5 days ago
Banquet offers spirited toast to Chinese cuisine
Wines and spirits have long been used in Chinese cuisine, not only for their refreshing or earthy, cask-aged flavour but also for the aromatic fragrance they impart to dishes.
To showcase the marvel of various spirits and liquors in Chinese cuisine, a team of chefs from the Oriental Group has crafted a menu for their annual Grand Banquet Series titled 'The Tradition of Liquors in Chinese Cuisine'.
The menu, by group senior executive chef Paul Lee and chef Wong Chin Leong, along with executive chefs Jay Chan and Vincent Ong and barbecue chef Kent Yam, pays homage to the rich cultural and culinary legacy of pairing and infusing a variety of liquors into gourmet creations.
Group founder and chairman Datuk Seri Phillip Siew said the group had hosted a few special dinners every year.
'Previously, we partnered with international chefs.
'This time around, our team created a menu that paired with different wines and liquors.'
The dinner began with a combination of four dishes showcasing the incorporation of different alcoholic beverages.
Pickled radish roses with Japanese umeshu offered a tangy, plum-scented flavour to excite the palate.
Spring rolls filled with prawn paste and (below) steamed wild Sultan fish.
Spring rolls filled with prawn paste and a hint of Chinese wine featured finely diced water chestnuts for a satisfying crunch.
For the drunken chicken, Shao Xing wine was used in the marinade, with balsamic vinegar pearls added for an extra tang.
The final starter was chilled Japanese sake sea clam.
Next, guests were presented with four main dishes highlighting the influence of wine and spirits in Chinese cuisine.
The first was XO Cognac stuffed treasure duck with five-head South African abalone in a pool of thick, flavourful stock.
'After the deboned duck was stuffed and braised in a rich stock made from chicken and duck bones, a shot of cognac was added to the dish,' said Lee.
The meat that soaked up the essence of the stock was tender and savoury, while the shot of XO cognac lent earthy notes and a layer of complexity to the dish.
The plump abalone and yam in the filling were a delight.
For the steamed wild Sultan fish, Lee's innovative method in using eight-year-aged Hulu Shao Hsing, spring onion, and rooster's fat to enhance the flavour, brought something special to the dish.
According to Lee, roosters generally have lower fat content but the fat has more intense flavour.
The perfectly steamed fish, weighing in at about 2.5kg, had a firm texture and a subtle richness, with the Hulu Shao Hsing wine adding a fragrant aroma.
Next was a duo of bite-sized dishes, Suckling Pig with 'Mei Kui Lu' (a rose essence baijiu) Glutinous Rice Rolls and Cinnamon-Whiskey Braised Pork.
The crispy skin, wrapped around a fragrant glutinous rice filling, was served alongside tender, caramelised pork belly that gave it a sweet and savoury taste.
The final main dish showcased prawn paste stuffed into Morel mushrooms, stir-fried with baby corn, asparagus, ginkgo, lily bulb, Chinese celtuce and Chinese yam in a rich house-made dried scallop sauce.
Dessert was a perfect pairing of red bean paste with aged tangerine peel and a mini version of the restaurant's award-winning Teochew taro puff.
The Teochew taro puff's lacy outer shell enveloping mashed taro and egg yolk was savoury and appetising, a nod to the upcoming Mid-Autumn festival.
The Grand Banquet Series is priced at RM2,988++ per table of 10 at the 11 Oriental Group Restaurants.
The series will be featured at The Ming Room (Aug 13), Tang Room (Aug 14), Noble House (Aug 15), Noble Mansion (Aug 21), Oriental Sun (Aug 22), Ruyi (pork-free) (Aug 25), Oriental Pavilion (Aug 26), Oriental Star (Aug 27) Oriental Parade (Aug 29), Oriental Treasure (Aug 30) and The Han Room (Sept 9).
NOBLE MANSION, P1-01, Level 1 Podium, Plaza 33, Jalan Kemajuan, Section 13, Petaling Jaya. (Tel: 03-7932 3288). Business hours: 11am to 3pm, 6pm to 11pm (Mon-Sat); 10am to 3pm, 6pm to 11pm (Sun and public holiday). Non-halal.
This is the writer's personal observation and is not an endorsement by StarMetro.
