Wok Star

I attended the Wok Star cooking class this weekend. The chef is Eleanor Hoh, a bit of a Miami Star in her own right.
She dazzled me from the moment I called to enroll in this cooking class. I know nothing about wok’s, Asian cooking, any cooking for that matter. I am a great student, willing to admit my lack of knowledge and eagerness to learn, however I have to literally twist my own arm to pick up the phone and enroll. Eleanor answers the phone with a British accent, first surprise. Then she proceeds to wow me with her incredible energy and enthusiasm. I am not asking her the questions, she is asking me, I start to feel like I am being accepted rather than just attending for fun.
I love her right away, and am eager to learn, as I know from our phone conversation, she is going to blow me away.
Click Here For Eleanor's Website
Upon arrival, we were served Rainbow Lettuce Wraps made of ground turkey, Jicama, yellow and orange peppers, hoisin sauce, and topped with pumpkin seeds. We washed this down with Tiger Beer and a fantastically crisp, light Prossecco (I didn’t catch the label, shame on me).
All the attendees or students were introduced and made comfortable, our bellies were instantly full after all, then we went straight into the traditional Asian chopping technique compared to the traditional French technique.
We learned to wok fry with less oil, better chopped vegetables, and variations of protein. We cooked everything from shrimp and tilapia to tossing in pre-cooked pork and chicken, a la Rachel Ray.

Eleanor made a healthier cook out of me, and even showed us the nearest Asian Markets to our homes, in a well organized “take home” list. She also recommended Tamari San-J for soy sauce, as it is a thicker consistency for cooking and actually is healthier than the traditional choices (no MSG).
I love Eleanor. Can I be a sap here? Her energy was great, her enthusiasm for health and cooking and food. I do love food, and health, and am starting to love cooking. She also had great beverages, I forgot to mention along with Prosecco and Tiger beer was Fiji water bottles. Now I do love a good water snob. I have to admit, I have been a faithful water snob way before it was trendy. Another story, another day.