BY LILIANA SHERYN, JAMES WONG & AWANG MUHAMMAD SYAHMI
KUCHING: Traditionally, baking has been a predominantly female activity.
However, today, there is a growing number of men taking up baking as a hobby or even as a profession — breaking the gender stereotypes in the baking industry.
Recently, three male chefs from different countries were invited to showcase their pastry making skills and share their specialties with the audience at Amy Cake Decorating and Cooking Institute here.
They also took the opportunity to share with New Sarawak Tribune their journey in baking.
Le Thanh Tung, a 32-year-old chef from Vietnam who specialises in cake decorations, shared his passion for the art of cake decorating.
Le, who has been a chef for 14 years, discovered his love for cake decorating at the age of 16 after seeing a friend decorating cakes.
“I started learning by myself and found my interest and talent in decorating cakes,” he said.
He currently works for Fuji Oil Asia in Singapore and travels around Asian countries to demonstrate and promote innovative pastry by the Japanese.
Le shared that cake decorating was not an easy task and required a lot of concentration and patience.
The most difficult process, according to Le, is when he has to decorate cakes with a knitting design.
“I have to start from scratch to mix the flour, butter, and all related ingredients to create the icing,” he said.
A normal flower design only take 10 to 15 minutes to complete but a complicated design such as knitting can take hours, depending on the size of the cake.
Despite the challenges, Le never gives up and continues to push himself until he is satisfied with his work.
“It’s very rewarding when I see people enjoying the cakes that I made. I always try to create something new and innovative to impress my customers,” he added.
Le’s dedication and passion for cake decorating are a testament to the hard work and creativity that goes into the baking industry. His story serves as an inspiration for aspiring chefs and bakers around the world.
Ivan Liew, 41, from Singapore, has been a pastry chef for more than 10 years and has worked at many well-known places including restaurants, 5-star hotels, and cafes in the republic.
He currently works at Fuji Oil Asia research & development in Singapore as Vivo’s brand application specialist to create new applications for customers throughout Southeast Asia.
“My job is to invent new applications. I create pastries and cakes using Vivo ingredients for the customers throughout Southeast Asia,” he said.
Liew added he joined this industry because he wanted to create quality pastries and bring happiness to the customers through his skills.
“I constantly experiment with new flavours, ingredients and techniques to create visually stunning desserts.
“I also combine western and local influences in my baking. Soon, I would like to experiment using the famous Sarawak black pepper and infuse it with chocolate,” he said.
Throughout his career in the industry, one of his biggest achievements as a pastry chef was creating a giant gingerbread house with his team.
“The size of the gingerbread house was one floor tall, and it took about 2 weeks for my team and I to finish the product.
As a pastry chef with 10 years’ experience, Liew has also endured many challenges in his career.
“The work can be physically hard, with long periods of standing and executing repetitive activities, and it requires a great degree of creativity, passion and dedication.”
“They must also be able to operate swiftly and efficiently in order to meet high demand, particularly during peak periods such as holidays and special events.”
“Furthermore, pastry chefs must always invent and experiment to create new and fascinating dessert creations while matching their customers’ expectations,” he said.
Meanwhile, Naruse Masato is a 37-year-old chef from Japan who specialises in bread making.
With a master’s degree in agriculture, he joined Fuji Oil Group in 2011 to focus on bread development in the Japanese bakery and donut market.
With 12 years of bread theory under his belt, he is currently the application manager in Fuji Oil Asia in Singapore and is in charge of the bakery and confectionery markets throughout Southeast Asia.
Naruse was inspired by the Japanese culture of trendy confectionery making where each year will witness the popularisation of certain foods.
“One year, you will see everyone obsessed over something, and next year you will see new food creations appearing in all convenient stores in Japan.
“I try to keep up with the trends and combine my culture alongside new ideas when creating new recipes,” he said.
Commenting further, he said that it was fulfilling for him to share his recipes with the public.
“The biggest challenge for me is establishing good communication with my customers as I need to work with their demands.
“I will also use their feedback and comments to improve my work as I am the only one in my department and my customers are my only opportunity to improve.
“The most important thing for me is to perfect my work until I receive an ‘oishii’ or ‘delicious’ from them, and that is my biggest motivation,” he added.
Earlier, in honour of Mother’s Day, a special event celebrating the art of baking was held at Amy Cake Decorating and Cooking Institute and the three chefs were invited to share their skills.
The event, which was open to the public, was a mouth-watering feast to showcase popular and innovative baking techniques, including bread making, pastry making, cake decoration and cake tasting.
One of the highlights of the event was the promotion of Vivo ingredients, known for their high quality and delicious flavours.
Attendees were treated to a variety of baked goods made with Vivo ingredients, including the Maritozzo, an Italian inspired bread that had been trending in Japan.
This delectable treat is like a brioche, but with less egg and a glazy exterior that is achieved by baking at a high temperature for a short time, topped with fresh fruit like strawberries, mango, or banana.
Another standout at the event was the Sweet Heart Sand, a heart-shaped sand bread that uses Yudane dough, a traditional Japanese baking method to achieve a chewy texture that would have your taste buds dancing with joy.
The Rose Apple Tart, which features a Japanese cheese tart-style filling baked all together with a soft, crumbly crust, was also a hit with attendees.
The event was a celebration of the hard work and dedication of all the amazing mothers out there.
