China Daily Global Edition (USA)
WHERE DISHES REVOLVE AROUND THE SUN A Beijing restaurant has an unusual way of choosing its fare, at the same time doffing its cap at tradition
My family has never skipped the tradition of having dumplings on the day called dongzhi (winter solstice) in China, a dining ritual many other Chinese families observe.
People also traditionally eat noodles on the day called xiazhi (summer solstice), and spring pancakes on the day of lichun (beginning of spring).
These days are among the 24 solar terms, a system considered to be China’s fifth great invention and crucial to agricultural events such as when to sow seeds and when to harvest that still guides popular eating rituals.
But is it possible to come up with Western dishes that abide by China’s 24 solar terms?
On the day of guyu (grain rain), the sixth solar term as well as the last term in spring, which fell on April 20, we got to experience a mind-blowing five-course “guyu menu”, put on by Claret, a new Western restaurant in Beijing whose hallmark is its experimentation with special menus in accordance with China’s solar terms.
The ancient Chinese divided the circle of the sun’s annual motion into 24 equal segments, each given a specific solar term called jieqi.
The woman behind the jieqi menus is Sakashita Kiyono, 36, the Chinese-Japanese owner of Claret, and also the mother of two ChineseGerman children, whose multicultural background may well be an imprimatur for the fusion that brings east and west together. Sakashita Kiyono
“Whether it’s a Chinese dish, Western dish or Japanese dish, the ingredients should comply with the solar terms,” she says. “For example, the grain rain period is a golden time to eat spring bamboo shoots.”
Dishes on the guyu menu are unconventional, incorporating traditional Chinese ingredients, and with a Japanese twist, such as the starter of teriyaki spring bamboo shoots and black goji jelly, white asparagus soup with euryale seed and shepherd’s purse.
Sakashita scotches the suggestion that the jieqi menu is a mere gimmick, saying her dietary philosophy is to make the best use of the freshest ingredients, which she says “listen to nature”.
“I want to let nature take its course and focus on seasonal and local ingredients, rather than imported goods, and luxury materials.”
In most people’s mind, the 24 solar terms, more often than not, are related to weather and farming, Sakashita says, and the feel of the changing solar terms is weakening in people’s daily life.
“However, I want to enhance that feeling of the changing nature in the dietary sense. With the arrival of a new solar term, different food in turn can also show off its best taste. I also want to add a sense of ritual in the dining.”
Claret selects 12 of the 24 solar terms and crafts 12 corresponding menus, so that each one can last one month, she says.
Claret, in Aio Space of the 798 Art District in Beijing, is likely to put you in a good mood as soon as you arrive, with its ample light, and its simple but artistic decor. Paintings on the wall are changed in accordance with the solar periods, in order to make guests feel the rhythm of nature, Sakashita says.
Only the freshest ingredients without additives and preservatives are good enough as ingredients in the restaurant, she says.
Away from fusions on the jieqi menus, Claret’s a la carte menu offers homey and rustic European fare, such as quiche, salty pies with crispy skin and tender stuffing, and sugarfree, low-fat ciabatta sandwich.
A variety of handmade basic sauces are shining examples of the natural ingredients Sakashita advocates.
Sauces such as one that is almond sea salted and that can be spread on bread, the traditional basil pesto sauce to go with spaghetti and sand- wiches, the ketchup for french fries, the tomato chutney, olive and fig tapenade … all purely handmade with no additives. Customers can also take them away through store or online purchasing.
Besides the dining area on the first floor, Claret has a 600-square-meter sun room and terrace on the third floor of Aio Space, a spacious al fresco dining spot for business banquets, private parties, workshops and so on. The rooftop justifies a gorgeous venue for offering catering service, another asset Claret boasts of.
Over the past four years Sakashita says that she and her chef team have held more than 500 customized banquets.
She started doing catering with Claret’s sister brand Deli De Luxe, a small community delicatessen.
“I was not meant to do catering in the first place,” she says. “We were initially helping cater for our neighborhoods and friends, and then got increasing words of praise.”
Sakashita says it is surprising to see eventually embassies and foreign companies should reach them for catering service.
“A huge market is there for the medium-high end catering market in the capital now,” she says.
“Prominent restaurant brands such as Flo and TRB are doing a great job in high-end catering. But not every event has a very high budget. We just fill the gap of quality catering that does not cost an arm and a leg.
“By quality catering I mean we do it using only the freshest and seasonal ingredients with no additives and preservatives, which is a far cry from catering food on the assembly line in a factory-style outlet outside the Fifth Ring Road.”
Whether it’s a Chinese dish, Western dish or Japanese dish, the ingredients should comply with the solar terms.” the Chinese-Japanese owner of Claret