ETOILE BISTRO,
Equatorial Hotel Kuala Lumpur,
Jalan Sultan Ismail, Kuala Lumpur.
Tel 03-2161 7777 ext 8333
Business Hours: 8.00am to 1.00am,
Sundays to Thursday, 8.00am to 2.00am,
Fridays, Saturdays and public holidays.
WHEN you purchase a Christmas turkey from the Etoile Bistro at the Equatorial Hotel Kuala Lumpur, you will find a card along with it signed by executive chef Anthony Edington.
The greeting card is something that you may want to keep because it contains tips on how it is prepared, serving instructions and, most importantly, what to do with the leftovers.
With the recipes, you also have choices as the chef has given two recipes. First is the Turkey Vegetable Barley Soup which serves 10, and the second is Turkey A La King.
The latter recipe for six people calls for ingredients such as sherry or apple juice, milk or chicken broth, and mushrooms and peas, and some spices. Once cooked, it can be eaten in pastry shells, rice or even served on fried noodles or toast if desired.
If you have further queries or concerns, the American chef offers to be contacted at his office at the hotel. That’s a very generous offer from him but I think if you follow the serving instructions and adhere to the Important Note, you’d enjoy a sumptuous turkey prepared in the traditional American way.
For this season, Edington has given the recipe a little twist after considering customer’s feedback from the last season.
Using thyme as the major herb in its preparation, the roasted turkey has a fresh taste and light smell, which is very palatable.
“Last year, we used sage which gave a strong flavour. Also based on feedback, customers wanted more gravy so we improved on that too. We also use peas instead of brussel sprouts for the side dish,”
The sauce is question is the giblet gravy which has a base made of roux and roasted giblets are flavoured with spices like sage, thyme and pepper. Also served is the cranberry sauce, which adds zing to your meal.
The flavourful stuffing of chestnuts and sour dough completes the meal.
Ready to serve: Edington with his special turkey treat.“In America, the bread used for the stuffing can differ from area to area, like in the South, corn bread is more popular while in the North it’s the white bread and sour dough on the West Coast,” he said.
Personally, I enjoyed the roasted turkey very much during a review at the hotel for it juicy tenderness and flavour. So it was easy to over-dose because I sure had no space left to try the mince and pumpkin pies that came along with it.
Of course, like many Malaysians, I love my food with lots of gravy. Both gravies complemented the bird and stuffing pleasantly.
Priced at RM388++ per medium turkey and RM488++ for a large one, an order also comes with roasted garlic mashed potatoes and sauteed sugarsnap peas.
Also available for the season are goodies such as stollen, mince pie, New Zealand lamb leg, baked beef Wellington, roasted rosemary chicken, traditional Yule Log cakes, gingerbread and festive cookies.
This is the writer’s personal observation and is not an endorsement by StarMetro.
