A chef focused on bringing seasonal and modern European cuisine to Shanghai

Stefan Stiller tells me that when he got the job offer in Shanghai 6 years ago he had to look at the map to see exactly where in China Shanghai was located. Given Stefan’s integral position in the Shanghai culinary scene, it’s actually hard to imagine a time when Stefan was not in Shanghai. From his start at Club Shanghai to his move to Mimosa Supper Club and now with his namesake restaurant Stiller’s, Stefan has left an indelible mark in Shanghai. But this 6 year stint is only a small part of this experienced chef’s 27 year long career as a chef.

Stefan originates from Germany where his experience was gold standard – working in 1 to 3-starred Michelin restaurants. Stefan always enjoyed cooking and after taking some classes in school, he started to work for some friends of his parents who owned a 1-starred Michelin Relais et Chateaux hotel and restaurant. He was excited about the difference in his life versus his classmates and for the first time thought, maybe this could actually be a career path.

His track record in Germany was sterling from the times he worked in others’ 3-star Michelin restaurants to the period where he owned his own restaurant, Grand Cru which was nominated by Food & Wine magazine as “Best New Restaurant”and received 1-Michelin star only 14 months after opening.

Today, running Stiller’s in Shanghai with his wife Yoshi, Stefan looks to the seasons for his inspiration. The menu changes once a month in order to present the freshest seasonal ingredients. On my most recent visit Stefan was featuring the German seasonal favourite, white asparagus, along with newly available Chanterelle mushrooms. It’s this relentless focus on quality that inspires Stiller’s cult following as well as his professional accolades. In fact, Stefan was recently added as a Star Chef for Lufthansa Airlines, designing a menu for first and business class.

But with that said, Stefan has a balanced view of food and life represented not only by the quote on his menu “gastronomy is the skill of using food in order to create happiness” but also by his actions…prioritizing time with his wife Yoshi and their 9 year old daughter. Despite the demanding life of running not only Stiller’s the restaurant but also Stiller’s cooking school and deli, Stefan and Yoshi were just returning from dropping their daughter off at camp they day I met them.

If you are in Shanghai, we would highly recommend a trip to Stiller’s – in our view a must do when in town! And if you have time take the opportunity to learn from the chef himself – Stefan himself teaches the cooking classes in the on-site cooking school just downstairs from the restaurant.

Stiller’s Restaurant and Cooking School
The Cool Docks, 6-7/F, Bldg 3, 505 Zhongshan Nan Lu,
The Bund
near Fuxing Dong Lu, Metro Line 4 Nanpu Bridge Station Exit 2
Telephone: + 86 21 6152 6501

Any chef that can have me actually dreaming of eating crocodile again is a chef of note in my book. Hong Kong Chef Liu Ching Hai of Summer Palace in the Regent Hotel is that chef. You might remember our recent review of Summer Palace. We were treated to a special Sunday lunch of traditional Asian dishes and ones with a more modern twist… every dish as tasty as the next. After the meal we were gifted another treat – a chance to sit down and talk (via translator) to Chef Liu about his life & approach to food… and we even got a signature recipe!

Like many great chefs, Chef Liu was inspired by watching his grandmother cook as a young child. He soon caught the full time cooking bug and at 17 began his life in the kitchen, opting to learn through a traditional apprenticeship over formal training.

He soon made a name for himself and began cooking not only in the region’s top hotels, but also for western and Asian celebrities in Hong Kong… including Jackie Chan and Michael Jackson. He even catered Chow Yun Fat’s wedding (I’m a huge fan of his films and so was excited to hear this)! But the celebrity status hasn’t gone to Chef Liu’s head. When pumped for information about the assignments you realize he really treats every diner the same… not placing more importance on a celebrity meal than a regular hotel brunch crowd. I did keep asking him questions though and the most I was able to pry from him dirt-wise is that the Asian celebrities were a bit more down to earth than their western counterparts… taking time to come talk to the chef about their food and about life in general

Chef Liu specializes in seafood and we’re not just talking snapper here. He’s comfortable with anything that’s lived it’s life in water, and prefers simpler recipes that let the quality of the ingredient shine…. something he’s used to from his days in Hong Kong with daily deliveries of the freshest seafood.

The crocodile dish one more time

When not at work he’s cooking at home with his two sons. They’re only 8 and 10 but are already looking as if they’ll be following in their Dad’s footsteps. He says they’ll go to the market and the kids will tell him which part of the fish they want and then once home will stay in the kitchen with their father watching his every movement.

Chef Liu is actually a bit older than his looks, a rarity for chefs… particularly American chefs who look as though they’ve cooked themselves with their years over open flames. So I asked the chef if there was some traditional remedy responsible for his youthful appearance. He smiled and said it wasn’t bird’s nest soup as the translator had joked… it was eating simple and fresh food and trying to just be as happy as possible.

I asked the chef to provide our readers with a signature dish of sorts. Something reflective of his roots, but also something that had ingredients not so out of reach of the average home chef. So I am thrilled to give you:

Wok-Fried Prawns with Asparagus and Black Bean Sauce

Ingredients
Prawns 200g
Asparagus 100g
Black Bean Sauce 20g
Garlic 10g
Bell Pepper 20g
Oil 20g
Flour 10g
Sugar 10g
Chinese wine 5g

Instructions

• De-shell & de-vein the prawns
• Wash the asparagus
• Heat up the wok and add oil into heated wok
• Place prawns into wok, stir-fry till half-cooked, and drain prawns out
• Pour garlic, black bean sauce, bell pepper and asparagus into wok and stir-fry for 2 minutes.
• Add in half-cooked prawns
• Add flour, sugar and Chinese wine
• Stir-fry for 3 minutes.
• Ready to serve.

Healthy Spa Recipes from our favourite holistic spa

As part of our Health & Wellness 2010 Series

From the age of 5, Kai had a passion for cooking. He started early with his first job in the kitchen at an Austrian ski resort at the age of 16 and from there moved on to London where he worked at Mossimann’s who pioneered healthier cooking through Cuisine Naturelle, healthy foods which do not sacrifice on taste. From there, Kai went to Thailand in 2006 to take the position as Executive chef at Kamalaya. Evolving his approach to healthy cuisine by blending it with Thai culinary traditions, Kai worked with Kamalaya to develop a healthy, spa cuisine menu that is shockingly good and good for you.

To make the spa cuisine that Kamalays guests rave about, Kai focuses on building flavours through curry pastes and herbs rather than butter. And he uses all of the herb when cooking. For example, the stem and root of the coriander it is much more potent that the leaves of the herb. Plus fresh herbs have great antioxidant benefits. Nuts and seeds and high fiber grains are a dominant part of Kai’s cuisine along with high quality proteins like fish, chicken and legumes. He also prefers to use virgin coconut oilwhen cooking at high heat – it has a higher smoking point, so doesn’t break down as quickly. In most tropical coastal areas, like that of Koh Samui, this is the oil that locals use (instead of corn oil) – if you have ever been to Thailand, you will see they are all quite thin and healthy. When cooking at low heat he likes to use sesame oil or olive oil.

Kai shared with us some of Kamalaya’s recipes (a couple of my personal favourites), for you to try at home.

Stir Fried Glass Noodles (Serves 2)
Ingredients:
Glass noodles (soaked for 2 hours) 120g
Carrot, cut into thin half moons 40g
Cauliflower, cut into bite size florets 50g
Broccoli, cut into bite size florets 50g
Snow peas 30g
Asparagus, cut into 3cm sticks 30g
Shitake mushrooms, whole 20g
Cabbage, shredded 20g
Carrot, shredded 20g
Shallots 10g
Lemongrass, sliced very fine 5g
Ginger, chopped very fine 5g
Spring onions, sliced very fine 5g
Sesame oil 5ml
Tamarind juice 30ml
Bean sprouts 60g
Sesame seeds 10g
Sea salt Dash
Coriander leaf (garnish) 5g
Garlic 3g

Instructions:
Heat the sesame oil in a wok or frying pan over medium heat. Add the lemongrass, ginger and shallots and sauté for 15 seconds. Next, add the carrot, cauliflower, broccoli, snow peas, asparagus and shitake mushrooms. Stir for another 15 seconds before adding the drained noodles, tamarind juice and a dash of sea salt .Keep stirring (or it will stick to the pan) until heated through, this should take about 30 seconds. Just before you remove the pan from the heat stir in the spring onions, bean sprouts and sesame seeds. Place in the center of a plate and garmish with coriander.

Poached Sea Bass with Soya and Thai Seafood Sauce (Serves 2)
Ingredients:
Sea bass filet, 2 filets 320g
Ginger 30g
Celery  30g
Spring Onion 30g
Red Chilli  15g
Soya Sauce mix (see below) 180g
Sea salt Dash
Black Pepper Dash
Vegetable stock 250ml
Thai seafood sauce (see below) 100ml
Coconut or Sesame Oil 40ml
Lime juice 20ml
Bay leaf 1 leaf

Soya Sauce Mix:(makes approximately 250ml)
Carrot, with skin 100g
Celery  100g
Onion  100g
Soy sauce  100ml
White soya sauce 40ml
Vegetable stock  300ml

Thai Seafood Sauce: (makes 300ml)
Fish sauce  150ml
Lime juice  150ml
Garlic clove, finely chopped  4 pcs
Chilli, finely chopped   3 pcs
Palm sugar 1tbsp
Coriander root, finely chopped 2 pcs

Instructions:
Begin by preparing the Soya Sauce Mix at least 1 hour before you need it. Cut all vegetables into 5cm slices. Place all ingredients into a wide pot and simmer on a low temperature for 1 hour. Strain the liquid, discard vegetables. Store the liquid in the refrigerator until you need it (you can also freeze leftover and use later).

Prepare the Thai Seafood Sauce by placing all ingredients in a blender and blending for 1-2 minutes. Place mixture into a serving bowl.

Now you are ready to prepare the fish. Cut the ginger, celery and spring onion into fine strips, but not as thin as julienne. Heat the vegetable stock in a saucepan to a very light simmer and season with the bay leaf, celery, lime juice and sea salt. Place the fish into the pan and poach for 7-10 minutes. Once the fish is cooked, remove from saucepan. (If you want, you can save the stock for a clear fish soup later.)

Meanwhile heat the soya sauce mix and the sesame oil in separate and small sauce pans.

To serve place the cooked fish skin side up on the plate with the vegetable strips on top. Drizzle with the warmed soya sauce followed by a drizzle of the warm sesame oil. Serve with the Thai seafood sauce on the side.

Kamalaya Koh Samui
102/9 Moo 3, Laem Set Road, Na-Muang
Koh Samui, Suratthani 84140 Thailand
Telephone: +66 (0) 77 429 800
Fax: +66 (0) 77 429 899

Signature dish “Surf & Turf Indiana” recipe after the jump.

When working for Lookeast Magazine I had the chance to sit and talk with many Bangkok chefs. One of these was Arijit Ghosh, then new Executive Chef at Café 11. He’s a soft-spoken, gentle chef in an age of increasingly more exaggerated “personality chefs”. 

Arijit was born in India and considers his mother the best chef he’s ever tasted, but doesn’t specialize in Indian cuisine himself. He considers whatever dish he’s preparing at the moment to be his favorite, but if pushed he’ll admit to, “possessing a bit more flair with French and Italian cuisine.”

Arijit feels that being an executive chef means being a good administrator. This means attention to the customer in the front of the house and to detail in the back of the house. Out front, you can find him socializing and talking to guests to ensure the dishes meet their needs. He’ll even go so far as to prepare pasta for an Italian guests one way and for an Indians a different way.  In the back of the house he’s very stubborn and focused on food quality. Arijit will watch to ensure that recipes are held to the letter. If a recipe calls for two drops of balsamic it will only get two drops of balsamic.

He feels that many chefs today have lost sight of quality.  He feels, “… they were hard working and sincere when they began, but  now people don’t put their heart in to things.  They want to grow too fast.” Arijit worked 8 years in different kitchens before taking on his first executive chef position.

That doesn’t mean Arijit feels he’s “arrived”. He feels that, “as a Chef at every point of life you are learning and the kitchen offers unlimited opportunities to grow and learn.” He embraces this constant learning with new positions, studying overseas, and anything else that will push his career, palette, and generally teach him something new.

Recipe for “Indian Surf & Turf”

Prawns (med sized) 50 gms
Jasmine rice 25 gms
Yellow moong lentils    20 gms
Blanched spinach (chopped) 20gms
Chopped onions 15 gms
Chopped garlic 8 gms
Corriander leaves 8gms
Chopped tomatoes 10gms
Cayenne pepper 4gms
Turmeric powder 3gms
Cumin powder 3 gms
Cumin seeds 3 gms
Salt 6 gms
Heavy cream 8 ml
Unsalted butter 10 gms
Lemon juice 2 ml
Parmesan cheese (grated) 5gms
Brown sugar 5 gms
White wine 5ml

Shell and de-vein the prawns with tails on. Marinade with  lemon juice, salt, turmeric powder and cayenne pepper powder and keep aside. Heat half of the butter in pan and add the cumin seed.

Once the cumin seeds start crackling, add 4gms of garlic followed by 9gms of onion and saute. Then add the rice & lentils and cook for 3 minutes. Add white wine to the rice and lentil mixture and saute. Add vegetable stock or water and cook till 90% done.

Then add the cream, parmesan cheese, cumin powder, corriander leaves and finish with seasoning. Heat the rest of the butter in a pan and saute the onion & garlic. Add the spinach and cook. Season with salt and 1gm cayenne pepper.

Now cook the prawns on a grill. Melt the brown sugar in a pan and add 1gm cayenne pepper. Dip the grilled prawns and roll to make the caramel stick on. Take a plate and place the khichdi as a tian. Put the saute’ed spinach on the khichdi. Place the grilled prawns with the tails up in a triangular manner and serve hot. Garnish with caramalized shallots and chilli oil around the khichdi.