INTERMISSION: Focus On Chef Joseph Poon

One of the fastest rising cuisine choices in our area is sushi. You can’t go anywhere without seeing sushi advertised or on sale…many grocery stores even have sushi chefs on staff now to accommodate customer demand. Since I enjoy cooking myself and I was curious about the skills involved in making sushi, I went to a sushi making class in Philadelphia, hosted and taught by local celebrity Chef Joseph Poon.

Celebrity Chef Joseph Poon offers a variety of cooking classes at his Cherry Street location in the Chinatown section of Philadelphia PA. (Photo credit: http://www.joeedelman.com)

Chef Poon’s story is available on his web site, http://www.josephpoon.com/joseph-k-poon-master-chef/. It’s fascinating reading, as Chef Poon is a very energetic and funny person who makes the dining or learning experience a joy. He has a degree in nutrition from SUNY-Oneonta, studied International Cuisine at the Culinary Institute of America, and continues his education today, both in classroom and self-study. Just talking with the man is an education in multi-cultural cuisine.

The sushi class is in his restaurant-school, 1010 Cherry Street, Philadelphia. The restaurant is not open to walk-in business, and is predominantly for classes and special events. Arriving at the restaurant, you go to the second floor which is the combination kitchen/dining area. Chef Poon and his staff are warm and friendly, making you comfortable immediately. As you wait for the other members of the class, you are given something to drink and get entertained by some of Chef Poon’s stories…the man is a terrific story-teller.

As class begins, you are escorted to a table where there are sushi-making stations laid out for all the participants. Hygiene is very important to the chef, and he stresses the need to do things a certain way to minimize contamination of ingredients. Hands washed, you watch the chef as he makes the first individual piece of sushi, demonstrating how to roll the rice in your hand and apply the fish to the rice. Then, his next step is to say…your turn…ACTION! There is a plate of various fish in front of you, and a bowl of rice, and you spend the next 45 minutes or so making (and eating!) sushi. About half-way through this exercise the chef cautions you not to eat too much because he is cooking dinner for you after the class! (Chef, it’s too late to tell us that!) Sushi boxes appear on the table and you are instructed to keep making sushi and fill the boxes. As you make the sushi, Chef Poon tells you what to look for in purchasing the ingredients, how to cook the rice, as well as various secrets to making great sushi.

After a short break, the next step is learning how to make and cut the various sushi rolls, with the nori (dried seaweed) on the outside, rice on the outside, and the various coatings (roe, sesame seeds, etc.) Again, the chef first demonstrates the techniques, making sure everyone understands the basics, then ACTION! The chef encourages you to experiment with various combinations, styles, etc., after you have learned the basics…sushi making is an expression of art as well as cuisine. The chef demonstrates proper knife technique in cutting the rolls, and again ACTION!

The sushi making includes all of the techniques using about 8 different pieces of seafood, daikon, avocado, nori, roe, and mounds of rice. I can’t say for sure how much sushi I made, but I ate my fill as well as bringing home (between 2 of us) 6 stuffed boxes of sushi! (The staff at my office thanks Chef Poon for being a good teacher as well…the sushi I took into the office didn’t last long at all!)

After class, you are escorted to your dinner table, where the chef has prepared a number of his signature dishes…beef tenderloin medallions with artichoke and Japanese eggplant in spicy garlic demi glace essence, vegetarian avocado dragon roll, and crispy General Joe chicken (his nutritional take on General Tso chicken) with pad Thai noodles served with Asian baby greens. The meal was amazing, and even though we all were stuffed with sushi the dinner was gone in record time. After the dinner Chef Poon gave out “awards” to everyone, including bags of nori, bamboo rolling mats and sushi knives.

Chef Joseph Poon is a fantastic teacher, and his classes are very informative and lots of fun! He has classes in sushi making, Dim Sum, Healthy Stir-Fry, Basic Noodle Making, and the Secret of Making Peking Duck (one of his specialties!) There are classes for beginners, advanced, and even for kids. The list of classes can be found at http://www.josephpoon.com/hands-on-cooking-classes/#hands_on_sushi. Classes are about 3 hours in length, and cost of the sushi class is $120 per person.

If you’re looking for something different to do on a weekend or have interest in Chinese cooking, the classes at Chef Poon Kitchen are definitely worth the trip. And when you go, be sure to tell Chef Poon the “Big Guy” sent you!

Joseph Poon Chef Kitchen
1010 Cherry Street
Philadelphia, PA 19107
Phone: 215.928.9333
www.josephpoon.com