Columbia Home & Lifestyle - January/February 2009 - (Page 30) invasion asian food Three cheFs show columbia whaT asian cuisine is all abouT By Jodie Ferguson Photos by Rebecca Allen No general Tsao’s chicken or beef and broccoli here. Three chefs, who transcend beyond the novelties of what customers have come to expect from Asian cuisine, were on hand at the Missouri chapter of the American Culinary Federation’s first food summit. Local Asian restaurants and cooks, Asian Student Affairs and the University Club gathered in November to sample new Asian foods. The guest chefs included Chef Jim Murray, a consulting chef from Wisconsin whose profession allowed him the opportunity to travel the world, picking up techniques he made his own; Chef Bill Sy, a Mandarin master chef who possesses years of wisdom and culinary exposure he graciously doles out to his students at the Art Institute in Tucson, Ariz.; and Chef Khai Duong and his assistant Chef Chris Grant, who both operate the exclusive Ana Mandara restaurant in San Francisco. Duong modernized Vietnamese cuisine, and, in doing so, he made his restaurant one of the top restaurants in San Francisco. The first part of the day featured cuisine from local restaurants. I made my way around the room starting with Sunshine Sushi, which had a spread of spicy tuna rolls, California rolls and roasted eel. Next, I went to Bangkok Gardens where I sampled a curry chicken dish and an even spicier shrimp soup. Both dishes packed a lot of heat but even more flavor that couldn’t be hidden under the intensity of the spice. The short rib canapés with edamame hummus from Jina Yoo’s were so flavorful and tender, while the hummus added a sweeter and smooth finish. Peking Restaurant featured their fresh, handmade dumplings; the first bite was flavorful with a crisp-soft texture. The nighttime portion of the summit seemed to come quickly after the guest chefs gave their cooking demonstrations. The atmosphere in the kitchen was light but there was much to be done to serve the 90-plus diners anxiously awaiting the multi-course dinner. There was singing, fan-dancing and musical interludes to 30 January/February 2009
For optimal viewing of this digital publication, please enable JavaScript and then refresh the page. If you would like to try to load the digital publication without using Flash Player detection, please click here.