Chefs bring international creativity to menu
Print Edition
NEWLY appointed Mexican chef Jair Gudino Chavez of the Langham Xintiandi, Shanghai, young, open-minded and innovative, hopes to use his modern technique to add more vibrancy and international flair to the hotel, known for its London-originated classical hospitality.
His fellow chef, pastry chef Delia Zhu, dedicates herself to her latest afternoon tea set, presenting her signature desserts as elegant, shining jewelry.
Chavez plans to launch his new a la carte menu with his signature dishes in Cachet, the hotel’s Western restaurant, this New Year.
“My culinary style is reinterpreting classical dishes in a modern way and adding in some local twist” says Chavez.
Use his salad nicoise as an example, he replaces traditional canned tuna with Japanese style pan-seared tuna to add more textures and freshness. He also uses local soybean instead of French bean to provide a new taste.
Such creativity mainly comes from his overseas work experience. Although Chavez is only 27, quite young for being chef de cuisine at a five-star hotel, he has worked in Mexico, Chicago and Dubai.
“I was deeply inspired in these cities. In Dubai, I was impressed by their old techniques originated in the Middle East — for example cooking food slowly on an open fire in the desert. Then I integrated that into my roasting,” he says.
In Chicago, he worked for Alinea, city’s top restaurant, known for its amazing gastronomy.
“That’s the greatest experience in my life. Fifty chefs work for 50 guests — five chefs for each dish. That’s luxury in a real sense, which I think is also the key to Langham hospitality,” says the chef.
Chavez had worked in Shanghai for two years and a half between 2011 and 2013, and he loves the city and the people so much that he returned when Langham Xintiandi gave him the offer.
He loves to combine his overseas experience in one dish, represented by his pan-roasted salmon with pumpkin puree.
“The salmon is from Norway. I use five Arabic spices to season the pumpkin and Italian pesto emulsion to complement the fish. The whole dish is finally topped with glazed baby carrot, a local seasonal produce,” he says.
However, he doesn’t forget his Mexican roots.
“I try to give my dishes some of my hometown touch through using chili,” he says.
One of his appetizers, tuna belly tartar, features a distinctive, tender, silky and buttery texture and a balanced but intense sweet-and-spicy taste.
“I use local sesame oil, subtly sweeten the tuna, which tastes naturally sweet. Then I add chili powder into it to build a bright contrast in flavor,” he says.
Zhu, an experienced chef at age 37, is honored as “the queen of chocolate” after her winning various chocolate competitions.
“Although men dominate European pastry, I personally believe that female identity brings distinctive benefit to dessert,” says Zhu.
She says female chefs are generally more attentive so can be more precise and focus on tiny details. Further, only a woman’s soft and gentle hand can do beautiful and fine chocolate carving, she says. She once carved a block of chocolate into a shape of high-heeled shoes, complete with crystal butterfly buckles.
“We are endowed with giving pastry a feminine touch,” says Zhu.
Recently she launched her jewel box afternoon tea inspired by Italian luxury jewelry brand Damiani. Chocolate is carved into the shape of a ring with a diamond (crystal sugar) on it, which is presented in a chocolate jewel box tied up with a pink ribbon bow, also made of chocolate. Warm, dried fruit scones served with Devonshire clotted cream and strawberry preserves reiterate the hotel’s London origin.
Zhu is skilled at creating aesthetic desserts, using complex and sophisticated presentations to express the purest and simplest sweetness.
“I don’t like mixing many ingredients together, which unavoidably destroys their original beauty, not to mention those artificial flavors brought by using additives,” Zhu says.
Her signature chocolate truffle cake shows her commitment to back-to-nature ingredients. “It’s made from black chocolate with 60 percent of cocoa and cream, without any additives such as sugar and egg,” she says.
But in the pastry world, it’s hard to use a single ingredient to create balanced flavor.
Cachet
Address: 1/F, 99 Madang Rd
Tel: 2330-2420
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