Sunday October 4, 2009
His melting pot
By ROUWEN LIN
A chef’s hat is one of many worn by Roger Mooking.
DON’T call him a chef or a musician just because he cooks and he sings. Roger Mooking, host of the TV cook show Everyday Exotic, says that the two things are one and he prefers to be called a “lifestyle entertainer”.
“For many years, I looked at food and music as two different things. Since I was doing both at the same time, I found that I was going sort of schizophrenic because there were just too many different elements involved,” says the Canada-based presenter, who’s also the TV series co-creator.
From the time Roger’s grandfather sailed from China to the Caribbean, the Mooking clan has been destined for the food and beverage business. Music is another family tradition. – Photo courtesy of Discovery Travel & Living But he bravely trudged on despite the growing frustration, and one day he was rewarded with an epiphany: “I suddenly realised that I really shouldn’t be looking at them as two separate things. I’m one person doing two things, so why split it? Both music and food can nourish your spirit. Whether you come to my restaurant or whether I cook for you at home; whether you come see me perform with my band or listen to my CD, it’s all just entertainment. All I am is the entertainer working with different media, so you can call me a lifestyle entertainer.”
Lifestyle entertainer or not, cooking has always held a special place in Mooking’s heart. One could even say that it is in his blood as his family traces three generations in the food and beverage industry.
His grandfather sailed from China to the Caribbean and opened restaurants and bakeries; his father ran restaurants for over 20 years; and all his aunts and uncles own catering companies.
But although he knew from a very young age that he wanted to be a chef, Mooking is reluctant to play favourites. There really isn’t much to choose between cooking and music as they go hand in hand for him, says the third-generation restaurateur and chef.
Just as the food and beverage business has been a big part of his life, music has dominated much of it. As he grew up in a house that was always filled with song, music is inevitably thrown into the equation.
Power of papaya in watercress and papaya salad. “I knew from age three that I wanted to be a chef – but with food and music always filling our home, it was only natural for me to take to both and explore all that I could,” the youthful-looking 35-year-old tells The Star at the Hilton Kuala Lumpur.
He was in Malaysia recently to promote his upcoming Everyday Exotic series, which premieres on Discovery Travel & Living (Astro Channel 707) on Tuesday, Oct 6.
Working in restaurants since he was 14 years old, Mooking took all the money he earned and went to a recording studio to try his hand at music.
“People said I was good at it so I kept at it. Before I knew it, I had all these music accomplishments. It was really crazy stuff – all my money just on recording and buying records, but I guess you could say that I’m still doing exactly that now!” he laughs.
The best of basil in Mooking’s chicken soup. Mooking, a singer-composer who has won Canadian awards for his musical projects, ponders on the fact that even when he was exclusively doing music for a while, he was always drawn to restaurants and how they operate behind the scenes.
“I was always going to restaurants to see what’s going on there and to take in as much information as possible as a chef.”
While counting his lucky stars that he always knew exactly what he wanted to do with his life, Mooking admits that it’s not always easy to start something, even with a clear goal in mind.
“Even if there’s a path right in front of you, it does take quite a bit of faith to surrender to it. To walk that path, you may have to do things that you may not necessarily want to do,” notes the multi-faceted guy.
For one, he points out that a chef’s day can be unpredictably long. And a life in the kitchen is really not as glamorous as some TV shows make it out to be.
Mooking should know. “As a young chef, for instance, there were days when I had to peel 20 bags of potatoes and there is no way you can call that fun. You might have fun with the first bag, working away with a Y-shape peeler, but by the fourth bag you’d feel like killing somebody!” he says.
Like the level-headed guy that he comes across as, Mooking is quick to acknowledge that all the hard work and training is part of being disciplined.
“I don’t think you can achieve success in life without a certain amount of discipline. Hard work is called just that for a reason, and it’s never going to be easy all the way,” he stresses.
Mixing food and music
Currently the executive chef/co-owner of two restaurants in downtown Toronto, Canada – Kultura and Nyood – Mooking has indeed whipped up a name for himself in the gruelling and competitive culinary world.
Born in Trinidad and raised in Edmonton, Canada, Mooking has now spent over 15 years in Toronto and is married with two kids.
He has just released his debut solo album, Soul Food – a unique food and music project under Warner Music – in which he showcases his talents as an emcee, vocalist and songwriter.
Of the “ingredients” that make up the album, he writes on his website (http://www.rogermooking.com/aboutme/): “A pick of 60’s Soul, Classic Hip Hop, The City, and some Spices.”
He is reluctant to categorise its genre. “I drew from rock soul, hip-hop soul, ballad soul, old school soul, modern soul. I wanted to make an album that sounds as if you were listening to your iPod on shuffle. I realised that people are listening to music that way, so why should I be genre-locked in making my record?” he further states on the website.
On the showbiz and cooking front, Everyday Exotic is his newest venture. There are 26 episodes in the first season.
It may be known as a cooking show, but Mooking assures that it’s a cooking show with a difference.
“Many cooking shows will show you how to cook a recipe. I take it further and demystify ingredients: I choose an ingredient for an episode – it may be lemongrass, miso, ginger, papaya or black pepper – and I show you where to buy it, how to tell when it’s ripe, what to combine it with to produce a meal, and then I show you how to cook it in several different ways,” he reveals.
The chosen ingredient featured on each episode is called the “obedient ingredient”. Mooking says he calls it that because it is only when you learn how to control it that you will know precisely how to use it to its full potential.
“I really want to inspire people to think differently and this show will open up your eyes to using common ingredients in ways you’ve never even considered before.”
He adds that although the recipes on his show can be easily recreated at home, he considers it more a guide than a foolproof manual and urges people to use their imagination to explore the endless possibilities of creating new dishes.
What’s more, the show caters for people of all levels of skills, starting from zero!
“Everyday Exotic is a real unique programme because it bridges many different skill levels. It introduces basic techniques to those who don’t know how to cook, but it also works for those who do know how to cook because it shows them new things they can do with simple ingredients. It is a show as much for the novice as well as the intermediate and professional cooks,” he promises.
Well, if you want to find out how curry works with macaroni and cheese, how star anise can be used when preparing a flank steak, or how succulent lychees can go with potatoes and pork chops, then tune in to Everyday Exotic.
It’s going to be a crazy roller coaster ride with Mooking at the helm.
‘Everyday Exotic’ airs on Discovery Travel & Living (Astro Channel 707) every Tuesday at 7pm, starting Oct 6. Encores are on Wednesday, midnight, and Thursday, 2am.
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