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CommentsMarch Cooking Class: Be Our Guest
Put our chef to the test. Johnson Tan is said to be among the best in 417-land, and he's the chef at this month's cooking class.
By Tiesha Miller
(page 1 of 6)
Chef Johnson Tan says he thinks his restaurant, Ocean Zen, serves the best food in Springfield. Sounds like a big claim for a 25-year-old, but the restaurant does come highly lauded. In 2006, Ocean Zen was voted Best New Restaurant by 417 Magazine readers, and business has been so successful that the restaurant is upgrading locations and using the old space to launch the upscale Five Spice China Grill, a “sort of P.F. Chang’s-type restaurant,” Johnson says. He and his brother, front-of-house manager Jon Tan, will co-own both establishments and are moving Ocean Zen to Battlefield Road, where they revamped the former Tony Roma’s. All is planned to be open and running March 15.At the 417 Cooking Class, you can decide for yourself if Johnson is the best of the best. In the Metro Builders Supply test kitchen, he will prepare four courses all intended to wow. The menu is certainly tempting. The first course is a three-protein tasting of sweet Thai chili–glazed shrimp, peppercorn-crusted seared rare ahi tuna and island-style slow-roasted barbecued pork tenderloin. The second course is on the lighter side, with a salad of fresh organic greens and balsamic vinaigrette. It’s accented with crisp Asian pear, candied pecans, Gorgonzola cheese and black mission figs. Save room for the third course: garlic soy braised beef short ribs. Finish the evening off with blueberry- and cream- cheese–stuffed pot stickers and green tea ice cream. Oh, yes, and the first three courses are accompanied by a pairing from IV J’s Wines and Dain Wines.
417 COOKING CLASS
Presented by Metro Builders SupplyThe 417 Cooking Class is a series that highlights the best local chefs and their creations, plus wine pairings provided by IV J’s Wines and Dain Wines. In the following pages, you’ll find recipes for the four-course dinner that Ocean Zen executive chef Johnson Tan will prepare on March 20 at Metro Builders Supply’s sparkling demonstration kitchen.
WHERE: Metro Builders Supply,
3252 N. Glenstone Ave., just north of I-44
WHEN: 6:00 p.m., March 20
TICKETS: $60 per person. Contact Nicole Fuller at
417-883-7417 for details. Tickets are limited to 24 people on a first-come, first-served basis.
Reader Comments:
Many cooking schools provide students with gourmet tour to different cities. Students explore variety of cuisines in that trip. There are different culinary courses in which students learn classical and traditional techniques of cooking.
http://www.culinaryschoolsprograms.com/