Tao Chinese Cuisine,
Intercontinental Kuala Lumpur,
165 Jalan Ampang,
Kuala Lumpur.
Business hours: Lunch: 11.45am to 2.30pm (Monday to Friday)
and 11.00am to 2.30pm (Saturday, Sundays and public holidays);
and Dinner: 6.30pm to 10.30pm daily
Tel : 03-21611111
MALAYSIAN Chinese cuisine has a merit of its own and the Intercontinental Kuala Lumpur’s Tao restaurant is bringing the country’s finest on a platter this Chinese New Year.
Award-winning Master Chef Wong Lian You has always considered himself a Malaysian Chinese chef and he strongly believes in cooking for the Malaysian pa-late.
New modern inventions and delicious experimental dishes await eager diners at the restaurant.
Each dish symbolises an abundance of good health, wealth and luck and will be available until Feb 16.
Members of the media were treated to the Prosperity Menu III recently during a special preview.
The auspicious meal begins with the Abalone with Soft Shell Crab Yee Sang.
Unlike the usual salmon yee sang, the soft shell crabs were a tasty treat. Sweet and crunchy, the crabs were a delightful addition to the more sombre abalone.
The abalone redeemed itself in the next serving, the double-boiled abalone, fish maw with dried scallop and American Ginseng Soup.
Refreshing and nutritious, the soup is boiled for two hours and features a special ingredient, Sea Bamboo Pitch.
“I believe no one has used it before in Malaysia but I have seen it in the market before. I always wondered if I could incorporate it into my dishes and I have,” said the jovial chef.
His creativity with regional ingredients is evident in his Duo of Flavour Roasted Chicken.
The roasted chicken is carefully sliced off leaving behind the breast meat, which is chopped and added to an Asian salad with pineapples, onions and cucumber.
Another creation with a twist is his Baked Mayonnaise Cod Fillet served with Mango Salsa.
“Mango Salsa is a Malaysian favourite and gaining popularity. I have tweaked it to include lime juice, chinese parsley and red chillies,” he said.
Wong added that he had first tried this recipe in a competition in Penang and mayonnaise was the secret ingredient.
He deep fries the fish first until it is 70% cooked, puts the mayonnaise on top and bakes it for four minutes.
A personal favourite was the Wok Fried Prawns with Hot Savoury sauce, a combination of sweet, sour and spicy.
The dish tickles the palate and adds a little zest to the sweet prawns.
Traditional food lovers would love this unique dish called the Braised Sea Cucumber with Dried Oyster Sea Moss Roll and Money Bag in Golden Broth.
Boiled for approximately five hours with chicken feet, carrot, pumpkin and ginger, this prosperity dish is scrumptious with the crunchy money bag which is filled with vegetables and mushroom.
Just before dessert, the Fragrant Fried Rice with Vegetables, Egg White, Truffle Oil was served with Crispy Scallop topped with Wasabi Dressing.
Dubbed a modern Chinese platter, Wong has coated the Japanese Scallop with flour and bread crumbs before plating it with the dressing made of 70% mayonnaise and 30% wasabi.
Finally is the much loved Deep-fried Sweet Potato Ningko Ball served with Bird’s Nest Aloe-Vera, Peach and Osmanthus Oolong Tea Syrup.
This unlikely combination is a delightful end to the meal. The Ningko is soft and chewy while the syrup is a cool, refreshing rush down the throat.
This menu is priced at RM2,388++ per table while the Prosperity Menu IV is priced at RM3,388++ per table of 10 persons.
Other menus include Prosperity Set Menu I at RM1,588++ per table, Prosperity Menu II is priced at RM1,988++.
There is also the Auspicious Set Lunch I and II priced at RM138++ per person with a minimum booking of three people.
This is the writer’s personal observation and is not an endorsement by StarMetro
