Yu Yue Heen at Four Seasons Hotel Guangzhou will present the grand finale of the four-hand gastronomic series 2021 from November 25 to 27 in collaboration with Jin Sha at Four Seasons Hotel Hangzhou at West Lake. Chef Mai Zhi Xiong of Cantonese cuisine and Chef Wang Yong of Jiangzhe cuisine will co-create an eight-course tasting menu that takes guests on an indelible journey to unveil the essence of Chinese culinary art.
Chef Wang will present three courses for this episode to initiate an exciting culinary master dialogue that explores the dynamics between conservation and innovation.
For the appetizer, Chef Wang pairs snow crab meat marinated in Japanese vinegar with water shield, an unmistakable ingredient of West Lake. The savory crab meat packed with refreshing vinaigrette offers the right kick to open up the appetite. The second dish is his recent experiment with 5J Jamón. The fun part of this course is to pour the sizzling hot consommé from a teapot, allowing the soup to cook the thin slices of Jamón while releasing a rich flavor along with the rising smoke. In this dish, Chef Wang integrates dashi, a method common in Japanese cuisine to develop an extra layer of Jamón flavor. He first soaks a cube of winter melon and the Jamón bone in the chicken soup produced in traditional Chinese cuisine. Then he heats it with medium temperature, letting the Jamón flavor slowly permeate the dish. The soup is taken out, rest, seeped and is ready for serving. The third course brought by Chef Wang is a classic in Eastern China: Shanghainese braised pork with abalone in a sweet soy sauce with sugar and yellow wine. Like the more traditional Dongpo pork, the wine breaks down the fat to make the braised pork belly flavorsome, succulent and give it the tender “melt in mouth” texture. It is so tender it can easily be separated into small pieces with chopsticks.
Chef Mai is known for his adherence to traditional cooking techniques. Discipline and confidence derived from the strong heritage of Cantonese cuisine has become a distinctive style of Chef Mai.
Responding to Chef Wang’s braised pork belly, Chef Mai chooses a Cantonese classic, barbecue pork belly, which locals often rate a restaurant on the taste and texture of this dish. Chef Mai selects dark skinned pork for its beautiful marble. The process goes through meticulous steps of cleaning, poaching, marinating, air-drying, then it is ready for barbecue in high heat. The last step is to take down the heat to force the excessive grease out to make it crispy on the skin and succulent in the meat. Along with the equally crispy roast goose, this Cantonese classic creates a nice contrast with the tenderness of the braised pork belly; the two work to showcase the unique character of the equally reputable cuisines. In between Chef Wang’s soup and red meat, Chef Mai cleverly arranges steamed Boston lobster with Inaniwa udon. The fresh and sweet lobster echoes the crab meat appetizer; the inviting golden sauce made of seafood and pumpkin juice plays a key role in continuing the momentum. Following the braised pork belly is poached pea leaves in fish broth. This simple home-cooked dish popular in winter in the southern Guangdong region serves well to usher in the epilogue. Its gentle flavor aptly tunes with the lingering sweet taste while the vegetable works to dissolve the fat of the pork and prepare the guest for the dessert.
In terms of flavor and texture, the four-hand menu reflects Chef Wang’s innovative and enterprising character Chef Mai’s modesty and sincerity. Both chefs introduce their ingenious production in a simple presentation. The menu has a solid structure that conveys diversity in texture and a smooth flow in flavor.
Amuse Bouche
- Marinated cherry tomato, Linan walnut, mayonnaise
Appetizer
- Snow crab meat, vinegar jelly, water shield, basil seed
Stoneleigh, Marlborough, New Zealand, Sauvignon Blanc, 2018
Barbecue
- Roasted Magang goose, Kaluga caviar
- Roasted pork belly with yellow mustard
Perrier Jouët, Blason Rosé, Champagne, France, NV
Soup
- Double-boiled winter melon soup, 5J ham
Seafood
- Steamed Boston lobster, Innariwa udon, pumpkin abalone sauce
Marchesi Antinori, Bramìto Della Sala, Umbria, Italy, Chardonnay, 2018
Meat
- Shanghainese braised pork belly, fresh abalone, sweet soy sauce
Speri, Valpolicella Classico DOC, Corvina, Molinara, Rondinella, 2018
Vegetable
- Poached pea leaves in fish broth
Dessert
- Poached pear with jasmine flower, coconut pudding
Yu Yue Heen, located on the 71st floor of Four Seasons Hotel Guangzhou. It has been awarded a Michelin-star every year since 2018 when the guide was first launched in Guangzhou.
