From Malay Mail · Kenny Mah · · 2m
Family recipes shape The Roast Meat Shop's identity
Harry Fong and Olivia Yap craft consistent family recipes for The Roast Meat Shop in Sunway Geo.
In brief
Harry Fong and Olivia Yap craft consistent family recipes for The Roast Meat Shop in Sunway Geo. Harry Fong and Olivia Yap developed The Roast Meat Shop's recipes through extensive testing to achieve consistent quality, especially with dishes like siew yoke and char siew. Originally reported by Malay Mail.
Getting siew yoke right is hard
Harry Fong found achieving crisp crackling was only part of the challenge; getting it consistently crisp across an entire piece of roast pork was another matter.
“One of our biggest challenges was translating our home-cooking recipes into something that could be prepared consistently in a restaurant.”
Half a year of recipe development
It took Fong about half a year of recipe development, ingredient sourcing and repeated testing to find the right ingredients and combinations for siew yoke and char siew.
Skin consistency challenges
Some sections would turn out beautifully crispy, while others would not crackle properly. Sometimes, the skin would become rubbery after a while.
Family recipe heritage
Yap recalls her grandmother's sour-and-spicy Chinese mustard roast pork, a dish passed down from her Hakka grandmother.
Blessing dumplings from aunt
Yap's aunt in the US makes Blessing Dumplings, a recipe learned over 30 years ago at a Chinatown restaurant.
Adapting family recipes
The couple failed several times because achieving the same taste as at home became much more challenging when cooking in larger quantities.
Standard procedures for consistency
After several attempts and adjustments, the couple established standard operating procedures to maintain consistency.
Duck egg noodles for texture
The couple use duck egg noodles for their firm, springy or 'QQ' texture and because they lack a strong alkaline taste.
Higher cost for quality
The cost of making the sauce is higher, but they feel it is worth it for flavour and quality.
In-house food preparation
Fong oversees operations from kitchen to front of house, while Yap focuses on back-end and marketing, including Chinese New Year vacuum-packed roast meat hampers.
Supplier and staffing decisions
They pay close attention to ingredient costs and explore different suppliers to find the best value without compromising on quality.
Small details for experience
Removing onsen egg and Japanese cucumber would cut costs but Fong believes they contribute to a more complete meal.
Vacuum-packed roast meats
The couple are developing vacuum-packed roast meats for home consumption and planning a second restaurant.
Sustainable expansion
They plan to expand cautiously, prioritising food quality and the restaurant's identity over rapid growth.
The headline
Harry Fong and Olivia Yap developed The Roast Meat Shop's recipes through extensive testing to achieve consistent quality, especially with dishes like siew yoke and char siew.
