A taste of spring at Aria

With the arrival of spring, the chefs at Aria of China World Hotel in Beijing are preparing appropriate fresh and seasonal dishes. At a cooking class on Tuesday, the restaurant's chef de cuisine, Phillip Taylor, demonstrated how to make some healthy and beautiful seafood and poultry dishes to thrill the eyes and tantalize the palate.

In the space of two hours, Taylor prepared three dishes - yellowfin tuna ceviche and Alaskan crab, slow roasted chicken, and a white chocolate brulee.

About 15 representatives of the Beijing media watched as the chef prepared the dishes while explaining each step.

The yellowfin tuna ceviche and Alaskan crab was presented on a base of avocado puree mixed with the juice of half a lemon, and paired with fresh cucumber rolls, dotted with tiny cubes of fruit and a crunchy piece of shrimp cracker with squid ink. Served on a slab of black stone, the dish looked like a tasty spring garden.

The slow roasted chicken was prepared using a sous vide immersion machine, in which food is placed in vacuum pack bags and cooked for longer than usual. For this dish, very finely ground chicken breast was simmered at a constant 68 degrees to present a smooth delicate taste. It was served with fresh ratatouille - sauted diced seasonal vegetables including pureed tomato. Taylor also added a crispy chicken croquette and a fragment of goose liver to present different textures.

The dessert of white chocolate brulee looked simple, but took an hour to bake in the oven. The preparation included dramatic effect as Taylor used a gas torch to burn the caramel topping (brulee is French for "burnt cream"). It was presented with seasonal strawberries and mint leaves, accompanied by two scoops of ice cream.

"We plan to make the cooking class a regular event, probably once a month," said Taylor. The 29-years-old chef from Australia is also the father of an 18-month-old son.

He admitted the dishes might be a little complicated to cook at home, particularly as they involved advanced equipment such as the sous vide machine and gas torch.

"If you think it is too complicated, you can come to the restaurant," joked Taylor.

Aria, a stylish bar & grill house offering high quality Australian beef and fresh seafood, is offering a spring menu of nine starters, four soups, 21 main courses and nine desserts. The ingredients are largely chosen from fresh local produce, such as fresh trout and the strawberries in the dessert. According to the restaurant, this is to support local agriculture, and reduce the waste of energy and resources caused by unnecessary long-distance transportation.

Taylor said Aria's spring menu is inspired by Rooted in Nature, a culinary initiative started by Shangri-La Hotels and Resorts in 2014 to highlight locally and ethically sourced food. He said the initiative recognizes the differences in the group's locations and enables all Shangri-La hotels and resorts to incorporate sustainable items from their unique markets into their menus.

Diners can identify Rooted in Nature menu items by the pea shoot logo beside the dish description on a la carte menus, cafe stations at all day dining restaurants and selected specialty restaurants. Rooted in Nature items must meet one or more of five guidelines with a prominent ingredient in the dish.

Emil Leung, Shangri-La's area general manager of China World Summit Wing, China World Hotel and Traders Hotel Beijing, said: "China World Hotel Beijing is committed to promoting greater traceability and transparency of where our food sources come from by working with local and sustainable providers. By 2020, our goal is to serve 75 percent more sustainably sourced food on our menus.

"Through the Rooted in Nature dining experience, we invite guests to join us in embracing and celebrating the benefits that sustainable food brings us."

yejun@chinadaily.com.cn