“To me, sustainability is not only important, it also benefits us chefs,” Ng said. “When the product travels far, it’s not just about the carbon footprint; it also degrades its quality. The tilapia, fish maw, marble goby and slipper lobster came in alive, flipping and kicking. So, the quality, compared to products we receive from Europe (packed) one week ago, is really very different.”
At his restaurant Path, he continued, “we try to use regional products because of the quality. It’s not because of the pricing – small artisan suppliers and fisheries in Singapore sell their products at prices similar to those from Europe. So, what we are buying is quality and also the skills, time and effort it takes to source those products.”
Since returning to Singapore, he’s already started ordering marble goby and sea cucumber from Malaysia, and these will be on his new menu launching in October.
There are still challenges, of course. The Penang oysters and wild-caught slipper lobsters, which he has his eye on, will be prohibitively expensive to bring in until there is enough bulk in orders.
But the possibilities are there, and they are delicious.
CNA Lifestyle was in Kuala Lumpur at the invitation of Path x Eat And Cook.