With
a culinary career that includes positions at award-winning iconic restaurants
in London, Melbourne and Sydney, Singapore-based Chef Christopher James Millar,
the executive chef of Stellar at 1-Altitude, has lived in Asia since 2003.
 |
| Multi-award winning Chef Christopher James Millar, introducing the fresh fruits from Desaru Fruit Farm which he would use in his demo at the second installment of the Desaru Coast Gourmet Series. |
In
fact, Chef Millar’s time in this region has awakened his palate to a wide range
of Asian cuisines and introduced him to ingredients that he could creatively
add into his culinary creations.
“Texture,
purity of flavour and quality of ingredients are paramount when crafting unique
dishes,” said multi-award winning Chef Millar, who was featured in the second
instalment of the Desaru Coast Gourmet Series.
“Malaysia’s
culinary scene is known for highlighting all three components through the
availability of its diverse cultures and traditions,” he added.
Themed,
A Malaysian Journey: Farm-to-Table,
the menu for this gastronomic event was specially designed for diners to
rediscover the iconic flavours of local produce.
I
was among the guests invited for this much anticipated, exclusively curated gourmet
experience held at Prego, the award-winning Westin Hotel affiliated restaurant
in The Westin Desaru Coast Resort.
 |
| Chief Executive Officer, Desaru Development Holdings One Sdn Bhd, Roslina Arbak [Centre] with Prego's Chef Massimiliano holding a Lemon Basil plant [Left] and Chef Millar holding a Stevia plant [Right] |
Chief
Executive Officer of Desaru Development Holdings One Sdn Bhd, Roslina Arbak,
explained that each instalment of the six events in the Desaru Coast Gourmet
Series would feature a world-renowned chef who would showcase their own
rendition of Malaysian dishes through their choice of ingredients, techniques
and presentations.
Chef
Millar talked about his experience with local food and fondly remembered going
on a veritable Food Safari to enjoy the unique experience of discovering the
many cuisines in our multi-cultural country.
He
went on to discuss how a range of easy-to-find, high-quality produce and spices
here, are able to compliment a flavourful gourmet experience.
Aware
that discerning diners the world over are interested to know about the origin
of their food as well as how animals were reared in farms, the chef went in
search of ingredients at various farms both near and far, about a month and a
half ago.
From
his confident smile, I could tell that his explorations reaped interesting results.
 |
| Chef Millar adding in freshly plucked Stevia leaves for natural sweetness in the dessert preparation. |
With
this in mind, my expectations shot higher as I prepared to be wowed by the
creativity that would go into our gourmet Malaysian Journey lunch.
But
first, guests gathered in the foyer to observe Chef Millar in a brief
demonstration of two items on our menu.
In
the Gamberi (Shrimp) course, the chef
showed us the finer points of creating cold capellini (very thin pasta) topped
with Tiger prawns, ginger chips, ebi sakura and ikura, drizzled with rich prawn
bisque.
He
talked about the strong seafood culture here and was pleased to find such fresh
and plump prawns through a local supplier.
Then
Chef Millar introduced the fresh fruits – guava and rose apple – as well as
herbs like Lemon Basil and Stevia which he sourced locally from neighbouring
Desaru Fruit Farm to create the Dolce
(Sweet) course.
I
couldn’t help feeling a sudden rush of pride because this farm was featured
under Portraits in my book, My Johor
Stories 2: Interesting Places and Inspirational People.
While
he added the leaves into the pot to prepare panna cotta for dessert, Chef
Millar encouraged guests to pluck the leaves off the Lemon Basil and Stevia
plants to taste them for their natural flavours.
 |
| A section of the Herb & Vegetable garden at Desaru Fruit Farm |
I
watched with interest as guests reacted to the taste of Lemon Basil (tangy) and
Stevia (sweet) flavours and realised that many were unaware that Stevia is a zero-calorie
substitute for sugar and is also ideal for diabetics.
These
incredible plants, along with a wide range of fruits, herbs, spices and
vegetables are cultivated in the Desaru Fruit Farm, not only as showpieces but
also to educate visitors on their tastes, textures and medicinal value.
Buoyed
up by the fact that a local brand like Desaru Fruit Farm was linked with the work
of an internationally renowned chef, I floated into Prego and found my seat at
the table, ready to savour his culinary creations.
 |
| The culinary team at Prego working together to serve the Gamberi course in our gourmet lunch. |
Throughout
the meal, the event Master of Ceremony kept up a lively banter as she introduced
each dish as it was served and challenged guests to taste and consider which
local food inspired its creation.
While
the Gamberi course was served with cold capellini, I felt that its prawn umami
flavour and the plump whole prawns just smack of the familiar taste of Penang
Prawn Noodles.
Next
we enjoyed a collaborative creation that combined Asian and Italian flavours
when Chef Millar and Prego’s Chef Massimiliano worked together to present their
Cage-Free Roasted French Poulet Risotto.
I
couldn’t help wondering what French Poulet
(Chicken) was doing in Johor?
 |
| This portion of Grilled Sanchoku Wagyu Brisket left me speechless! |
My
curiosity was satisfied when I learnt that the GG French Poulet breed of
chickens are specially reared at Toh Thye San Farm at Sungai Renggam.
This
is one of three farms in South East Asia that had earned the Humane Farm Animal
Care certificate from Humane Farm Animal Care and Humane Society International,
a leading international non-profit certification programme.
The
Risotto with mushrooms and tender pieces of chicken that had hints of a smokey
fragrance, reminded me of Claypot Chicken Rice!
The
piece de resistance must be the Carne (Meat) course where a portion of
Grilled Sanchoku Wagyu Brisket, nothing less than F1 Wagyu-Angus, garnished
with Kelantanese beef floss and deep-fried curry leaves, was served on a bed of
delicate smoked mash.
Intrigued
by the traditional Peranakan ingredient, buah
keluak, Chef Millar applied the pulp of this nut as meat marinate in a painstaking
4-day preparation and the results were simply superb.
 |
| Fresh fruits from Desaru Fruit Farm were featured in the dessert |
The
beautifully balanced marbling of the tender meat coated with a crust of buah
keluak was so delectable that when the MC asked for my comments, I could delightfully
reply, “I’m speechless!”
I
came back to earth when dessert was served.
The
Lemon Basil flavoured and Stevia sweetened coconut panna cotta topped with
fresh fruits from Desaru Fruit Farm just made me smile.
A version of this was published in the June 2019 issue of The Iskandarian
No comments:
Post a Comment