Simply natural
Cut down on condiments and you are on your way to eating more healthily. -ST
Sat, Oct 31, 2009
Mind Your Body, The Straits Times
By Poon Chian Hui
Chef Ivan Yeo, 47, practises what he preaches. He eats brown rice at dinner even though he dislikes it.
"I want to set an example for my children; to encourage them to eat more healthily," said the corporate chef at Park Hotel group who has three children - a daughter, 16, and two sons aged 12 and 10.
Together with his 46-year-old homemaker wife, he makes sure that family meals include plenty of fruit and vegetables and little seasoning.
"I don't want the kids to get used to too much seasoning," he said.
His belief in the importance of cultivating healthy eating habits at a young age spurred him to design a healthy kids' menu for Indulge at Park, an all-day dining restaurant at Grand Park City Hall.
For this menu, he has replaced conventional ingredients with healthier alternatives. For instance, he uses egg white instead of fat for hamburgers.
He prefers natural flavours and uses fruit juices, herbs and spices instead of processed sauces. He uses fresh ingredients so the food is tasty enough on its own.
His dish for this column, cured salmon with mini-salad, draws on similar principles.
The salmon centrepiece, with its vegetable and fruit accents and lightly showered with a honey dressing, gives the dish a fun look. It is colourful too.
It is a light and refreshing appetiser which appeals to the eye, said the chef.
In addition to a balanced diet, Mr Yeo takes daily brisk walks after dinner and goes cycling with his family on weekends.
| Recipe | |
| CURED SALMON WITH MINI-SALAD (Serves four) Ingredients 450g salmon fillet, skin removed For curing salmon (A) 1 litre of water 30g salt 15g sugar Pinch of white peppercorns, crushed 10g fresh dill Pickled vegetables 10g white vinegar 20g sugar 25ml water Pinch of white peppercorns, crushed 1 bay leaf 40g carrots, peeled, cut into strips, blanched 40g french shallots, peeled, cut into triangles 40g fennel, cored, sliced and blanched Manuka lemon dressing 30g Manuka honey 35ml fresh lemon juice 50ml sunflower seed oil 40g fresh avocado puree 30g light sour cream 15g fresh dill sprig A dash of white peppercorn, milled |
Method Prepare salmon one day ahead. Place the (A) ingredients in a pot and bringto a boil. Reduce the heat and stir till salt and sugar dissolve. Leave to stand at room temperature till lukewarm. Place salmon in mixture and leave for 24 hours in the refrigerator. After that, remove the salmon, pat dry and slice into cubes. For pickled vegetables, add water, sugar, white vinegar, bay leaf and white peppercorn in a pot and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer till the sugar dissolves. Allow to cool before placing all the vegetables in the mixture. Marinate for two hours. After that, strain the carrots, fennel, shallots and add a pinch of ground black pepper. For the dressing, whisk the lemon juice and Manuka honey. Add sunflower seed oil and whisk till all the ingredients are well-mixed. Toss the cured salmon with the dressing and season with salt and pepper. Press the seasoned salmon into small timbales or moulds. Place the salmon timbale in the centre of the plate and top with avocado, light sour cream and dill. Place the pickled vegetables around the salmon timbale, drizzle with remaining dressing and serve. |
This article was first published in Mind Your Body, The Straits Times.