01 January 2014
Passion for creating culinary masterpieces
Foong Wai Loong, 33, is the executive chef of Renaissance Johor Bahru Hotel in Permas Jaya. He has 20 years of culinary experience in Chinese cuisine.
By Chuah Bee Kim
I hate books. Actually, I think it is more appropriate to say I hate to read. Because I hate reading, it is only natural that I did not do well in my studies.
I was forced to leave school at the age of 14 to look for a job, and that is how I got to be where I am today.
I was born in Ipoh. My first job was as a kitchen helper in a Chinese restaurant in my hometown.
I was fascinated by the activities going on in the kitchen. It looked so exciting. I was filled with enthusiasm as I watched the cooks prepare the dishes.
After two weeks of working as a kitchen helper, I begged my seniors to impart their culinary skills to me.
From sweeping the floor to washing the cutlery and wiping the dishes, I was soon allowed to cut the vegetables and meat.
After working there for two years, I headed to Singapore and spent 10 years there honing my culinary skills. Then, I went to work in Batam.
Later, I was hired by the five-star Hotel Indonesia Kempinski in Jakarta. I was their first executive Chinese chef. I crafted a fine dining menu for a Chinese banquet.
I like to create. Sometimes an idea hits me, but I may not necessarily get to it straightaway.
Like in a meeting, for instance, I would be doodling. It may not make any sense. It's just something I see on paper. And then, the very next day, I'd get this idea that I want to present the dish that I doodled.
I love creative presentations. I don't want guests to just eat to satisfy their hunger. I want them to be wowed by it, to discover something they have never knew existed. I like to see the expression on diners' faces as they try my culinary creations.
When I was on a holiday in Denmark, I visited some friends and there was this restaurant where they serve the food with an iPod. When the guests put on their earphones, they are transported to a different world. I love that experience.
For example, when a guest is savouring a crab dish, I want them to hear the sound of the sea as they dine. Not everyone hears it, only the diner.
Malaysians get to eat a variety of ethnic recipes and fusion dishes. I want to create a cuisine that is truly Asian. I have tried French cuisine, Italian cuisine, and now I envision bringing Asian cuisine to the world.
For me, presentation of the food is very important. It stimulates the senses of sight and smell before it tantalises the taste buds.
I am the only chef in my family. I have an older sister, but she doesn't share my passion, just as I do not share her passion for books.
I don't really believe in recipes. Every chili, every water spinach is different. If I were to write down a recipe, and I say add chili, you may just throw in a chili.
But, when you cannot get the taste that you want, you are going to blame me for giving you the wrong recipe.
It's not like that. A chili from Cameron Highlands will have a different flavour from a chili grown in the soil of Kuantan or Johor. And there are so many varieties of chili. To you a carrot is a carrot. To me, it is not as simple as that.
Some of my signature dishes include mango Peking duck, pomelo mango sago, coffee chicken and dancing durian puff.
I think a chef is like an artist, and the canvas is the cooking pot, and the dish... the masterpiece.
A Journey of Ingenuity and Discovery
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