Cooking Class with Celebrity Chef Edward Kwon @ InterContinental Kuala Lumpur

Yesterday, I had the pleasure of attending a Master Cooking Class with celebrity chef Edward Kwon at InterContinental Hotel Kuala Lumpur.  Chef Edward Kwon, one of South Korean's top celebrity chefs, is in KL as part of the luxury hotel's World Celebrity Chef Series in 2015.  

Chef Edward has held numerous senior culinary positions in South Korea, United States, China and United Arab Emirates, as the Head Chef at Dubai's iconic Burj Al-Arab. He currently owns two restaurants in Seoul, Lab XXIV in Cheongdam-dong and The Mixed One, a buffet dining outlet in Hannam-dong. 

Chef Edward is renowned for accentuating traditional Korean dishes with a variety of Western and European techniques and ingredients. On a mission to globalise Korean cuisine, he will thrill gourmet lovers with his country’s fare over a four-day promotion at InterContinental KL from 21 to 24 April 2015. 

There will be nightly dinners (tonight 23rd will be the last one,priced at RM298 nett) as well as a Celebrity Gala Dinner tomorrow evening (24th, priced at RM490 nett including a selection of Penfold wines). Was super fortunate to be able to attend his cooking class yesterday, as I picked up some tips on Korean cooking and also meet the charismatic chef. 

So, during the cooking class, we learnt how to make 3 dishes - the first one being the soft bean curd with soy and black sesame dressing. This is a simple cold dish, which did not involve any cooking - a black sesame dressing was made by blitzing some smooth tofu with black sesame, sesame oil, soy milk, white vinegar. The soy dressing is even easier - just mix grapeseed oil, soy sauce, toasted sesame seeds, salt, sesame oil and several pinches of gochugaru, then top on a cube of tofu. Garnish with some seaweed and greens and it's ready. Light and refreshing!

The one that we made

After the demonstration of each dish, we were served the same dish from the kitchen. A better looking version, garnished with a lotus root chip. 

There was never a dull moment in the class, as Chef Edward was entertaining, for example regaling us with tales of barley and its effects.  The next dish we made was rice veloute, better known as tarakjuk, considered as royal cuisine. Apparently, one of the kings from the Joseon dynasty had poor digestion, hence this was created for him. And that particular king had a long(est), healthy life amongst all the rulers then. 

This Korean porridge is slightly sweet, a bit like rice pudding with a fine and smooth texture. It is made using sticky rice, water, milk, sugar and salt, cooked about 15 minutes, then blended until smooth and served warm. 

The last dish that we learnt was how to make bulgogi beef. Look at the marbling on our piece of Wagyu steak.  To make the marinade, for every 1 piece of 150g steak,  finely chop 1 clove of garlic, 1 slice of onion and 1 spring onion. Add 1 tablespoon of grated pear or apple, approximately 1/4 cup of light soy sauce and 1/4 cup of water, 2 tablespoons of sugar and 1 teaspoon of sesame seed. Mix well and marinate the beef for up to 6 hours.  Heat the pan on high heat, then cook the beef for about 15-20 seconds.

The marinade for our beef bulgogi

Chef Edward helping us slice our beef... cos we were too slow haha!

The bulgogi steak served to us, a much refined version.Very delicious!

And of course, must not miss the chance to snap a photo with the chef :)

This tasted superb, loved how tender and flavorful the beef was.

Group photo with chef Edward Kwon ;)

At the end of the cooking class, we were each presented with a certificate as well as a photo with the chef as memento ;)

As mentioned earlier, you can still catch chef Edward Kwon in action today and tomorrow at the Gala Dinner. For more information and reservations, please call +603-2782 6000 or email foodandbeverage@intercontinental-kl.com.my. 

Pork-free.

Price: RM220 nett per person, inclusive of lunch.

Location: InterContinental Hotel Kuala Lumpur, 165 Jalan Ampang, 50450 Kuala Lumpur.

Tel: 03-2782 6000

Website: http://www.intercontinental-kl.com.my/


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