One of the cornerstones of the Petits Chefs programme are the guest chefs who lend their time and expertise to the club by either visiting and working with the boys in the lab or inviting us into their kitchens to work there. Since I launched this piece of the program in the spring of 2011, we’ve had countless guests work with the boys and every week I am so grateful for the generosity of the Toronto food community.
This week, we once again welcomed Vanessa Yeung back to work with the boys for her thirteenth visit! Since we have a relatively new crew of boys this term, I knew we had to make at least one type of dumpling – which Vanessa’s known all over Toronto for! We also prepared a pomelo salad – one of her new recipes she’s been working on – so there was plenty to do for everyone. About 5 minutes into club (with raw chicken to work with!) we were informed that the water was about to be shut off so there was a moment of panic (by me – I’ve seen what dumpling filling looks like when it’s all over hands and equipment!) which was averted as they postponed the shutoff until just after club finished. But the prospect of no water shortly after the end of club was a great incentive to have the place spic and span and tidy on time (well, as was the prospect of eating dumplings LOL!).
The boys got busy with garlic, ginger, cilantro and pomelo for the various dishes…
(hardly any photos here because I was dealing with the water cut off situation..)
The best part of the session, undoubtedly, was filling the dumplings. An eerie quiet descends on the lab as the boys start filling and folding – it’s a very calming activity…
(so, yeah, you can see why it’s kind of important that we had running water…)
Vanessa got to pan frying these (then adding a touch of water to finish them off with a bit of steam) and meanwhile, the pomelo salad had come together, thanks to an industrious group of boys working away at it..
This has coconut, crispy shallots, pomelo, cilantro, palm sugar, garlic, fish sauce and lime juice and tastes more like a fruit salad according to the boys. It’s wonderful – and I was pleased to see many of the boys enjoying sneaky tastes of this out of their containers at the end of the session
Meanwhile, the crown jewels…
SO GOOD. THE BEST I’VE EVER EATEN. Basically, all the superlatives! The boys (as always) LOVED these. Vanessa, we love you!!
Read more about the classes and catering Vanessa offers at Aphrodite Cooks.
Read more about Vanessa’s work with the Petits Chefs here:
Vanessa Yeung makes Soi Gau and Ginger Chicken Potstickers with Les Petits Chefs
Vanessa Yeung makes Siu Mi and Mango Salad with Les Petits Chefs
Vanessa Yeung makes Bison and Pork dumplings and Coconut Tarts with Les Petits Chefs
Vanessa Yeung makes Cold Rolls and BBQ pork and chicken crisps with Les Petits Chefs
Vanessa Yeung makes potstickers and steamed dumplings with Les Petits Chefs
Vanessa Yeung makes steamed buns with Les Petits Chefs
Vanessa Yeung makes chicken and shrimp potstickers with Les Petits Chefs
Vanessa Yeung makes potstickers and mango salad with Les Petits Chefs
Vanessa Yeung makes classic dumplings with Les Petits Chefs
Vanessa Yeung makes basic tomato sauce (and pizzas!) with Les Petits Chefs
Vanessa Yeung makes potstickers and scallion pancakes with Les Petits Chefs
Vanessa Yeung make potstickers and dumplings with Les Petits Chefs