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Susan Jung

Wilson Kwok received a degree in business administration at California's Loyola Marymount University  before deciding to pursue a career in food and wine. He attended the University of Bordeaux where he received a master's degree in oenology. He also went to  the famous Cordon Bleu culinary school in Paris. Kwok returned to Hong Kong and opened steakhouse W's Entrecote in Times Square, which recently moved to  another Causeway Bay location.

For five years Kwok owned W's Paris 13th, a Vietnamese restaurant in Tsim Sha Tsui, which closed in 1999. Kwok says he started eating Vietnamese food as a student in Paris, and he has visited Vietnam  several times.  He  admires the way of life there, saying, 'They know how to cook. It involves a lot of chopping and shredding; it's a lot of work but they take the time to gather the whole family together to enjoy the meal.'

The following recipes are from his bilingual cookbook (the recipes are written in Chinese, with English translations at the back), Enjoy Vietnamese Cooking.

Steamed whole fish with minced herbs and pork pate

1 freshwater pike, about 500 grams, cleaned and scaled

100 grams Shanghai pak choi

30 grams glass vermicelli

4 cloves sliced garlic, fried until brown

50 grams fresh Chinese mushrooms, sliced

30 grams Vietnamese pork pate (available from shops in Stone Nullah Lane, Wan Chai)

20 grams fresh dill

Chopped red chillies and shallots to taste

For the sauce:

1 tbsp fish sauce

250ml water

Juice of one lime

1 tbsp granulated sugar

1 tsp chopped red chillies

1 tsp chopped shallots

20 grams ginger, finely shredded

Rinse the fish and put on heat-proof dish. Heat water in the lower half of a two-tiered steamer, and when it boils steam the fish for  4-5 minutes until half cooked.

Cut the Shanghai pak choi in halves through the stem end and soak in water for 30 minutes, then drain. Soak the vermicelli in water until soft, then drain.

Bring the sauce ingredients to the boil in a small pan and pour into a fish-shaped metal dish. Place the

fish in the dish and lay the pak choi, glass noodles, garlic and Chinese mushrooms along the sides of the fish. Put the pork pate, dill,  chilli and shallots on top of the fish.

Either steam for about five more minutes, or put the dish over a sterno burner and  continue to cook   at the table.

Deep-fried spring rolls

50 grams minced pork

20 grams dried black fungus (also called wood-ear or cloud-ear fungus)

20 grams carrots, peeled and chopped

20 grams water chestnuts, peeled and smashed with  the side of a cleaver

20 grams peeled raw shrimp, minced

10 grams glass vermicelli

1 tbsp fish sauce

Coarse salt, pepper and sesame oil to taste

20 sheets rice paper, 20cm in diameter

Cooking oil for deep frying

1 egg whisked with 1 tbsp flour

Condiments:

Leaves of butter lettuce or Chinese lettuce

Mint leaves

For the dipping sauce:

5 tbsp water

2 tbsp sugar

? tsp coarse salt

1 tbsp freshly squeezed lime juice

2 tbsp bottled fish sauce

1 tbsp rice vinegar

3 small cloves garlic, chopped

? tbsp chopped red chilli

Season the minced pork with a pinch of salt and pepper. Soak the black fungus in water until soft. Squeeze out the excess water then chop the fungus. Soak the glass noodles for 30 minutes, then squeeze out excess water and cut into 5cm lengths.

Heat 1 tsp oil in a wok. Stir-fry the minced pork over medium heat until partially cooked, then add the black fungus, carrot, water chestnut and shrimp. Stir-fry until fully cooked. Remove the mixture from the wok then toss with the vermicelli, fish sauce, salt, pepper and sesame oil to taste. Let the mixture cool completely.

Make the dipping sauce by boiling the water with the sugar and salt. Let this cool then add the remaining ingredients.

Wet a clean dish towel and wring until just damp. Dip a sheet of rice paper in hot water for one second and put it on the towel. After a few seconds the paper should be pliable. Put a heaped tbsp of filling on the rice paper about 3cm from the bottom. Start rolling the rice paper over the filling, fold in the sides then finish rolling, sealing the edge with the egg and flour mixture.

Heat oil for deep-frying in a pan. When the oil is hot, lower the heat to medium and cook the spring rolls until they float to the surface.  Remove the spring rolls from the oil and drain them. When they are all fried, turn up the heat under the oil and fry the spring rolls a second time to brown and crisp them. Drain on paper towels.

To eat, wrap a spring roll in a lettuce leaf, add some mint then dip in the dipping sauce.

Beef fillet cubes with black pepper and lettuce wrap

150 grams beef fillet, cut into cubes

1 tsp crushed black peppercorns

? tbsp fish sauce

Coarse salt, to taste

1 tsp cooking oil, plus extra for frying

Condiments:

Lettuce leaves

Dipping sauce (see recipe for spring rolls)

Mix the beef cubes with the peppercorns, fish sauce, salt

and 1 tsp oil. Let this marinate for at least an hour.

Heat a little oil in a pan, and when it's hot, pan fry the steak over high heat for just a few minutes, or until well-browned outside but still rare inside. Remove from the pan.

Wrap the beef cubes in lettuce leaves and dip into the seasoned fish sauce. Serves two.

Enjoy Vietnamese Food is available for $68 at local bookshops (it is usually in the Chinese-language section).



The French connection