Copenhagen Cooking 2014: Factsheet on Chefs and Dishes Ms. Vicky Quek Vicky started to learn the ropes of making popiah at the young age of ten from her late mother. Even when she was holding a full-time job, she continued to assist in the popiah business, especially on weekends. She went marketing with her mother and assisted in the labour intensive process of cutting all the raw vegetables so that her mother could concentrate on cooking the popiah filling. Vicky’s late mother had a regular clientele who loved her fragrant and delicious popiah filling. Vicky eventually took over the preparation and cooking of the popiah filling when her mother passed away in 1996. Today, she is assisted by her youngest sister Zita in the cooking of the popiah filling and marketing of the popiah. Vicky is now running the Kway Guan Huat Joo Chiat Original Popiah & Kueh Pie Tee business with second and third generation members of her family. Dishes presented by Ms. Vicky Quek of Kway Guan Huat Joo Chiat Original Popiah & Kueh Pie Tee Popiah Popiah originated in Fujian, China. The skin is made from wheat flour and is soft and paper-thin. The filling usually comprises cooked turnips, carrots, bamboo shoots, coriander, bean sprouts, prawns, tofu bits, chopped peanuts, fried shallots and shredded omelette. Spicy chilli sauce and shrimp paste enhances the filling further before it is rolled into a spring roll. This is a common dish found in the island’s hawker centres. Kway Guan Huat makes their own popiah skin by hand and uses an exotic sweet fruit sauce as a condiment for their popiah. Kueh Pie Tee Kueh Pie Tee is usually eaten as a snack or side dish. It consists of a thin pastry shell that is deep fried until crispy. The filling is similar to the one found in popiah. The cooked popiah filling is placed into the pastry shells and topped with prawn. It is then served with a dash of spicy chilli sauce and sweet sauce. About Kway Guan Huat Joo Chiat Original Popiah & Kueh Pie Tee First generation hawker Mr. Quek Tren Wen founded Kway Guan Huat. Currently, five of his children helm the shop as second generation popiah and kueh pie tee experts. His sons, Mr. Ker Cheng Lye, Mr. Quek Chin Heng and Mr. Quek Kiat Siong, are 1 of 7 skilled in making paper-thin popiah skin; while his daughters Ms. Zita Quek and Ms. Vicky Quek, are experts in preparing the popiah filling and condiments. Address: 95 Joo Chiat Road, Singapore 427389 Opening hours: 9am to 2pm daily Website: http://www.joochiatpopiah.com/ Chef Wayne Liew Wayne started out as a kitchen assistant at his father’s Chinese restaurant in 2004, a rank considered the lowest in the hierarchy of kitchen crew. As a kitchen assistant, he oversaw the hygiene standards of the kitchen and the preparation of ingredients for the Assistant Chef, such as de-scaling of fishes and slicing of meat. After four years, he was given the responsibility of managing kitchen inventory and was promoted to the role of Head Chef’s assistant. During this stint, he was able to learn the intricacies and master the complex skills associated with Chinese cuisine. Wayne did not just rest on his laurels, he continued to seek inspiration through cookbooks and other cuisines. He pushed the boundaries by creating new dishes and flavours. His new creations, including Fried Prawn with Potato Grits, Marmite Chicken, and Coffee Pork Ribs, have been delighting diners since their inception and remain signature dishes at Keng Eng Kee. Today, Wayne is the Head Chef at Keng Eng Kee Seafood leading a crew of ten. Dishes presented by Chef Wayne Liew of Keng Eng Kee Seafood Coffee Pork Ribs This savoury yet sweet dish evolved from the conventional Chinese Pork Ribs dish. Pieces of pork ribs are marinated in a blend of fragrant coffee seasoned with spices. It is then deep-fried and coated with another layer of coffee marinade before being served. It is best eaten with a bowl of steaming white rice. Fried Prawn with Potato Grits Prawns are coated with a mixture of flour and seasoning before being deep-fried. They are then tossed with crumbly and crispy bits of potato grits. The grits add a lovely crunch to the dish and complements the sweet taste of the prawn meat. Curry leaves are then added to provide an aromatic finish. About Keng Eng Kee Seafood Back in the 1970s, Keng Eng Kee Seafood started off as a 2 of 7 stall in Old Havelock Road Hawker Centre. Mr. Low Peck Yah and his wife Mdm. Koh Yok Jong, migrated from Hainan Island to Singapore in the 1950s. Equipped with authentic Hainanese cooking skills, they were determined to use their skills to serve delectable local delights to the Chinese community. They decided to set up a Hainanese Chicken Rice stall in a small coffee shop located along Old Havelock Road. Their business prospered and they expanded their operations across two stalls in the 1970s. The couple’s eldest daughter, Mdm. Koh Liang Hong, was tasked to manage the second stall which was named Keng Eng Kee Seafood and specialised in tze char[1] dishes. Upon the demolition of the former Havelock Road Hawker Centre, Keng Eng Kee Seafood moved to Alexandra Village. Now, the third generation has taken over its managementand signature dishes include Coffee Pork Ribs, Fried Prawn with Potato Grits and Salted Egg Yolk Squid. Address: Block 124 Bukit Merah Lane 1, #01-136, Singapore 150124 Opening Hours: Daily from 12noon to 10pm Website: www.kek.com.sg Chef Bryan Chia Bryan is the chef owner of Morsels, a popular small plate avant-garde restaurant in Singapore’s Little India cultural precinct. He and his girlfriend, Petrina Loh, are both co-chef owners of this oasis. Bryan gained experience at various restaurants globally before finally settling back in Singapore where he is originally from. One of his stints included the acclaimed St. Pierre Restaurant in Singapore under the tutelage of Celebrity Chef Emmanuel Stroobant and then Sous Chef Jean-Charles Dubois, currently at Balzac Brasserie, when he was 21. After completing his Bachelors in Travel and Industry Management at the University of Hawaii, he revisited his love for cooking in the kitchen of Anton Mosimanns in London before taking on a role in the French Alps working as a private chef in the bespoke Chalet Himalaya. Convinced that he needed formal culinary education, he returned to the United States and enrolled in the prestigious Culinary Institute of America’s Accelerated Culinary Art Certificate at St. Helena, California. A wine lover at heart, he found himself involved in wine dinners and vineyard cooking at Napa Valley. It was only in the valley where he fell in love with charcuterie-making and focused his energies on mastering whole beast butchery with esteemed chefs in the area. Every now and then, he visited San Francisco to stage in various kitchens, gaining a different perspective from the laidback country style cuisine he was used to. Born to a food-centric family, turning his passion for food into a livelihood upon his return to Singapore in 2012 was a natural progression. With the support of his family and a partner who shared his love for cooking, Morsels was born. [1] Tze Char– Home-style Chinese dishes and made-to-order 3 of 7 Chef Petrina Loh Petrina is the chef owner of Morsels, a creative atelier providing a concept of fine eclectic cuisine in Singapore. Petrina has come a long way after leaving her well-heeled private banking job of 8 years to fully pursue her passion and love for food and wine. Knowing that she did not want to simply be a restaurateur, she enrolled in the Le Cordon Bleu Culinary Program at the California Culinary Academy (CCA) in San Francisco to be trained professionally. Acknowledging that time was not on her side, Petrina also knocked on the doors of various restaurants in San Francisco while attending culinary school, simply showing up with her knife bag and a humble demeanour. This landed her stints in Michelin-starred restaurants in the Bay Area, such as Spruce, Atelier Crenn, State Bird Provisions and Bouchon, just to name a few. Under the mentorship of Chef Walter Abrams, previously from The French Laundry; Chef Mark Sullivan, one of America’s Best New Chefs 2002; Chef Patricio Herrera from CCA and their teams, she completed her culinary diploma Summa cum Laude with a 4.0 GPA and won second place in the International Fusion Scholarship Competition by the Career Education Scholarship Foundation. After various stints in California over two years, Petrina returned home to Singapore in 2012 and embarked on plans to open a restaurant. Hence, Morsels was born. Dishes presented by Chefs Bryan Chia and Petrina Loh of Morsels Otah Noodle Salad This dish is inspired by a humble street food item called otah. Otah consists of raw fish paste seasoned with a variety of spices including chili, lemon grass and coriander. Fresh coconut milk is then added before it is wrapped in banana or coconut leaf. It is then grilled over a charcoal fire, infusing the paste with the fresh fragrance of the leaf. Chefs Bryan and Petrina will be serving a modern interpretation of the humble otah. Their dish comprises noodles made from the otah paste. Served cold, these mildly spiced noodles are served on top a bed of greens dressed with an Asian vinaigrette made with sesame oil and sherry vinegar.