HOT WOK EATS FROM WOK HEY

Tasty, fast and convenient Asian stir-fry dishes with a modern twist. Singapore’s WOK HEY – a fast-casual, Asian stir-fry take-out kiosk concept has made its maiden debut at Sunway Pyramid recently.

Inspired by the cornerstone of Cantonese-style cooking, WOK HEY was founded by Huang Changyong and Jake Chia, in 2017 whose idea was to create modern interpretations of traditional Asian stir-fry staples in a box. To cater to a broader consumer segment, WOK HEY offers customisable stir-fry dished based on two Asian staples: rice and noodles.

Jake Chia, Co-founder/Director of WOK HEY says: “WOK HEY was built on the belief Asian stir-fry staples can become mainstream in the fast-casual category globally. Having created this modern and well-loved concept in Singapore, we knew this is the right time to introduce the brand to our neighbours.

“With a wide variety of meticulously sourced ingredients from regional farming communities and rice harvested from the luscious paddy fields in Japan, WOK HEY offers more than 2,000 possible combinations of high quality, affordable and fresh meals, appealing to all Malaysian taste buds.

We’ve spent a lot of time and effort working on the supplies, processes and staff training, to ensure the best quality possible in Malaysia. Hopefully the local community would love our food as much as we do."

A simple launch ceremony was performed by Chia together with Huang Changyong, Founder of WOK HEY, and Virose Yung, Senior Manager – Leasing of Sunway Pyramid to mark the official opening of the maiden WOK HEY outlet.

The open kitchen allows customers to view the entire preparation and cooking process at WOK HEY: from the wide selection of quality ingredients going into each dish, the high hygiene standards of the meals, the live cooking with eco-friendly custom-made kitchen equipment, to the packing of customers’ food orders in specially designed boxes befitting WOK HEY’s on-the-go concept while maintaining the food freshness.

We sampled the Egg Fried Rice (RM10) with Seasoned Prawns (RM13.80), Asparagus (add RM1.50) and Tobiko (add RM1.50) and Fresh Udon (RM12) with Braised Beef (RM15.80), Broccoli (add RM1.50), Shimeiji Mushroom (add RM1.50) and Capsicum (add RM1.50).

Each serving was surprisingly generous – it came up to a big plate once the portion was transferred from the box. Both the fried rice and udon were better than we had anticipated; delicious with a smoky tinge.

Also available are Shanghai Fried Rice and Fresh Ramen with a choice of Grilled Chicken, Braised Beef or Seasoned Prawns, in addition to various other toppings at an additional charge.

Lauded as Singapore’s Best Fried Rice, and the Most Innovative F&B Brand (Multiple Outlets) from Restaurant Association of Singapore in 2021, WOK HEY has 34 outlets in Singapore and will be opening its second outlet in 1Utama Shopping Mall come July 2022.

For more information and updates on WOK HEY, visit wokhey.my, FB: https://www.facebook.com/mywokhey/ and IG: @mywokhey. Address: Unit no. LG2.43A, Sunway Pyramid, 3, Jalan PJS 11/15, Bandar Sunway, Petaling Jaya, Selangor. Opening hours: 11am - 10pm

 

2019 REGIONAL WOK COMPETITION AT SHANGRI-LA KUALA LUMPUR

Being a chef isn’t a vocation for the faint-hearted. Especially when one has to step up to the plate and pit one’s cooking skills at Shangri-La Hotels’ regional 2019 Chinese Cuisine Wok Competition.

Held at Shangri-La Kuala Lumpur recently, the above dish was one of the final creations rustled up by the competing chefs who represented their hotels at the internal regional level competition.

 

 

Aimed at raising the bar for Chinese cuisine among Shangri-La chefs, the 3-day 2019 Chinese Cuisine Wok Competition is a platform for the competitors to showcase their culinary talent and expertise.

 

Divided into three stages: hotel, regional and global level, the 18 competitors already bested the starting pool of 90 contestants at the hotel level, to make the cut for the regional stage.

 

Members of the media and food bloggers including yours truly were invited to join the Wok Competition judging panel. Together with celebrity cookbook author Danielle Peita Graham, we entered the Shangri-La Kuala Lumpur’s cavernous kitchen where the heat was on the chef competitors.

The seasoned chefs were steadfastly focused on cooking up a storm despite the presence of a camera crew, photographers and us judges. They remained cool, calm and collected despite all the attention on them; some even sportingly waved and mustered up a smile for our live social media posts.

We observed the chefs’ methodical approach as the clock ticked away. Personally, I admire their willingness to stand the heat in the kitchen, enduring the challenge of cooking up good food repeatedly day in day out.

The scoresheet given to us was comprehensive and specific; covering criteria such as preparation & hygiene, technique execution, ingredients & taste, and dish presentation. Each competitor also has to rationalise and explain the crux of their dish.

Homegrown talent Chin Jia Jian from Shangri-La Kuala Lumpur proffered Sichuan Style Baked Cod whilst the only rose Heidy Juventia Lovena proved her unflappable capability with Stir-fried Cod with Chinese dumplings, Garden Greens & Caramelised Sauce.

Hats off to the chefs who made it so far. They’d be leaving the cooking challenge with new experience and greater insights on how to raise their Chinese cuisine game from the constructive feedback and critique given.

Six winning chefs from the regional heat will then proceed to the first round at the global level. Only the top three will have a chance to battle it out in the second round, to determine their final standing and who will ‘wok’ tall as champion.