{"id":71812,"date":"2026-07-26T15:42:59","date_gmt":"2026-07-26T07:42:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/?p=71812"},"modified":"2026-07-26T15:42:59","modified_gmt":"2026-07-26T07:42:59","slug":"how-top-chefs-are-modernising-chinese-cuisine-globally-from-guangzhou-to-dubai","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/?p=71812","title":{"rendered":"How top chefs are modernising Chinese cuisine globally, from Guangzhou to Dubai"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div id=\"\">\n<p datatype=\"p\" data-qa=\"Component-Component\" class=\"e8zc9q40 css-1c6uqr6 ec74h0k1\">Cantonese cuisine has long been the most popular style of Chinese cooking abroad, thanks in large part to a mass migration from Guangzhou in the 19th century, when the first Western Chinatowns took root. Now, some of the region\u2019s top Cantonese chefs are introducing the world to contemporary Cantonese fine dining rather than cheap Chinese takeaway staples.<\/p>\n<p datatype=\"p\" data-qa=\"Component-Component\" class=\"e8zc9q40 css-1c6uqr6 ec74h0k1\">At the heart of this global movement is a delicate balancing act: keeping the traditional soul of Cantonese cooking intact while adapting presentation and ingredients to suit local palates.<\/p>\n<p datatype=\"p\" data-qa=\"Component-Component\" class=\"e8zc9q40 css-1c6uqr6 ec74h0k1\">In 2019, Jiang by Chef Fei at the Mandarin Oriental Guangzhou became the first restaurant in the city to earn two Michelin stars. The restaurant has maintained its stellar reputation even as Chef Fei \u2013 the culinary moniker of Huang Jinghui \u2013 has expanded further afield. Huang began his journey as an apprentice at age 16 and has specialised in Cantonese and Teochew cuisine for more than 30 years. His exclusive partnership with Mandarin Oriental has taken his cuisine global, with Chef Fei lending his name and expertise to restaurants at the group\u2019s hotels in Shenzhen, Beijing, Singapore, Bangkok and Jakarta.<\/p>\n<div class=\"image-inline-container e1a5rv550 css-1llrc1m e1yqhwb40\" data-qa=\"Component-renderMap-StyledDiv\">\n<div class=\"image-inline caption e1fvabeq0 css-19sk4h4 ea9pn0s0\" data-qa=\"Component-Container\">\n<figure class=\"image-inline caption ea9pn0s1 css-12vv9w2 e1gf69pb0\" data-qa=\"ArticleImage-ArticleImageContainer\">\n<div data-qa=\"ArticleImage-handleRenderImage-ImageContainer\" class=\"css-bjn8wh e1gf69pb3\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Lee Man-sing, executive chef at Mott 32. Photo: Jocelyn Tam\" data-qa=\"BaseImage-handleRenderImage-StyledImage\" class=\"e1gf69pb2 css-6ikqhs e445x7d0\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/img.i-scmp.com\/cdn-cgi\/image\/fit=contain,width=1024,format=auto\/sites\/default\/files\/d8\/images\/canvas\/2026\/07\/23\/4c2db0e5-026c-44ae-8f7e-09f37b18dd0a_483d7628.jpg\" title=\"Lee Man-sing, executive chef at Mott 32. Photo: Jocelyn Tam\"\/><\/div><figcaption data-qa=\"ArticleImage-DescriptionContainer\" class=\"css-1bj5zno e1gf69pb1\">Lee Man-sing, executive chef at Mott 32. Photo: Jocelyn Tam<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p datatype=\"p\" data-qa=\"Component-Component\" class=\"e8zc9q40 css-1c6uqr6 ec74h0k1\">\u201cTo this day, my restaurants are still Cantonese to the core,\u201d says Huang, who emphasises <em data-qa=\"ContentSchemaRender-defaultRenderMapFunctions-Component\" class=\"css-1mniedq ex3nmsa15\">wok hei<\/em> (\u201cthe breath of the wok\u201d), precise knife skills, and the preparation of seasonal ingredients as the essentials of Cantonese cuisine. But, he adds, \u201cTo popularise the cuisine, we must consider a destination\u2019s cultural background and expectations.\u201d<\/p>\n<p datatype=\"p\" data-qa=\"Component-Component\" class=\"e8zc9q40 css-1c6uqr6 ec74h0k1\">When designing dishes, Huang relies on creations that \u201cshowcase the ingredients\u2019 core profile\u201d, ensuring classic double-boiled soups and steamed dishes remain prominent on his menus. Even his deep-sea scampi tartare with caviar, which sounds very Western, is rooted in traditional Teochew raw-marinated crustacean dishes, but elevated with fine cold-water scampi \u2013 a perfect example of a traditional dish subtly tweaked for international guests.<\/p>\n<div class=\"image-inline-container e1a5rv550 css-1llrc1m e1yqhwb40\" data-qa=\"Component-renderMap-StyledDiv\">\n<div class=\"image-inline caption e1fvabeq0 css-19sk4h4 ea9pn0s0\" data-qa=\"Component-Container\">\n<figure class=\"image-inline caption ea9pn0s1 css-1qeofuq e1gf69pb0\" data-qa=\"ArticleImage-ArticleImageContainer\">\n<div data-qa=\"ArticleImage-handleRenderImage-ImageContainer\" class=\"css-bjn8wh e1gf69pb3\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Huang Jinghui, aka Chef Fei. Photo: Handout\" data-qa=\"BaseImage-handleRenderImage-StyledImage\" class=\"e1gf69pb2 css-6ikqhs e445x7d0\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/img.i-scmp.com\/cdn-cgi\/image\/fit=contain,width=1024,format=auto\/sites\/default\/files\/d8\/images\/canvas\/2026\/07\/23\/2317dcc1-d77b-4ff0-a58b-40ff4f81a19b_64f10534.jpg\" title=\"Huang Jinghui, aka Chef Fei. Photo: Handout\"\/><\/div><figcaption data-qa=\"ArticleImage-DescriptionContainer\" class=\"css-1bj5zno e1gf69pb1\">Huang Jinghui, aka Chef Fei. Photo: Handout<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p datatype=\"p\" data-qa=\"Component-Component\" class=\"e8zc9q40 css-1c6uqr6 ec74h0k1\">Since 2015, chef Lee Man-sing has led this expansion. Over a 40-year career that began at a humble <em data-qa=\"ContentSchemaRender-defaultRenderMapFunctions-Component\" class=\"css-1mniedq ex3nmsa15\">cha chaan teng<\/em>, Lee has risen to the top of the culinary world. Today, he enjoys the challenge of crafting Cantonese dishes that win over foreign guests, actively using their feedback to develop new recipes.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><br \/>\n<center><br \/>\n<br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.scmp.com\/lifestyle\/100-top-tables\/article\/3361600\/how-top-chefs-are-modernising-chinese-cuisine-globally-guangzhou-dubai?utm_source=rss_feed\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Read Full Article At Source <\/a><br \/>\n<center\/><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Cantonese cuisine has long been the most popular style of Chinese cooking abroad, thanks in large part to a mass migration from Guangzhou in the&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":71813,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[33],"tags":[9433,107,5449,8075,7721,6768,27210,75],"class_list":["post-71812","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-bored-interesting","tag-chefs","tag-chinese","tag-cuisine","tag-dubai","tag-globally","tag-guangzhou","tag-modernising","tag-top","wpcat-33-id"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/71812","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=71812"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/71812\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/71813"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=71812"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=71812"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=71812"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}