Archive for May, 2008
After we have taken your order, and before the meal begins, the kitchen sends you a little dish saying,
“Welcome to ASIA”.
Each Amuse Bouche is decided on the day. It is an important dish however small. It is akin to an opening act.
Below is a collection of last weeks preludes.
“Tum Mak Deng Gazpacho with Sesame Toast”.
One of the best summer offerings from Andalucia, with a Laotian touch. All the ingredients (minus the tomato) for the classic Laotian Cucumber Salad are used (yep, Padek is included too :) ).
We also make this dish with ripe Papaya when available, which gives the dish a wonderful red/orange colour, similar to the original Gazpacho.
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“Chilled Watermelon with Tamarind “Pip”".
A very summery “Sweet and Sour” taste. Extremely easy to make, and easier to eat. :)
We scoop out a tiny piece near the corner, fill it with reduced Tamarind Juice, which at first sight is mistaken for the pip.
Crunchy Crackers and Crisps are a great accompaniment to a nice cool summer drink. ;)
Not only are they easy to make, they also keep a long time in their pre-cooked state, so you can make up a large batch then store them in an air-tight container until needed.
“Cheese Paper“.
They look very light, but they are packed with flavour.
They are extremely easy to make and only require a few seconds of frying. Another great thing about them is that they can be shaped whilst still hot (whilst wearing protective gloves! :) )
The majority of our work is with the preparations of the ingredients. The actual Service is only 2½ hours long, the rest of the time is spent cleaning and making our “Mis en Place” (prep work).
Every component that appears on a dish has been manipulated in some form or another before being cooked (or served raw).
There is a lot of organisation involved, with each person tending to his individual tasks. Each section has about 8 or 9 different jobs to finish before we can even think about going in to Service.
Perishable ingredients are processed on a daily basis, this ensures that the is a constant “freshness”.
There is always a different Amuse Bouche every evening. Time and effort must also be spent on this titbit, as it opens the meal and says “Welcome to ASIA”.
Foie Gras, Ceps and Shimeji Chawanmushi.
Because we work in a hotel that has various restaurants, we not only prepare ingredients for Restaurant ASIA. Next to our kitchen, beyond the corridor of walk-in fridges and freezers, lies the Central Kitchen and Temperature Controlled Mis en Place rooms, where food is prepped and stored for distribution to our other outlets that serve Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner.
Sous Chef Khamsene gets to grips with a pork leg that will be deboned and cooked for 24 hours at a low temperature, before being glazed with Mustard and Honey. This will eventually be served for Breakfast in the Brunch Room and Terrace.
King slices the Foie Gras in to portions, these will later be pan fried or cooked on the Teppan.
Pastry Chef Akiyama and I have been working on our new Desserts Menu over the past week.
Equal importance is placed on our Desserts Menu, as all courses of a dinner are significant as each other.
Whilst contemplating the menu, we had to consider that the dishes needed to have an Asiatic flavour, and at the same time also acknowledge the ingredients available locally and the current season.
Our new Dinner Menu will be released on the 1st of June, meanwhile, the new Desserts Menu is already on offer.
Soy Milk Panna Cotta with Fresh Fruits and Organic Orange “Granizada”
The Soy Milk Panna Cotta is luxuriously silky and the Organic Orange “Granizada” adds a light and refreshing “Tang”. Out of all the new desserts, this is my favourite. :)
Mascarpone Mousse with Apricot Ice Cream
This is really a take on one of our earlier desserts called “Green Tea Tiramisu”. Though the dish sounds heavy, the mousse is quite light and fluffy (caused by the folded in egg whites). The Apricot Ice Cream, like all our Ice Creams and Sorbets, is homemade. The Sesame and Poopy Seed Tuile add a nice “crunch”.