I just completed the first leg of my "Tiger Beer Wok Star" tour visiting eight Sweetbay Supermarkets in the Tampa-St. Petersburg metropolitan area. My kickoff appearances coincided with the Asian Lunar New Year... an auspicious beginning since the year of the "Golden Pig" only occurs every six hundred years.
I use the term "Wok Star" to distinguish myself from "celebrity chefs" and analogy to music, drawing a distinction between the "rock star" and the classically trained musician. I learned to cook from my mother so I've taken the traditional flavors I grew up on and adapted them to the western kitchen. Lacking a formal culinary education, my style and approach to cooking has many of the elements of rock and roll... improvisation, creating from the heart, and following the maxim, "If it tastes good, do it." I'm adamant that, "ANYONE can be a Wok Star" and proved my point by inviting people to join me for an impromptu stir-fry.
The tour gave me an opportunity to meet so many people interested in Asian cooking. "Everybody's searching for meals that are fast, fun, and flavorful and that's what wok cooking offers." The most frequent question I encountered on the tour was, "What kind of wok should I get?" For those who already owned a wok, the most common problem they encountered was "soupy" stir-frys. I provide the solutions and the answers in my "Wok Star Cooking Kit" which bundles everything you need to get started in one box: a light weight cast-iron wok, DVD's with my "Easy Style" lessons, and a caddy basket with dispensers to organize your Asian ingredients.
Tiger Beer sponsored the tour and created a sweepstakes to give away thirty of my Wok Star Cooking Kits. Tiger Beer was the perfect sponsor because, "In Asia, cold beer is the favorite drink to serve with spicy Asian food." My plans are to continue the tour until, "Everyone in the world knows how to stir-fry". So, I've created www.worldwidewok.com to expand my approach to cooking. I'll simplify exotic and delicious dishes without sacrificing its authenticity or taste, all cooked in a wok! I'll announce its launch soon.
In the meantime, you can see photos from the Tiger Beer Wok Star tour on my website at www.eleanorhoh.com or for your east-west horoscope, go to www.tigerbeer.us.
