Enjoy the Game While Eating Curry From Vij’s

Vij’s Inspired Indian Cuisine is extremely pleased to announce a culinary partnership with Centreplate at BC Place, as upon the official opening tonight (Friday September 30th), spectators will be able to watch the game from the stands while enjoying curries created by celebrated chef Vikram Vij.

As well as traditional game fare, there will now be a flavourful selection of Indian curries from the range of Vij’s gourmet packaged meals available too.  A few on offer include: Chicken Curry with Kalonji Spice, Garam Masala Beef Curry, Mother-In-Law’s Pork Curry and Punjabi Daal.

“I’m honoured to be asked to share my cuisine by Executive Chef, Ryan Stone of  Centreplate at BC Place Stadium,” says Vikram Vij, co-owner of Vij’s and Rangoli restaurants in Vancouver and the creator of the frozen food line, currently available in stores across BC and Canada.  “Vancouver has a fantastic new venue for events in the city and we’re so pleased to provide people going to the games and events with a bit more choice, something a little different, something that will add some spice to their day.”

Vij’s Inspired Indian Cuisine is a range of frozen packaged meals which were developed from popular dishes at Vij’s restaurant.  These meals are available in stores across BC, enabling fans of Vij’s food to take home his dishes and enjoy them in the comfort of their own homes.  Select Vij’s frozen products are also available in Alberta, Saskatchewan, Ontario and Yukon.

ABOUT VIKRAM VIJ
Vikram Vij was born in India and grew up in Amritsar and Bombay.  His most vivid childhood memories revolve around food and family and he pursued this further when he moved to Europe and later when he came to live in Canada.
He opened the first 14-seat Vij’s Restaurant in Vancouver in 1994 and, later that same year, married Meeru Dhalwala who would later take over managing the kitchens of both Vij’s and Rangoli restaurants.
Vij has published two award-winning cookbooks – Vij’s: Elegant and Inspired Indian Cuisine and Vij’s at Home: Relax, Honey.

http://chefsacrossthewater.com/

Salt Spring Island is a food-lover’s paradise, blessed with a mild Mediterranean-like climate and devoted growers and producers renowned for their organic fruits and vegetables, meats, and cheeses. Fresh-caught, wild seafood rounds out nature’s local pantry. In recent years, island wineries have further added to the diversity of the local harvest. Diners can look forward to amazing experiences as the celebrated guest chefs each put their own personal spin on Salt Spring Island flavours.

Help support the Salt Spring Abattoir Project
These events will also raise awareness of the health and economic benefits of using local, organic and sustainable ingredients and bring into focus how local farming is being challenged by changing regulations that favour large
agri-businesses. A portion of the proceeds of the Guest Chef dinners will go to Island Natural Growers to benefit the Salt Spring Abattoir Project.

Links of interest:

Lambs to Slaughter

Livestock production on Salt Spring farms has decreased 50% in last 5 years

Chefs Across The Water Schedule

June 27

Seven course meal prepared by the returning chefs from 2010:

John Bishop, Sean Brennan, Frank Pabst, Jean-Francis and Alessandra Quaglia, Pino Posteraro and Hastings House Chef Marcel Kauer

$120.00 Per person, wine pairings $45.00 per person

July 18

Five course dinner by Vikram Vij

$100.00 per person, cocktail pairings $40.00

Aug 15

Five course dinner By Ernst Dorfler

$100.00 per person, wine pairings $40.00

Sept 12

Five course dinner by Michel Jacob

$100.00 per person, wine pairings $40.00

Oct 3

Five course dinner by Tojo

$100.00 per person, wine & Sake pairings $40.00

http://tickets.vancouverplayhouse.com/sfu/calendar/view.aspx?id=2748

Partners: Vij’s Inspired Indian Cuisine

All prices include HST and service charge

NO ASSIGNED SEATING
ALL EVENTS GENERAL ADMISSION

Fundraise for Growing Chefs

Friday, Nov. 19th, 7pm
Britannia Community Center
$60 includes tastings, wine, and a copy of the new cookbook, Vij’s at Home.

To purchase tickets, contact Britannia Community Center at 604-718-5800, or purchase online. You can also email us.
More information here.

Barbara-Jo’s Books to Cooks is pleased to launch Vij’s at Home: Relax, Honey, the highly anticipated second cookbook by Meeru Dhalwala and Vikram Vij, Vancouver’s gurus of haute Indian cuisine. As the busy owners of ever-popular Vij’s and Rangoli restaurants and parents to two young teens, Vikram and Meeru value family meals and have made an art of cooking delicious and timely meals at home. Vij’s at Home gives readers a taste of their home cooking: flavourful, simple and quick. Recipes range from vegetarian dishes that go from stove to plate in less than 45 minutes to company-worthy seafood, poultry and meat dishes that come together in 20 minutes then cook while you help the kids with their homework or sit down with a glass of wine.On Saturday, September 18 from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m., join Vikram and Meeru at Barbara-Jo’s Books to Cooks for a festive, vivacious house party to celebrate Vij’s at Home. Enjoy a steaming cup of chai and some delectable tastes and tales from the book. Tickets to this event are $55.00 and include a signed copy of Vij’s at Home.

For more information about this and other events, visit our website at www.bookstocooks.com and please call 604-688-6755 to register.

, the highly anticipated second cookbook by Meeru Dhalwala and Vikram Vij, Vancouver’s gurus of haute Indian cuisine. As the busy owners of ever-popular Vij’s and Rangoli restaurants and parents to two young teens, Vikram and Meeru value family meals and have made an art of cooking delicious and timely meals at home. Vij’s at Home gives readers a taste of their home cooking: flavourful, simple and quick. Recipes range from vegetarian dishes that go from stove to plate in less than 45 minutes to company-worthy seafood, poultry and meat dishes that come together in 20 minutes then cook while you help the kids with their homework or sit down with a glass of wine.

On Saturday, September 18 from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m., join Vikram and Meeru at Barbara-Jo’s Books to Cooks for a festive, vivacious house party to celebrate Vij’s at Home. Enjoy a steaming cup of chai and some delectable tastes and tales from the book. Tickets to this event are $55.00 and include a signed copy of Vij’s at Home.

For more information about this and other events, visit our website at www.bookstocooks.com and please call 604-688-6755 to register.

The Fourth Annual Sprouts

Tickets to this festive fundraiser are $75.00 and are selling quickly. Don’t miss this unique opportunity to support the arts and to celebrate the best in culinary writing. To purchase tickets call 604-688-6755.

It’s a great opportunity for foodies and aspiring chefs to get up close and personal with some local talent. Spaces are still available.

The classes are located at the new Western Living Test Kitchen at Cookworks at 1548 West Broadway.  Each class is $89 and run from 6:30pm to 8:30pm on the dates below.

More details and an option to book online are here: http://www.cookworks.ca/qs/page/13121/5496/66

March 22 – Ned Bell – Best of the Okanagan—B.C. food and wine are a perfect match.

April 12 – Angus An – Simple techniques for cooking delicious Thai food at home.

June 7 – Quang Dang – “Spot Prawn Festival: B.C.’s celebrity prawn.”

June 5 – Neil Taylor – “Cooking Italian: Pasta and rare Italian wines.”

July 19 – Murray Bancroft – “Playing the Market: Cooking with ingredients from Vancouver’s Farmers Markets.”

*  Vikram Vij’s May 3 class is sold out

Okanagan Book Launch & Charity Dinner: Chefs’ Table Society, Vancouver Cooks 2

Forget what you’ve heard about too many cooks in the kitchen, Mission Hill Family Estate will host the official launch of the Chefs’ Table Society of British Columbia cookbook, Vancouver Cooks 2, with an exclusive reception and five-course dinner, October 9. Sharing the evening’s spotlight with Mission Hill’s Winery Chef Matthew Batey are four of British Columbia’s premier chefs, including: Pino Posteraro of Cioppino’s Mediterranean Grill, Vikram Vij of Vij’s and Rangoli, Ned Bell of Cabana Bar and Grille, and Rob Feenie of Cactus Club Restaurants.

A reception in the Wine Shop will kick off the festivities, with an optional tour for guests of the underground Barrel Cellar. A sumptuous five-course wine and food pairing will follow in Mission Hill’s Chagall Room, named for the exquisite tapestry by Russian-born painter Marc Chagall that adorns the room – one of only 29 Chagall tapestries ever made.

Guests will enjoy a culinary homage to British Columbia with delicious selections prepared by the all-star chef line-up. The menu features cookbook-inspired dishes by the chefs paired with Mission Hill’s premium wines a sampling includes fennel marinated sablefish with Reserve Riesling, seared Qualicum scallops and squash ravioli with Perpetua, and south Okanagan Valley venison with Quatrain.

Completing the evening will be a special take-home gift — each guest will receive a copy of the Chefs’ Table Society cookbook, Vancouver Cooks 2 with the authors available for personalized book signings.

Later this autumn, Mission Hill will also be offering a special Chefs Table Society culinary workshop at the winery based on recipes from the new cookbook.

Details:
Chefs’ Table Society Book Launch
Reception and Dinner
Mission Hill Family Estate, Chagall Room

Date: Friday, October 9, 2009
Time: 6:30 – 11:00 pm
Cost: $175 plus taxes (per person)

About The Chefs’ Table Society of British Columbia
The Chefs’ Table Society of British Columbia is a chef-administered, province-wide collaborative dedicated to creating a foundation for the exchange of information between culinary professionals. The Society supports innovative and sustainable programs that will inspire, educate and nurture its chefs, producers and the local food industry, all the while promoting standards of excellence with the aim of enhancing the reputation of regional cuisine.

About Vancouver Cooks 2
A second helping of recipes celebrating the BC food scene, served up by 70 well-known and emerging chefs. Five years after Vancouver Cooks, which sold more than 13,000 copies, the Chefs’ Table Society returns with over 100 new recipes from 70 chefs around Vancouver, Victoria and the Okanagan. Divided into four sections-local food, international flavours, emerging talents and pioneering chefs-Vancouver Cooks 2 celebrates the key elements that have forged Vancouver’s unique culinary culture and made the city a world-class dining destination. We also see the industry behind the scenes, understanding its heritage and the innovative strides Vancouver chefs are taking.

Written for the home cook, Vancouver Cooks 2 pairs more than 50 full-colour photographs with the mouthwatering recipes, each with wine notes. Royalties from the sale of this book go to the Chefs’ Table Scholarship and Bursary Fund.

About Mission Hill Family Estate
About Mission Hill Family Estate Mission Hill Family Estate is world renowned for its award-winning wines, stunning setting and architecture, and its Cuisine de Terroir-based Terrace Restaurant. Honoured as one of the Top Five Winery Restaurants globally, the restaurant and epicurean program is led by Chef Matthew Batey. The winery’s vineyards are located in five distinct growing regions of British Columbia’s Okanagan Valley. Reflective of the origin and unique character of the Valley and of the careful ‘pruning to bottle’ program, Oculus, our signature Bordeaux-inspired wine, represents the pinnacle in premium winemaking. Proprietor Anthony von Mandl and winemaker John Simes produce elegant internationally acclaimed wines with New World flavours and Old World refinement from this incomparable lakeside mountaintop winery. Visit missionhillwinery.com for more information.