EAT LIKE A VEGETARIAN AT ELEGANT INN HK CUISINE

In conjunction with the Nine Emperor Gods’ Festival, Elegant Inn HK Cuisine (E.I.) will proffer vegetarian cuisine for those who observe a vegetarian diet for the nine-day festival. Restaurateur Jeannette Han and her team have painstakingly created a Unique Vegetarian Set (RM138++ per person, minimum of 2 diners per table) and some a la carte dishes; available from 15 to 23 October.

Having sampled E.I.’s plethora of delicious offerings, I’d happily go vegetarian any day. Nice presentation and great taste are de rigueur here, starting with the platter of appetising Chilled Fresh Chinese Yam Konjac ‘Cherry’ with a centre of sour plum- marinated cherry tomato, a dainty Radish Flaky Puff and E.I. Crispy Vegetarian Rice Roll.

Every item drew our effusive praises as we savoured the chef’s delicate culinary handiwork. FYI, the konjac cherry and airy-light taro-radish puff can be ordered a la carte at RM23.80 per person (min 2 person per order), whilst the silky-smooth E.I. Crispy Vegetarian Rice Roll is RM6.80/pc (min 4 pcs per order).

Sweet and crisp wawasai blossom (miniature napa cabbage) took centrestage in the soup course of E.I. Double Boiled Soup of Murrill Mushroom (a la carte RM29.80 per person). Those earthy mushrooms lent flavourful depth to the salubrious broth, with organic soy beans providing delicate textural interest.

The inventive Fiery Cordyceps Flower Organic Beancurd with Lightly Spicy Cucumber Pickles (RM26.80 per person, min 2 person per order) was memorable for its soft and slightly crumbly texture. We love the discernible zing on our tastebuds as the tofu-cordycep flower mixture was spiked with a little chilli oil.

Presented in a square, chequered board pattern, the visually pleasing Braised Taro, Winter Melon and Hand-made Plant Based Patty with Hong Kong Liu Ma Kee Fermented Beancurd Sauce (RM23.80 per person, min 2 person per order) was a wonder to behold and savour. The masterstroke was the reddish discs of plant-based patty, made from quinoa, chickpeas, red yeast rice and beetroot. They formed an irresistible combination with the powdery soft taro and winter melon cubes, slickly covered by some glossy savoury sauce. 

Just when we thought nothing could outshine that, we encountered the show-stealing Truffle Oil Teriyaki Eggplant Steak with Organic Cabbage Rice (RM23.80 per person, min 2 person per order). Meltingly tender eggplant brushed with housemade teriyaki sauce and scented with truffle oil, the sumptuous ‘steak’ left us spellbound with its uncanny similarity to unagi kabayaki.

Housemade Cashew Nut Cream with Australian Pumpkin (RM19.80 per person) and Golden Banana Osmanthus Water Chestnut Cake (RM4.80/pc, min 4 pcs per order) brought our exquisite vegetarian meal to a sweet finale. The specialities’ ethereal sweetness and delicate textures left us on a heavenly high.

For reservations at Elegant Inn HK Cuisine, call tel: 03-2070 9399. Address: 2.01, 2nd Floor, Podium Block, Menara Hap Seng, Jalan P. Ramlee, Kuala Lumpur.

 

THE FIRST PARIS BAGUETTE BAKERY CAFÉ OPENS IN MALAYSIA

Paris Baguette – South Korea’s famous bakery café has finally landed in Malaysia, at Pavilion KL.

       (Left-Right): Dato’ Sri Robin Tan, Deputy Chairman, Berjaya Corporation Berhad, Dato’ Sydney Quays, Group CEO, Berjaya Food Berhad, Duli Yang Amat Mulia Tunku Shazuddin Ariff Al Aminul Karim Sultan Sallehuddin, Tunku Mahkota Kedah and Chairman of Berjaya Food Berhad, Tan Sri Dato’ Seri Vincent Tan, Chairman, Berjaya Corporation Berhad, Yang Berhormat Datuk Seri Salahuddin Ayub, Minister of Domestic Trade and Cost of Living, Datuk Azman Bin Mohd Yusof, Chief Secretary, Minister Domestic Trade and Living Cost, His Excellency Mr. Yeo Seung-bae, Ambassador of the Republic of Korea to Malaysia, Mr Hur Jin Su, President of SPC and Ms. Hana Lee, CEO of Paris Baguette, Southeast Asia.

The partnership between Berjaya Food Berhad and Paris Baguette Singapore PLC saw the maiden Paris Baguette store opened by Yang Berhormat Datuk Seri Salahuddin Ayub, Minister of Domestic Trade and Cost of Living, together with His Excellency Mr. Yeo Seung-bae, Ambassador of the Republic of Korea to Malaysia and Tan Sri Dato’ Seri Vincent Tan, Chairman, Berjaya Corporation Berhad.

Dato’ Sydney Quays, Group Chief Executive Officer of Berjaya Food Berhad said more stores will be opened in cities across the country, bringing the world-famous Paris Baguette offerings to the Malaysian market.

Paris Baguette is distinctive by its urban bakery café concept with contrasting palettes of blues, soft white textures, and dark accents. Formed in 1945, in the heart of a small bakery in South Korea named Sangmidang, Paris Baguette still embraces the original Sangmidang spirit – which is not to leave a single piece of bread unchecked – a testament of its uncompromising product and service quality.

Ms Hana Lee, CEO of Paris Baguette, Southeast Asia said: “We are pleased to partner with Berjaya Food to bring Paris Baguette to Malaysians. We aim to serve best quality products like my favourite strawberry yoghurt cake and Korean jumbo crispy twist donut, coupled with the best-in-class service and deliver happiness in every bite to our customers. This partnership allows us to further increase our presence in the Southeast Asia market.”

The newly opened Paris Baguette has been a hit with Malaysians thus far as they sample the wide selection of European-inspired pastries, breads, cakes, hot foods, and desserts.

Eye-catching showcases filled with Paris Baguette temptations include Signature Mushroom Soup in Bread Bowl, Signature Natural Yeast Bread, Fresh Yogurt Cream Cake, Mr & Ms Bear Madelaine, No. 1 Cheese Tart, Macarons, and Cranberry Chicken Pastry Wrap Sandwich among others.

Visit Paris Baguette, C3.03.00, Level 3, Connection, Pavilion Kuala Lumpur.

DEBIC SUPPORTS TEAM MALAYSIA AT WORLD’S BIGGEST PASTRY COMPETITION

Four Malaysian pastry chefs: Chef Kean Yap (team coach), Chef Mun Pui Teng (team captain and sugar candidate), Chef Goh Jun Wei (ice candidate) and Chef Lim Boon Chuan, (chocolate candidate) will demonstrate their skills and creativity at Coupe du Monde de la Pâtisserie 2023 in Lyon, France on 20 and 21 January 2023.

Also known as the Pastry World Cup, the Debic supported Team Malaysia will have to create a Sugar Sculpture with Chocolate Entremet, Chocolate Sculpture with plated desserts, Ice Sculpture with Frozen Desserts and Frozen Lollipop.

Centred around the theme of ‘climate change’, the two days of intense competition, spanning over for 10 hours, will see Team Malaysia will go up against teams from 20 other countries.

As a hundred-year-old premium European dairy brand made for professionals and one of the sponsors of the prestigious Coupe du Monde de la Pâtisserie competition, Debic has been a passionate global supporter for over 20 years and a proud sponsor of Team Malaysia 2023. 

 

Ramjeet Kaur Virik, Managing Director of Dutch Lady Milk Industries Berhad shared, “At Debic, we understand professional chefs and have the expertise to provide customised solutions for them with high-quality products, and ease of convenience, to inspire chefs to create high-quality creations.

“The innovative nature of this competition aligns perfectly with Debic’s passion for supporting pastry chefs. We are proud to be part of an event that provides a platform for professionals to set new trends and inspire a new generation of professionals. All competing chefs will have access to Debic products to innovate with, and we look forward to seeing the many high-quality and relevant products resulting from the event.”

The current team hopes to replicate Malaysia’s success four years ago in Coupe du Monde de la Pâtisserie 2019, where Team Malaysia emerged as champion with their cutting-edge creations.

Debic Ambassadors Chef Otto Tay and Chef Loi Ming Ai (members of the winning team in 2019) also served their winning pastry creations at the sending-off party hosted by Debic. 

Fans and supporters of Team Malaysia can watch the Grand Finale and cheer for Malaysia at the Official Coupe du Monde de la Pâtisserie Youtube live at: https://youtube.com/@Cmpatisserie

[UPDATED] CREAM OF ANCHOR FOOD PROFESSIONALS' CROP

To launch its latest European-style dairy range in Malaysia, Anchor Food Professionals delivered a set of exquisite afternoon tea treats by The Studio KL to the doorstep.

The exquisitely curated sweet treat selection featured Lemon Posset, Hot Chocolate in Cup, Banoffee Tart, Passion-berry Choux, British Soldier, Traditional English Scones with Sticky Toffee Pudding Butter and Summer Berries Jam, Almond Cream Butter Croissants. Savouries included Chicken Pesto on Focaccia, Truffle Honey Croquette and Sauté Mushroom and Onion Bruschetta.

It was a delicious way of showing how the new products: Anchor Chef’s Classic Whipping Cream, Anchor Classic Shredded Mozzarella Cheese, Anchor Extra Yield Cooking Cream, and Anchor Culinary Cream can be artfully incorporated to create delicious savoury and sweet morsels such as those presented in the tea offerings.

During the launch webinar, Jack Tan, Foodservice Director of Fonterra Brands Malaysia said, “The pandemic has caused consumers’ food preferences to shift. One of the most noticeable trends is more food businesses are searching for everyday functional products that provide simple and quick benefits to their food or beverage creations.

“Today’s consumers are also drawn to feel-good products. While the pandemic has been tough on many food businesses, we help them stay on top of these trends by constantly improving their favourite recipes with better flavours, textures, presentation, and overall quality.”

Award-winning pastry chef Jean-Francois Arnaud then demonstrated how he used Anchor Chef’s Classic Whipping Cream to create exquisite Red Fruit Cloud and Blueberry Cream Brioche, explaining the product’s many advantages during the process.

Then Pele Kuah, Brew House’s Group Executive Chef shared his preference on the use of Anchor Extra Yield Cooking Cream in the kitchen as he prepared Salmon Alfredo Pasta with Lemon & Ikura and Nasi Lemak – two signature specialities from the Brew House.

One of the founders of myBurgerLab, Renyi Chin showed two new recipes: Buttermilk Cheesy Fried Chicken Burger and Baked Cheese Rice using Anchor Classic Shredded Mozzarella Cheese – a traditional-style mozzarella cheese with flavoursome and complex taste to wrap up the webinar session.

Jack Tan also highlighted Anchor Chef’s Classic Whipping Cream which is designed to bring reliable performance and functional stability with its light and airy texture. "It’s the perfect infusion for any rich delicacy – be it hot, cold, or frozen."

Chefs, bakers, pastry makers, passionate cooks, and home-bakers can obtain Anchor European range of mozzarella cheese and creams through their distributor partners, while consumers can purchase the products at major supermarket chains and bakery ingredients shops.

For more information, visit Anchor Food Professionals’ official website at www.anchorfoodprofessionals.com, or follow www.facebook.com/AnchorFoodProfessionalsMY and www.instagram.com/anchorfp.my.

NEWS FLASH

Anchor Food Professionals together with Star Media Group also launched Anchor Start Up – a course-by-course bakers’ online learning platform accessible at https://startup.kuali.com.

Jack Tan, Food Service Director, Fonterra Brands Malaysia said their mission is to serve up inspirations to Food & Beverage businesses, including home bakers. “With Start Up, bakers can drive their business performance by harnessing specific skill sets learnt as they carve their own competitive advantages, and sell more via The Batter Place listing platform. With this initiative as a way for bakers to skill up and scale up, we believe it will create a catalytic effect for the baking community in Malaysia.”

For more information, visit https://www.kuali.com/kuali-bakers-programme/.