A Soiree
of Amazing Norwegian Seafood Feast
The Norwegian
Seafood Gala Dinner 2018, hosted by Her Excellency Gunn Jorid Roset,
Norway’s Ambassador to Malaysia, celebrated milestones of 50 years of bilateral
relations between Norway and Malaysia as well as 25 years of the annual grand
event of Norwegian Seafood Gala Dinner.
*photo credit to the original owner
Held at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel,
Kuala Lumpur, the most anticipated event of the year continues to outdo each
year with much sumptuous notes than before. A soiree attended by many VIPs and
elites of the society, this year Norwegian
Seafood Gala Dinner 2018 was also honored with the attendance of the
Minister of Foreign Affairs Dato’ Saifuddin Abdullah.
Heartfelt thanks to the invite from Royal
Norwegian Embassy and Scribe Media Link, it was truly a priceless experience at
this 25th Norwegian Seafood Gala Dinner for me. Right from the
moment one walks into the grand ballroom of the gala dinner, the majestic sight
of the ice sculpture of a Viking ship stood as the main backdrop for King
Neptune’s ransom of Norwegian seafood. From monstrous monkfish to king crab,
highly-prized turbot, salmon, Norwegian shrimp, langoustine and more, Norwegian
Chef Frank Naesheim and his culinary team from Norway, has gone all out with an
amazing kaleidoscope of seafood feast for the gala dinner.
More amazing ice art of Norwegian seafood
can be seen through the spread of the feast!
For this year Norwegian Seafood Gala
Dinner, Head Chef and CEO of Snorre Food Pte in Singapore, Chef Naesheim has
gathered special award-winning chefs such as Geir Skeie, Kenneth Loke, Markus
Dybwad and Anderson Ho with him to create an unforgettable menu featuring all
the guest chefs signature dishes at the live stations.
*photo credit to the original owner
The feast of the evening highlights every
imaginable Norwegian seafood flown in from Norway. Chef Naesheim and culinary
team features international flavours as well as local flavours utilizing
Norway’s bountiful seafood produce.
*photo credit to the original owner
The evening’s best bit had to be the
Guest Chefs live stations. Simply not to be missed, the award-winning chefs are
personally whipping up their signatures in pretty mini versions of
deliciousness. Each dish prepared with creative interplay of textures and
flavours and fine cooking to enhance the beautiful Norwegian produce from the
sea.
Chef
Geir Skete
Pan
Fried Langoustine with Celery in Langoustine Soup
Raw
Salmon Salad ‘Pink Fish’ with Apple & Fennel.
Chef
Kenneth Loke
Smoked
Norwegian Mackarel Mousse with Horseradish, Yuba Chips & Raw Sweet Snap
Peas
Pan
Fried Norwegian Langoustine with Hay Infused Coconut Milk, Tumeric Tapioca
Puffed & Pandan Oil
Slow
cooked Norwegian Fjord Trout & Roe with Cep Brown Butter, Crispy Bulgur,
Capers & Pickled Cucumber.
Chef
Markus Dybwad
Varanger
King Crab with Red Cabbage, Chipotle Mayo & Pickled Jalapeno
Sterling
White Halibut with Cucumber, Black Olives, Feta & Basil Leaf
Norwegian
Mackerel Escabeche with Anchovies Cream
Chef
Anderson Ho
Cold
Water Shrimps with Ebiko Cream & Squid Ink Sago Crisp
Norwegian
King Crab with Granny Smith Apple & Basil
Salmon takes limelight with various
preparation from smoked, poached and pickled to marinated, cured and raw
Sashimi style. Tuck into Chermoulas Cold
Smoked Salmon, Hot Smoked Salmon with Gochujang, Hot Smoked Salmon with Sambal,
Szechuan Salmon Trout, Double Smoked Salmon Alaska Style, Lemon Pepper Salmon,
Salmon Tartar, Gravlax Tartar and more.
There is also Dill Herring with Pickled Carrot & Pumpkin, Curry Herring with Apple
& Mango, Marinated Herring with Asian Salsa and Sweet & Sour Salmon. These dishes are practically flavour bombs
of pleasure!
A gorgeous King Crab Club Sandwich with Tomatoes and Avocado was not only a
sight to behold but deliciously crafted with oceanic sweetness of king crab
meat paired with fruity and creamy notes.
Another glorious piece of succulent
crustaceans took form in Norwegian
Coldwater Shrimp Tower!
The effort that goes into preparing the Whole Cold Poached Salmon & Medallions
are truly worthy in every bite. The richness of the omega-rich salmon tasted
sublime in chilled form. Savor this with some toasty baguette for extra crunch
factor…
Cooked
King Crab Legs that needed nothing else except a gentle squeeze of lemon
for that luscious crab sweetness.
If only all salads are like Seared Pepper Salmon Nicoise with Quail
Egg, Potato & Green Beans, Norwegian Shrimp Salad with Eggs & Asparagus
and Potato & Smoked Mackerel Salad!
Each one uniquely tasty with Norwegian seafood prepared poached, seared and
smoked.
Smoked
Haddock with Fennel & Onion Slaw Citrus Plum Sauce
There is the obligatory visit to the Gravlax Carving Station featuring Cold Smoked Salmon with Chive-Scrambled
Eggs as well as the bountiful chilled bowls filled with Salmon Roe, Black Lumpfish Caviar and Red Lumpfish Caviar to be savored with
buck wheat blinis and condiments
Chef Naesheim sneaked in the classic Japanese Sushi and Sashimi with Mackerel,
Salmon, Salmon Trout and Halibut as well knowing how Malaysians enjoy the
cuisine of Japanese very much.
The rows of hot buffet warmers are filled
with seafood injected with international and local flavours from all the
contributing chefs. From Western to Chinese, Malay, Indian and Thai, there are
plenty of dishes to please even the discerning foodies.
A delectable Baked Whole Turbot with Langoustine Coulis & Vegetable Primeurs!
Tuck into Western dishes such as Seared Norway Langoustines with Grand
Vegetable Mirepoix, Grilled Norwegian King Crab Legs with Blood Orange &
Butter Sauce, Hot Smoked Wolfish with Egg, Capers, Hazelnut Butter &
Pickled Red Onion and Fried Crab
Cake with Tartare Sauce. The Fried Crab Cakes are crispy with a creamy
filling of sweet crab meat that goes so well with sauce. The langoustines and
King crab legs are not to be missed as well.
Thai flavours of savory, sweet, sour and
spicy from Steamed Halibut with Chili
& Lime Juice and Baked Whole
Norwegian Salmon with Fresh Herbs and Red Curry Gravy are highlighted
through the seafood.
The Chinese always seem to master the art
of cooking seafood with minimalist and flavouring them well to enhance the
freshness of the seafood. The team did a fantastic job this year in creating dishes
like Steamed Monkfish with Superior Soy
Sauce, Braised Sea Cucumber with Basil Leaf in Szechuan Paste, Fried Salmon
with Spicy Szechuan Sauce and Steamed
Lobster with Garlic.
Guests also savored Malay dishes like Steamed Halibut with Kalio Sauce and Oven Baked Cod with Green Chili Paste &
Tamarind Skin as well as Indian dishes such as Kashmiri Salmon Tikka Masala and Wolfish Masala.
The evening ended with luscious sweet
notes of international dessert buffet with highlights on Swedish and Norwegian
desserts such as Princess Cake,
Traditional Ring Cake, Norwegian Sweet Soup, Riskrem, Vannbakkels Blotkake,
Norwegian Baked Prune Custard and more.
Besides Norwegian sweets, there are also
live station serving Cloudberry Espuma
and Semi Frozen, Vafler Station with Sour Cream & Berries Compote and
house made ice creams. There are also other international and local desserts
available.
*photo credit to the original owner
On another hand, a Congratulatory note to
Jon Erik Stenslid, Director, Southeast Asia, Norwegian Seafood Council who won
the Malaysia-Norway Business Council’s
Special Recognition Award for his endless dedication in creating awareness
of the benefits of Norwegian Salmon!
A big applause to the incredible team
from Royal Norwegian Embassy and Norwegian Seafood Council as well as
the culinary team led by Chef Naesheim and special guest chefs for making the Norwegian Seafood Gala Dinner 2018 an
unforgettable event of the year.
An amazing soiree that truly epitomized the gorgeous produce from the waters of Norway!
An amazing soiree that truly epitomized the gorgeous produce from the waters of Norway!
