JuniorChef

JuniorChef JuniorChef has a mission to bring the joy of cooking to the kids of Ho Chi Minh. JuniorChef Saigon - Learn Tasty.

We run clubs, classes and workshops at the top International and Bilingual schools in Vietnam, as well as private classes for kids and adults alike! Live Delicious
We are keen to meet kitchen collaborators! Email us at: [email protected] and let's get cooking!

The most famous Italian dish was invented in America.Spaghetti and meatballs as a combination doesn't really exist in It...
01/06/2026

The most famous Italian dish was invented in America.

Spaghetti and meatballs as a combination doesn't really exist in Italy β€” in Bologna, the ragΓΉ is served without meatballs, and pasta shapes are chosen carefully for the sauce. Italian immigrants in New York in the early 1900s had more meat available than they'd ever had at home, and they used it. The dish that travelled back across the Atlantic and became "Italian food" for the rest of the world was actually a product of abundance and reinvention.

We think that's a good story to learn as you make it.

πŸ“ JuniorChef Saigon Β·

JuniorChef started in one city. It's not staying there.We've spent 12 years building a curriculum that works β€” tested in...
30/05/2026

JuniorChef started in one city. It's not staying there.

We've spent 12 years building a curriculum that works β€” tested in classrooms across Ho Chi Minh City, refined term by term, dish by dish. The recipes travel. The technique travels. The idea that children are capable of real cooking, in real kitchens, with real food from anywhere in the world β€” that travels most of all.

We think Bangkok is next. After that, further.

If you're an educator, a parent, or someone who's ever thought about bringing something like this to your city β€” this is the moment to get in touch.

Link in bio.

πŸ“ JuniorChef Saigon Β·

Order of addition is everything in a curry.Aromatics first β€” onion, garlic, ginger, coriander stems β€” fried until fragra...
28/05/2026

Order of addition is everything in a curry.

Aromatics first β€” onion, garlic, ginger, coriander stems β€” fried until fragrant. Then paste, then the hardest vegetables, then coconut milk, then everything else in descending order of how long it needs to cook. Add spinach last. It wilts in thirty seconds.

Get the order wrong and you get mush. Get it right and every vegetable is exactly what it should be β€” the sweet potato tender, the green beans with a little bite, the spinach just wilted and bright.

This is the lesson inside the curry lesson. Sequencing is cooking.

πŸ“ JuniorChef Saigon Β·

Cookie base. Cream cheese filling. Fruit toppings arranged like pepperoni and basil. A jammy lime glaze brushed over eve...
26/05/2026

Cookie base. Cream cheese filling. Fruit toppings arranged like pepperoni and basil. A jammy lime glaze brushed over everything to make it shine.

This is a Midwest American summer dessert β€” and the reason it works is the same reason pizza works. A neutral, slightly salty base. A rich, creamy middle layer. Toppings chosen for colour, texture and flavour contrast.

Our students arrange their fruit as carefully as any pizza chef. The more colours, the better. The more precise the arrangement, the prouder they are to eat it.

πŸ“ JuniorChef Saigon Β·

Five spice is five things: star anise, cloves, Chinese cinnamon, Sichuan pepper, fennel seeds.Ground together, it's one ...
24/05/2026

Five spice is five things: star anise, cloves, Chinese cinnamon, Sichuan pepper, fennel seeds.
Ground together, it's one of the oldest spice blends in the world β€” used in Chinese cooking for thousands of years. A pinch goes into the pork mince along with soy, hoisin, ginger and garlic. The result is something that smells like every Chinese restaurant you've ever been in, made in a school kitchen in Saigon in under 20 minutes.
We serve it in lettuce cups because that's how it's eaten. The crunch of the lettuce against the soft, sticky pork is the whole point.
πŸ“ JuniorChef Saigon Β·

A taco seasoning blend is just pantry confidence in a cup.Salt, smoked paprika, cumin, garlic powder, oregano β€” measured...
23/05/2026

A taco seasoning blend is just pantry confidence in a cup.

Salt, smoked paprika, cumin, garlic powder, oregano β€” measured once, mixed together, and now you have a spice blend that works on beef, chicken, vegetables, eggs. You made it yourself. You know what's in it. You can adjust it next time.

We teach kids to build their own seasoning blends because it changes how they see a recipe. It stops being a set of instructions and starts being a conversation between cook and ingredients.

Also the tacos are very good.

πŸ“ JuniorChef Saigon Β·

The flip is the whole lesson.Pineapple ring caramelised in butter and sugar. Batter poured around and over it. Bubbles f...
22/05/2026

The flip is the whole lesson.

Pineapple ring caramelised in butter and sugar. Batter poured around and over it. Bubbles forming on the surface. And then β€” carefully, confidently β€” the flip. The pineapple is revealed underneath, golden and sticky, hidden until the last moment.
Kids do this themselves. The first one is nervous. By the fourth, they're showing off.

πŸ“ JuniorChef Saigon Β·

Chè chuối has been eaten in Vietnam for generations. Banana, coconut milk, tapioca pearls, a pinch of salt. Served warm ...
03/05/2026

Chè chuối has been eaten in Vietnam for generations. Banana, coconut milk, tapioca pearls, a pinch of salt. Served warm in the morning or cold in the afternoon from a cart on the street.

The salt is not a mistake. It sharpens the coconut, lifts the banana, and turns something sweet into something complex. It's one of the first flavour lessons we teach β€” that contrast makes everything better. We are proudly nut-free, so the textural contrast comes from sunflower seeds and coconut.

Simple ingredients. Careful technique. A dish that has fed children in this city for a very long time.

Now our students make it too.

πŸ“ JuniorChef Saigon Β·

In the American South, biscuits and gravy is what you eat at a diner at 7am before a long day. Traditionally it's made w...
02/05/2026

In the American South, biscuits and gravy is what you eat at a diner at 7am before a long day. Traditionally it's made with sausage meat β€” crumbled into a cream gravy, served over split biscuits that are somewhere between a scone and a bread roll.

We make ours without the sausage. Shiitake, chestnut and dried mushrooms, softened with sage and miso, finished with cream. The gravy is arguably better. The biscuits β€” made with just flour, cream and a little raising agent β€” are the real lesson. Fat cold, mixed fast, baked immediately. The same principle as shortcake, as scones, as any flaky dough.

Vegetarian food doesn't have to be virtuous. Sometimes it's just biscuits and gravy.

πŸ“ JuniorChef Saigon Β·

Trifle is a most democratic dessert.Every family has a version. Each one slightly different. The only rules are layers β€”...
02/05/2026

Trifle is a most democratic dessert.

Every family has a version. Each one slightly different. The only rules are layers β€” something cakey at the base, something fruity, something creamy, something to finish. Beyond that, you use what you have and what you love.

We start from scratch: a proper custard made on the hob, cooled fast, built up in layers with jam-soaked sponge, fresh strawberries and whipped cream. It teaches a little patience β€” each layer needs to set before the next goes on β€” and it teaches assembly, which is its own skill.

Also it looks extraordinary, which is part of the point.

πŸ“ JuniorChef Saigon Β·

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