Chef Talk: William Mahi

Mahi’s first job in Shanghai was as the Executive Chef of Kee Club. It was there he ran into the worst customer he has ever had. A man who had eaten everything on his plate, and finished the meals of his two female companions, asked to speak to the chef. “You know what he told me? He said my food was very close to that on China Eastern Airlines.” That’s bad. “I invited him to leave and I paid for the meal.”

There is nothing China Eastern about Mahi’s food: wonderful, distinct flavours, with lots of seafood and some spectacular, rich desserts.

Mahi recently introduced an avant garde table at Papillon. “What I will present is what you will eat, if everybody follows actual fashion, 10 years later.” Ten years from where Shanghai is at the moment, or where the world is at the moment?

“Good question,” he grins.

William Mahi is Chef de Cuisine at Lan Club, 102 Guangdong Lu, near Sichuan Lu. Tel: 6323 8029.

Mahi's Chocolate Mousse

Ingredients:
15 egg whites
50g sugar
120g sugar

Technique:
Put the chocolate and butter in a Bain-Marie to smelt
Take out of the Bain-Marie and mix in the yolk with a spatula
Put the egg whites in a mixer with a little bit of salt and sugar and mix. Stop when the eggs whites become stiff
Incorporate the egg whites into the chocolate five times and mix with a spatula
Put in a container and refrigerate

Tip:
It’s best to do these preparations 24 hours before serving

Spicy sauce:
150g cacao powder
600g water
100g sugar
50g butter
Spice (cloves, cinnamon, star anise)

Technique:
Boil everything (except the spices)
Add the spices after filtering the liquid, when the mixture has cooled
Refrigerate

Serving:
Serve the mousse in glasses with a small pool of spicy sauce.