A grill sizzles, a pot boils, the smell of spices wafts through the air – the popular Cookery Corner at the ongoing 13th Sharjah Children’s Reading Festival (SCRF) is truly a feast for the senses!
At Expo Centre Sharjah, the festival venue, globally renowned chefs will share easy, delicious and healthy recipes in live cooking demonstrations throughout SCRF 2022, which runs until May 22.
Chef Dario Steven, a culinary instructor from Miami, Florida, USA, led the live demo on SCRF’s opening night with two recipes from his book, Chef D Cooks the World. But he was not the star of the show – rather, it was the children in the audience he called on to volunteer in assisting him with the dishes.
Skilled in cuisines from around the world, Dario is passionate about helping little ones express themselves creatively through cooking. “I want to inspire kids to cook, whether it’s recreationally at home or professionally as chefs later in life,” he said, explaining the concept behind the slogan ‘Kids can cook’ printed on the brightly coloured aprons handed out to the young volunteers.
Energetic and friendly with children, Dario encouraged the volunteers to have fun as he guided them through the steps of his recipe for Brazilian beef kabobs, dancing with them while they mixed the simple but flavourful marinade. The second recipe he demonstrated was for Canadian Poutine, a combination of French fries and mozzarella cheese, smothered in gravy.
Visitors savoured the children’s culinary creations and received recipe cards for the juicy sirloin and savoury poutine while the volunteers were rewarded with copies of Chef D Cooks the World.
A former high school culinary arts instructor, Dario added: “My book was a call for me to travel the world and continue my mission of teaching kids how to cook – a journey that started in Sharjah in 2019 at the 11th SCRF!”