Chef Alyssa’s Kitchen (Part 2: Learning to Cook)

We recently had the opportunity to join Chef Alyssa’s Kitchen for the Seasonal Vegetarian Cooking class in Atherton Market, and it was wonderful. JZ and I had attended one other cooking class together, but upon arriving realized that it was actually a demonstration. We found the hands-on approach of Chef Alyssa’s classes exciting and looked forward to actually preparing the meal we ate at the end of class.

The work station tables are setup to accommodate four people, so if you are going with a group make sure to be in even numbers unless you want to make new friends. Most of our class’ participants were young professionals, and everyone seemed to enjoy getting to know the people sharing their dining tables and workstations.

Prior to class Chef Alyssa prepares an appetizer for snacking before the food is ready, and she also prepares ingredient trays for each dish the class prepares. It is nice to have only the ingredients needed, along with everything measured out ahead of class.  She does a great job making sure that there are enough tasks for each person to contribute, and they also have a projector to make sure you can clearly see her demo whatever task you have.

One of the many parts that really impressed us is how well Chef Alyssa manages the timing of class so each workstation is on the same step.  Part of this is the clear demonstrations, and another is the ingredient trays we mention earlier.

She also hires interns from local culinary programs to help with individual instruction and questions. We were comfortable working through our recipes with her demonstration, but it was nice to have help or confirmation, depending on what we needed. Here are a couple shots of what we prepared and cooked.

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Finally, here are a couple tips for your next class with Chef Alyssa’s Kitchen:

• Don’t come too hungry – While the dinner portions are sizable, you will not actually eat until after all the food is prepared. For us, that was an hour and half into the class, and I had an early lunch that day.
• Wear comfortable shoes – I came directly from work and wore a pair of marginally comfortable flats. I did not even think about the fact that we would be standing for the majority of the class, but I was so glad that I did not wear heels to work that day! Also, the floor in Atherton market is concrete which can also affect your comfort after standing for an hour or two.
• Come to learn – Despite being moderately proficient in the kitchen, both JZ and I took home new skills and techniques that are already making an impact on our nightly meals.