Today we had an awesome Chinese Cooking Class with Grace and her husband Paul to celebrate the Year of the Snake 🐍. We had an elaborate menu to enjoy some of the most beloved traditional dishes from different regions of China. We got to try so many different dishes. We were all scared when at one point we couldn't breathe because of the chilies in the air, but the air was much scarier than the spice of the dish. The menu included: 🥜 Salted Boiled Peanuts – A simple yet addictive appetizer. Boiled in salted water with a hint of star anise. Perfect for sharing during festive gatherings! 🥒 Smashed Cucumber Salad – A refreshing and crunchy dish dressed in garlic, soy sauce, vinegar, and sesame oil, perfect as a starter.🥟 Dumplings – A Chinese New Year must-have! These northern-style dumplings symbolize prosperity and good fortune. Learn how to fold, fill, and cook them to perfection! 🍅 Tomato and Egg Stir-fry – A beloved home-style dish from all over China, combining the sweetness of tomatoes with fluffy scrambled eggs. Comfort food at its best! 🍖 Red-Braised Pork – A rich and flavorful dish from eastern China, featuring tender pork belly slow-cooked in soy sauce, sugar, and aromatic spices. 🌶️ Mapo Tofu – A Sichuan classic known for its bold, spicy, and numbing flavors, combining tofu with a fragrant chili and fermented bean sauce. 🍡 Sweet Rice Ball – End the feast with these delightful sweet glutinous rice balls with black sesame filling, symbolizing family togetherness and happiness for the year ahead. 🥂Baijiu tasting. China’s iconic distilled spirit. Known for its strong aroma and complex flavors, Baijiu is a staple at Chinese celebrations and a perfect way to raise a glass to good fortune and happiness in the coming year! It was such a great cooking class. Thank you so much to Grace and Paul for making it awesome!!! Everything was delicious and I think we all over ate, but it was so hard not to because we had to try it all! I think everyone enjoyed making the smashed cucumber salad and the dumplings 😋
