Coverings etc host Wok Star!

Lots of laughs, fun, prizes and Wok Stars cooking including HGTV's Design Star Mark Diaz, Marti TV reporter, journalist, architect, models, attorney...

Wow, what an amazing event space! Coverings etc. is located at Miami Iron Side Campus, Miami. THANKS for hosting me! 

I'll be writing a full post later but couldn't wait for you to see these shots last night.

Thanks to sponsors Fiji Water and OWS (Gancia Prosecco), San-J Intl. tamari, Koon Chun hoisin & brown bean sauce, Earthy Delights gourmet mushrooms, MySpiceSage spices, enjoyed by all.

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www.wokstar.us

Wok Star class at Jungle Walls Miami

Thanks Peter, Jungle Walls Miami for hosting another enjoyable cooking class.

Thanks everyone for coming to my Wok Star cooking class today! Thanks to new Wok Star Maggie who came to pick up her Wok Star Kit and took this group shot for us. Most other shots taken by Carl Hildebrand on my iPhone.

A delicious Rainbow Lettuce Wrap appetizer and Gancia Prosecco greet guests when they arrive.

Jenna looks so proud of the sauce for the Shrimp, asparagus, baby bok choy & carrot stir fry. She was surprised how high the heat was and thought her shrimp was burning but turned out crunchy on the outside and juicy inside.

Howard is going to be very popular with his dates, showing off his new Stir fry technique! I think he liked the food, he went for thirds he told me.

Jenna got this class for Howard's birthday prez, what a sweet sister. Notice the mint 'stick' behind them? We plucked some off to sprinkle into the Rainbow Lettuce Appetizer.

The AMAZING Jungle Walls Miami lookin' good. Peter can custom make any hydroponic plant wall!

Jonathan is already a Wok Star but brought his daughter, Ivy Marie cause she wants to be a professional chef!

Peter Kastan and Barney enjoying a cold, refreshing Fiji Water, it was a scorcher today.

Shrimp, asparagus, baby bok choy and carrot stir fry in cast iron wok and gas stove setup. A typical one-dish dinner for busy weeknights.

Sexy Dejha enjoying her shrimp stir fry.

Ivy Marie showing off her stir fry skills. She stir fried zucchini, yellow squash and red bell peppers for the Tilapia in spicy brown bean sauce. It was a hit! The Tilapia is melt-in-your-mouth tender and absorbs all the flavors from the sauce.

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www.wokstar.us

Cooking Class through eyes of New Times blogger!

One of the things I have a problem with is not being able to 'see' because as many entrepreneurs know, you get too 'close' to your own project. So, it's refreshing to 'see' my cooking class through the eyes of a New Times blogger! I'm always nervous about reviews because you have no control over the outcome.

It's uncanny when folks recognize you from the article.  That's what happened at Sunday's CHINATOWN Festival!

WOK STAR KIT KICKSTARTS CHINESE NEW YEAR HEALTHY RESOLUT

Buddha's Delight, a Wok Star's modern twist!

Chinese New Year this year falls on February 3rd, and it's the Year of the Rabbit. My husband is one, so it's his year to shine. If you've missed the western new year's resolutions to eat healthier, you can kick start it with our Chinese New Year and a new approach to cooking with my Wok Star Kit. My Kit has the both the tools and techniques to help you succeed and Be a Wok Star, hence the name of my blog!

My family usually celebrates New Year Eve with a dish of everything like chicken, fish, shrimp, pork and many veggie dishes as well as fried rice and longlife noodles. These dishes symbolize good luck, health and prosperity, you can find out more about this topic in my other New Year posts below.

I wanted to cook Buddha's Delight because it uses both fresh and dried veggies to give different textures and flavors. I hope you'll try this dish even if you don't have any dried ingredients where you live, it's not essential but adds an Asian touch. I've included gourmet morels and sugar snap to give it a modern twist.

Typical vegetables used in this dish are cabbage or lettuce with Chinese mushrooms, toufu, dried bean curd sticks, glass noodles, fungus, hair moss. My husband had two huge helpings before I could take my final shot in a serving bowl, oops, so the dish above was it! I had to set some aside for my sister to try as she's arriving tonight. We're going out New Year's Day to celebrate at Chu's with the traditional dragon dance as well as jazz music, yeah, nothing like a mix of east and west. It's a busy week, also giving a cooking class New Year's Eve at beautiful Lyons Spa who's a new venue hosting my classes this year.

Here's what and how I made my Buddha's Delight with.

Fresh vegetables I had were napa cabbage, sugar snap peas, carrots and scallions.
Fresh garlic and ginger are mandatory to start off any stir fry.

Dried veggies included Chinese mushrooms, morels, fungus, bean curd sheets, goji berries. These need to be rehydrated in warm water to plump them up.
I cooked the dried ingredients in my clay pot, another wonderful piece of cookware which I love using. It makes everything so juicy and tender. Added dash of tamari, sherry and a little black vinegar.

Because there were quite a lot of different veggies, I stir fried them in batches. It's important not to overload your wok, it lowers the temperature of your wok and creates juice, resulting in a 'soupy' stir fry, a very common mistake.
First, I fried napa cabbage with carrots, always starting with garlic and ginger. Added dash of tamari and sherry.
Next, I fried the sugar snap peas with goji berries and added scallions last. Added dash of tamari and sherry.
Last, I recombined the fresh vegetables and dried vegetables from the clay pot.

I served Buddha's Delight right from the hot wok! We had it with some curried grilled leg of lamb. Yes, very untraditional but that's what being a Wok Star is all about.

This Year of the Rabbit, BE A WOK STAR! Kung Hei Fat Choy...

Here are some simple wok dishes to show you eating healthy isn't about deprivation but ADDING flavors and textures to spice up your appetite and palette. These dishes illustrates easy, mostly one-dish dinners and mostly cooked in my cast iron wok.

Crispy Potstickers

Easy Kimchi

Pineapple Fried Rice

Crispy Shrimp

Fried or Grilled Fish

Healthy, Delicious Snacks

CHINESE NEW YEAR EATS:
If you don't want to cook and just want to eat out, here's a great roundup if you live in Miami.

CHINESE NEW YEAR EVENTS:
Miami Dade College's Chinese New Year events.
Feb. 1, 2, 20 (main, big event)
This year, they've expanded to 2 other campuses! Get details here:

IBPS Fo Guang Shan Temple
An amazing lineup of innovative & multicultural performers blending East and West. I hope to see this.
Sunday, Feb.6: 2pm - 3:30pm
9341 NW 57th St, Tamarac, FL 33351
FREE
Details of performances here.

MY OTHER CHINESE NEW YEAR POSTS:

Chinese New Year, Simple Home Dinner:
Roast Duck, Zesty Shrimp & Veggies

Year of Tiger 2010

Year of Ox 2009

Year of Rat 2008

There are hundreds of Asian food blogs, too many to mention but you can see some here.

My friend, Shulie who I 'met' through Twitter has done her homework and posted a list of superb Asian food blogs to celebrate Chinese New Year, honoring some awards.

I love New Asian Cuisine, it's full of resources, chef features, interesting tid bits and recipes from all over the world. Here's their Chinese New Year roundup.

Chow Down Grill & Wok Star Christmas Lunch

Josh Marcus explains his concept of Chow Down Grill and gave the inside scoop about his South Beach restaurant slated to open February 2011 right on Alton Road/9th right opposite The Miami Ad School. Everyone enjoyed today's Chinese Family Style Lunch and just getting together. Some I hadn't seen in years, many were Wok Stars, but there were also some new people (some I didn't get photos of, boo.) Thanks everyone for celebrating with me.

If you want to join me in future HOH WOK CLUB gatherings in South Florida, sign up for my FREE newsletter so you'll get first dibs to these gatherings.

Starter: Himachi sashimi, an extra surprise Josh presented

Starter: Chow Down Chop Salad

Chinese Style Family Lunch with Mongolian Beef, broccoli and steamed chicken dumpling.

Dessert: pumpkin bread pudding and rice pudding

Why do I have a photo of Renee with jars of jams? She came bringing 3 Freakin' Flamingo handcrafted jams and I didn't get a photo of her, boo! I love supporting entrepeneurs like Josh (chef) and Renee especially when she makes jams this good, slurp. I got 2 Blueberry Mojitos and a Caribbean Cranberry. Once you've had it, you cannot eat store bought. She only does small batches, so get yours quickly before they go. Great gift idea, woo hoo!

Left to right: Ro-ann, Rick, Polita, Duba, Andrea

Front to back: Chris, Yumi, Mary, Alan at the bar

Left to right: Mary, Nina, Linda, Myriam, Alan, Jorge

Left to right: Jen, John and kids

Josh (chef, co-owner of Chow Down Grill), Wok Star Eleanor Hoh

Left to right: Linda, Jorge, Myriam

Mary (Wok Star who comes to all my events!) and Wok Star Eleanor Hoh

Gorgeous weather so some of us sat outside!

Sent from my iPhone

Mother's Day, Asian Pacific Heritage Month, Miami River Wall

Miami River Wall, newest venue to

host Wok Star cooking classes

I'm very excited to announce Miami River Wall is my newest venue to host my Wok Star cooking classes and just in time to celebrate Mother's Day and Asian Pacific Heritage month which is in May. I want to dedicate this month to my mom who is responsible for teaching me wok cooking and introducing me to using a lightweight, cast iron wok!

So, what is Miami River Wall? Peter Kastan and Bob Pelligrini started their first vertical plant wall based on Frenchman, Patrick Blanc's concept. Here's a small segment of Peter last weekend at Fairchild Tropical Food and Garden Festival during his Pecha Kucha talk.

Lovely to see Peter Kastan with wife Mei and son.

But they took it one step further and recently added a new wall with herbs, chilies and edible flowers - all grown hydroponically i.e. no soil, just water and nutrients. How perfect for my cooking classes because I like to use fresh ingredients.

Peter switch on the lights for the herb wall

I like this living wall better than having a piece of art because it's constantly changing instead of being 2D static. It's also a very refreshing and cool idea and at the same time eco-friendly and green!

Mei is responsible for planting the walls!

Even though I put my cilantro in a jug of water and put a bag over it to keep it longer, I still can't use it fast enough. How I would love to have a fresh herb, chili wall. Well, at least on days I'm giving my class, I'll get to spend time with it.

Come join me for a Wok Star cooking class where I show you my simple, NO-RECIPE technique using my Wok Star Kit. And with only a few fresh ingredients and seasonings, dinners are easy and quick with very little cleanup! There'll be 4 stir fry combinations savored with Gancia Prosecco and Fiji Water.

If you love to express yourself, show off to your date, or learn a new approach to making weeknight dinners, this class is for you! Cooking is more than just about food, it's about creating experiences and memories with family and friends...

Anyone can be a Wok Star!

Click to book your class, buy a Mother's Day gift certificate, view menu and more class details

Celebrate Mother's Day on Miami River

Wok Star Class

$55 per person

Saturday, May 8: 12pm-3pm

Miami River Wall

129 NW South River Drive, Miami

Celebrate Asian Heritage Month at the following venues:

Saturday, May 15: 12pm-3pm

Whole Foods Market, Pinecrest

FREE DEMO

Wok Star class

$55 per person

Saturday, May 22: 12pm-3pm

Mia Cucina, Aventura

Wok Star class

Miami River Wall

Sunday, May 30: 12pm-3pm

Look forward to meeting you at a class soon...

Happy Mother's Day and Asian Pacific Heritage Month...

Eleanor

Akzent host Wok Star cooking class (Updated)

Architect/owner, Cristina Raidt and Wok Star Eleanor at AKZENT showroom

AKZENT exclusively showcases Zeyko's beautifully, handcrafted kitchens made in the Blackforest of Germany. Even though the showroom closed soon after this class (very sad), AKZENT is still operating! You can contact Cristina through her website and tell her Wok Star sent you. Cristina is a true Super Woman, she has 4 kids and still manage a Zeyko showroom in Costa Rica as well as helping her husband's business. She is from Costa Rico and studied architecture in Germany in German (not her mother tongue!) Amazing, as an entrepreneur, I really appreciate what she's accomplished.

Akzent, Coral Gables

Akzent
Handcrafted German kitchens, eco-friendly

Akzent - Country Pannacotta

Cristina Raidt, architect/owner
host
Wok Star Cooking Class with Eleanor Hoh
A perfect combination of socializing, entertaining, learning
a beautiful setting and lovely way to spend a Saturday afternoon...
Cristina and Peter Raidt checking me out!

Saturday, October 24 12pm-3pm
Akzent
40 Miracle Mile
Coral Gables, FL 33134

Akzent - Eiche

You'll learn how to make quick, easy, weeknight,
one-dish meals with little cleanup!

This class is targeted towards:
- architects and designers (many who have attended are Wok Stars!)
- people who are into cooking and kitchens and
- busy professionals!

Enjoy Rainbow Lettuce Wrap Appetizer with Gancia Prosecco
Using fresh ingredients, a few seasonings and a sizzling, cast iron wok.
Wok Star's failproof, NO-recipe technique that's fun and creative.

A Wok Star Kit will get you started so you can Be A Wok Star!

4 dishes paired with
Gancia Prosecco (sponsored by The Other Wine and spirits)
and Fiji Water
Wok Star Eleanor laughs it up
Wok Star Eva wokin' veggies for tilapia dish
(photo by Cristina)

Wok Star Eva got her Wok Star Kit and here are her comments:

I have been quite busy with the wok...My husband loves it. He even told me that he had been waiting for this kind of cooking for years!

Tonight was another great meal, salmon with eggplant, bok choy and cherry tomatoes in the sweet Currysimple sauce. Dinner was done in 10 minutes. It was delicious!

I made for them beef stir fry Sunday for lunch and my oldest even ate the asparragus and carrots. I couldn't believe it!

Wok Star Eva and hot, flyin' wok action!

Wok Star Eleanor cooking tilapia fish in brown bean sauce.
(photo by Cristina)

Visit class for details, menu and payment options.
Reservations and prepayment required
Plse commit NOW so you're not disappointed
Class is filling up fast.

If you're thinking of coming to a Wok Star Class or want to give a gift certificate(great for any occasion), these
photos from that class will give you an idea of what to expect. Angie Chen, studying to be an art director at The Miami Ad School kindly took them to share with us.

"This is my flickr link to Album "Wok Star Oct. 24".
I really love to take pictures in your class and feel the energy from those people who love to cook!
Thank you for inviting me! Wish to join another amazing class as soon as possible :)"

Eleanor has appeared on CBS, NBC, Fox & Friends, Plum TV.
Radio interviews incl. Martha Stewart Living and WLRN.
Demonstrations incl. Macy's, Bloomingdale's, Epicure Market,
Coconut Grove Art Festival, Las Olas Wine and Food Festival.
Video review by Eating Well.
Class review by Jackie Sayet for New Times Short Order Blog
as well as numerous Miami food bloggers:
The Amateur Gastronomer
Mango and Lime
Miami Dish - view slide show and audio bite interview
The Mighty Blonde

Hope to see you there...
Wok Star Eleanor