Club chefs achieve gold medals in two major culinary contests, Winning dishes to be served at Moon Koon Restaurant, Happy Valley Racecourse

11/08/2011

Two chefs of The Hong Kong Jockey Club, Sam Chan and Kelvin Liu, were honoured with a Gold Award today (11 August) in the “rice” category of the Best of the Best Culinary Awards 2011.  This is the second time in three months that their superb culinary skills have been recognised, after they separately won gold and bronze medals in the Hong Kong International Culinary Classics 2011 held in May.

The Best of the Best Culinary Awards is a major annual contest organised by the Hong Kong Tourism Board for local restaurants.  Chan and Liu, both chefs at the Club's Moon Koon Restaurant at Happy Valley Racecourse, earned the Gold Award for their dish “Lobster Meat Rice in Lobster Essence Soup”.  The broth of this dish is derived from cooking the head, shell and claws of a fresh lobster in water for three hours.  Other ingredients include steamed rice, diced lobster meat and mixed fresh mushrooms.  The aroma is further enhanced by sprinkling white sesame and shreds of dried halibut on the top.

Three months ago, in the individual contest of the Hong Kong International Culinary Classics 2011, Chan won his debut Gold Award with his dish “Deep-fried ruby snapper glazed with vinegar, accompanied by jackfruit and coconut salad” in the category of “Chinese Cuisine-Modern Chinese Cuisine Challenge Hot Cooking (Ruby Snapper)”.  Liu, in the category of “Chinese Cuisine-Modern Chinese Challenge Hot Cooking (Wagu Chuck Tail Flap)” earned a Bronze Award for his dish “Wok-fried sliced Australian beef with fries and tomato sauce accompanied by crispy rice”.

Local diners will be soon able to sample these award-winning dishes for themselves at Moon Koon Restaurant, which is open to the public, though is currently undergoing renovation.  Two of the dishes, “Deep-fried ruby snapper glazed with vinegar, accompanied by jackfruit and coconut salad” and “Wok-fried sliced Australian beef with fries and tomato sauce accompanied by crispy rice”, will be featured on the menu when the newly-refurbished restaurant reopens on 29 August, priced at HK$98 and HK$78 respectively.  A combo of both items will also be available at HK$150.  The third dish, “Lobster Meat Rice in Lobster Essence Soup”, will be featured at a later stage.

Sam Chan joined the Club in March 2008 as Subsidiary Cook and was promoted to his current position of No. 3 Stove Chef in January 2011.  Kelvin Liu took up the post of No. 2 Stove Chef at Moon Koon in July 2008.  The Club puts strong emphasis on staff training and actively encourages its chefs to join culinary competitions as a way of broadening their experience and learning from the best in the business.  Both Chan and Liu have taken professional courses with the Club's support and participated in a number of previous various contests under the guidance of their management and supervisors.

This year's Best of the Best Culinary Awards, marking the 10th Anniversary of the competition, were contested in four categories, namely “dim sum”, “rice”, “thick soup” and “vegetable”.  Well-known food commentators and celebrities were invited to judge the entries on flavour, hygienic preparation and culinary skills and techniques, as well as their presentation.

The Hong Kong International Culinary Classics, a biennial contest organised as part of the International Exhibition of Food & Drink, Hotel, Restaurant & Foodservice Equipment, Supplies & Services (HOFEX), is one of the leading events in the industry, attracting hundreds of chefs from around the Asia region.  This year the Club entered 27 chefs from its three Clubhouses and two racecourses and collected an impressive total of 14 medals – two gold, six silver and six bronze.