Lost in the dessert

With more and more competitions filling up the culinary calendar across the Middle East, the aesthetics of desserts now play an important role in promoting the innovation of chefs working in the region’s kitchens.

Shangri-La Hotel, Qaryat Al Beri’s Salim remarks that the region’s pastry chefs are now recognised on the global stage for their creative talent.

“I think in this region the pastry chefs are some of the most innovative,” he says. “We’re definitely on a par with the best in the world; compared to some areas, we are actually further ahead, but if you look at it overall we’re right there with any other country in terms of fineness and quality of the products we’re producing.

“I think this progress is to do with the exposure this region has had to international influences,” continues Salim. “The flow of ex-pats coming into the region, the type of training they’ve had and also the information they receive.

“Look at the amount of magazines and the amount of information available on the internet, and the competitions and events going on around the globe today; when you witness more inner creativity coming out you want to create more and be more innovative.”

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Radisson’s Mayor says even in a developing culinary market such as Kuwait’s, a wide range of ingredients can be purchased.

“In Kuwait a good range of pastry ingredients are available, but as soon as you search for something ‘out of the box’, limitations arise due to the lack of demand, unrealistic prices and restricted food market supply,” he says.

“In developed hospitality markets, this quickly changes due to new demands.”

But even when ingredients are hard to come by, it seems many pastry chefs try to avoid purchasing entirely ready-made frozen alternatives.

Renaissance’s Weerasinghe comments: “Purchasing frozen desserts is definitely something I try to avoid.

“Our guests at the hotel look for that homemade touch and I make sure that I am involved from start to the finish of every product that reaches the counter at our pastry shop.

“No one can ever be sure of who touches what and what goes where if it comes in frozen, wrapped up in a company logo,” he says.

It seems that as long as the region’s chefs devote time to culinary creativity, the future of the sweet and dessert segment of the Middle East’s culinary industry is assured.

And with consistent supplier support regarding the availability of ingredients, the region has the potential to become a leading light on the global dessert stage.