Chef Duc Hoang (No.78 - Anh
Duong restaurant) used to be one of the judges at Kon Tum and he had
opportunity to taste delicious dishes made using wild “
Đọt mây” before coming to the Golden Spoon Contest. He is
interested in the unique and delicious dishes of the Gia Rai people and decided
to use “
Đọt mây” as a key ingredient
in his presentation in the semi-final round in the South heat of the Golden
Spoon Contest 2015. He entered a dish called “Jungle Fragrance” which included:
Bitter “
Đọtmây” Gia Rai; “
rau dớn”-
a kind of vegetable stir-fried with garlic; salad with wild banana
Bitter “Đọt mây” Gia Rai; “rau dớn”- a kind of vegetable stir-fried with garlic and shrimp; salad with wild banana.
Understanding the
characteristics of the ingredients and having the technique needed to prepare
this dish, which came from a local contest in Sa Thay - Kon Tum, Chef Duc Hoang
feels both regret and great pride. Proud to have the opportunity to bring these
interesting and unique dishes, that he believes won’t be available anywhere
else, and regret at the low number of people knowing about them. It was for
this reason that Chef Duc Hoang still bravely decided to promote the “Golden
Mây” dish in the Semi-final of the Golden Spoon Contest 2015. He has to compete
with very strong teams from 4 or 5 stars hotels. In addition, editors of TV
channels informed him that other team had also registered this dish.
“It is very strange and interesting that in a
single bush of wild “Đọt mây” you can find both sweet “Đọt Mây”
and bitter “Đọt Mây”. Usually the youngest part of the tree of the big “Đọt mây” is found in the middle of the
bush. This provides a sweet taste that lingers on your tongue for a while. The
rest of the “Đọt mây” is normally
smaller and sits around the main trunk. This has a bitter taste at first but
then results in great sweetness,” shared an excited Chef Duc Hoang.
The best taste of “Đọt mây” from my hometown - Chef Duc Hoang is feeling very proud
The season to enjoy “Đọt mây” is between July and September.
One of the clever techniques employed by the Gia Rai, Bana people is to grill “Đọt mây” until the hard skin is burned.
After that they take the flesh inside. This ensures that it will be tastier and any residual poisons will
be eliminated. Chef Duc Hoang shared the knowledge that the local people use a
bamboo knife to cut the flesh. They also appreciated these spices as they enjoy
this during the big and important festival with permission from the leader of
the village. The main associated spice that goes together with wild “Đọt mây” is used in a sauce made from
wild “nhúm bông é”. For the contest,
Chef Duc Hoang prepared the dish as local people do but his presentation is
more beautifully presented and easy for diners to enjoy. He also selected
intelligent appetizers to go with the wild “Đọt
mây”. These are “rau dớn” - a
kind of wild vegetable stir-fried with garlic and salad with wild banana.
Simple, beautiful “Đọt mây” salad
The party table of team No.78 Mrs Suong Thi Bui – a cuisine
artisan – complimented the “Rong” house design with wildflowers. It looks very
eye-catching, romantic and is very fresh. A typical style from the mountains
and the jungle”.
Fresh “Rau dớn” vegetable rolled prawn
“Great care was taken with the dish. For
example, for the fresh “rau dớn”
vegetable roll shrimp wild “mây’ it achieves a great blend of sweet and bitter
tastes resulting in a sauce that is really delicious. I am also interested in
the use of wild banana. It is very crunchy - giving a fresh and different taste
typical of jungle and mountain dishes” commented one of judges – food
expert.
The youngest part of wild banana tree
Mr Sakal Phoeung - Chairman of Escoffier Vietnam Chef
Association and Head chef of Sofitel Saigon Plaza for the professional judges,
also complimented the consistency throughout the menu structure of Team No.78.
Each dish has its own distinct flavor and taste. The team worked in a very
rhythmic, proactive and decisive manner.
“It is a pity that the team chose mainly
square plates resulting in a rather plain party table”, commented the judges.
Although the team failed in their attempt to reach the
final round in Binh Duong province, Chef Duc Hoang complimented them on the
more important achievement of promoting
their local dish to national to international diners in such an important
contest. As Mrs Van Thi Bach Tuyet - Director of HCM Tourism Services and one
of the guest judges said, ”I felt that the young chefs coming to this contest
are very enthusiastic, proactive, creative and have a true passion for their
profession. You really are ambassadors of Vietnamese Cuisine”
Tan Trung