The Asian Food Channel Presents Aaron Craze of Rude Boy Cooks in Malaysia @ Samplings on the Fourteen at Berjaya University College of Hospitality

Living up to his last name… Craze!

 

The Asian Food Channel Kicks Off the Third Edition of Culinary Masterpieces In Malaysia With the‘Aaron Craze: Rude Boy Cooks’ Tour. Famed Protégé of Jamie Oliver and AFC Celebrity, Aaron Craze took diners on two evenings of a culinary feast at Samplings on the Fourteen at Berjaya University College of Hospitality recently in June 5 & 6, 2013.

AFC debuted Culinary Masterpieces in 2012 by featuring celebrity chefs, Anna Olson and Martin Yan in the first two editions. The third edition promises to bring a quirky and funky twist to the series with Aaron’s signature wit and humour.

He’s no stranger to me! After catching the charming British chef on AFC’s channel of Rude Boy Cooks, I was delighted to be able to meet the chef himself at the dinner event that evening. A chef that makes cooking pretty cool and easy, there is something disturbingly charming and bad boy about Aaron. He makes everything fun and yet, there is a seriousness shown in his food. His story explained it all from his upbringing of survival before being hit in the limelight when he participated and won Jaime Oliver’s reality programme, Jaime’s Chef. That certainly explains why Chef Aaron takes life with a great pinch of salt and humor!

Guests get to enjoy the delicious flavours of Kronenbourg 1664 premium beer paired with Aaron’s menu that evening. Check out our menu for the evening… there is even a vegetarian version!

In between the dinner, Aaron gets down to some serious cooking as he got another staff to assist him in his demonstration of Poached Barramundi with Yellow Darwin Sauce and Pak Choi. Boy did he cause a ruckus in the house that evening!

Questions from guests that evening certainly had Aaron doing his utmost best to listen and answer them, so much so, he took a quick peak from the live kitchen window and somehow got stuck there!

 

Emcee Jojo Struys repeatedly reaffirmed that Aaron certainly lives up to his last name… he is simply a charming bloke who certainly livens up the evening with all his words and actions!

Beef Carpaccio with Shaved Pickled Radish and Micro Greens

Beef in its full glory, thinly shaved in its purest form, is set to wag our tongues with its combination of beefy flavors amped up with sharp aged parmesan and thinly sliced tangy pickled radish. A nest of arugula lends a bitter edge while a sprinkling of melon seeds brings in a nutty note. Though the portion is fairly large, I had no issues polishing off this wondrous combination of flavors and textures.

Scallop Crudo with Pomegranate, Crispy Ginger, Shiso Cress and Coconut

Translated from Italian, crudo means raw. Here, small medallions of sweet scallop are served with pretty pink pomegranates, shards of crisp fried ginger, micro shiso cress and slivers of coconut flesh. The scallops sat in a stained pomegranate juice dressing, making the flavors tangy and sweet with hits of gingery essence. The dish is light and showed off the sea scallop in its own natural element.

Snow Pea and Peppermint Soup

A classic English favorite, the pea soup is creamy and velvety. Hitting up some jazzy notes were the refreshing flavors of the peppermint, its presence making an interesting twist on the classic. A dollop of cream finished the soup.

Wasabi Crusted Lamb with Braised Chinese Leeks

While the wasabi is not strong in the dish as I would have expected, the dish still tasted deliciously beautiful. Sliced lamb is crusted with a nutty crust and cooked to medium pink, rendering it tender. The brown demi-glace sauce is full bodied and the braised leeks are buttery and melt in the mouth tender. The combination works beautifully as a masterpiece and I would have loved to have a bigger portion since the next dish had a sizeable portion.

Poached Barramundi with Yellow Darwin Sauce and Pak Choi

As demonstrated by Aaron, this is an eclectic mix of Asian ingredients with a Western fish. The yellow Darwin sauce has a list of Asian ingredients like ginger, lemongrass, galangal, lime leaves, coconut, turmeric and more cooked till thick with the barramundi poached in it. Utterly creamy with a light hint of heat from the chilies, it is best to savor this piping hot.

Thai Basil Panna Cotta with Scottish Shortbread Biscuit and Poached Rhubarb

The night had to end and it ended with a classy Thai inspired cooked cream of basil infused panna cotta served artistically with crumbed shortbread biscuits and citrusy poached cubed rhubarb. I didn’t get the basil aroma or taste but the dessert was pretty lovely in its own way.

A night to remember, Aaron ended the night by honoring all the students and chefs at the Berjaya University for all their effort in the night’s dinner. There were photograph and autograph sessions as guest mingles into the night.

Caught on camera with Aaron are AFC’s own local celebrity chefs Johnny Fua, Sherson Lian, Anis Nabilah, Jaffery Othman and emcee Jojo Struys.

The ‘Aaron Craze: Rude Boy Cooks’ tour is proudly sponsored by BERJAYA University College of Hospitality and Kronenbourg 1664.