WORKSHOPS
Intimate workshops that reveal the traditions, techniques and history behind Northern China's most iconic dishes.
❋ Hands-On Cooking
Master the dishes that define Beijing & Northern China.
Learn traditional techniques as you make everything from handmade dumplings and baozi to regional specialities, guided step-by-step in a relaxed, interactive setting.
❋ Connect with Tradition
Every dish has a story.
Explore the history, traditions and everyday culture behind Northern China's most beloved foods through storytelling, conversation and shared meals.
❋ Around a Shared Table
A private and personal experience.
Hosted in a welcoming Beijing home, workshops are limited to small groups, creating an atmosphere that feels more like gathering with friends than attending a class.
❋ Tailored to You
Designed around your interests.
Choose from Tea & Oranges' signature workshops or create a bespoke experience for your group, whether you're celebrating a special occasion, hosting visitors or bringing a team together.
Workshops and supper clubs are hosted in small numbers throughout the year, when the season, menu and occasion feel right.
To hear about upcoming dates, or to arrange a private T & O event for your own group, please get in touch.
"Find out how other people live and eat and cook. Learn from them—wherever you go."
Anthony Bourdain
Workshop 1The Breakfast Club
4 hours · 899 RMB
Start the day the Beijing way.
This relaxed morning workshop begins with a generous homemade Beijing breakfast of nourishing porridge, youtiao and tea eggs. Sip on a few cups of tea as you wake up. Then it’s time to get hands-on.
Together, we’ll make two of Northern China’s most beloved staples: dumplings and baozi. You’ll learn how to prepare the dough, make and season the fillings, shape each one properly, and cook them with confidence. Along the way, I’ll reveal the secret tips to making exceptional dumplings and baozi every time.
Come hungry, leave knowing how to recreate a proper Beijing morning in your own kitchen.
What the morning looks like
9.00am - Arrive
9.45am - Dumplings: Roll, Fill & Wrap
Begin with a homemade Beijing breakfast and an introduction to the dishes, ingredients, and food culture behind them.
Make dumpling wrappers from scratch, prepare a classic Northern filling, and learn how to fold dumplings correctly.
10.45am - Baozi Workshop
Mix, shape, fill, and steam soft, Beijing baozi.
12.00pm - Sit Down and Eat
Enjoy the dumplings and baozi we have made together, with tea and a few accompaniments.
1.00pm - Recipes, Questions & Goodbyes
Take home the recipes, techniques, and hopefully a new appreciation for Beijing breakfast.
Workshop 2The Beijing Noodle Tour
3.5 hours · 699 RMB
Northern China runs on wheat, and there is no better place to begin than noodles.
In this practical workshop, you’ll make two definitive Beijing noodle dishes entirely from scratch: zhajiangmian, Beijing’s famous noodles with a rich fermented-bean sauce, and da lu mian, a deeply comforting noodle soup topped with a savoury, glossy “grand gravy.”
We’ll begin with the dough: mixing, resting, rolling and hand-cutting your own noodles. From there, we’ll build each dish step by step, learning how to create a sauce with depth, prepare the traditional toppings, and balance the flavours that make Beijing noodles so satisfying.
This is a proper introduction to the wheat-based food culture of the North.
What the day looks like
10:00am - Welcome
Settle in with tea and learn why wheat, rather than rice, sits at the heart of Northern Chinese cooking. We’ll introduce the two Beijing classics we’ll be making: zhajiangmian and da lu mian.
10.30am - Make the Noodle Dough
Mix, knead, rest, roll, and hand-cut noodles from scratch. You’ll learn the feel of a good noodle dough and the simple techniques that make hand-cut noodles so satisfying.
111.00am - Zhajiangmian: Beijing’s iconic noodle dish
Prepare the rich, savoury fermented-bean sauce that gives zhajiangmian its distinctive character, then assemble the fresh vegetable toppings traditionally served alongside it.
11.45pm - Da lu mian: the comforting bowl
Build a deeply savoury da lu mian topping, learning how to balance the broth, vegetables, egg, and silky thickened sauce that coats the noodles.
12:30 — Lunch around the table
Sit down together to enjoy both noodle dishes, alongside tea and seasonal accompaniments.
1:30 — Recipes, questions & goodbyes
Take home the recipes, notes, and the confidence to make a proper bowl of Beijing noodles from scratch.
Workshop 3Sesame & Sugar: Old Beijing Treats
4 hours · 699 RMB
Discover a lesser-known side of Beijing’s food culture through its sweet treats.
In this hands-on afternoon workshop, you’ll learn to make three classic Beijing treats that have been enjoyed in homes and old street bakeries for generations. We begin with Tang Huoshao, a warm, layered wheat pastry filled with rich brown sugar and sesame paste, baked until soft and fragrant. Next, we move to Jujube Cake (枣糕), a tender, gently sweet cake made with Chinese red dates—an ingredient deeply rooted in Northern Chinese home baking. Finally, we make Rolling Donkeys (驴打滚), chewy sticky-rice rolls filled with red bean paste and coated in toasted soybean flour, one of Beijing’s most playful and iconic snacks.
Along the way, you’ll explore how everyday ingredients like sesame, wheat, and dates became the foundation of Beijing’s traditional sweet shops, and why these simple desserts still hold such a strong place in local food culture.
What the afternoon looks like
1:00pm - Welcome
Settle in with tea and a short introduction to Beijing’s traditional sweet culture, exploring how wheat, sesame, red dates, and bean paste became the foundation of the city’s old pastry shops.
1.20pm - Tang huoshao: layered wheat pastry
Mix, shape, and fill soft wheat dough with brown sugar and sesame paste. Learn how layering and shaping create its signature texture before baking it until warm and fragrant.
2.15pm - Jujube cake (枣糕)
Prepare a tender, gently sweet cake made with Chinese red dates. While it bakes, we explore the role of jujubes in Northern home baking and everyday tea snacks.
3.00pm - Rolling Donkeys (驴打滚)
Work with glutinous rice dough, spread red bean paste, roll it into shape, and coat it in toasted soybean flour. A playful, tactile Beijing classic with a distinctive finish.
3.40pm - Tea and tasting table
Sit down together to taste all three sweets alongside tea, comparing textures, sweetness levels, and the different traditions they come from.
4.15pm - Recipes, questions and farewell
Take home recipes and notes, along with the confidence to recreate these classic Beijing sweets at home.
Tailored Workshops, Made for You
Want to go deeper into one dish, explore a particular region, or build an afternoon around the food you are most curious about?
Private and small-group workshops can be designed around your interests, whether that means a dumpling masterclass, a deep dive into Northern Chinese noodles, a seasonal Beijing menu, vegetarian cooking, market-to-table cooking, or a special celebration with friends.
Tell us what you love to eat—or simply tell us what kind of experience you want—and we’ll create a workshop around it.
Ideal for private groups, team events, birthdays, visiting friends, and curious cooks who want something more personal than a standard class.
Duration and price on request
What a tailored workshop can look like
Choose your focus
Start with a conversation about what you want to cook, eat, and learn. That might mean dumplings, noodles, Beijing baking, a seasonal menu, a particular region of Northern China, or a menu designed around your group.
Build your menu together
We’ll create a workshop that suits your interests, dietary needs, cooking confidence, and the time you have available.
Cook, learn and eat
On the day, you’ll cook hands-on, learn the stories and techniques behind each dish, and sit down together to enjoy the results.
Take the experience home
You’ll leave with recipes, practical notes, and dishes you can recreate long after the afternoon is over.
Suggested tailored workshops
A baozi masterclass
Vegetarian dishes from Northern China
A market visit followed by a cooking workshop
A private birthday or celebration menu
A workshop built around one ingredient: lamb, wheat, tofu, mushrooms, eggplant
A deeper dive into the food of Gansu, Xinjiang, Inner Mongolia, or Northeast China