Singapore’s Michelin-star chefs give masterclasses; celebrity chefs say pandemic redefines ‘convenience’ food

MANILA, Philippines — Before the coronavirus pandemic, microwavable food packs and anything deep-fried bought from the neighborhood convenience store used to be the everyday staples for many busy bees whose lives hang on a quick-bite. 

But as people find themselves all stuck at home nowadays, both beginner cooks and seasoned foodies have found enjoyment in preparing home-cooked meals, following recipes online or turning to video tutorials for guidance. 

As such, from convenience food, people’s eating habits have mostly shifted to home cooking. Ready-to-cook kits prepared by restaurants and chefs are not only the “new normal” but are also the new faces of convenience food, celebrity chefs Margarita Fores and Ming Tan recently declared in a virtual press conference for this year’s Singapore Food Festival.

Although already a seasoned chef, Fores enjoys using food kits especially since she can customize them using Filipino ingredients. 

Apart from the Korean-inspired Dalgona coffee, Tan saw an uptrend in using food kits, such as for baking, noodle making or do-it-yourself barbecues, bought from supermarkets or ordered online, as more and more restaurants, including Singapore’s hawker centers, shift to digital operations.

According to him, about 80 percent of food in Singapore comes from hawker centers. To prevent virus spread, these centers now take orders digitally so customers do not have to line up and flank the centers. They can just pick up their orders once ready or spend less time dining in.

“Chefs today face a great challenge because as people are pushed to the limits, they have to think of creative ways to give what the consumers want,” said Tan.

“If you notice, Southeast Asian cuisine, in general, is rooted in street food. Street food is ever-changing and very saleable.”  

Thanks to technology, chefs “can now do more stuff in just 10 minutes” than they usually could in two hours about five years ago.

The shift to more home cooking, said Tan, does not only influence people’s diet choices, but also their behavior. If then, people have little patience for their food’s cooking time, now, they prefer waiting for their food to be cooked or for their orders to arrive at home than compromise their health by going out to buy food outside.

During last weekend’s live “2Fast, 2Delicious - Hokks and Clay” Facebook masterclass, Forés and Tan showed how to make classic Singaporean dishes Hokkien Mee and Claypot Rice from home.

Hokkien Mee, a noodle dish popular in Singapore, has become a favorite thanks to its use of fragrant stock with prawns, meat, clams and dried fish. Meanwhile, Claypot Rice is a rice casserole cooked directly over live coals, and Singaporeans love it for its trademark crispiness.

Tan likened Hokkien Mee to the Filipino noodle dish Pancit Malabon, while for Fores, Claypot Rice is popular in Hong Kong during winter, but in Singapore, it can be enjoyed all the time. She specifically likes the charring of the rice at the bottom of the pot, which goes well with blood sausage, roasted duck, and even with the addition of Filipino ingredients.

“STB’s online masterclasses shine the spotlight on the talents and dishes of Singapore’s dining scene. We invite foodies around the world to rediscover Singaporean cuisine with us through this fun and entertaining format,” said Ruby Liu, Singapore Tourism Board (STB) Area Director for Philippines. 

The food festival runs until August 30, with masterclasses by Chef Julien Royer of 3 Michelin-starred Odette on August 28, Michelin-starred chef Dave Pynt of Burnt Ends and award-winning chefs Manjunath Mural in Singapore and Deepanker Khosla in Thailand on August 29, and by one-star Michelin chef Malcolm Lee of Candlenut on August 30. More details can be found on STB’s Facebook page. — Video from STB, edited by Philstar.com/Erwin Cagadas