Roasted baby lamb leg served with tomato and cucumber salsa. – Photos by SAMUEL ONG/ The Star
EXPECTATIONS are high when efforts are made to coax a chef out of retirement.
A gold medal winner at the 1994 Salon Culinaire competition in Singapore and after representing Malaysia as a guest chef at the James Beard Foundation Awards in 2004, Frankie Woo had hung up his chef’s toque a while ago.
However, Oriental Group of restaurants senior executive chef Wong Chin Leong managed to persuade Woo, 61, to unpack his gear for the group’s annual signature feast.
Otak-otak sushi rolls (background) and garlic-fried chicken wings.
The collaboration between Wong and Woo has resulted in a series of eight-course Chinese menus being presented at seven of the group’s outlets for seven days, starting Aug 22.
Despite enjoying a leisurely lifestyle for the past decade, Woo admitted that he still yearned to show off his culinary abilities.
He still has a loyal following of fans. Some still remember one of Woo’s signature dishes – pork stomach soup – from 10 years ago!
Norwegian salmon tartare.
The chef said the chance to meet up with old friends whom he had enjoyed working with during his 45-year career was why he agreed to the stint.
“I had an influx of ideas during the movement control order and spent much of my spare time doing research for new dishes,” said Woo.
One innovative idea he had was manifested as Norwegian salmon tartare which had chunks of preserved radish within. It came with a deep green sauce made from Chinese flowering cabbage (choy sum) extract and was given a refreshing twist with pineapple and lime juice.
“Most diners know this vegetable for having a slight mustard taste. But I have a penchant for convincing palates to take a liking to ingredients which are not their favourites,” he said with a smile.
Giant freshwater prawn in a sauce made of milk, tomatoes and chillies.
He attributed his ability to transform the mundane into the extraordinary to having tasted food from all over the world, including sheep’s eyeballs and pufferfish (fugu).
The roasted baby lamb leg that came with a tomato and cucumber salsa was a case in point.
Imported from Spain, the lamb is no more than 40 days old which explains its tender quality.
Served with papadam, the lamb marinated in a blend of onions, shallots, garlic and ginger had flavours that reminded one of campfire meals on the large green pastures of Inner Mongolia.
The coconut ice cream and pudding dessert created by Woo.
The giant freshwater prawn, deep-fried with panko breadcrumbs for extra crunch, was another stunner.
Arriving with a head full of rich, orangey roe, the prawn laid on a sauce made of milk, tomatoes and chillies.
The steamed ocean garoupa in a preserved black bean sauce and the Iberico ribs with truffle rice were two dishes which could fall into the comfort food category.
According to Woo, inspiration for the rib dish came while he was looking for supper solutions.
Abalone with a chive and prawn dumpling, baby corn and a thick, hearty sauce.
“I thought of steaming pork ribs on white rice so that the juices from the meat would also go into the grains as they cooked,” he said.
For the exclusive menu dish, the rice was cooked in superior stock. Marinated with garlic oil, the Iberico ribs were added halfway. Truffles gave this dish its earthy, nutty notes.
Ideally, this dish is best enjoyed with the steamed giant garoupa which boasted a firm but silky flesh.
As for the preserved black bean sauce, the combination of spicy, pungent and salty notes was especially appetising when eaten with the rice.
For this special event, Wong’s most notable contribution would be a dish featuring a fat, 7cm-long abalone served with a chive and prawn dumpling, and baby corn.
The Oriental Group’s annual celebrity chefs signature feast features guest chef Woo (left) and Wong.
However, the star was the thick and concentrated stock derived from braising the abalone.
We were told that bacon and pork belly marinated with red fermented beans had been added into the stock to impart a fuller, richer flavour.
Dessert was no less impressive.
A scoop of rich coconut ice cream garnished with chia seeds was enveloped by a mango sauce that surrounded the cold creamy island to hide a coconut water pudding underneath.
Because it was served in a roasted coconut, one of the pleasures from eating this dessert was the lingering finish that came with taking one’s time to scrape the firm, silky white flesh.
The Oriental Group Chinese Omakase dinner will be served at The Han Room (tonight), Noble Mansion (tomorrow), Oriental Star on Aug 29 and Noble House on Aug 30.
It is priced at RM300++ per person for a minimum of four to seven diners and RM2,888++ for a table of 10.
For more details, visit orientalrestaurants.com.my or WhatsApp 012-754 4796.
This is the writer’s personal observation and not an endorsement by StarMetro.
