for home and for work

German masterchef Jochen Kern is an old hand at cooking with palm oil.

MASTERCHEF Jochen Kern gives a big hearty laugh as he reminisces about the first time he cooked with palm oil. It was in the kitchen of a fancy hotel in Penang, when he was still very new to this country and its ways.

“My colleagues called it ‘ vegetable oil’, but they didn’t tell me exactly what it was made of. I used it and found it was an easy oil to use for everything. No smell, no taste – a good oil,” says Kern.

“Only later did I learn that it was palm oil, which I had never used before then,” says the chef, originally from Braunschweig, Germany.

“By that time, I had already fallen in love with its versatility.”

That was 16 years ago, and Kern still uses palm oil today.

“I use it for everything,” he says. “You cannot escape from using palm oil when living in a country that produces it. But the good news is, it is not difficult to use, and is very versatile.”

He loves red palm oil in particular, for the silky reddish- orange hue it adds to salad dressings. And its rich components of pro- Vitamin A carotenoids and Vitamin E, of course.

“You can even consume a tablespoon of red palm oil every day to improve your health. That’s how good it is,” says the masterchef.

Kern, like many other chefs, uses golden palm oil for deep- frying, as the oil has a high smoke point. When oil is heated past its smoke point, the fat molecules break down, oxidise and release free radicals and a substance called acrolein – the chemical that gives burnt foods their acrid flavour and aroma.

With a smoke point of 235° C, palm oil can withstand high temperatures and deliver the desired crisp result.

Besides using palm oil for his home cooking, Kern also uses it at the School of Culinary Arts at Berjaya University College of Hospitality in Kuala Lumpur, where he is the director. “We use palm oil for all hot cooking,” he says.

On top of the red and golden palm oil, Kern also use palm kernel fat at the culinary school. Palm kernel fat is extracted from the nut of the oil palm fruit. It is cholestrol- free and is high in Vitamin K.

“Traditionally, pork lard is used to make sausages, as it holds the meat together and gives it a juici- er taste. But at Berjaya, we use palm kernel fat instead and so all of our sausages are halal.”

Palm kernel fat is semi- solid at room temperature. It also has a high smoke point and can be stored longer than other vegetable oils.

“Palm kernel fat has the same consistency as lard. It is tasteless and has all the classic advantages of oil. It is also easy to use for emulsions. I use it in the stuffing for my dolma ( stuffed cabbage leaves), and it holds the meat together real well,” says Kern.

Here, he shares some of his favourite dishes made using palm oil. One of these is the Smoked Tilapia Fillet with Paku Shoots and Red Palm Oil Aioli.

The chef has a crucial tip for anyone using the freshwater tilapia. “I strongly suggest that you use live fish for this, it will taste much better. And if you do, don’t forget to let the tilapia swim in clear water for about four days before you prepare it,” says Kern. “This is to remove the muddy taste that freshwater fish can have sometimes.”

For those who don’t fancy dealing with live fish and prefer to get theirs prepared at supermarkets, Kern says that you can replace the tilapia with any other type of fish.

“I’m just using tilapia to support the use of local fish,” he says. “But you can use any fish that you want, such as salmon or tuna.”

Rub the fleshy side of the tilapia with salt, pepper and sugar. Set aside for 10 minutes. To smoke tilapia Take a wok that is large enough to hold a metal cooling rack. Line the wok with a sheet of aluminium foil, with sides extending beyond the rim by at least 10cm.

Mix the rice, tea and brown sugar in a bowl and pour into the wok.

Lightly oil the metal cooling rack and place it on top of the wok. Place the fillets on the rack, and cover the wok with a domed lid.

Place the wok on the stove over medium heat. When the rice mixture begins to smoke, fold the aluminium foil flaps over the rim of the lid to seal in the smoke. Reduce the heat to low, and smoke the fish for 15 minutes.

To check if the fish is done, uncover and cut into the thickest part of a fillet. The fish should be moist, flaky and opaque. If the fish is not done, cover the lid and smoke for a few more minutes. When done, remove and cut into slices. To make red palm oil aioli Pound the garlic in a mortar and pestle till fine, then add red palm oil to the paste.

Whisk the egg yolks, mustard and lemon juice into the mixture and continue whisking until it is creamy and emulsified. Season to taste with salt and pepper. To prepare paku shoots Boil water in a large pot with vinegar, salt and sugar.

Blanch the paku shoots in the mixture for 10 seconds, then remove and refresh in ice water. Set aside. To plate Place paku shoots on serving plates. Arrange some smoked tilapia fillet on top and pour the red palm oil aoili on the side.

Garnish with julienned tilapia skin, edible flowers and red radish slices.