Peggy Aoki
Location
Mountain View, CA
School
University Of Missouri - Columbia, University Of Southern California, California Culinary Academy
Expertise
Classical Western Cuisine, Food History, Nutrition
- Peggy loves butter so much that she spent time learning butter and cheese making at Jonathan White's Peekskill Dairy.
- She staged at the 150-year-old Le Pré aux Clercs restaurant in Dijon, France.
- Peggy can not resist buying books about food – cookbooks, food history, and any writing about food and the people who grow and prepare it.
Experience
Peggy has been a professional cook and cooking teacher for more than 25 years. She began cooking when she still needed a stepstool to reach the stove and after an attempt at a career in sales, gave in to her passion to work in restaurant kitchens. While heading the kitchen at Mountain View CA's Chez TJ, she was invited to teach a class at a local cooking school which launched her passion to share her love and understanding of food. After many years of teaching public cooking classes, catering, opening local restaurants, and working long hours, she accepted a position with a large food service company supporting other chefs. She continues to teach hands-on classes in person and through Zoom, and enjoys learning from other chefs around the world through on-line classes as well.
Education
Peggy has bachelor's degrees from the University of Missouri-Columbia and a master of arts in teaching from the University of Southern California, as well as professional cooking and baking certificates from the California Culinary Academy in San Francisco, CA.
Tasting Table’s editorial coverage hails from a veteran group of writers and editors with expertise in their respective fields in the food and drink, hospitality, and agriculture industries. Outside experts are also consulted to help deliver factual, up-to-date information and original recipes.
We strive to publish knowledgeable, engaging articles to give readers the information they're looking for, whether that is the news of the day; cooking tips, tricks, and trends; or reviews and recommendations. In an effort to provide the most comprehensive, current, and accurate content, our team is constantly reviewing and updating articles as necessary. Click here for more information on our editorial process.
Stories By Peggy Aoki
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While sambal oelek is prevalent in some circles, sriracha's popularity is unmatched. Though the two have similar bases, they ultimately differ in a few ways.
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A well-made chicken panini is good and hearty enough to serve as a weekday dinner, particularly if you add this one easy-to-find store-bought ingredient.
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If you have leftover cocktails, the best place to store them is in the freezer. Learn how to freeze them properly, how long they last, and how to thaw.
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Trader Joe's offers a lot of quality sweets at a budget-friendly price, but one of their candies is actually even tastier than the big-name brand version.
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Coconut cake is a cornerstone of Southern cuisine, and this dessert has deep roots in Black cooking and African-American history at large.
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There's a sophistication to a French omelet that its American diner cousin lacks. But to achieve it, first you must get a little rough with it.
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Plenty of people keep instant coffee in their pantry for a quick and easy caffeine hit at home. But this one Nescafé variety is worth steering clear of.
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Not everyone loves instant coffee, but we can agree that some options are better than others. And when it comes to Nescafé, one Mexican-inspired flavor won out.
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Steak Diane and steak Oscar are two of the most decadent beef dishes around. Here are the differences between these two behemoths of the culinary world.
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If you're a Nespresso fan, it's hard to imagine a time before you could simply push a button and be rewarded with a stream of perfectly brewed espresso.
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If you regularly use cast iron cookware you may notice small black flecks in your food on your dishcloth. But it's nothing to be concerned about.
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Are they called wine vinegars because they retain some of the alcohol content of the wine used to make them, or is it all removed in the vinegar-making process?
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Cast iron is one of the most versatile, durable pieces of cookware in your kitchen, and using it to deep fry can actually make it even better!
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Cooking up a steak Diane can be the perfect meal if you're looking to take a retro trip down the culinary road; just be sure to pick a proper cut of meat first.
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There are some occasions and specific dessert recipes that require whipped cream to stay fluffy for hours - and that's where stabilizers come in.
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As the love of easy entertaining spread, so did the variety of foods that appeared on what we now rather loosely refer to as a charcuterie board.
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If you associate beef Stroganoff with canned soup or boxes of Hamburger Helper, then it's time to rethink this creamy dish that reaches all over the world.
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Trader Joe's may have an interesting selection of food on the shelves, but it doesn't offer hundreds of similar items, and there's a good reason for that.
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Moreish mouthfuls of ingredients encased in a perfect dough wrapper: What's not to love? But do you know what separates the common dumpling varieties?
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The Boulevardier is a classic cocktail that was born in the Prohibition era, and it has an origin story that crosses the Atlantic Ocean.
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Adding foods like sauerkraut into your diet has many benefits, but you may have no idea how to incorporate the fermented cabbage into recipes -- until now.
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Beef stew is probably not the first dish that comes to mind when thinking about popular Japanese meals, but it's a delicious one with its own unique flavors.
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Beef stroganoff is a creamy and delicious dinner option and for the best results the next time you make it, be sure to simmer the sauce and not boil it.
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Kirkland brand meatballs come seasoned and pre-cooked to make it easy to get dinner on the table, but you might be getting tired of the same old thing.
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If you've ever baked with berries, you might know the frustration of ending up with a soggy-bottomed cake. Luckily, there's an easy way to prevent this.
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There's a way to make kale into delicious crunchy chips that can even convince the haters to eat their greens, and it's one of the best uses for your air fryer.
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You might reach for your favorite skillet when cooking up your next egg recipe, but instead, why not try another appliance that's in your kitchen?