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Publications Topics Archive Topics Archive 2005 Vol.35- No.2 Made in Taiwan - by European Artisans
Publications Topics Archive Topics Archive 2005 Vol.35- No.2 Made in Taiwan - by European Artisans | Made in Taiwan - by European Artisans |
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Whether it's French-style sausages and pates, Italian gelato, or Swiss-style cheeses, you can now find high-quality products in Taipei thanks to three dedicated entrepreneurs. During one shopping trip, I can conveniently patronize a new gelato shop making premium low-fat ice cream, a Swiss-style cheese-factory/restaurant, and a delicatessen serving hand-made merguez sausages and potted pork. And I'm not even in Europe - happily it's all available right here in northern Taipei. As much as I love the local food, it's also good to enjoy some more familiar treats as well. With Taipei increasingly growing more cosmopolitan, the cuisines of many different countries are becoming easier to find here. Not only that, but those specialist products are being made by expatriates for whom Taipei has become home. Take Andre Joulian from Provence, for example. He came here 20 years ago as Food and Beverage Manager of the Ritz Landis Hotel, and now with his Taiwanese wife has a gourmet Provençal restaurant, an Italian pizza and pasta bar, and a top-quality delicatessen. Many of the foods sold in the deli are made by hand - some by Andre himself (sausages, terrines, and patés), and some (pasta, breads, and pizza) by his carefully trained staff. The new food producers here, while ensuring that their food is as authentic as possible, also utilize some of the finest local ingredients. This gives business to local producers and farmers, and makes possible a freshness you cannot find in packaged foods that have traveled thousands of miles before being consumed. Andre, for example, uses such local ingredients as pork, chicken, and seafood, but imports others that simply cannot be found here, such as spices for the sausages. Jens Finke, who makes Italian gelato, imports his commercial gelato syrups from Italy but uses as much local fruit as possible. Peter Frauchiger uses local fresh milk delivered to his factory daily from the countryside for his cheeses, but imports his starter cultures from Switzerland. Although the three make very different products, the emphasis on authenticity and quality is an essential shared element of their success. The sausage maker I am standing in front of a fridge filled with hand-made sausages, paté, and terrines - my idea of food heaven - and I am not in Paris or Marseilles but on ZhongShan North Road in Tianmu. This food has not been imported from across the sea, where it was sterilized, canned, or frozen. It is not pumped full of preservatives to increase the shelf life. Rather, it's real French artisan food made by hand by an expert, Andre Joulian, who with stunning attention to detail replicates the food of his native country for us to enjoy here. Andre was working at the Ritz Landis when he met his wife Sunny [whose wine importing business is mentioned in another article in this issue]. They worked separately in their own businesses for many years until opening Le Jardin in Tianmu nearly four years ago. Andre makes the patés, terrines, and sausages at his home using simple equipment, and the recipes are closely guarded secrets that he won't share even with his chefs. These dishes include traditional chicken terrine with pistachio nuts and authentic French-style potted pork. All the pork he uses is domestic, and Andre considers it to be as good as any available in Provence. Like many Europeans here, I miss sausages the most. So it is more than welcome to find hand-made merguez (lamb with spices), Sicilian pork with herbs and chili, and Toulouse sausage with herbs and garlic for sale here. Andre imports the needed spices and seasoning from Europe to guarantee an authentic flavor. The meat and skins are bought at Tianmu's Shidong Market. In addition, the delicatessen offers a small range of chutneys, hand-made breads, marinated vegetables, and traditional almond cake. There is also a café where customers can enjoy good coffee and a deli sandwich or slice of cake. The ice-cream man Jens Finke originally came to Taipei in 1992 to work for an international trading company. After a few years, he and his Taiwanese wife moved back to Germany, where he would regularly patronize an Italian gelato shop, and eventually he started to make his own ice cream at home. Jens came back to Taiwan in 1996 to sell power tools, but by 2003 he had left Taiwan again and was living in a small city in northern Bavaria called Hof that also had an Italian gelato shop. Jens paid the owner to show him the ropes - and after five months, armed with authentic recipes and "the knowledge," he returned to Taipei to open his own store. To enhance the image of his Tutti Frutti brand, Jens employed a Taiwanese designer who gave his shop a catchy interior based on a fairgrounds theme and incorporating the rescued bodywork of original Mini cars and Volkswagen Beetles. The seating is made out of molds used to make chairs for fair rides (in this case, revolving teacups), although they don??t move in the shop, much to the disappointment of young customers. Of a total range of 45 flavors, 14 are available at any given time. Some of my favorites are blackberry yogurt, choc-mint chip, chocolate, strawberry, and white chocolate gelato, plus a range of sorbets (such as lemon, raspberry, and passion fruit). Jens makes ice cream every day, so the stock is always fresh and changing. The day I went to watch ice cream being made, it was a cherry cola flavor - very popular with children and one of the few fruit flavors made with just a purée instead of fresh fruit. (Cherries in Taiwan are quite expensive and the season short.) The process is fascinating. Jens first measures out the milk, then adds the cherry cola syrup and an emulsifier. The emulsifier helps give the gelato its creamy texture and mouth-feel. Sugar is also added before the mixture is poured into his free-standing locally made ice-cream machine, which was switched on earlier to reach the required temperature of minus 28 degrees Celsius. Once the mixture is added, the huge paddle stirs in air, and immediately the mix begins to freeze. The emulsifier and sugar inhibit the gelato from solidifying completely, and what emerges a few minutes later is a gorgeous pink mass of cornet-ready gelato. High taste, low fat Jens researched the market and decided that there was a niche for a lower-fat product than heavyweight brand Haagen Daazs, a premium product that relies on cream to deliver its smoothness (which also bumps up the fat content to some 20-25%). Jens uses milk at 8% fat to make his gelato, and has also reduced the sugar content from the original recipes so that his products contain fewer calories than other brands. Much of the texture of ice cream also depends on how much air is included. Some manufacturers put as much as 30% air in their ice creams, but that lessens the flavor, so Jens prefers to make his at around 15% ?V providing both lightness and flavor. Although his gelato is dairy based, the sorbets are not - which means they are suitable for vegans or those on a lactose-free diet. Jens admits that business has been slow to build, but he now has a loyal following of ice-cream fans. The American Club's Take-out Corner recently started to carry his products, and he has a stand at the Idee Department Store in Taoyuan. He hopes in the future to get concessions at more department stores and orders from leading supermarkets. Meanwhile customers visiting the shop can try the knockout flavors by single or multiple scoops. One scoops costs a competitive NT$50, two scoops a mere NT$70, or you can go all-out and try three for just NT$90. Get a group together and go for the 14 mini-scoop offer at just NT$260, allowing you to try all the flavors in the fridge that day. To take away, a two-liter party tub of one flavor comes to NT$770. The cheese factory In 1982 a chef from Switzerland, Peter Frauchiger, came to Taipei to work at The Sherwood hotel. Little did he know that more than two decades later he would be starting his own artisan cheese operation in Taipei. I learned about Peter from Andre Joulian when we were discussing the increased availability of Western-style foods in Taipei. Peter, who had just opened a small factory on ZhiShan Road, had dropped off some cheese for Andre's consideration. The cheese was at room temperature and was swiftly dispatched onto a plate for us to sample. After trying the camembert-style cheese, Andre immediately rang Peter to order some for the restaurant. Peter's complete range of cheeses is now also for sale at Andre's shop, Maison Alexandre. A few weeks later, I spent a morning with Peter at Chococheese, his new restaurant and cheese factory just next to AliBaba's playland for children on the road leading to the National Palace Museum. The restaurant features a cheese-themed menu, incorporating Peter's own cheeses in the dishes, as well as a small range of pasta sauces (chili, tomato, and pesto) and some fresh yogurt drinks to take out. Peter also continues to be a partner in Ticino's restaurant in Tianmu, which specializes in fondue and raclette (two famous European cheese-based dishes). One of the aims of the new venture is to educate Taiwanese consumers about how cheese is made and how it can be incorporated into different dishes. Cow's milk, of course, has never been an important food source in China, although historical references can be found. During the Tang Dynasty (618-907 A.D.), China had a dairy product that was similar to curd cheese, produced by lightly fermenting fresh skimmed milk. There was also a form of clotted cream (su) and an oil (tihu) made by gently heating the su for a period of time. Su was eaten with honey like Greek-style yogurt, and tihu was used like shortening to make pastries. Both of these, though, were just a passing fashion and did not become entrenched in the Chinese diet. In recent years, however, Taiwanese consumers have begun to appreciate the taste of cheese and gratin dishes as found in many Western-style restaurants. With equipment from his home country and the assistance of expert Swiss cheese maker Ulie Schenck, Peter and a partner opened Chococheese in August of last year. Originally Schenck was to stay for two months to fully train the staff in producing Swiss-style cheeses. Unfortunately he was only able to stay for 10 days - just enough time to give Peter a crash course in the dos and don'ts of making fine-quality cheeses. To an experienced chef and food producer like Peter, this did not present a problem. Besides being a fast learner, he is dedicated to following the recipes exactly, which he is convinced is necessary to produce consistently high quality. First, a source of fresh milk had to be found - not that easy on an island that is heavily reliant on dried milk imports. The milk for the cheese is now delivered from a dairy in central Taiwan and each batch undergoes testing to ensure it is the right quality for cheese production. Antibiotic residues, unfriendly bacteria, and the degree of freshness will affect the end result. After testing, the milk is heated in a tank to 32 degrees Celsius. Rennet, which comes from the lining of a calf's fourth or true stomach, is added to curdle the milk. This is an important element in cheese making and is the reason why some vegetarians will not accept cheese in their diet. Vegetable alternatives can be found, and in recent years consumer demand for animal-free cheeses has seen their increased use in commercial cheese making. Purists argue that foods like cheese cannot be truly authentic if made somewhere other than in the original location. There is an element of truth to that, since milk tastes quite different and contains different levels of nutrients depending on what the cows eat, where they feed, and the season (it is well accepted by dieticians that summer milk is more nutritious than winter milk). But the various steps of the cheese-making process can easily be replicated wherever you are. Peter says that he makes "Swiss-style" cheeses, made to the original recipes but adapted for his factory and customers. He takes me into the factory, where 100 liters of milk have been poured into the curdling tank. Here the milk will be heated to 32 degrees Celsius and two starter cultures added. These bacteria help raise the pH level of the milk, which takes around an hour. The rennet is then added, and the milk left again to set to a soft jelly-like curd. Peter tests the milk at this point to ensure that the curd has begun to set. His assistants then fetch a huge cheese wire and start to pull it through the curds very gently but with even strokes. The amount of time given at this stage for the curds to set further depends on the type of cheese to be made. A camembert-style cheese needs less time than a hard cheese like parmesan, where a rubbery curd is demanded. At this point, the curd is beaten gently to release the whey. Ripening and cheese style The curds are then separated from the whey and pressed into molds. Peter's factory makes three different sizes of cheese. The molds are then treated according to the style of cheese being made. Today it's a camembert-style cheese, which after being salted is coated with a special fungus that will cause it to form the white coat characteristic of this type of cheese. Meanwhile the enzymes present will penetrate the interior of the cheese, turning the center to a creamy, more liquid texture. Because this style of cheese ripens from the outside, it is always made in thin wheels. Harder cheeses, in contrast, have salt rubbed on the outside and are ripened by the starter bacteria already present from the earlier process; the surface salt helps them form a harder protective crust. Happy accidents led to the invention of many styles of cheeses. An example is the cheese that ripened in the caves of the Roquefort region of France, where a particular mold was naturally present. This style of cheese can now be made anywhere, since scientists have managed to isolate and grow the individual strains that impart the unique flavor and color. Thanks to modern techniques, you can make anything more or less anywhere. In fact, it is now rare for naturally occurring micro-organisms to be allowed to dominate the production of any given style of cheese. Once the cheese has been inoculated with the correct bacteria, the only additional tools needed are time and a controlled environment. The cheese-ripening room, while carefully monitored to ensure that the cheese is developing properly, is fully on view to diners in the Chococheese restaurant. There is a dazzling array of perfectly pressed rounds of cheese, all labeled and dated, each shelf and row denoting a new batch and a different style. The older, riper cheeses are detectable by their changed color and smaller size. As cheese matures, it loses water and therefore volume; if you start with 100 liters of milk, you will probably produce around 10-15 kilograms of cheese. Peter also produces top-quality yogurt drinks. The yogurt is made on site and available plain or with added fresh fruit. Although the natural yogurt has a shelf life of 21 days, the fruit flavors do not. All the flavors - strawberry, passion fruit, and banana included - are made with fresh fruit, which dramatically reduces the shelf life (to approximately 10 days, depending on the flavor) because of the active enzymes in the raw fruit. Also in Peter??s repertoire are fresh pesto and pasta sauces, as well as his own bread and pastries for the restaurant. Of all the cheeses I have tried under the "Ticino" label, the camembert was the winner, but such other varieties as Picolo de Mondo are also excellent. You can buy a cheese plate to try in the restaurant or purchase the cheese to take away. For me, you can't beat a slice of fresh wholegrain bread with a wedge of hand-made cheese. Many food lovers look at the label to see where a product is manufactured before deciding whether to buy it. Living is Asia means that unless you have a small fortune that won't always be a practical option. Entrepreneurs like Andre, Jens, and Peter have bought excellent-quality artisan products to our doorstep, with the result that country of origin is no longer a crucial consideration. Where to Go Chococheese 34 Zhishan Road, opposite Wellcome. Tel: 2734-9897. Web site: www.chococheese.com.tw Products also available at the Breeze Super and Maison Alexandre. Le Jardin Provencal Restaurant 1F, ZhongCheng Road, Section 2 Tel: 2877-1178 Maison Alexandre 756 ZhongShan North Road, Section 6. Tel: 2876-1229 Tutti Frutti 3-30TianMu East Road. Taipei (next to Kingstone Bookstore). Tel: 2874-4538. Web site: www.euroburg.com. |
