The Master's Culinary Truth: Only Five Words

This article is compiled from two magazine articles:

"No Tricks, Chef's Home Cooking" &

"Tam Kwok Fung: The Warm Master's Culinary Edge"

Originally published in "Chinese Cuisine Magazine"

May and July 2022 issues

[ simple philosophy ]

The kitchen masters I've met

never make things complicated.

The essence of cooking

ultimately comes down to "tastes good,"

without any condescending attitude,

yet never falling into clichés.

If I were to describe their stovetop skills in calligraphy terms,

it would be "unadorned and rustic."

My favorite calligrapher is called "Ryokan." He studied under Wang Xizhi, Huaisu, and Huang Tingjian—figures whose names alone are enough to sweep through the world of calligraphy. Yet his characters look childlike, though they are actually full of extraordinary spirit, endlessly pleasing to the eye, just like dishes you never tire of eating.

From the Start of Spring to the Start of Summer, my appetite often languishes, but it only awakens at Wynn Palace in Macau, where Master Tam Kwok Fung presides. He smiles like the sun through clouds, always warm and approachable. Ryokan once said a classic line: "I dislike the calligraphy of professionals, the cooking of chefs, and the poetry of poets."

Rather than call him Master Tam, I prefer to call him Chef Tam—so much more intimate.

In his eyes, good ingredients are not measured by "expensiveness." The yellow-legged nine shrimp is not costly, but its value lies in being wild. The wang yi fish tastes better than the tsai fish, and because it's not famous, it's a bargain...

Chef Tam always hits the nail on the head. Countless famous chefs have benefited from his guidance, even carrying the plastic bags he holds. After strolling through the Lower Ring Street Market with him, I felt as if I had taken a convertible ride and soaked up some down-to-earth air; the oxygen level in my brain surged. Anyone with a passion for food becomes like a fish receiving oxygen—lively and bouncing. The warmth and softness around us came from the plastic awnings of the market. Everything my eyes saw, my nose smelled, and my throat swallowed—it was all everyday life.

He prefers to buy ingredients from family-run seafood vendors and enjoys chatting with the shrewd shop owners who cater to veteran gourmets.

Chef Tam knows which shop has new stock, which ones only sell to connoisseurs, and which have top-quality goods. When he sees newly arrived baby crabs, he can tell at a glance how much roe they have; by looking at the tail fin color of yellow-fin pomfret, he knows whether it's wild. Such insight!

I couldn't help but confirm in my mind once more: the man in front of me, wearing a baseball cap and a T-shirt as he leads me through the market, is the executive chef of Wynn Palace, Tam Kwok Fung, a globetrotter with countless awards. Royal family members and business tycoons from around the world are his spoon subjects. In front of food stalls, he is also a banner of "knowing good goods," able to outshine any shrewd housewife, his eyes burning with passion when he encounters quality ingredients.

The "Expensive" Ingredients in the Master's Hands

Chef Tam is a golden signboard in Macau's entire culinary circle. Having witnessed the landmark history of rapid food industry development, he calmly says: "Since 2007, I've been in Macau for almost 16 years. The changes are quite significant, especially in the economic dining scene. The development of cuisine also requires a certain push from the macroeconomic environment—it's the process of supply and demand."

"Especially the choice of ingredients. For instance, fifteen years ago, Japanese beef was still rare; it only appeared in Hong Kong and Macau airports twenty or thirty years ago. Now, both consumers and we who make food have more options—Australia, the US, Korea, Argentina, Brazil... The guests have changed too. They've traveled to different places around the world and chosen fine cuisine. Sometimes their experience may even surpass ours in the food industry; they move forward faster than we do."

Talking about the choice of local ingredients, he says: "Local beef supply is not as abundant as before, so we resort to imported ones. Taiwan, for example, loves local beef. Take beef brisket: fresh brisket has a great meaty flavor, which imported cannot compare with. However, because there were fewer workers for a period, many suppliers found different sourcing companies and pushed them to find more alternatives from other origins, creating that market situation. Actually, the price of fresh beef is not that much cheaper than mid-range imported ones. Price is also a very important factor. Because foreign production might be industrial, while domestic free-range or smaller farms cannot lower costs."

Masters wield their brushes differently. The best domestic chefs also understand the principle of learning from each other's strengths. But this situation is similar to 'innumerable calligraphy works throughout history, yet the essence remains in the classics.' Chef Tam's 'classic' lies not in cooking methods, but in the ingredients themselves. Old folks shake their heads and say pork doesn't taste as good as when they were young, and the 'liangtouwu' pig is a rare commodity. Chef Tam gently interjects: 'Sichuan pork is quite good. Travel more and compare.' He advocates that good chefs should travel extensively to find quality ingredients, referencing local techniques and methods—only then can Chinese cuisine gradually improve.

Speaking of combining traditional techniques with new ingredients, it's like old brushes on new paper. Chef Tam and I share the same view: traditional techniques are the foundation. 'For authentic Cantonese cuisine, traditional techniques are really important. For example, wok skills, other braising and stewing methods focus more on seasoning. Those techniques can be passed down; no matter where you go in the world, the techniques go with the chef, in his hands. But ingredients should look forward.' Chef Tam recalls going to the market with his mother as a child and seeing large yellow croakers, arm-length and over ten jin. Those are gone now. 'Now, such a large yellow croaker costs one or two thousand yuan, so the market has changed. For fish dishes, we should broaden our perspective. If yellow croaker is not available, what fish to use—that must be considered.'

Even during the fishing moratorium, I can genuinely feel his daily routine. It's like being in old Tsukiji, Japan, watching a seasoned high-end buyer visiting his old friend's place to inspect fish.

Chef Tam talks about ingredients whose status has changed, still smiling warmly: 'Codfish. When I was a junior, I went with my master to Hong Kong markets to see products. As soon as I saw it was frozen, I looked down on it. But today, codfish is a high-end dish. Even frozen, it has become indispensable in high-end cuisine. Chefs in different eras have different ideas. So do diners. You can't simply say codfish tastes bad.'

The revolutionary 'innovation' in Chinese dining happened in recent years. China's dining lists have given more people motivation and opportunities, including local high-end lists like Black Pearl, says Chef Tam.

On 'innovation,' Chef Tam appreciates the 'younger' approaches of restaurants like Shanghai Fu He Hui. 'Using cutting-edge techniques to compare the highest quality domestic products with those that must be imported, then deciding which to use for their cuisine. Of course, costs are high, so those taking this step must have considerable strength and passion, and must also have a group of new media people to spread the word.'

'So as chefs, especially someone like me who has been doing this for many years, I personally feel that we all need to have a relatively broad perspective to accept the state of the market, and then make smart choices. High-end, mid-range, or mass-market dining—it's the same. Every city has different norms and different understandings of cooking. You must learn more concepts, strive to understand, in order to successfully sustain a business. Also, understand the market's ability to pay and their tastes. For example, twenty years ago, there weren't so many returnee young people. Now, many have extensive experience living abroad. They bring that experience back, and their lifestyle differs from traditional Chinese. So in the market, for instance, Shanghai, why are there so many different cuisines that can operate independently? Because there is a fixed group of customers with international experience.'

'For the new market, chefs will use imported, more fancy ingredients to make their dishes. I think it's better to do more comparisons before deciding. It's okay.' Regarding the pairing of foreign ingredients, Chef Tam has only five words: 'reasonable pairing.'

'Innovation' is not hard; 'reasonable innovation' is hard.

Chef Tam's insight sometimes penetrates through the paper! Diners see the 'rationality' as built upon ingredients and techniques, but Chef Tam says it's the 'business model.' 'Regarding investors' requirements and profit margins, if a kitchen team requires 25 people and won't achieve the required profit, reduce it to 20. It's actually an economic issue and economic efficiency. That's why many traditional dishes lose techniques because they are too difficult and need simplification. For example, a dish that originally had 5 steps is now reduced to 3, and the same dish has different layers.'

Chef Tam admits that some of his special dishes cannot be simplified. 'If you simplify them, they lose a lot, like double-boiled soup. If one day, based on profit improvement, the water ratio is changed, the soup changes immediately. For any ingredient, if the grade and quality are lowered, the flavor changes.' In the back kitchen, I noticed that even the soy sauce and fish sauce Chef Tam uses for cooking are carefully selected, not casually bought in supermarkets. 'A bottle of fish sauce costs sixty or seventy yuan. Soy sauce uses a blend of several kinds. The cuisine I pursue is often such that even the guests who eat it cannot tell. If they don't ask, I have no chance to explain what's good. But if a guest is interested to understand, I can introduce each bottle of seasoning and explain the production methods step by step for each dish.'

Some seemingly 'unreasonable' things can become reasonable under the special cultural tastes of the intersection. The choices at the table are parallel; everything looks to the future. 'In Macau, if we talk about the refinement, internationalization, and universality of dining, Cantonese cuisine is more representative, so it might represent the future direction. Of course, that doesn't mean it lacks inclusiveness. For example, spicy food consumers, especially the new generation in Guangzhou, Shanghai, Shenzhen, even Macau—young people nowadays can handle spiciness not too different from Sichuan. The ability to eat spicy is trained. Ma (numbing) especially dulls the delicacy of food acceptance, making people less sensitive. Actually, Portuguese cuisine and Cantonese cuisine, to an outsider, seem like a strange combination. Because Macanese Portuguese dishes have large plates and heavy sauces, while Cantonese cuisine is increasingly refined with many high-level skills. Portuguese cuisine to me is relatively rough. Like Southern European dishes, for instance Spanish and Portuguese cuisines, some gourmets call them 'lazy man's food'—throw everything together and stew, similar to hotpot. Then there's barbecue. Their gatherings and parties first think of barbecue: pork, beef, lamb all roasted in large portions, or slow-cooked.'

As with delicacies anywhere in the world, traditions are slowly fading. Chef Tam says that for protection, the Macau Government Tourism Office and the Tourism College allocate resources to mend the gaps. 'Those local Macanese dishes—the disappearance of some small shops is unavoidable because many have high operating costs and cannot survive. Haidilao sells service. If you think about quality, you absolutely wouldn't want to open standardized chain stores. To be honest, under the current business environment, considering employee salaries, food costs, and rent, if the shop is not their own property, it's basically unsustainable. Especially mid-range to mass-market small shops—they really can't make it. That's why I mentioned that it takes a group of young people, like in Shanghai or elsewhere, who can balance both ends to continue.'

'Ability to adapt' is not 'ability to copy'

In this process, some new 'individuality' that is both amusing and lamentable has emerged. 'A piece of char siu, for no reason, should be placed nicely on a plate. Suddenly, a bunch of restaurants skewer each piece of char siu, sprinkle some Himalayan salt or whatever messy salt, pour half a bottle of what looks like rose wine or cheap liquor, flambé it, then cut it. Then another restaurant says, you use rose wine, I'll use Moutai, and swap it for abalone! Is abalone meant to be flambéed? This is a matter of reasonableness. But anyway, if you film it and put it on Douyin, people think it's cool. Other restaurants think, I'll flambé too.' Maybe due to some chefs' laziness, sometimes investors' pursuits, or list hype, 'So many dishes suddenly become popular and appear in every restaurant exactly the same. If you go to restaurant A, B, C, D, you might open the menu and half the items are identical. To put it more clearly, some are even semi-finished products bought in and just reheated. Some cold dishes are even easier to serve. It's no longer cuisine.'

'Reasonableness sometimes cannot be achieved by rushing for quick success. A dish should have reasonable plating, preparation, and presentation. We make food for the sake of food, not for attention or awards. Chefs are sometimes under pressure. For instance, they see what dish can win an award, then they bring that dish over, or find a chef from there to do it. Over time, they lose their own skills.'

Mastering good calligraphy requires practice, accumulated over time. We must admit that many young chefs are actually unfamiliar with traditional techniques. 'In terms of techniques, I think every restaurant needs to align everything they do with their positioning. Otherwise, it feels weird. When my grandmother cooked, traditional Cantonese seasonings were soy sauce, sugar, rice wine... a little white pepper, just four or five seasonings. In the past five years, many restaurants think Japanese cuisine is cool—their seasonings are good, flavors are good—and then for no reason, many Cantonese kitchens buy some teriyaki sauce and add a little. When you eat a piece of beef, you close your eyes and think you're eating Japanese food.'

Chef Tam shares his experience as a young chef: for one dish, 'I had to go to the library to find information. In the past decade or so, I wasn't working in Greater China, so reliable sources on Chinese cuisine were very important. Then you have to see and taste a lot. I've done many cross-border collaborations, encountering different products.' Chef Tam's broad vision and the adaptability he developed from it make his spoon work like a divine instrument. 'For example, something happened to me once. I went to Abu Dhabi in the Middle East to do a dinner. The tourism bureau director at that time was a local. My first dish was raw salmon, seasoned with Cantonese raw fish condiments. The seasoning was fine. But when the dish was served, the locals completely refused to eat raw food. What to do? I took a blowtorch and torched all the raw salmon slices until cooked before serving. It tests the adaptability of everyone in the food industry—it's not necessarily a bad thing.'

The true culinary wisdom of a master never shows off, but the diner's body senses it. I caught a slight cold when I was in Macau. Attentively, Chef Tam arranged the dishes without revealing his intentions beforehand. The entire meal was filled with nourishing Yin, moistening the lungs, and cooling the heart. Especially a bowl of wild vegetable fish and pork shank soup (raw fish is Cantonese for snakehead fish). After drinking it, I felt more than half recovered.

For the same dish, 'Oyster Sauce Beef,' when he goes to Germany, he uses German beef and can still confidently cook a dish that Chinese people recognize as the right taste. He can also make full use of local products, bringing out their strengths.

Chef Tam believes that situations like the pandemic lockdown will not last long. 'It's an opportunity for those in the food industry to try new things, find new starting points, and explore different directions. Chefs from Huaiyang cuisine, due to limited ingredients and market, honed their techniques back then, spending time to refine and practice their skills to reach where they are now. Of course, now young Huaiyang chefs have the opportunity to use any product from around the world—they can get the best seafood. For example, for stir-fried mandarin fish shreds, they could use Napoleon wrasse or large grouper, but the most common is still mandarin fish. New Huaiyang, using new ingredients, yields different effects. Combined with different positioning and cities, it creates magic. For instance, the current seasoning state of Chuan Jiang Yue—there's no chance to achieve such combinations in Sichuan.'

Chef Tam remembers the books of the master Jiang Xianzhu with gratitude. 'In the late Qing and early Republic period, she was in Guangzhou. She mentioned the five major restaurants in Guangzhou, each with its own signature dish. For example, one had Dasanyuan, another had braised shark fin. The other restaurants would not deliberately copy your dish. Even if they could make your dish, they wouldn't claim it as their signature. Each restaurant relied on its own techniques and the manager's ability to develop and promote unique products. For example, you sell braised shark fin, I sell pot-roasted abalone, he sells steamed sea bass. That was the market in the old days. That's the market I imagine; I thought it should be like that.'

Finally, I asked Chef Tam what he thinks China's own lists should be like. He said: 'Build a trust first. I respect every list, and I believe they all have their own philosophies. Some restaurants appear on different lists; being on a list means they meet different criteria. Of course, in terms of judges, I hope they are fair, just, and open.'

The master cooks with effortless grace, like skilled calligraphy—with rules and spirit.

Master Tam Kwok Fung's Summer Small Dishes

Chef Tam says that Macau is also in a special time now; many people have changed their lifestyles. Many have started growing vegetables at home, even become food bloggers. I asked Chef Tam how to be a 'gourmet' at home while maintaining health and beauty. Chef Tam simply pointed the way:

1. Eat more seasonal vegetables that appear in the market and seasonal fruits. But don't eat too many overly sweet fruits. From a traditional Chinese medicine perspective, all fruits in summer have heavy dampness; don't eat too much.

2. Control starch intake. Taking Chef Tam himself as an example, he eats at most half a bowl of rice per meal. His habit is vegetables plus half a bowl of rice, then meat, and moderate seafood.

3. Learn to cook simple yet tasty dishes—it's necessary to boost appetite.

Wynn Palace Macau Exclusive: Fresh Lotus Crab Meat Winter Melon Cup

Image from Wynn Palace Macau

Ingredients: Local winter melon, fresh crab meat, old chicken, pork tendon, fresh shrimp, dried scallops, shiitake mushrooms, night-blooming jasmine buds

Winter melon cup is a classic summer soup in Cantonese cuisine. 'Fresh Lotus Crab Meat Winter Melon Cup' uses a whole winter melon as a container. Chef Tam chooses local small winter melons, removes the seeds and flesh, and steams them with plain broth and ginger juice until 70% cooked. Then he fills the winter melon with soup made from old chicken, pork tendon, fresh shrimp, scallops, dried scallops, shiitake mushrooms, fresh lotus seeds, etc. On the outside, he adds minced ham, night-blooming jasmine buds, and fresh crab meat, then braises until the winter melon is tender and infused with flavor.

Wynn Palace Macau Exclusive: Lardon-Wrapped Lobster Roll with Pomelo Cucumber

Image from Wynn Palace Macau

Ingredients: Pork caul fat, lobster, white fungus, shiitake mushrooms, bamboo shoot tips, cucumber, ice plant

'Lardon-Wrapped Lobster Roll' evolved from 'lardon-wrapped pork liver roll.' First, take the lobster meat, stir-fry with white fungus, shiitake mushrooms, and bamboo shoot tips until fragrant. Then use a thin sheet of pork caul fat as an outer wrap to enclose the filling into a roll. Deep-fry for three to five minutes, bringing out the rich layers and the creamy oiliness of the caul fat, elevating this traditional old dish to another level.

The roll is paired with crunchy pomelo cucumber. Make a sauce with pomelo juice, Italian balsamic vinegar, and honey. Serve with thin slices of young cucumber, and garnish with ice plant sprouts and cucumber sprouts.

Wynn Palace Macau Exclusive: 20-Year Huadiao Wine Steamed Lobster with Egg White

Image from Wynn Palace Macau

Ingredients: French blue lobster, 20-year aged Huadiao wine, Hokkaido 3.6 milk, eggs, caviar, Spanish ham

Use 20-year aged Huadiao wine and Hokkaido 3.6 milk. Mix two parts milk with one part egg white, stir well, then strain to make the egg mixture smoother. Steam for six minutes. De-shell the blue lobster (known for its finer texture than regular lobster) and steam with Huadiao wine for five minutes. Place the lobster meat on the steamed egg white. Season the broth with fermented rice sauce, then add chicken fat and Huadiao wine to thicken, and pour over the lobster and egg white. Finally, top with selected black caviar to further elevate the umami flavor, and garnish with coriander sprouts.

Wynn Palace Macau Exclusive: Coconut Sago Japanese Melon Chilled Dessert

Image from Wynn Palace Macau

Ingredients: Shizuoka Crown melon, coconut milk, small sago, decorative chocolate

Peel and dice the melon. Combine with coconut milk, fresh cream, sugar, and gelatin to make a pudding. Whip coconut cream, cream, and sugar into a milk sauce. Pair with small sago cooked with pandan leaves and sweetened coconut milk. Finally, decorate with chocolate and fresh melon cubes for a refreshing taste.

Chef Tam's Home-Style: Capellini Angel Hair Pasta

Ingredients: Angel hair pasta, tomatoes, garlic, sardines or canned tuna, herbs

Because angel hair pasta is very thin, it blends well with the sauce and easily holds the sauce. Usually cook for 2-3 minutes. For the sauce, if using fresh tomatoes, chop them. Crush one small clove of garlic, fry first, then add tomatoes, then add sardines or flaked tuna, and a little Italian herbs. Make a small jar.

Chef Tam's Home-Style: Loofah and Clam Soup

Ingredients: Loofah, fish slices, pork slices, clams

Chef Tam says loofah has a sweet taste and is rich in fiber. Whether paired with meat or fish slices, making a soup makes it a good accompaniment to rice. If you have clams, add a few, and the sweetness and freshness immediately increase. In summer at home, it's a comforting dish.

I was a little surprised to see Western dishes in Chef Tam's home cooking. But thinking about it, his cross-cultural food research has broadened his recipe repertoire. Besides, the culture of Hong Kong and Macau is a blend of East and West.

Chef Tam's favorite travel destination is Italy. He has eaten his way through almost all of northern and southern Italy. He thinks Italians and Chinese share a similar perspective on appreciating food. 'Ancient Roman cuisine required certain seasonings, like Italian fish sauce—very interesting.' Italian cooking philosophy is quite straightforward; they always choose ingredients they believe are right. Chefs are obsessed with good ingredients. Only after obtaining the 'right ones' do they start thinking about cooking. Even Korea and Thailand inspire him because of their simple, quick street food culture and the connection of noodles, providing a cultural foundation for fusion cuisine. 'France—I don't think it's bad, but their process is a bit fancy. Not all, but somewhat pretentious,' Chef Tam jokes.

I remember that every time I had supper with Chef Tam in Macau, even in greasy, cramped, noisy places, when he unzipped his bag, it was like Doraemon's pocket—it seemed to contain everything to transform ordinary ingredients into something magical. He took care of everything for everyone at the table, making every hungry mouth feel at home in Macau. For food believers like me who come to 'pay homage' to him, our faith becomes deeper, believing that the world is still beautiful.

Deliciousness without showing off skills usually touches the heart more. I am from Jiangsu and Zhejiang. From the Start of Spring to the Start of Summer, according to traditional Chinese medicine, it's the time to nourish the liver with sweet flavors. Chef Tam's use of the natural sweetness and freshness of ingredients brought comfort to this summer. Looking at Ryokan's calligraphy and enjoying Chef Tam's small dishes—it's like flowers blooming in low places, smiling naturally.

What do you like to eat in summer?

"If you came this way,

Taking the route you would be likely to take."

——T.S. Eliot, 'Little Gidding'

Food Bless You!

Consultant for 'The Flavor of the World 3'

Host of 'The Divine Dining Table'

Producer of 'Wild Appetite China'