**Japanese Recipe** Reiko?s Cold Soba Noodles with Spicy Aubergine

Bloggers Cookery Class @ Hashi Cooking

I recently had the pleasure of returning to Reiko Hashimoto?s home for a special cookery class at Hashi Cooking with fellow food bloggers Su-Lin (Tamarind and Thyme), Carly (Greedy Diva), Kavey (Kavey Eats), Cara (Gourmet Chick), and Rejina (Gastrogeek).


Also joining us that evening was one of the top wine bloggers in the country, Denise (The Wine Sleuth) who recommended the wines and champagne to be paired with the four dishes we were about to learn (and eat).


It is no secret that I am undoubtedly Reiko?s number one fan, having attended and written at length about her wonderful classes last year (here), I was so excited to be able to return accompanied by such expert company.


The class was a mix of Reiko?s 4-week courses, namely Beginners, Home Cooking, Gourmet and Master Chef with one dish taken from each of these courses. By structuring it this way, Reiko was able to give us a taster of different dishes and cooking techniques spanning all her classes. All courses? menus can be found at Hashi Cooking?s website.


In my opinion, the trickiest dish was surprisingly from the beginners? course, the ?Gyoza?. I could never imagine being able to fold these dumplings? wrappers without a practical demonstration.


I normally cheat and buy these already made from Japanese grocery stores, but was so impressed by the taste and freshness of Reiko?s version that I?ve now become a real convert to making these fresh. Apart from the folding, everything else is dead simple and the ingredients are inexpensive and easy to find.