Become A Master Chef At Home With Gaggenau & Cé La Vi

Many of us took up a new hobby while in lockdown, from tie-dying to virtual quizzing, and of course, banana bread baking. Months of lockdown left us brushing up on our culinary skills and finding comfort in the kitchen, with a new wave of quarantine chefs now on the horizon.

Although Dubai’s restaurants are slowly starting to reopen, lockdown cooking doesn’t have to end. In fact, you can still cook up a storm with a culinary expert from the comfort of home — starting with masterclass from Cé La Vi and Gaggenau, tonight. 

Chef Howard Ko, the executive chef of contempery Asian restaurant Cé La Vi, is hosting a virtual cooking class from the tech-savvy surrounds of the Gaggenau Galleria kitchen. Chef will be preparing Yellow Tomato Gazpacho with Thai Basil Sorbet, Olive Crumble, Pickled Soy Eggplant, Fermented Cucumber; a new dish set to be summer hit on Cé La Vi's menu. 

The masterclass will be streamed live on Cé La Vi’s Instagram (@celavidubai) at 5pm and will take approximately 50 minutes. If you want to cook along at home, or bookmark the recipe for a later date, find the full list of ingredients and step-by-steps below. 

Ingredients:

1. Yellow Cherry Tomato – 1250g
2. Cucumber Peeled – 75g
3. Yellow Bell Pepper – 55g
4. Garlic Clove – 10g
5. Red Onion – 25g
6. Turmeric Powder – 7g
7. White Balsamic Vinegar – 60g
8. Mirin – 25g
9. Salt – 15g

Directions:

1. Add all ingredients in a blender and blend on high speed for 4 minutes. Make sure everything is nicely blended.
2. Pass through a fine-mesh strainer and keep in the fridge covered. It lasts up to 3 days.

Ingredients:

1. Niçoise olive or black kalamata pitted olive – 1kg

Directions:

1. Rinse olive to take away oil and saltiness.
2. Place on a baking tray with Silpat.
3. Dry out in the oven overnight at 94c.
4. On a cutting board finely chop the dried olive. Place in an airtight container.

Ingredients:

1. Baby Local Purple Eggplant - 500g.
2. White Soy –  250g
3. Rice Wine Vinegar – 1kg
4. Sugar – 500g
5. Garlic – 20g
6. Jalapeno sliced in rings –  50g
7. Salt – 5g

Directions:

1. Heat up everything in a pot except for the eggplant, then cool it and keep it aside.
2. Cut the eggplant in half vertically.
3. Place eggplant in a non-reactive container and cover with soy liquid. Place in the fridge for 3 days before using it.
4. Cut thin strips of the eggplant for plating.

Ingredients:

1. Persian Cucumber – 1kg
2. Peeled Garlic – 5g
3. Chilli Pepper Dried - 4 each seeded
4. Sliced Whole Lemon – 2 ea
5. Water

Directions:

1. In a non-reactive container place cucumber, garlic chilli pepper. Cover with water just until covered.
2. Weigh the total weight. Total weight times 4% salt (total weight x 4% salt) equals the amount of salt needed to be added into the water. Example 1000kg total weight is 40g salt.
3. Strain out water into a bowl and add salt. Mix until fully incorporated and add back to cucumbers. Reserve 1/3 liquid.
4.  Lay sliced lemons on top like a thin layer.
5. Weigh down cucumbers with plastic wrap and add the remaining 1/3 liquid to press all the cucumbers down. Wrap in plastic and put in a clean dark place for about a week.
6. Cut into rings to serve.

Ingredients:

1. Water – 415g
2. Lemongrass puree – 30g
3. Ginger minced – 35 grams
4. Sugar – 185g
5. Sorbet Stabilizer – 3g
6. Milk Powder – 25g
7. Trimoline – 19g
8. Glucose Powder – 65g
9. Yuzu Juice – 160g
10. Lemon Juice – 65g
11. Passion Fruit Puree – 95g
12. Thai Basil – 50g
13. Mint – 30g
14. Sweet Basil 20g

Directions:

1. Add all ingredients in a pot and bring to a boil except for the herbs.
2. Then let them cool down.
3. In a blender add the cooled liquid and herbs to blend.
4. Place in paco jet containers and freeze.
5. Spin paco jet day before serving.

Presentation:

1. On the side of the bowl place fermented cucumbers 5pc or so. Then layout about 4 nice Thai basil leaves on top. Cover with about a tablespoon of olive crumble.
2. Lay nicely the eggplant strips.
3. Quenelle Thai basil sorbet on top of the olive crumble.
4. In the middle of the bowl add a pool of coriander oil.
5. Garnish the side of the plate with micro shiso.
6. Place yellow tomato gazpacho in a chilled soup pourer.
7. Pour right in the middle of the coriander oil.