Yes Chef Is Go, and Beetroot Is In Season
Hi everyone, and welcome to our May newsletter.
Yes Chef Cooking School is go! We can now accommodate up to 12 people at our Curzon Street site and as many as you like at your place. All classes are cook-and-dine (we can do demonstrations for up to 200 people at your workplace or venue) and, of course, lots of fun.
For May, we offered a $60.00 discount on classes booked. These discount vouchers could be used at any time this year and for any class, and were fully transferable.
These discount vouchers applied for birthdays and anniversaries — ditch the expensive restaurant and have a class at home instead. (This was our May 2026 offer; the booking window closed on 31 May 2026.)
Check out our reviews: Yes Chef Cooking School Reviews 2026.
Thank you for being part of our growing community. We look forward to meeting and working with you this year and to sharing our new site in North Melbourne. Let’s get cooking!
What’s in season? Beetroot
And what’s better than one beetroot recipe… that’d be three!
If you were to ask Chef Paul, he would say his favourite is roasted beetroot with rocket, red wine vinaigrette, and Persian feta!
Beetroot goes with:
- Walnuts, dukkah, hazelnuts
- Bitter leaves like witlof and radicchio
- Balsamic vinegar, thyme, feta, pickles
- Citrus, pepita seeds, caramelised onions
- Mustard dressing, mint, lamb or beef
Beetroot, commonly known as beets, is a root vegetable that is renowned for its vibrant deep purple colour and sweet, earthy flavour. Rich in essential nutrients, beets are an excellent source of dietary fibre, vitamins A and C, and minerals like potassium and manganese. They are particularly celebrated for their high levels of antioxidants and nitrates, which can help improve blood circulation, lower blood pressure, and enhance athletic performance. Consuming beetroot may also support digestive health and contribute to liver detoxification, making it a popular choice for health-conscious individuals.
The origins of beetroot can be traced back to ancient civilisations, where it was first cultivated in the Mediterranean region. Initially, the plant’s leafy tops were consumed for their nutritional value, while the root was primarily used for medicinal purposes. As agriculture evolved, beets began to be used as a food source, and their cultivation spread throughout Europe and the Americas. Today, beetroot is embraced in various culinary traditions around the world, celebrated not only for its health benefits but also for its versatility in salads, soups, juices, and even desserts.
Beetroot recipes
#1 Roasted beetroot carpaccio
Heirloom beetroots come in many vibrant colours and patterns. Gently simmer these in lightly salted water. Slice to show off their insides, arrange on an oven tray, and gently bake for 20 minutes in good-quality olive oil with salt and cracked pepper. Arrange on a serving plate and dress with red wine vinaigrette.
#2 Gravlax — cured salmon or ocean trout
USE BEETROOT SLICES — boiled gently in lightly salted water so the colour runs, and gives your cured gravlax an amazing purple look!
Gravlax, gravlaks or graved salmon is a Nordic dish consisting of salmon that is cured using a mix of salt, sugar and dill. It is garnished with fresh dill or spruce twigs and may occasionally be cold-smoked after curing.
Ingredients
- 1 kg (2 x 500 g) salmon or ocean trout, skin on and centre cut
Salt mixture
- 300 g sea salt flakes — pink flakes are great too!
- 300 g sugar
- 100 ml gin or vodka
- 4 tbsp black cracked peppercorns
Method
- Blend cooled cooked beetroot in a food processor to form a smooth mixture; add 1 bunch dill, finely torn leaves.
- Place a tray down, cover with overlapping plastic wrap, place the fish fillet skin down on the tray, cover lightly with beetroot mixture, then place a thick layer of salt mixture on, sprinkle over the chopped dill and more salt mixture. Place on the other fillet of salmon and repeat — think of it like a sandwich and wrap up, all skin on the outside; wrap really well to contain all liquid.
- Place on a plate or tray and refrigerate for 24 to 36 hours. A good tip is to place a 600 g weight on the top of the wrapped salmon fillets and turn over after 15 hours so both sides get good flavour.
- When ready, unwrap and rinse or scrape off all salt and try to leave some dill. You can rinse, but we prefer not to. Ready to eat: thinly slice and serve with sour cream, lemon zest, pear and cucumber salsa, blinis, salmon roe. It can be used as you would smoked salmon but with a really fresh and rich clean flavour. Yum!
#3 Beetroot tarts with Persian feta and caramelised walnuts
Makes 12 tarts or 24 mini tarts. You will need: puff pastry, oil spray, metal tray, heavy-based saucepan.
Filling
- 500 g finely chopped tinned or freshly cooked beetroot
- 2 small onions, finely chopped
- 3 garlic cloves
- 4 sprigs of thyme
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 tbsp brown sugar
- 15 ml balsamic vinegar
- Pepper and sea salt
Method
- Fry off onion, thyme, bay leaf and garlic for 15 minutes gently until caramelised.
- Add sugar and balsamic vinegar and cook a further 15 minutes until sticky and brown. Add diced beetroot and season with salt and pepper. Remove thyme sticks.
- Line a tart tin with rounds of puff pastry.
- Place the beetroot filling and top with a teaspoon of Persian feta.
- Bake in a hot oven at 190°C until the pastry is cooked and the feta lightly browns.
Candied walnuts
- 12 walnuts
- 100 g caster sugar
Place sugar in a saucepan with a teaspoon of water and make caramel. Look below at Kitchen Hacks for some caramel-making tips. Roast walnuts in the oven on greaseproof paper, remove from oven, put over hot caramel, cool, break apart and place a piece on each tart. More in the Recipe Archive.
Your teen’s school cooking classes
Exciting times are ahead this year, with Yes Chef Cooking School teaching our next generation the cooking skills that will last a lifetime. We are going into several schools to teach students the fundamentals of cooking, as well as Italian, Spanish, Japanese, and Mexican dishes.
This program is very well suited to teaching your older children and young adults life skills around cooking for health after leaving home. These programs are fun and effective, with classes flexible for students and group sessions with parents. If your children don’t have this on offer at their school, please feel free to contact us for more information.
Know someone who’s impossible to buy for?
We now have 9 classes, along with the ability to build classes as we go, ensuring you can make and experience the dishes you want. Our new venue in North Melbourne is versatile too for product launches and events at a very reasonable cost.
From basic to advanced skills and with the ability to customise classes and do one-on-one classes, we are set to bring your culinary adventure to life.
Yes Chef kitchen hacks
Essential tips for a good toffee/sugar syrup.
Ingredients
- Use granulated or brown sugar — brown sugar adds a richer taste.
- Glucose can assist in sugar work too, adding at a rate of 20% of sugar volume (200 g of glucose per kilogram of sugar).
Equipment
- Use a heavy-bottomed saucepan to prevent burning.
- Clean pastry brush.
- Have a candy thermometer — this is very important!
- Grease your baking tray before you start.
Key steps
- Stir constantly at the beginning, then stop stirring once boiling.
- Brush sides with a wet, clean pastry brush.
- Cook to 300°F / 149°C (hard crack stage).
Common mistakes to avoid
- Don’t rush the cooking process.
- Don’t stir after it starts boiling (causes crystallisation).
- At the end of cooking you have no time, so the tray needs to be lined and ready.
- Don’t make toffee on a humid day — it won’t set properly.
- Don’t walk away — it can burn quickly!
Looking for a special occasion event?
Ask about our Chef for a Night events. We look after it all, and you get a night to remember. You greet your guests and pour the wine. This is incredible value for your next event.
With restaurants getting more expensive by the week, we offer an alternative which delivers value and three-hat quality menus.
We can’t wait to welcome you to the new look Yes Chef Cooking School kitchen…
Yes Chef Cooking School
1/66 Curzon Street, North Melbourne, Victoria
Call Paul on 0451 969 878 · info@yeschefcookingschool.com.au