Queenstown Resort College cooks up a storm

Queenstown Resort College is cooking up a storm with a series of cookery demonstrations putting some of the region’s top chefs under the spotlight.

Home chefs are being given the opportunity to pick up some top tips in Mediterranean and Asian-flavoured demonstrations from now through to October.

Three successful Mediterranean demonstrations have already been held featuring chefs from Blanket Bay, The Rees and Wai, featuring dishes with a Central Otago ‘twist’.

The Asian cookery demonstrations will be led by Vijai Lal of Invercargill-based company Indofusion, Steve Best of Blanket Bay and Penpun Mongkolkumnuanket of Queenstown’s Golden Elephant.

The first Asian demonstration by Vijai on Thursday September 10 will focus on ‘curry in a hurry’ including butter chicken, blue cod mollee and potato masala while Steve will demonstrate dim sims featuring Chinese-style pork shoulder, shitake mushroom dim sim and other Chinese fusion dishes. Finally, Penpun will showcase Thai specialities including her Tom Yum Goong prawn soup and traditional Thai green chicken curry.

All demonstrations include two glasses of wine matched to the dish by respected QRC sommelier Paul Tudgay, as well as sufficient tastings of the dishes to keep hunger pangs at bay.

In addition, a professional-standard barista course in September promises to perk up coffee making skills for those seeking employment or just for fun.

The QRC barista course on Tuesday 8th September is designed to help attendees gain employment in a café or simply get to grips with home coffee machines to impress friends and family.

QRC CEO Charlie Phillips said the demonstrations were aimed at those who wanted an evening out with a difference and would-be 'home baristas' who wanted to improve their knowledge and skills in a fun and welcoming learning environment.

"We have a large professional demonstration kitchen at the college which is the perfect setting for these events," he said.

"The cookery courses include wine to complement the dishes, which of course everyone gets to taste, and the informal structure means there are plenty of opportunities to grill the chefs about some top tips as they cook."

Each cookery demonstration costs $60 or attendees can choose to take all three Asian cookery sessions for just $150. The half-day barista course costs $80. All sessions can be booked by emailing hal.shaw@qrc.ac.nz.