DAN JARRETT, EXECUTIVE CHEF, SPICERS TAMARIND RETREAT

Favourite dish to make on the menu?

Our tofu jorim, which is my take on a Korean braised tofu dish. Even non-tofu lovers enjoy it.

Go-to dish when cooking at home?

I love to cook chicken in the kamado (traditional Japanese stove) over charcoal ... or anything cooked this way.

Apart from Asian/Thai, what’s your favourite cuisine and why?

I love Greek food, as I spent five years in a Greek restaurant, and it holds great memories for me.

Most difficult dish you’ve ever had to cook and why?

Not sure about difficult but I definitely put pressure on myself when I did a collaboration dinner with Zaiyu Hasegawa, from DEN Restaurant in Tokyo (one of Japan’s best chefs) and did a Japanese-inspired dish. It was lucky he loved it.

What ingredient couldn’t you do without?

That’s pretty hard. I love eggs, chilli and all things pork.

Favourite local ingredient and why?

Mountaintop Mushrooms’ oyster mushrooms: super-local and full of flavour. Also, I have a local gentleman who will pick me bamboo shoots when available – absolutely amazing!

Best dish that you make using that local ingredient?

The bamboo goes into our Northern Thai-inspired roast pork jungle curry.

What dish are you toying with to include on the menu next?

Goolwa pipi – with soba (thin Japanese noodle made from buckwheat) and black beer ponzu (sauce).

Why did you become a chef?

I don’t have a romantic story. It was a way to get out of school and once I started, I really enjoyed it.