In the beginning, there was food. I have always been obsessed with food from a young age and I think it comes from the fact that it played a key role in my family. Family gatherings always revolved around food. And we always fussed about what and where to eat. Growing up, my dad—the sole bread winner of the family—would not always make it home for dinners, so we’d set aside Friday evenings for family dinner. And Sundays were spent at my grandmother’s for lunch, which she prepared. Food was always a medium that I associated with bringing people together and how relationships are nurtured. My late mother witnessed my love for food from a young age and would always take me along during grocery shopping. I would go to weekend wet markets with her; where she taught me how to pick the best mangoes, watermelons and even fish!
THE EPIC JOURNEY WEST. I always thought that I wanted to pursue French cuisine which was why I decided to attend Le Cordon Bleu after I did Hotel Administration at Cornell University. In my mind, I had always believed French cuisine to be the epitome of fine dining. After I graduated, I did a stint at a classic restaurant in Paris called Taillevent and it was the first time working in a traditional French brigade system—seeing how a large kitchen operated at such a high level. I loved the pace and the energy and the quality of ingredients they were working with. I came home when my visa expired and managed to get a job as a commis at Les Amis under chef Sebastian Lepinoy.
Denne historien er fra November - December 2020-utgaven av WINE&DINE.
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Denne historien er fra November - December 2020-utgaven av WINE&DINE.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent? Logg på
New Blood
The next-generation is breathing new life into the forgotten art of spice-mixing, peppering the traditional trade with renewed ideas and fresh perspectives.
Sharing Is Caring
Compared to its flagship at Serene Centre, Fat Belly Social at Boon Tat Street is a classier and bolder affair, in more than one sense.
Nutmeg's Role In Singapore's History
From tales of it being used to ward off the plague in mid-1300s Europe to one of the ingredients in dessert, we have all known, tasted, or at least heard of nutmeg. But not many know of the spice’s role in Singapore’s history.
New And Improved
The ever-profound chef-owner Kenjiro ‘Hatch’ Hashida finds more room, three to be exact, to express a Ha Ri philosophy at Hashida Singapore’s new location at Amoy Street.
Pairing Spice-Driven Cuisines With Wine
Pairing spice-driven cuisines with wine has long been a challenge but with a little imagination, it doesn’t have to be.
Let Land Grow Wild
Niew Tai-Ran has worn many hats: aeronautical engineering major, investment banker, avid surfer, and, for the last 14 years, winemaker. Discover how this Malaysia-born, Singapore-native is championing the “do-nothing farming” philosophy at his vineyard in Oregon.
The South Asian Misnomer
Incredibly diverse and varied than most know, Indian food is far more intriguing than butter chicken or thosai. Here is a crash course on the extensive cuisine from region to region, recognisable for the seemingly infinite ways of using spices.
Keepers Of The Spice Trade
From its glory days along trade routes to pantry staples all over the world, spices have become so commonplace that we’ve taken them for granted. For these three trailblazers, however, spice is their livelihood and motivation: Langit Collective working with indigenous rural farming communities in Malaysia; IDH’s Sustainable Spice Initiative; and chef Nak’s one-woman mission to share forgotten Khmer cuisine.
Sugar, Spice And Everything Nice
Like food, spices bring vibrancy and variety to alcoholic beverages. Surfacing in unexpected ways on the palate, find everything from cumin to tamarind, cloves to cardamom enriching these drinks.
Building Blocks From The Archipelago
For the smorgasbord of dishes found in Indonesian cuisine, it is a little known secret that the modest bumbu, in all its variants, is the bedrock of such flavourful fare.
