Hong Kong chef Ray Choi uses his fine dining experience to experiment with local ingredients
- His mother first taught him how to cook, even if the reluctant chef ‘preferred mopping the floor’ to stir-frying or braising
- Stints at L’Atelier de Joël Robuchon, the Mandarin Grill and Tate Dining Room led him to high-end catering company Butler
How did you start cooking? “When I was 12 years old, my mother wanted me, my older brother and my sister to help around the home – wash the dishes, clean up or cook. We started by washing vegetables and chopping ingredients, then we learned to stir-fry and braise.
“Cooking wasn’t something I chose – whoever was free helped to do whatever needed to be done. I preferred mopping the floor. But as my mum taught me more, I saw how cooking techniques affected the finished dish, which made me interested. Her cooking is pretty good and she had the patience to teach us. She told us things like, for choi sum, the stems need to be cooked longer than the tips, and I used this information later.
What was your first restaurant job? “I started working in restaurants after high school, when I was 17 years old. A friend got me a job as a waiter in a Western restaurant in Tsim Sha Tsui – there were no kitchen positions at the time.
“Six months later a job opened up. They started me off easy in the cold kitchen, preparing salads, dressings and smoked salmon. I watched others in butchery and making soups. Then, in 2005, a relative suggested I take courses at the Vocational Training Council, so I learned Western cuisine with a focus on butchery, and took other courses in bakery and desserts.”
What do you like about fine dining? “After I graduated, in 2006, I worked at the Jockey Club, in Happy Valley, for four years; two in the cafe and two in The Derby Restaurant. I also took part in competitions at Hofex and Sopexa, winning first prize in 2007, creating a pork tenderloin with pea purée and cheese sauce.
