Manchester is the beating cultural heart of Britain and we’re proud to be associated with the Manchester International Festival which has kicked off today.

If you are visiting the Manchester International Festival keep your tickets and you can get a discounted meal at Sweet Mandarin (2 course for £12 anytime during the festival). Sweet Mandarin has al fresco dining or air conditioned inside seating. An award winning restaurant and cookery school in the heart of the Northern Quarter (next door to the Crowne Plaza Hotel) we welcome you to sample our wonderfulChinese cuisine and an ice cold beer or glass of wine or exotic cocktail.

For more information on the Manchester International Festival - go to http://www.mif.co.uk/events/on from 2 July - 19 July 2009

Sweet Mandarin Special Menu for Manchester International Festival

Starters (Choose one from below)

Peking Potstickers
Salt and Pepper Chicken Wings
Salt and Pepper Mushrooms (V)
Chicken and Sweetcorn Soup

Mains (Choose one from below)
Mandarin Chicken - battered chicken in a fruity tangy sauce
Malyasian Satay Pork
Thai Green Chicken Curry
Beef / Chicken / Vegetable Chow Mein*
Firecracker Vegetables (V) - Mix Vegetable dish with a spicy kung pao sauce

To book your table call Lisa on 0161 832 8848 or email sweetmandarin@gmail.com

Tweet us http://twitter.com/sweetmandarin

Check out our website: http://www.sweetmandarin.com

[Above - A Tweet Up @sweetmandarin]

I love Tweet Ups because I meet or catch up with my Twitter friends whom I have been twittering with day in, day out, dim sum after dim sum. I can’t wait to cook and let you taste my array of wonderful dim sum. All your favourites (that you all tweeted me) are on the menu tonight.

I’m often asked where my passion for cooking comes from. For me, its in part the preparation - sourcing the best ingredients, foodwalks, sharing techniques during cookery school but the most satisfying part is seeing my friends and clients enjoy and savour the food. This is my golden moment in life - my raison d’etre, my purpose in life.

At Sweet Mandarin, I developed a deeper passion for people, food and business….and now add on Twitter (I hold my hands up and confess I am a Twitterholic). Everything has really ‘clicked’ into place (please RT hehe). For the first time, I’ve felt completely free. No glass ceilings of the corporate world, no straightjackets from the boss. I have found my love at Sweet Mandarin - and I’m honoured to share my world with you on Twitter and in real life @sweetmandarin.

Best wishes and sweet dishes

Lisa

I’ve just ordered a snake blood cocktail to celebrate the fact that I’ve made not one but two new menus at Sweet Mandarin.

Its taken a while because I’ve been a bit busy teaching the world to cook (face to face and on twitter), serving hot delicious Chinese food in the wokmobile and running the restaurant. Finally, I sat down and started to scribble recipes, ran to the kitchen to test them, tweeted for feedback and finally, I’m proud to share with you the most amazing, delicious menu written with love for you.

I’ve also been mega busy working with corporates for their lunchboxes, team building events and catering. Oh yes, our dim sum and sushi platters can be delivered for your award events, gatherings and lunch meetings (forget soggy sandwiches for a change - purlease).

Here is the new ala carte menu - take a look and here’s my warning - don’t drool too much ok a-la-carte-menu.pdf

Here is the corporate team building events/catering/lunchboxes - talk to me - would love to help put the fire back into your team sweet_mandarin_corporate_pack-2009.pdf

Best wishes and sweet dishes

Lisa

Every morning, I wake up in Greater Manchester - the most unconventionally beautiful, consmopolitan city with a population of 2.5million. On the table are green tea leaves, PG Tips, soy sauce, mango chutney, Heinz ketchup - resembling the mish mash of cultures that we’ve grown up with in Manchester. 

Recently and along with every city in the UK, the great in Greater Manchester has become faded - predominantly due to the credit crunch. Daily headline news concerns the next wave of redundancies that have affected Manchester’s people. I Twitter (@sweetmandarin) and the minute by minute updates tell me more stories of woe.   I can’t just sit there and watch. That’s why we’re hosting these Dine4Job events @ Sweet Mandarin.  As a restauranteur and cookery school owner, my sisters and I meet hundreds if not thousands of people - employers and employees.  Maybe, just maybe, we can try to match people with jobs.

About Dine4Jobs

Where? 

Dine4Jobs will be held in the relaxed environment @ Sweet Mandarin - where you can talk about your previous projects, experience and abilities with recruiters over a spot of delicious dim sum. In addition, if you can socialise, that skill in itself is a marketable asset.

What?

At the Dine4Job events career experts will give guidance on interview techniques, cv and cover letters, advice on changes in job direction and recruiters will be on hand to chat about job opportunities.

When? 

Wednesday evenings 6pm at Sweet Mandarin.  We will be hosting events on a sector by sector basis.

How? 

If you need a job and are interested, you will need to email me (dine4jobs@googlemail.com) with your cv and a cover email with the type of job you are looking for. We will invite you to the most appropriate evening based on your sector. 

Please also feel free to join Twitter (www.twitter.com) and follow me (@sweetmandarin) - where I can refer you to opportunities as and when they are sent to me via Twitter.

Recruiters are also welcome to email me and msg me on Twitter with opportunities (dine4jobs@googlemail.com).    

Friends - Its the year of the Ox and we need to be strong and focused. Manchester’s strength has always been its people - you have accepted us with open arms and allowed Sweet Mandarin to flourish. Its time for us to do our bit, tweet by tweet.

Best wishes and sweet dishes

Lisa, Helen and Janet Tse

Sweet Mandarin

19 Copperas Street, Manchester M4 1HS 

Email: dine4jobs@googlemail.com

Tel: 0161 832 8848

Twitter: @sweetmandarin

Download Press Release here sweet-mandarin-twitters-dine4jobs.doc

We hosted a competition on Twitter for a bit of fun. I asked what was your favourite beef dish and we waxed lyrical about the wonderful ways of beef - as well as pondering where did that phrase “I got beef with you” come from. I’m pleased to announce that the winner of this competition is @markkelly333 with his request for Beef and Green Peppers and Blackbean Sauce. It is a quick and easy recipe - and the beef is easily inter-changeable with chicken, pork, prawns or vegetables.

Best wishes and sweet dishes to you and your family

Lisax

STIR FRIED BEEF / CHICKEN / PORK WITH BLACKBEAN SAUCE
 
10 – 12oz beef steak / topside rump
1 small onion
1 small green pepper, cored and seeded
1-2 fresh red / green chillies cut into small circles
2 tablespoon of black bean sauce
½ teaspoon minced garlic
1 teaspoon light soy sauce
 
Marinade
½ teaspoon light soy sauce
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon sesame oil
½ teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
1 tablespoon of water
1 teaspoon of potato starch
1 teaspoon of oil
 
1.    Cut the beef / pork / chicken into thin slices
2.    Marinate for about 20 minutes and leave in fridge.
3.    Cut the onion and green peppers into small triangular pieces.
4.    Heat the wok and add oil.
5.    Blanch the meat for about 1-2 minutes until the meat is cooked.
6.    Drain the meat.
7.    Heat the wok. Add a tablespoon of oil
8.    Add in the garlic for a few seconds
9.    Stir fry the chillies
10.  Stir fry in the peppers, onions for about 1 minute.
11.  Add in the meat
12.  Add in the blackbean sauce and soy sauce and blend well.
13. Season with salt / sugar / shaoshing wine.
14. Add in stock
15. Thicken with potato starch
16.  Serve.

I’ve received loads of emails about prawn toast. If you have tried to make prawn toast and it turns out a) burnt b) soggy c) too greasy this is my Sweet Mandarin Internet Cookery Lesson for you. Follow us on Twitter (@sweetmandarin)

At the Sweet Mandarin Cookery School, I teach you how to make the perfect prawn toast….and its as easy as ABC. They make great hor d’oeuvres and are wonderful party additions for any occasion.  If you know how to spread jam on bread, you’ll know how to make my wonderful sesame prawn toast.

Recipe for Sesame Prawn Toast

If vegetarian, one can use tofu or mushroom alternative. If you don’t like prawn – try chicken!

Ingredients
•250g of raw de-shelled prawns blended into a paste
•1 tbsp shaoshing wine
•0.25 tbsp white pepper
•0.25 tbsp salt
•6 slices white bread (large medium thick), crusts removed and cut into quarters
•5-6 tbsp sesame seeds 

Method
•Prawn Paste : Place all the paste ingredients in a food processor and blend until you have a smooth paste. Place the prawn in a covered container for 15 minutes.
•Toast: Spread the prawn paste on one side of the bread with a palate knife or knife, so that the bread is evenly coated. Repeat this with all the slices of bread. [Now isn’t this as easy as spreading jam on bread!]. Place the sesame seeds on a plate and lay the bread (paste side) on the sesame seeds gently pressing them in. Shake off any excess and this baby is ready for a hot bath! 

To Cook
• Preheat oil in a deep fryer or in a wok until hot. Turn down heat to moderate.  Deep fry the bread in batches prawn side down, for 2-3 minutes, until the slices are golden brown. Remove from the oil, drain them on kitchen paper and keep warm in a low oven while you prepare the remaining slices. 

Hot Oil Tester

How hot is hot? The heat is radiating from the wok but is it hot enough? If you see smoke - its too hot.  If the oil is not hot enough, the prawn toast will not cook well and the bread will soak in the oil making it greasy and soggy. If the oil is too hot, it will burn the bread. 

Try this simple but effective test - get a pair of unpainted bamboo chopsticks (that are dry not wet) and stick the end into the oil.  If the oil bubbles rapidly, the oil is ready for cooking. [Note to cooks - don’t use painted or coloured chopsticks as the hot oil will burn off the colour.]   

To Serve
•Slice the toast in small squares or triangles with small bowls of sweet and sour sauce or sweet chilli sauce.

 The Secrets to Perfect Prawn Toast

1)  ensure that the filling (whether prawn or chicken paste) is spread to the very edges of the toast (this avoids the bread from getting burnt);

2) ensure that the layer of raw meat is evenly spread and is not too thickly applied.  A thick layer of raw meat on the bread leaves the meat not being thoroughly cooked or if you leave the prawn toast in the deep fat fryer until cooked, the bread ends up being greasy and soggy; and

3) ensure you cook the prawn toast in hot oil (see hot oil tester above)

Hope that helps. Let me know how it goes. If you want the recipe or have any other questions, drop me an email at sweetmandarin@gmail.com For more information about Sweet Mandarin Cookery School : www.sweetmandarin.com

Best wishes and Sweet dishes to you and your family

Lisa

(L to R: Helen, Janet, Mum (Mabel) and me around the family table - check out the floral table cloth and Sugar Puffs!)

My earliest memories was hearing the click-click of my mother’s heels on the tiled floor, the white clouds of steam billowing out as the wok lid was lifted and the incredible aromas that made my stomach growl. We grew up in a family firm that was built on decades of graft and hard-earned experience, and we were expected to give up our weekends and evenings to help in the family takeaway. Schoolwork, a thousand little frustrations and missed Friday night parties evaporated as we sat down to eat.

(L to R: Mother, Janet, Me, Helen, seated Grandmother, Lily Kwok)

My mother has that knack of melting away problems with a smile despite the fact that she has been through a lot (racist attacks, the isolation of being an immigrant family) but it is a tribute to my mother’s extraordinary character and toughness that she didn’t let these experiences get to the core of her.  She has a forgiving heart and has learnt not to be bitter. If the world were run by mothers, the world would be a peaceful place.  My mother is my heroine and my inspiration in returing to the catering trade.

For all mothers and your endless love, I dedicate the Mother’s Day menu and our book, Sweet Mandarin to you.  Here are three ways to make your mother smile all year around.

Press Release - Download here press-release-mothers-day.doc

1. Treat your mother to a lovely dinner at Sweet Mandarin.

Click here to see the special mother’s day menus starting at 17.50 pounds sweet-mandarin-mothers-day-menu.pdf

2. Buy you and your mother a fun cookery class experience at Sweet Mandarin and bond over good, delicious food (75 pounds per person)

3. Buy your mother a copy of our inspirational memoir, Sweet Mandarin (which is about grandmother-mother-daughter relationships)

Best wishes and sweet dishes

Lisa

Web: http://www.sweetmandarin.com

Twitter (@sweetmandarin)

Address: 19 Copperas Street, Manchester M4 1HS

Email: sweetmandarin@gmail.com

Tel: 0161 832 8848

America and Japan has their own Iron Chef who battle it out in a TV Kitchen Stadium creating dishes from one secret ingredient that is revealed by the Chairman. Is Lisa Tse the UK’s Iron Chef?

 Lisa Tse, head chef and CEO of the award winning Sweet Mandarin restaurant and cookery school headlined at the GMEX Exhibition Centre for a cook-off in Manchester’s very own kitchen stadium. Battling against the clock and hundreds of hungry spectators, Lisa served the nation, and cooked her way through oodles and oodles of noodles, stir fries, dim sum, fruit origami and firecracker. Her secret ingredient for the day was soy sauce (her great grand-father Leung created a soy sauce brand in Guangzhou, China). Lisa has a natural knack of making cooking fun. She teaches members of the public how to make the most ordinary of ingredients into extraordinary dishes, although now and again, Lisa likes to throw in an exotic mix of tofu, udon and bok choy. Even the most experienced cook needs a little inspiration from time to time, and during this cookery demonstration Lisa shared her trade secrets with the audience as well as explaining that dim sum originated from the silk road of China and when translated means ‘from the heart’. Lisa also advises how to pair Chinese food dishes with wines that compliment and bring out the flavours of your favourite recipes.   If you want to learn more, join the Sweet Mandarin Cookery School held every Saturday at the Sweet Mandarin restaurant. There are beginner and advance courses and costs £75 per person (which includes a hands on 3 hour course, lunch and recipe sheets). Lisa is also available for demonstrations for special events.      TO BOOK Please send a cheque made payable to Lisa Tse to Sweet Mandarin 19 Copperas Street, Northern Quarter, Manchester, M4 1HS.  Web: www.sweetmandarin.com  Email: sweetmandarin at gmail dot com.Lisa also Twitters. Follow her @sweetmandarinTo download the press release click here: Is Lisa Tse the UK’s Iron Chef - Press Release

Have you ever wondered who is that person you’ve been tweeting to morning, noon and night? Well pop in tonight (starting from 6pm) and you’re gonna meet your tweeters at Sweet Mandarin.  I have a confession to make. I aka (@sweetmandarin) am a ”certified twitterholic” and I cook n tweet, serve n tweet and can’t wait to meet you in person. I’ve already got butterflies as I’m preparing the dim sum extravaganza for tonight.  It is customary for the Chinese to offer small gifts, so please enjoy our complimentary dim sum (literally translated means from the heart). My dream is to meet all the tweeters in the Manchester area.

Twitter is such an amazing discovery. Not only is it fun, but its a way to help our fellow Mancunians. Through tweets with fellow tweeters, I know Manchester folk are suffering with the downturn. Everyone can do their bit and we’re going to hold events to match people with jobs.  To my Manchester friends - its the Year of the Ox -  Be strong. Turning up is half the battle and I know that networking helps boost the spirits, if not create an opportunity. Follow us @sweetmandarin.

(me cooking @debbas’ chicken n cashewnut)

I met a really great guy - what you’d call the glue that connects people. He’s @debbas and he has helped me via Twitter even though he doesn’t even know me! So I thought he would deserve his favourite dish Chicken and Cashewnuts. If you want to know more about @debbas, check out his sites are www.wearelogos.com , www.weareprinting.com and www.baramenities.com - he’s friendly, willing to help and a good Twitterer to follow.  

Chicken and Cashewnuts Recipe for @debbas

250g Skinless Chicken breast (boneless) cut into cubes

Method:

1. Choose skinless chicken breast meat. Cut into bite-sized pieces.
2. Marinade chicken pieces with oyster sauce, sugar, soy sauce and potato starch (potato starch stops chicken getting rubbery and gives it a lovely silky texture).
3. Heat a wok until hot and pour a tbsp of vegetable oil
4. Cut onion into cubes. Cut garlic into slices. Fry onion & garlic until fragrant.
5. Add in chicken & vegetables. Add tbsp of sesame oil. Stir-fry until chicken is cooked.
6. Add potato starch mix. Stir until the sauce thickens.
7. Remove from heat and pour in cashewnuts. Serve with steaming hot jasmine rice.

Calories for 350g of chicken and cashewnut 311kcal. Above recipe serves 2-3.

Follow us on Twitter (@sweetmandarin) - my tweets about cashewnuts

• One cashew tree produces between 200 - 300 cashew nuts a year (not a lot eh!)

•  The cashew is a tree. Its fruit is shaped like a boxing glove. Its seeds r my delicious cashewnuts

• One cashew tree mades 10-15 chicken cashewnuts….interesting eh.

• Time to make a cashewnut chicken…..blazing the the wok…drop of sesame oil…hhmm smells wonderfully nutty.

Introduction to this Blog Entry

We’d just finished the First Cookery School via Twitter event which was great fun.

I met a lovely lady called Ellen Britt (@ellenbritt) on Twitter. She told me that her daughter (a little 10 year old girl from Fuzhou) was not well but loved noodles. Ellen, this recipe - Chicken Chow Mein can be made a thousand and one ways. I’ve always loved a great chow mein (or lo mein) and this is one of my mother’s recipes that we serve at Sweet Mandarin. I believe there are many things in this world that divide us but food is that one thing that unites us. Wishing your daughter gets better soon, and looking forward to seeing you in Manchester one day. In the meanwhile, I hope you enjoy our book, Sweet Mandarin - our journey of a thousand miles from China to the UK and our one lifeline - food.

Best wishes and sweet dishes

Lisa

What is a Noodle?

A noodle is food made from unleavened dough that is cooked in a boiling liquid. Depending upon the type, noodles may be dried or refrigerated before cooking. The word noodle derives from the German nudel (noodle) and may be related to the Latin word nodus (knot). In English, noodle is a generic term for unleavened dough made from many different types of ingredients. Noodles exist in an abundance of shapes. The first written account of noodles is from the East Han Dynasty between AD 25 and 220. In October 2005, the oldest noodles yet discovered were found at the Lajia site (Qijia culture) along the Yellow River in Qinghai, China. The 4,000-year-old noodles appear to have been made from foxtail millet and broomcorn millet.

Measuring Noodles Most dried noodles doubles in volume when cooked. For accuracy, measure noodles by weight rather than by cup. The general rule is one pound of dry noodles will serve six as an appetizer or four as a main course.  Remember - shapes may vary in size according to the manufacturer, so use these measurements as generalizations.  The easiest way to measure noodles is to use your digital scale.  4 ounces of uncooked noodles = a 1-inch diameter bunch of dry noodles = 2 cups cooked noodles.How To Cook Noodles ProperlyImportant Rule:  Noodles should be prepared just before serving it.    

1. Use a Large Pot (A too-small pot and too little water cause the noodles to clump and stick together, thus cooking unevenly).
2.  Use only COLD Water - fill that big pot 3/4 full of COLD water and cover the pot of cold water with a lid to help bring the water to a boil faster.
3. Add Salt to the boiling water about 2 tablespoons of kosher salt per pound of noodles.
4. Add the dried noodles to BOILING HOT water.
5. Cook the noodles uncovered and gently stir the noodles during the first 1 to 2 minutes of cooking.
6. Cook for 8 – 12 minutes until the noodles are soft and chewy when bitten into.
7. Turn off heat and add 1 cup of cold water – this will lower the temperature and stop the noodles from over cooking.
8. Drain the noodles immediately in a large colander standing in the sink and then pick up the colander with its contents and shake well to remove excess water. (Do not rinse – the starch from the noodles could make the noodles stick together).

Tip about when to add the noodles : Noodles added to cold or warm water end up getting mushy and stuck together as the noodles quickly begins to break down in tepid water as the starch dissolves. Only add the noodles once the water is boiling - as this boiling temperature “sets” the outside of the noodles, which prevents the noodles from sticking together. 

Should I add oil? No. Oil will coat the noodles and prevent the sauce from adhering. CHICKEN CHOW MEIN 

This recipe for chicken chow mein is one that my mother, Mabel taught me at the age of 10 years old and we serve this at Sweet Mandarin to this day.

 INGREDIENTS:1 lb (500 g) boneless chicken breast, cut in thin strips 1 tablespoon (15 mL) soy sauce      1/4 (1 mL) salt

1 tablespoon (15 mL) cornstarch

1 lb (500 g) Chinese-style steamed noodles or cooked thin egg noodles 

1 1/2 cups (375 mL) Chicken Stock

 ¼ cup (62.5mL) Half an onion thinly sliced onions

 1/2 cup (125mL) Chinese cabbage

1/8 cup (31mL) One small carrot thinly sliced

3 large dried Chinese mushrooms, soaked and thinly sliced or from a can or button mushrooms are good too

2 spring onions, cut into 1-inch pieces 

2 teaspoons (10 mL) sesame oil 

3 cups (750 mL) bean sprouts, tightly packed  PREPARATION:1.Combine chicken and marinade ingredients (soy sauce, salt and cornstarch), mix well and set aside.2. Blanch noodles in large amount of boiling water with salt for 3 minute or as per package instructions. 3. Drain well and cool slightly. Plate up. 

4. Meanwhile, heat wok over high heat, add stock and bring to boil.

5. Add ginger, onions, carrots, Chinese cabbage and mushrooms and cook for 1 minute.

6. Add chicken and cook for 2 minutes. Stock should thicken slightly.

7. Add flowering chives or green onions and sesame oil; stir to mix for 1 minute.

8. Pour chicken and vegetables over the noodles and serve.

Serves 4. Each serving includes:Calories 358, 43 g Carbohydrates, 33 g Protein, 6 g Fat, 1 g Saturated Fat, 100 mg Cholesterol, 5 g Fibre, 466 mg Sodium, 555 mg Potassium. An excellent source of vitamin D, thiamine, riboflavin, niacin, vitamin B-6, folacin, and iron. A good source of fibre, vitamin C, vitamin B-12 and zinc.

I can’t wait to Tweet with you on Saturday. Its our first ever cookery school live and via Twitter. Its free to join by Twitter. To give you the surround sound experience (hehe), please download the Sweet Mandarin Cookery School recipe sheets for the Twitter Event this Sat 28th Feb 10am uk time.

Download Here : sweet-mandarin-twitters-guide-to-cooking-chinese-food.doc 

Happy Cooking and Sweet Tweets.

 Lisa

(@sweetmandarin)

www.sweetmandarin.com

Watch the Youtube Video from Lisa Tse about Twitter (@sweetmandarin)

Click Here To Watch Lisa http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=653uIn937Ys

A few days ago, I blogged about Twestival, being the first UK Chinese restaurant to use Twitter for business and our exciting dim sum masterclass via twitter next Saturday (28 Feb 10am).  The media picked up our story within 24 hours (thanks to the speed of Twitter) and here’s a selection of the responses from the media!!! 

BBC features Sweet Mandarin

http://www.bbc.co.uk/manchester/content/articles/2009/02/18/280209_sweet_mandarin_feature.shtml

Manchester Evening News Features Sweet Mandarin (thanks @sarah_hartley)

http://blogs.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/food/2009/02/chinese_restaurant_tempts_city.html

Big Hospitality (@Bighospitality) features Sweet Mandarin

http://www.bighospitality.co.uk/item/2899/pg_dtl_art_news/238/pg_ftr_art

Crains Business

http://www.crainsmanchesterbusiness.co.uk/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20090216/FREE/902169963/1064

I would like to thank all the Twitterers for your kind support so far.  We at Sweet Mandarin can’t wait for the 28th February Dim Sum Masterclass by Twitter.  Its gonna get messy, but someone’s gotta tweet n cook!

Best wishes and sweet dishes

Lisa Tse

Twitter (@sweetmandarin)

Web: www.sweetmandarin.com

The scene that stays with me is a bar packed with people, a swarm of twitterers in overdrive, with a mix of titilation and trepidation, after Manchester’s first Twestival. I met twitterers who have kept me company in virtual reality, made me burst into laughter and order Sweet Mandarin takeaways from me.

So what is a restauranteur and cookery school owner like me doing on Twitter. My journey into this scrappy world of 140 characters is thanks to my customers telling me about this MUST TRY social network. I responded “Look, I got Facebook, Myspace, Blog and a real life restaurant with hundreds of clients…what’s so good about Twitter?”

They responded with such passion - “its instantaneous, its addictive and it gives us a chance to figure out how you fit it all in - a restaurant, a cookery school, a book, juggling your family and Lisa - you’re everywhere - HOW?!”. Their arguments roused my curiosity and struck so deeply into the psyche of me that I put aside my common sense (and time) and signed up.  400 followers and 200 tweets later, I’m hooked and I wear my heart on my sleeve. I tell you that I’m firing up a wok, I try to crack a joke (try is the operative word), I’m watching tv, I’m exercising - now I’m not.  Twitter lets you talk about the minutae of life and with my life, it revolves around my clients and food. What fires me up is the “Sweet Tweets” - bookings for tables, orders for takeaways, compliments (I love you too) - because I live to cook and serve…..and Twitter has helped me to run my business in the most fun way possible.

(L to R: Lisa, Janet and Helen Tse - “Turning the Chinese on its head”) 

I set up Sweet Mandarin with my two sisters four years ago, achieving a long held dream. We wanted to be slightly different and offered modern Chinese cuisine and exotic cocktails. We have been blessed with a loyal following many of whom have become friends who come to Sweet Mandarin to catch up on life, hang out and eat good, fresh, healthy Chinese food - and also learn how to make it via our cookery school. Being part of the Manchester Twitterati is a natural extension of our lives - and relationships. I’ve learnt that there are many things which try to divide us, but food is that one uniting factor - and through our snippets of food - I share the highs and lows with our community in Manchester. Twitter helps us to understand each other better and just say what we have to say (in 140 characters).  Follow us @sweetmandarin and if I can help, I will.

Community Events

Saturday 28 February 10am - Sweet Mandarin Cookery School via Twitter.

To attend in person its 75 pounds per person (includes hands on cooking, recipe sheets and lots of eating) - email Lisa sweetmandarin@gmail.com

To attend via Twitter its free - follow us @sweetmandarin - We will give you step by step instructions and answer your cooking questions as we cook n tweet. If only Twitter had the sense of smell! coz u r missing out on some wonderful aromas!

Press Release for Media 

Attached is our press release: First UK Chinese Restaurant to use Twitter - please help us spread the word and make our community bigger and better. “There are many things which divide us, but food unites us. Follow us (@sweetmandarin) and lets make Manchester Great.” 

Press Release  (Click to download) 

Best wishes and Sweet dishes

 Lisa Tse

www.sweetmandarin

@sweetmandarin (Twitter)

Email: sweetmandarin@gmail.com

Love is not just a single day on 14 February, but a journey. I am honoured to share the stories of couples whom I have met at Sweet Mandarin, who told me that during a dinner or during the cooking school, they found that spark again or the humour that  initially brought them together. Over a romantic meal, there is nothing quite like making eye contact with your loved one, talking one-to -one and just escaping from the world for a few hours together. The couples who participate in the Sweet Mandarin cookery school learn things about each other they never really knew about - and the time spent on cooking and learning new techniques together is something that they cherish and can share together.

Love cannot be taken lightly. Its not just the butterflies or chemistry, but its also working through the difficulties and challenges together. As you take the steps together on this wonderful journey, keep a resolute mind and a steadfast determination toward each other.  Love should not be the brief interlude that is sampled or briefly tested. Keep talking, keep eating together and commit a day at a time to your relationships. 

Lunchtime and dinner times are the most important events in our household. Its a time to share our lives, our highs or lows around the table over good wholesome food. Its the glue that will bind and strengthen a love, a family, a marriage. I am honoured to serve you and may your love continue to grow at Sweet Mandarin.

I’ve designed a Sweet Sweet menu for Valentines (see end of blog or go to www.sweetmandarin.com) which I know you will love and savour with your loved ones, family and friends. 

We’ve also got two Valentines weekends (14 Feb and 21 Feb) for couples who want to book on the Sweet Mandarin Cookery School together - learn which foods are natural aphrodisiacs - and rekindle your relationship with an amazing dinner (taught by us, cooked by you - its true, a way to a man or woman’s heart is through the stomach!) and lots and lots of laughter.

Wishing you best wishes and sweet dishes

Love

Lisa

www.sweetmandarin.com

sweet_mandarin_valentines_menu1.pdf

Teenage students are mesmerized by Lisa’s knife skills demonstration

Three teenagers learning to cook Chinese dim sum at the Sweet Mandarin Chinese Cookery School with Lisa Tse

Lisa teaching 14-16 year olds at Irlam Youth Forum Centre how to cook Chinese dim sum and cuisine.

SCHOOLS VISITS - FOOD TECHNOLOGY 
DIM SUM MASTERCLASS
Sweet  Mandarin Cookery Courses - Workshops / Demonstrations

Lisa Tse has been visiting schools around the North West, USA, Asia and Carribean teaching Year 7 - 13 the art of making dim sum and the history of dim sum during the food technology classes.

Explained Lisa Tse, co-owner of Sweet Mandarin with her sisters Helen and Janet: “We are really excited to be working with schools. We’ve put together a workshop that will give the students hands-on experience of how to make authentic dim sums and learn a bit about Chinese culture and food. The students will also end the workshop with a fruit origami.

Said Fay Flatt (Arts Officer at Irlam & Cadishead, Irlam Youth Forum Centre): “When my students heard about the opportunity to train with Lisa Tse from the Sweet Mandarin Cookery School they were so excited. Lisa is an excellent teacher and mesmerized the students”

One of the students reported that “learning how to cook dim sum and understanding about Chinese food was brilliant. I wish every food technology class was taught by Lisa.”

INVITE LISA TSE TO YOUR SCHOOL

- Learn the art of dim sum
- Learn Chinese Culture and food
- Learn Chinese New Year food and traditions
- Assembly Guest Speaker - Motivational Talk
- Prize Giving Guest Speaker - Motivational Talk

To book Lisa Tse please email sweetmandarin@gmail.com

COSTS

There will be a cost of £20 / student that participate in the class. (Secondary Schools only)
Payment must be settled before or on the day. Please make cheques payable to Lisa Tse

- Maximum class size is 15.
- Ingredients need to be provided for the class ( full list will be provided)
- Expenses must be covered also.

Lisa’s love of cooking and of the creative process of her art keeps her always interested in giving demonstrations and teaching others. Lisa is the head chef of Sweet Mandarin and teaches fruit origami in her cooking series taught at the Sweet Mandarin Chinese Cooking School.

Mr Drake having a go at fruit origami at Sweet Mandarin’s Chinese Cookery School (Mr Drake made a superb swan)

Taking Instruction from Lisa Tse

Have you ever wanted to create an amazing centre piece for a dish or for a birthday cake?  Lisa, the head chef and teacher at the Sweet Mandarin Chinese Cooking School is always creating new dishes and presentational displays, which she shares with her students. Lisa has represented the Sweet Mandarin Cooking School in the Caribbean, across the United Kingdom and in China and has recently been nominated by Hi-Life Diners 2009 in the Best Manchester Restaurant category. Lisa’s passion is teaching her students - adults and the youth how to carve amazing fruit origami - turning a cucumber into a cute frog, turning carrots into ornamental flowers and turning an apple into a breath-taking swan. Lisa teaches cooking schools and home economics the art of dim sum and fruit origami and has been giving demonstrations at local fairs, exhibitions and events in conjunction with local Governmental programmes and the Department of Cultural Affairs.

 Lisa has developed a special way of teaching this ancient art of fruit and vegetable carving based on her understanding of the particular problems students of all ages have when they begin to work with their knife. She believes that learning to carve fruit and vegetables info beautiful flowers and other forms is not difficult; but one must first understand the concept behind the basic forms and second, learn to use the knife correctly to cut away one part and leave the other parts.

For more information on how to book your place at the Sweet Mandarin Chinese Cookery School go to www.sweetmandarin.com

Mr Drake is on the right with his bowl of Chicken and Sweetcorn soup which he made himself at Sweet Mandarin

Mr Drake mastering the woks at Sweet Mandarin Chinese Cookery School

Mr Drake is an excellent chef and we had a lot of fun exchanging cooking tips!  He told me he loves Chinese and Thai cuisine, but after the Sweet Mandarin Cookery School, Mr Drake “Loves Chinese food even more now!”  Mr Drake learnt how to cook 6 suppers on a fixed budget, spicing up the dishes for dinner. What did you think Mr Drake? The response, ”Excellent! Maybe I can open my own restaurant ?” replied Mr Drake chuckling as he tasted his Chicken and Sweetcorn soup “Not bad if I say so myself. Tastes like the real thing!” I’m looking forward to that dinner invite Mr Drake! 

Best Wishes and Sweet Dishes to You and Your Family

Lisa

Book your place on our Chinese Cookery School - Email: sweetmandarin@gmail.com or call Lisa Tse 0161 832 8848

For more information see www.sweetmandarin.com

Availability: January is full. We have availability from February 2009 - every Saturday morning at Sweet Mandarin

Address:  Sweet Mandarin 19 Copperas Street, Design House, Northern Quarter, Manchester M4 1HS

“As family meals seems to have become pushed aside by a barrage of ubiquitous fast food and drive-thru restaurants, Lisa Tse of Sweet Mandarin emerges with a welcoming food philosophy of cooking healthy delicious meals and gathering the family back to the table. Operating from her modern wok fired restaurant, Sweet Mandarin in the Northern Quarter, Manchester, Lisa Tse continues a popular series of cooking classes that seek inspiration from a bevy of local world-class producers. The masterclass may well begin with a session with a literal and culinary trip to the Silk Road learning how dim sum was created before actually learning the secrets of making dim sum. There was also some delightful party tricks to take back to the home kitchen. From the hands-on task of preparing the produce, learning knife skills, calculating the food budget and wok technique, a number of succulent stir fries and Chinese dishes were miraculously russled up during the masterclass.”

To Book Your Place at the Sweet Mandarin Cookery School, contact head chef, Lisa Tse on www.sweetmandarin.com Email: sweetmandarin@gmail.com or call Tel: 0161 832 8848

Every morning, I wake up in the most unconventionally beautiful, cosmopolitan city with a population of about 2.5million, Manchester. On the table are green tea leaves, PG Tips teabags, soy sauce, mango chutney, Heinz ketchup and Warburton bread – resembling the mish-mash of cultures that we’ve grown up with in Manchester.

My family have been living in Manchester since the 1960s and my grandmother set up one of the first Chinese restaurants here – a testament to the entrepreneurial spirit of those who have made Manchester their home.  I now run a Chinese restaurant called Sweet Mandarin and my favourite part of the week is weekend brunch. When I meet my clients (now friends) for brunch at Sweet Mandarin, we’re eating for Manchester. Why not? Its unlimited dim sum thanks to yours truly because I want people to share those magic moments together. Its a place to catch up with friends, a place to relax and recharge after shopping and more importantly for families its a great place for reunions (we even have a baby chair!).

Manchester has everything but the beach and is large enough to be noticed; with the UK’s largest university, an international airport with 22 million passengers, a symphony orchestra, a Chinatown, the largest retail area in the UK (including Harvey Nichols and Selfridges) and two premiership football clubs . Perhaps then not surprisingly, Manchester has been dubbed the capital of the North. We are a friendly bunch, unpretentious and not afraid to have a laugh. That is why I love Manchester and am proud of my Mancunian roots.  At Sweet Mandarin, we welcome you to our world.

Best wishes and Sweet Dishes to You and Your Family

 Lisa

Website: www.sweetmandarin.com

Tel: 0161 832 884 to book

Address: 19 Copperas Street (off High Street), Design House, Northern Quarter, Manchester M4 1HS

About Our Weekend Brunch: No catch. Just delicious dim sum without breaking the bank. We serve unlimited dim sum on Saturdays and Sundays from 12 - 4pm for a tenner. Bon appetite….. don’t forget to try the crispy won ton (pictured below).