Diving Deep Into Vietnamese Cuisine

Chef Mark talks through the plans

Students prepare pancakes

There's always something delicious cooking at the Chocolates and Tomatoes Learning Kitchen. This time spent learning about dishes from the Vietnamese culture was no different.

Everyone in the class got to dive into the wonders of Vietnamese dishes you may have heard of, including the Banh Mi and Banh Xeo. As a team, we created amazing dishes that were not only flavorful, but made with fresh ingredients like mung bean sprouts, daikon, and water spinach.

While learning about the food we were going to prepare, Chef Mark also gave us some interesting information about geography and the cuisine and cooking techniques best known in Vietnam.

Chef Mark preparing his Banh Mi

Chef Mark's finished dish

The Banh Mi might have been the star of the class (sorry Chef Mark)! Everyone was looking forward to building their own version of the classic Vietnamese sandwich. With homemade pickled carrot and daikon, marinated pork tenderloin, and deliciously cooked tofu for a meatless option, everyone made their perfect Banh Mi. The water spinach was another hit among the class. Only few of us in the class had heard of the tasty green, but I think it's safe to say that everyone enjoyed it. Banh Xeo, also known as Happy Pancakes, was the last recipe we made in the class, but it was delicious! Made with pork, shrimp, mushrooms, and bean sprouts, the dish had so many amazing flavors.

Finished Happy Pancake

Happy Pancake in the works

The night was filled with delectable aromas, plenty of laughs, and good food.

If you have never taken a class at the Learning Kitchen, we highly recommend you join us! There are plenty of classes here that will catch your eye. If you are interested in this type of class, sign up today for the Inspired By Thai class coming up on June 2nd! We hope to see you soon!