This post is just so us wuliaonan & nuihai's can keep in touch with whats going on in our lives, and this post is especially written as a form of congratulations to our PBSM juniors, namely Jia Hui..err whts her post already and our newly Ex HSL Shin Yin. Well since many of us are overseas and have no access to The Star and those of us at home in Malaysia rarely reads the Star, well at least no further than the comic section....I'm betting. read the next article and be amazed. Btw next pool party at the end of the year, Shin Yin and Jia Hui are going to be the cooks. Ean can sit back n relax.....he's getting in on age:D
Sunday July 13, 2008
Cooking up a storm
By TAN SHIOW CHIN
DESPITE the popularity of cook shows helmed by celebrity chefs like Jamie Oliver and Nigella Lawson, one does not expect to find teenagers thinking of how best to cook and present fish on a lovely Saturday afternoon.
However, that is precisely what 12 upper secondary students found themselves doing recently during the finals of the first Taylor’s College Culinary Challenge.
Organised by the college’s School of Hospitality and Tourism, the one-day competition held in Selangor saw 29 teams of two from nine schools around the Klang Valley participate in the preliminary round of the Iron Chef-inspired challenge.
Michieletto (left) and fellow judge Chef Rex Lee tasting Angel 1’s dish.
The teams were given the task of creating and preparing a main course for four people within 90 minutes.
The catch was that the main course had to use a main secret ingredient that would only be revealed at the start of the cooking session.
For the preliminary round, the secret ingredient was chicken. With 58 students racing against time to prepare a great-tasting and beautifully-presented chicken dish, the situation in the culinary suites of the school was slightly chaotic, but controlled.
Said judge and Taylor’s College School of Hospitality and Tourism (TCHT) lecturer Chef Chong Wei Tzeh: “You could see that they didn’t have the basic training in cooking; it looked a bit messy during the first round.
“The final round was much better in terms of taste and presentation. You could see an obvious change — their work was much more refined and they put more thought into their presentation, especially in terms of the colour combinations and contrast.”
From 29 teams, six were chosen to advance to the finals held in the afternoon.
Upon learning that their secret ingredient was fish, each team had a quick discussion before gathering their required raw ingredients from a common counter.
Capsicum was a common favourite, with all teams using the red and green peppers in their preparation.
Some teams chose to fry their fish, while others baked them. Cream-based sauces were used on some dishes while tomato-based sauces enhanced the other concoctions. Meanwhile, the side dishes varied from fried brinjal to potatoes, mashed or roasted, and pasta.
Said chief judge, Chef Association of Malaysia vice-president and TCHT external examiner, Chef Federico Michieletto: “Some of the dishes are quite good, while others need to be enhanced with better application.
“I would say, four out of the six dishes are very good, if you prepare them for a regular everyday meal.”
He commended the participants on their healthy preparation — the dishes were not too oily — as well as their sauces, which were creamy but light.
“There was a very nice feel to the winners dish; everything from their fish to the vegetables was good. Their dish did not look as good as some of the others, but it had a very good taste.”
Michieletto also advised the participants to taste their food, always, as some of their dishes were not salty enough!
First place went to best friends Tiong Jia Hui and Wu Shin Yin of SMK Damansara Utama’s Angel 1.
They won RM500, medals, certificates and an eight-week International Certification in Patisserie course for themselves, as well as RM1,000 and the Challenge trophy for their school.
Shin Yin, who hopes to study culinary arts, shared that they already had a list of sauces and side dishes in mind, and it was only a matter of choosing which went best with the secret ingredient.
Said Jia Hui: “I think we coordinated very well — Shin Yi cooks well, so she did the main dish, and I’m better at decorating, so I did the presentation.”
The duo had previously won second place in a similar competition organised by KDU College earlier in the year.
White Merlot, comprising Tan Der Ching and Wong Choon Lim from SMJK Katholik, Petaling Jaya, came in second, while third place went to SMK Sultan Abdul Samad, Petaling Jaya’s Boey Phooi Yee and Shelomith Tee Ren Ai.
Well, shld just leave out the last paragraph, i mean whats the point of knowing the second and third places....Its only the first that matters afterall Lol....;P. Well juniors congrats again....remember ur cooking for me at the end of the year :P
Aik Sern ^^
