chef shared with us many techniques and secrets that is used in their restaurant to ensure good flavor, texture, freshness and quality. For inquiries on cooking class schedules please refer to their contact details below.
I also want to try their Sunday lunch buffet which serves dimsum and lobster. It’s supposedly quite reasonable – around Rp 170,000 ++ / person. Not bad don’t you think?
* Cooking class c/o JW Marriott Jakarta
Pearl Restaurant – JW Marriott Jakarta
- The cooking class was conducted in their Chinese restaurant for Rp 280,000++ / person, inclusive of lunch & certificate of participation
- JL. Lingkar Mega Kuningan Kav E 1.2 No 1&2, Jakarta, 12950 Indonesia
- Phone: +62 21 57988888
you can go to mandarin oriental jakarta have cooking class..
Can make class vegetarian