October 4 – 7^th 2011, Singapore: 

Chef Khalid Arif from the hit MBC 1 TV show, Sabeh el Kheir Ya Arab, joined 20 other world-renowned chefs from 15 cities across Europe, America, the Middle East, China, India, Hong Kong, and Australia, were invited to Singapore to participate in the Singaporean International Culinary Exchange (SPICE), with the objective of learning, absorbing, experimenting, and creating Singaporean inspired dishes infused with their own cultural gastronomic twist.  For the finale showcase on the last day, chefs organized themselves into teams and prepared and presented their own Singapore-inspired dishes and creations to Singapore's food and beverage industry representatives and media.  The objective is that participating chefs will create and introduce two Singapore-inspired original recipes in their restaurants, based on their SPICE experience.

“The Global Chef Exchange aims to immerse the visiting chefs into Singapore's culture and culinary scene. By exposing them to authentic Singapore cuisine and culinary ingredients, we hope to inspire them to create dishes with a distinct Singapore twist, at their own establishments when they return home. This is in line with our continued efforts to showcase and create business opportunities for Singapore's food industry through SPICE, the Singapore Takeout and other ongoing efforts,” says Ranita Sundramoorthy, Director of Attractions, Dining and Retail of the Singapore Tourism Board.

“From strolling through a hawker food center, to Little India's food market, or a high-end restaurant, it's easy to understand why Singapore is innovating the way the rest of the world eats.  You can find everything in Singapore, every culinary fare the world has to offer, yet, it's reinvented in a way that makes it unique and presented in a way that makes it genuinely Singaporean, and that is an art.  Food is exported to Singapore from the rest of the world where it comes alive in every sense," an inspired Khalid Arif, Asia Box, Saudi Arabia, explained.

All formalities and pleasantries were quickly bottled, sealed, and stored away once the aprons were adorned and knives were sharpened for the 45-minute quick-fire "ice-breaker" challenge on the first day and during the showcase on the final day. Teams huddled, planned and prepped, with knife skills and food knowledge at the ready, displaying their interpretation of Singaporean-inspired dishes. 

Colorful arrays of bok choy, galangal (a subtle, mustard-scented rhizome similar to ginger), fresh coconuts, laksa leaves, belachan, tamarind, lemongrass, fragrant kaffir lime leaves, vibrant red chillies, noodles in every texture, and a selection of meats, fish and poultry, tantalized chefs with endless Peranakan inspired possibilities. Chefs quickly appreciated each other’s cultural reference points and abilities to conceptualize a cross-continental delectable dish under 5-minutes, and execute it to perfection, under some serious clock-ticking pressure.

During the final showcase, pounding knives and grinding pestles filled the air with the tangy aroma of lemongrass and chilies, while boiling shrimps, crabs and sizzling fish were pungent, yet, fragrant indicators of being on an island nation.

Throughout the 4-days, chefs feasted, explored and experimented, along an educational food trail around iconic food locations such as Chinatown, Tekka Market and Tiong Bahru Market, which was nothing short of a Peranakan culinary fête. 

"It's an amazing experience to be surrounded by and learn from such a diverse and talented group of culinary artists.  I personally have learned so much through the Global Chef Exchange, as my restaurant, Asia Box, is inspired by the gastronomic fare of this region.  Experimenting with other chefs, the engaging workshops, the competitive challenges, have inspired a few Singaporean influenced recipes I am refining and will include on the menu at Asia Box in the near future," elaborated Khalid Arif, Asia Box, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.

Don’t miss Chef Khalid deconstructing and reinventing the flavors of the world on his hit daytime TV show, Sabeh el Khaier Ya Arab, on MBC 1 Sundays and Tuesdays at 12, noon.

For more information and latest updates on the various SPICE initiatives, please visit us on www.facebook.com/singaporeeats.