Grand Hyatt Shanghai
Executive Sous Chef Rolf Knecht Gives us an Insider's Look
There are hotels and then there’s the Grand Hyatt Shanghai housed in the Jin Mao Tower located in the city’s Pudong district- an architectural marvel that is the highest hotel in the world. The lobby of this stunning structure is on the forty-second floor and every floor is beautifully appointed with marble tiles, floor-to-ceiling views of the city and every possible modern amenity imaginable.
Multi-Million Dollar Food and Beverage Operations
Swiss-born Rolf Knecht is the hotel’s Executive Sous-Chef- a gargantuan task in itself as the hotel has a multi-million dollar food and beverage operation that it takes very, very seriously. On a recent tour through the hotel, Chef Knecht took the group from the receiving rooms where a meticulous staff break down whole sides of beef and entire pigs to crates of fresh produce in separate areas. The hotel also boasts its own in-house bakery, which explains the buttery breads and pastries enjoyed at that morning’s brunch.
The Ins and Outs of Training Local Cooks
Chef Knecht shared some of the intricacies of running the F&B operation for such a huge hotel that includes almost a dozen restaurants and lounges. For one thing, training local Chinese cooks poses some challenges given the local populace isn’t used to cooking with salt or Western seasonings (they add soy sauce as their major salt component in Chinese cooking).
“Once I train a chef to cook in our Italian restaurant for example, I can’t ever put him back in our Chinese kitchens. His palate is forever changed. And believe me, I have heard about it from angry wives who say that their husbands come home and can’t cook food properly anymore!” explains Chef Knecht. A fascinating point this writer had never considered. “It’s like their palates are corrupted,” he says.
In keeping with the Asian theme of the hotel, Chef Knecht has generously offered a recipe for Food Trend readers- Steamed Crab Roe Dumpling- it’s a keeper and while a bit laborious, worth every second of effort!
Steamed Crab Roe Dumpling Recipe - Compliments of Chef Rolf Knecht of the Grand Hyatt Shanghai
Ingredients for Filling
Minced pork 700 gm
White pepper 500 gm
Corn starch 15 gm
Sesame oil 5 ml
Sugar 15 gm
Ginger 10 gm
Salt 10 gm
Water 150ml
Chicken powder 15gm
Dark soy sauce 20ml
Crab meat and roe 100gr
Pork skin jelly 700gr
Preparation
Mix all Ingredients together
Ingredients for Dough
Cake Flour 1500gr
Bread Flour 400gr
Cold Water 1lt
Mix all the Flour and Water together and knead well.
Let rest for 30min at room temperature before using.
Chef Rolf’s Note and Tip:
This is enough dough for 380pcs of dumplings. But you can freeze the leftover dough for your next batch of dumplings. If you make it in smaller batches it does not work nearly as well.
Ingredients for Pork Skin Jelly
Pork Skin Minced 500gr
Ginger chopped 50gr
Chive 50gr
Chinese cooking wine 20gr
Water 1lt
Preparation
Ask your butcher for minced Pork Skin.
Bring all Ingredients to a boil and then reduce heat
Let simmer until the liquid becomes Gelatinous
Strain and set aside
To prepare the Dumpling
Roll the Dough very thin
Cut the dough into 4 by 4 cm pieces and place the meat in the middle while folding the dough around
Pour the cold Jelly inside and close the dough on top of it.
Steam in a dumpling basket over boiling water or in a steamer for around 10 minutes.
Serve with Chinese Rice Wine Vinegar and a few Ginger Juliennes
Exterior of the Hyatt
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View from the Hotel
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