Mayochup: market

On a hot and sticky summer afternoon in London, we went to the Night Market which is part of London Food Month. Not having eaten for ages, we were more than enticed with the wonderful smells coming from the festival as we waited for friends so we could all go in together. Tickets were £7.50 each so we had hopes that this would offer free samples, goodies and demonstrations much like the BBC Food & Wine show. Sadly, this was not the case.

Two cooks over a very hot barbecue

To get in, we were put through security checks which is on a par as going through customs at major airports minus the x-ray scanner. It's reassuring to know that all efforts have been made to make the event safe in view of recent events in London. However, it was bizarre that they were not allowing cameras into the festival and it does not say anywhere on the tickets that they were prohibited but Mrs Mayochup somehow managed to walk in with hers.

The night market wasn't that big but it allowed us to visit all the stalls. We decided as a group that we would all try everything and split the cost as items on their own were quite expensive.

Wood pigeon with game chips

The wood pigeon with game chips was not much change out of £10 and is just a mere snack, The pigeon was well seasoned, tasty and the chips extremely fattening but moreish.

Charcoal truffle burger

Burgers ready to go

The burgers were odd and appealing due to its colour. The charcoal was too overpowering and the burger was dripping with fat.

Spicy Korean chicken with salad

The spicy Korean chicken with salad was nice and just perfect for a hot summers day although it wasn't that spicy at all. This one didn't last long.

Korean Bao buns

The Korean bao buns were amazing. This was the best find in the night market.

Duck with watermelon

And this was the most bizarre thing in the night market. There was a short queue for this one and we found out why, The duck had so much batter that there was hardly any duck and the watermelon just didn't go.

Umbrella decoration

Chinese dragon dancing round the night market

We settled down for some games and drinks for the evening and before we knew it it was 22:30. Time for dessert. We just about got something as the stewards started to close off the queues at 22:40 which is strange as the night market is advertised being open until 23:00.

Overall, if you are just a couple or on your own, then the £7.50 fee to get into the night market is unjustified as you don't get anything back for it and if you want food from the stalls then they are expensive and drink also. As we were in a group, we all shared food so we got to sample a lot of dishes and had a great time as well as splitting the cost.

Evening Standard Night Market

Perks Field

Kensington

W8 4QP

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Our wedding present last year, courtesy of my best man, was a cookery masterclass at Billingsgate Market in London and we finally got round to booking it for Saturday 10 June. The cookery masterclass started at 08:30 so we decided to get there by 07:00 so we can go round the market and buy some fish. And a good job we did too as the stalls start closing by 08:00!

Overview of Billingsgate Market

A selection of the many different types of fish available

The prices are usually on a par with your local fishmongers but if you look hard enough, you can grab a bargain and we managed to get two whole salmon for £20 which is the price for one on its own in your local supermarket! As you can see, the fishmonger was poking fun at us. There are places to eat there where you can grab some breakfast too.

A local fishmonger

If you want the freshest fish, the stalls open on Tuesday with the latest catch and this is when most restaurateurs will come and bulk buy for the week. Saturday is the main trading day as the fishmongers will try to deplete their stock ready for the following Tuesday. Billingsgate Market is closed on Sunday and Monday each week.

08:30 came by all to quick and we were upstairs awaiting our cookery masterclass to begin. As we were a sizeable group (18 in total) we were split into two groups where one would be doing the fish skills whilst the other was being shown cooking demonstrations and tasting. I feel we were lucky that we had the fish skills first as it would have been a bit too early to be doing the tasting in the periods of 09:00 - 10:30. As it turned out, we were doing our tasting near lunchtime. Perfect!

Before the skills began, we were shown what to look for in a fish and to be aware that it has come from sustainable stock. In fact, sustainable was the buzz word of the day as it was mentioned quite a few times. In selecting your fish, look for a nice bright eye, a clear 'slime' and not too droppy looking (a sign of age).

Fresh mackerel

Our first skill was to cut and clean a fish which is what we take for granted when we buy it from a fishmonger or the supermarkets. The first task is to take out the gills which Mrs Mayochup did perfectly. I, however, made a mess of it and managed to chop off its head.

Removing the gills from the mackerel

The second part is to clean the chamber of the fish and to remove the bloodline which was easy enough. The whole group managed that one.

Our chef, Sean, showing us how to cut open the chamber of the fish

Once that was done, we got to put it in a freezer bag to take home with us.

The second skill was to fillet a fish and we were all given a sea bream to practice on. This had a few more steps and you really have to concentrate to get a half decent result. First, with the scissors, you remove all the fins from the fish and then descale it. The next step is to score the fish along the top and the belly of the fish as this makes it easier to guide the knife through when cutting off the fillet.

Chef Sean supervising the pupils

The final step is from the tail upwards (so the knife is facing away from you), cut along the spine of the fish keeping it as close to the spine as you can until you reach the head. Then cut down on the head area to complete the fillet. Once this was done, we got to keep those to take home with us.

The final part of the course is, and always be my favourite, is the cooking demonstration and tasting. We were shown how to make oven baked lemon sole with seaweed, tomato and cheese, grilled mackerel with chilli and ginger baste, seafood laksa, baked fish en papilotte, and pocketed flat fish. After we were shown, we all got to taste the results and they all were amazing. During the demonstration, there was further mention of sourcing your fish from sustainable stock and if you see MSC (fish regulators) written on the fish packet or told by the fishmongers then you know that you have bought correctly.

Seafood Laksa with bread. We were each given a recipe book to take home

Grilled mackerel with chilli and ginger baste

Pocketed flat fish

Baked fish en papilotte

If you don't mind getting up early and you like fish, it is recommended that you give Billingsgate Market a visit. If you're willing to haggle a bit, you can pick up some terrific bargains if you want to book yourself on the cooking classes, you can find booking details in this link.

Billingsgate Market

Trafalgar Way

Poplar

London

E14 5ST

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Ho Chi Minh (or Saigon as it is still known to the locals) is a very bright and vibrant city with more scooters than people! The traffic system there can be described as organised chaos as scooters come from all directions with no accidents or minor incidents to be seen. Quite incredible really. However, when it comes to crossing the road, it's simply a case of 'just go'and the scooters will swerve round you. If you don't, you'll remain on the pavement for quite some time.

We arrived at the hotel Alagon Saigon Hotel & Spa around 3am and immediately, the front desk was trying to get us to give them $50 for security which was not listed anywhere on their site nor did we give it. Eventually, the front desk backed down and we finally got to the room. We were upgraded to a superior room and it was small, extremely dated and dirty so we swapped back to the original room we booked the following morning.

Breakfast was not spectacular but there's plenty of options to suit all tastes but what the hotel did have (and in my view where they spent all their money) was the roof top bar and spa. This offered great views of the city and a place to relax. Oh,and the cocktails! Once again, the alcohol strength was eye watering and very soon we were very very relaxed.

We booked to go to the Chu Chi Tunnels which is about a 90 minute ride from Ho Chi Minh and this is where they showcase the tunnels dug by the Vietnamese to outwit and surprise the Americans in the bloody Vietnam war.

As the Americans dropped their bombs, the Vietnamese recycled the metal and constructed traps hidden in the jungle which looked like below.

We spent the rest of the days just touring the city and we found a food market which was very much to our liking. We tried crocodile and ostrich and I have to say ostrich is lovely. It's a rich dark meat full of flavour and crocodile tastes like chicken.

Walking around the city is thirsty work and there are a number of juice bars and cafes to choose from and we found a really nice place where we got iced teas and some dessert.

Overall, Ho Chi Minh is a great city and I would recommend no longer than a 3 night stay as the constant noise will tire you out. Having said that, there's plenty to do and see and there's not a dull moment. The final stop is the beautiful and quiet Phu Quoc which will be the last post in this series.

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I'm going to put it out there that Hanoi is a bustling, vibrant and charming city which is clouded by smog. The people are warm and welcoming and it's quite surprising the effort and amount of English they know. It is not a rich city by any stretch of the imagination with poverty all around you but everyone has a smile on their face and gets on with it. There is no begging and their work ethic to be commended. You don't see a fat Vietnamese.

We arrived at our hotel very early in the morning and crashed after our long journey. The favourite part is the breakfast and La Siesta Trendy did not disappoint.

A mixture of meats, pastries, eggs, fruit and juices were on offer but the specialty here is the egg coffee. This is amazing. It is coffee with whipped up egg yolk which is sweetened topped off with chocolate sprinkles. It shouldn't sound nice but it is simply fantastic. And this is coming from someone who rarely drinks coffee.

The morning was spent wandering around the city before we head back to the hotel for our cookery class.

It was just the two of us booked in so we had an exclusive tour of the market from one of the senior chefs where we bought ingredients for what we were about to cook later. The market was huge however, you could barely move as it was busy and the walkways extremely narrow. And motorbikes everywhere. Things are done differently when it comes to selecting fish. At home, we are used to seeing the fish laying on a bed of ice and you ask for what you want over the counter. Over here, the fish are alive in a bowl, picked up and beheaded before our eyes. No nonsense.

Back at the hotel it was cooking time! Our demonstration chef was this tiny lady but she clearly has a passion for her job. We were told she arrives for work at 5am and leaves at 7pm which shows true dedication. We were shown knife skills as ours were severely lacking however, we managed to prepare some truly awesome food as you can see.

After our big meal, we went down to the bar where we had cocktails. Two were free courtesy of the hotel as part of our Honeymoon gift. The Vietnamese, unlike the British, do not seem to care for measures so our cocktails were very very strong!

The next part of our trip is to Halong Bay which will be covered in the next chapter.

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