Playing It Cool
Not satisfied to settle for subpar desserts, Sarah Tan and Kim Ngoh founded Minus 4 Degrees, which churns out the most velvety ice cream you will ever taste
We bring you the foodies behind Minus 4 Degrees as they talk about their passion for desserts and their meticulously made ice cream
Generally the Chinese like their desserts on the lighter side whereas the Malays and Indians enjoy an intense sugar rush; how do you find middle ground for our nation’s wide-ranging taste? Kim: Our ice creams are generally less sweet, but we’ve noticed that different flavours cater to different demographics, so I think the emphasis is more on flavours than sweetness. And due to health awareness campaigns, most Malaysians do not mind the reduced sweetness.
Was Sarah’s love for the kitchen inherited, Kim? Kim: Yes, from my mother–in-law, who was a very good cook. Even a simple dish like long beans with dried prawns and soy sauce could turn out to be so appetising.
What were your sentiments when she expressed an interest in the culinary arts? Kim: She’s always had a palate for good food. We could see her passion and her gift, so we weren’t surprised that she chose this line.
Where did you build your culinary chops, Sarah? Sarah: My first exposure to the industry was at a Japanese restaurant while waiting for approval to intern in Germany. Thereafter, I was at Cilantro for two years followed by a 1.5 month stint at Attica in Melbourne before joining Dewakan for two years.
Three famed restaurants headed by three fantastic chefs! What were some valuable lessons you learned from your mentors? Sarah: I have deep respect for chef Takashi Kimura from Cilantro as he taught me a lot about ingredients, seasonality, flavour and technique. Cilantro is where I honed my basics. Chef Azlal Ariffin was the chef de cuisine at Cilantro. He is one of the best cooks I know, and I want to be able to cook like him. I would pay attention to how he cooked pasta for instance, and strive to achieve his standards. I harbour both fear and respect for chef Darren Teoh of Dewakan, mainly because he’s a nononsense guy and will tell you as it is. He’s not afraid to push the envelope. It is at Dewakan where I learned about Malaysian produce and embraced being Malaysian. Darren, who was also my lecturer at college, has been extremely supportive of Minus 4 Degrees.
The last time I looked at a label from a large-scale ice cream manufacture, I spotted some ingredients that didn’t look too gut-friendly. Comments? Sarah: Discerning consumers are paying more attention to nutritional content these days. I believe it is a collective effort from those who are in the industry and social influencers who help educate the market on what goes into their stomachs. I am not opposed to stabilisers; an appropriate amount can slow down melting and can aid texture. I do not, however, use any, the reason being that they mute flavours. We advise customers to finish their cartons within a month to enjoy optimum freshness.
Your ice cream tastes so ‘alive.’ I put it down to the use of natural ingredients including thyme, black pepper, bananas and durians. Is it challenging to achieve consistency in your ice creams, given that you’re using natural ingredients as opposed to imitation flavouring? Sarah: Certainly. With durian, for example, flavours vary from one season to the next, and from one orchard to another. Sweetness and aroma is also affected by the weather. Malaysians like intense flavours that come on strong, which is what artificial flavourings do, whereas natural flavours blossom on the palate slowly and subtly.
Packaging and presentation, both of which can say a lot about a brand, is your jurisdiction, Kim. What does Minus 4 Degrees’s appearance say about the brand? Kim: We are a homemade ice cream producer, so our primary focus is giving our clients the best quality ice cream possible with no compromise. Packaging and presentation are secondary. We could come up with very canggih branding, but that would increase the cost of the product unnecessarily.
What do most consumers take for granted? Kim: Us choosing the best ingredients possible. Once, we threw away a batch of durian that didn’t meet our requirements, and our gula Melaka is sourced directly from Malacca. To some consumers, ice cream might just be ice cream. Why should they pay a higher price for artisan ice cream over commercial ice cream? To that I say: because we use all-natural ingredients sans artificial colouring or flavouring! We also use one of the highest quality creams available in the Malaysian market.
I imagine a love of good food runs in your family. What meals do you crave most when all that ice cream starts to get a bit jelak? Sarah: A bowl of hot soup such as herbal chicken soup or bak kut teh. Kim: Japanese food.