Dessert is something cannot be missing especially for ladies. The story today is about one man who used to pursue his dream in the US and has fell in love with dessert so much. From a normal guy, he has now become one of the frontline dessert chefs in Thailand with his own creative dessert style that comes with non-complex taste. This creates smiles and happiness for people to happily enjoy his dessert.
We are having a conversation with Chef Gee – Chotiphat Laisuwan at the BBCO dining room at JW Marriott Bangkok (Sukhumvit Soi 2) which he is going to tell us throughout seven questions to better the understanding of the dessert world.
What is a Patissier Chef and what aspire you to be a chef?
I never knew what my dream was. I finished my degree in Economics and worked for the insurance company for 2 years but I did not feel passionate about it. Therefore, I wanted to search for my own passion and that brought me to the US. I started learning English and doing a waiter job at the same time. From there, I started to absorb the art of cooking which made me realized that I like handmade work. I then decided to study about photography not when I had a chance to visit the food show at Philadelphia where I saw the Patissier Chef cooking the dessert. I thought that this is how arts can be combined into food. It is something that I like as well as I can make money out of it, so I decided to take it professionally since then. With the supportive feedback of people around me, it helped confirm that I have come to the right path.
How is eating dessert in Thailand different from the US?
Basically, each region has their own eating cultures including exposure, choice of consumption and value. I think Thai people love cake that has many fruits in it, however that’s not what people in the US eat. So it took me for a while after I return to Thailand to learn, observe, and adapt to it.
Thailand is a tropical country. Is it possible to find the quality ingredients in this range of temperature?
As a chef who works at Marriott which is the American hotel chain, the quality of ingredients is somewhat our main priority. With the fundamental knowledge about ingredients that our clients have, it’s quite easier for us to connect that together. I think that the world these days is connected, so sourcing for ingredients around the world is something possible. However, it depends on the chef to set the need of the ingredients that will suit the price.
How does dessert and culture related to one another?
I think it’s totally relevant because dessert and food has been embedded into the culture for so long. Every culture always include food such as Christmas or Thanksgiving. Each occasion comes in different seasons; therefore, the type of food will come out differently according to the season. We can also see this kind of norm also happens in Thailand.
Do you think that the diet trend affects the way you design dessert?
I think it does somehow for example the trend of not eating carbohydrate. I think it’s actually a challenge. However, I think dessert is something people are craving for, but people may have to exercise along after eating them.
What is the most special ingredients in Thailand used in doing dessert?
Thailand is a country where it is rich of seasonal fruits. This has become the advantage for us to create various kinds of dessert. As a Thai person who knows Thai ingredients quite well, it gives me more advantages compared to other foreign chefs.
What could be the future dessert eating trend for Thai people based on your experience in the past 10 years?
I personally think that the trend will not change much. Thai people are very flexible, so when there’s an emerging trend, people will just try to catch up. I think the color does the job in attracting attention from people. However, if it’s not delicious, people will not return to have it again. No how the time passes by, I think that taste is the most important considering element for people at all time.
Thailand has so many interesting ingredients which Chef Gee would like to create the dessert menu for people to try on. Some of them are Siamese Ruby, and red waxy corn which are the plants invented by Thai people, and you can eat without having to boil them at all. This can comply with the healthy lifestyle trend and maybe we may get to try some menu made of the Siamese Ruby by Chef Gee soon!
“ When people eat, I want food to be source of your entertainment. As long as you are happy, I am also happy.”, said Chef Gee.
Author
Nattaporn Pinpech
Creative / Story teller
Interviewee
Chef Gee – Chotiphat Laisuwan
Executive Pastry Chef at JW Marriott Bangkok