In all three rounds of the contest, the menus of Mrs Nghia came from her
dreams; dreams that wake her up at midnight. She hurriedly writes recipes hardly
able to wait until sunrise, when she can light the fire and start to cooking.
This fire was stoked up by another fire burning inside her.
Guests and other chefs offered compliments and made encouraging noises
while they watched Chef Nghia Ngoc Tran, from the Tien Loc wedding restaurant,
create a dish called “Crayfish steamed with tea”. On a Menu named “Hương Trà” this means the
aroma of tea. It was presented in the semi-final of the Golden Spoon 2013. Chef
Nghia took pebbles brought from Buu Long Mountain. These were burned and fired
in a gas oven and kept in a wire mess, then placed in a deep bowl and using a
piece of silver paper to cover the top. She also added green tea leaves to the
silver paper. Next step is to put seasoned crayfish on top before pouring the
liquid of green tea powder on the crayfish and covering. The cold water met the
hot pebbles creating a stream of blue steam. The beautiful aroma of the
crayfish and tea filled the room.
The audience of a hundred and the judges watched the performance,
speechless
From a corner of the room Mr Ly Ngoc Minh’s face changed expression from
worry to surprise. Finally he relaxed and was smiling.
“There was a young girl from Dong
Nai and she made me so nervous that I felt ill.
When I saw her cook the dish at a temperature of 800 Co in a
ceramic bowl and then pour cold water on it. I was afraid that the bowl would
shatter. However, it remained intact and
the food tasted delicious. Her
creativity touched my heart, I was
fascinated” said Mr Minh Ngoc Ly in the closing ceremony of the semi-final
round of the South region. When Chef Nghia went up to the stage to receive this
reward, her brother- in- law, the only relative she had present, was crying to
see the beautiful smile of his sister.
All necessary tools and equipment as well as all the ingredients needed
for the performance were delivered one Honda Lead motorbike. Chef Nghia
traveled alone from Bien Hoa to HCMC then from Bien Hoa to Binh Duong province,
without support from her family or any sponsorship. Her luggage contained no
really expensive or modern equipment. Her team wasn’t really a professional
team but just a simple group of her and her two friends. She performed with her
own inner strength, desire and the passion of a young person who wants to
overcome her situation and win the Golden Spoon Contest.
Chef Nghia Ngoc Tran
The secret box was opened in the final
round, it contained: bacon, pork rib, prawn, snail, and raw ground pork. Chef
Nghia started to worry but soon regained her confidence when the ideas started
to flow. She created a Menu full of the
colors of Spring, and therefore named it “Warming Spring”. The menu included
dishes named “Đong đầy hạnh phúc”
meaning happiness fulfilled, “Hỏa tửu
ngọc thạch” which means hot wine in a glass made of precious stone, “Chén ngọc sum vầy” which means all
family members have been gathered together and “Kim thạch ngọc” meaning one a valuable precious stone. The dish “Hỏa tửu thạch ngọc” was highly
appreciated by the judges as it was made with prawns seasoned with pear and
apple juice and grilled over fire on halit (a kind of rock with salt) found
from Himalaya mountain and dating back 250 million years. However the dish that
everyone liked the most was “Chén ngọc
sum vầy” roughly meaning “bitter melon stuffed with mint pork”. A rustic
dish this was presented in a very elegant way, fit for a luxury party table.
The bitter melon was cut into segments and pork mixed with shrimp was placed in
the middle. It resembled a cup and even had a “handle” made of pork rib. The
bitter melon retained its beautiful green color and it was served with a broth
made of chicken and pork bones. It tasted delicious with the pork and shrimp
stuffed in the middle. It was served with steamed rice scented with pandan
leaves. The message from the dish was, “Hard times have passed and a new year
brings good fortune”
Tears fell again when Chef Nghia went up to the stage to receive second
prize in the Golden Spoon Contest. They were happy tears and well deserved for
a young girl with a great passion for cooking. She bravely faced her challenges
and continues to further challenge herself. It is also interesting to realize
that the entire menu that Nghia created,
came from her dreams, which is very romantic. The dreams wake her up at
midnight. She hurriedly writes recipes hardly able to wait until sunrise, when
she can light the fire and start cooking. This fire was stoked up by another
fire burning inside her.
Golden Spoon
This article was written in the book
“Golden Spoon and Vietnamese Elite Cuisine”: the first season.
The Golden Spoon and Vietnamese Elite Cuisine is a book about cuisine published to
coincide with the Golden Spoon contest. It includes many rustic and traditional
dishes that come from various provinces in Vietnam. It also writes portraits of
truly talented chefs and stories telling of dreams to promote Vietnamese
cuisine to the world.
This
book is sold at Phuong Nam bookstore chain and in the showroom of Minh Long I
Co.Ltd