MASTERCLASS

Head chef Tan Kee Leng of NUDE Seafood shows Victoria Lim how to inject an Asian twist to crustaceans.

Alaskan king crab and tiger prawns

“Ilike using Asian ingredients and drawing flavours from my childhood, and then layering them with the help of modern cooking techniques,” shares Tan Kee Leng, head chef of NUDE Seafood.

This culinary approach extends to this masterclass where he shares his Tiger Prawn with Chinchalok and Peach recipe. Chinchalok, a fermented shrimp condiment, is commonly served with sambal stingray. Peach, umeshu and kaffir lime are added for a balancd acidity. Whereas The Alaskan King Crab pays nod to Singapore’s national dish, chilli crab. Instead of plain, deep-fried mantous, grilled Chinese black bean mantou shaped like a cocoon makes for an interesting substitute. There are ways to shorten the cook time of the Alaskan King Crab recipe without affecting the final result. You can steam

the crab instead of poaching it in court bouillon. Instead of making dashi stock from scratch, you can also use store-bought dashi packs. “They are like tea bags that you steep in hot water to create the stock,” shares Tan.

Marinating the crab in salt overnight allows flavours to develop and take on more depth. Another important tip: salt your boiling water heavily. “When hauled from the sea, crustaceans contain natural amounts of salt. If your water is not as salty as sea water, osmosis occurs and all the salty-sweet essence will be transferred into the surrounding liquid,” he adds. Tan suggests sprinkling salt over a cast-iron skillet or using it as a heated bed for grilled prawns. “The salt retains all that wonderful moisture and keeps the delicate seafood from drying out”.