Fat Cow’s Executive Chef, Dan Segall, has created a few new adventures for the taste buds. Frank Young takes a trip for the tongue and tells it all
By Frank Young
The last time I was at Fat Cow, Group Executive Chef Dan Segall was tasked to develop a few special recipes exclusively for Weekender.
While he was creating these dishes before me, his culinary artistry and technical skills were apparent. But the proof is always in the eating.
That’s why, when I was invited back for a tasting of their new menu, I didn’t hesitate for a moment.
Adventure in Texture & Flavour
OK, I admit. I am a carnivore. Evolution has made us the top predators. And top predators don’t eat leafy cabbage.
So, when dishes come to me short on meaty ingredients, I don’t get excited. Tasting the first dish, an appetiser, the Osen Tomayo No Gyu Furai (egg with fried bone marrow), $16, was just one of those “occupational hazards”.
Despite my nature I can still fully appreciate meat-light fare, courtesy of parental nurture.
The Osen Tomayo dish was a lightly-poached egg and golden fried nugget of bone marrow, on top of a bed of seaweed in a bowl of citrus dashi (miso broth). The recommendation is to break the poached egg, mix the medley, and eat it with a spoon.
As you’d expect, there is a “yolky” flavour to the whole dish. The tempura bone marrow was crispy on the outside and soft on the inside. The seaweed and egg’s slippery texture contrasted surprisingly with the soft crunchiness of the seaweed with every bite, while the broth gives it a citrus-y freshness balanced with salty umami flavours.
Overall, this is a finely-crafted dish designed to enhance many different taste dimensions.
A Symphony of Flavours
Next, I tried the Wagyu No Kakuni, $38, (Wagyu rib meat simmered in a sweet, ginger soy broth). This was a stewed dish with small delicate chunks of Wagyu and translucent white carrot in a reddish brown broth.
The Wagyu was tender and melted in the mouth. It was no surprise there.
The real star, though, was the broth. It added a strong yet balanced, flavourful, salty yet sweet, taste to the delicate
Wagyu beef.
There was a refreshing and surprising zing from the zest of the yuzu (a citrus fruit). All the strong pungent ingredients created a symphony of flavours that was both pungent and balanced – apparently a Dan Segall style.
Fat Cow, Camden Medical Centre, 1 Orchard Boulevard, #01-01, Singapore 248649, www.fat-cow.com.sg
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