214 hong kong tatler. september 2017
he gastronomic landscape has shifted
dramatically over the past 40 years. With
restaurants opening (and closing) at an
unprecedented rate, and the merry-go-round of
fads ever spinning, it can be easy to lose sight
of what gives Hong Kong its unparalleled and irreplaceable
identity as a foodie’s paradise. To celebrate the city’s unique
culinary heritage and the people who have shaped it, we set
four chefs a challenge: identify a quintessential local food that
encapsulates what Hong Kong means to them, and use it to
create a dish that expresses their point of view. The resulting
works of art manifest the compelling energy of Hong Kong in
wonderfully delicious ways.Four chefs, four histories, four personal
points of view. Charmaine Mok invites
leading voices of the culinary scene to
share their gastronomic interpretations of
the city they call homeTales of the City
LIFE | FOOD
VICKY CHENG, VEA
THE INSPIRATION: Cantonese “white cut” chicken rice with
ginger and scallion sauceTHE DISH: Cheng created a dish of sous vide marinated
chicken breast brushed with a rice water glaze (reduced
from strained congee liquid). Alongside it is a crispy chicken
thigh and a Shanghainese-style Chinese cabbage braised in
cream, butter, milk and aromatics, and topped with a sheet
of Iberico pork fat. The dish is fi nished with a chicken jus
that is bolstered just before serving with a classic ginger and
scallion oil.Vicky says his creation is not only a tribute to one of Hong
Kong’s most exceptional local ingredients—yellow chicken—
but one that is personally very meaningful to him. “I was born
into money on my dad’s side, but when I was fi ve years old my
parents divorced. I suddenly went from having everything to
basically nothing,” he says. His Shanghainese mother raised
him singlehandedly in Hong Kong, the two living in a tiny
apartment where luxuries were few and far between. One
day, he came home with top marks at school and was told
he could choose a nice reward for himself. His pick? A bowl
of barbecued pork rice with white cut chicken, and copious
amounts of his favourite ginger-scallion sauce. “It was a real
treat,” he recalls. Today, his mother runs a successful business
in Canada and Vicky is one of Hong Kong’s most lauded
chefs—but he never forgets how this period of his life taught
him to appreciate the simple things in life. “Not every day is
about truffl es and foie gras,” he laughs.