This cookout was originally held on October 22, 2005.

This weekend’s cookout takes us to the home of Wong Boon Choy. Mr Wong is the chief executive officer of a mutual fund company and a friend of The Weekend Chef publisher, Steven Poh. We had been planning this cookout for quite a while and finally managed to pin down a definite date. This time round, we didn’t get our camera man to follow Chef Woo as he went on his shopping rounds, after previously being chastised by security guards for shooting video footage on their premises!

I had originally planned to ask my mother to make her chilled durian cheesecake as dessert but was unable to find good quality durians. So after a brief period of panic, we settled on cheese tarts and tau fu fah. There were concerns if the two desserts would fit in with Chef Woo’s meal but we decided to take a chance as both the tarts and tau fu fah are relatively neutral tasting and should be able to complement just about anything. Worst-case scenario - I would just declare that we were doing a fusion-style meal!

We arrived at Wong’s house just before tea and found Yan Sean, our creative producer, and Chef Woo already busy shooting and preparing the various ingredients. I still had no idea what Chef Woo had planned but I did spot some asparagus, spring onions and bacon. Bacon seems to appear very often in Chef Woo’s masterpieces.

Kevin, our photographer, was engrossed in turning mundane ingredients into works of art. On the way over, one of the props (a glass) was broken but instead of just discarding it, Kevin paired it up with an egg, a chilli and some bay leaves. The result can be seen in the Food Art section.

Mr Wong’s wife Siew Hoon had prepared tea along with some tidbits (keropok, muruku and onion slices) that they had purchased while shopping earlier, and we alternated between snacking, preparing and chatting. Suddenly, someone noticed the cheese tarts and out they came. To my relief, the tarts were a hit and it was fortunate that we managed to save some for dessert later!

At around six, Chef Woo declared it was time to get started on dinner. The marinated chicken was laid out onto the baking tray and popped into the oven. We later found out that instead of using normal rice wine for the marinade, Siew Hoon had passed Chef Woo a bottle of special rice wine from her secret stash! I would comment on the wondrous aromas coming from the kitchen except that salted fish was involved at one point, and its aroma overwhelmed the rest!

Between the baked chicken, mun yee mee, spaghetti, dory, asparagus and stir-fried beef contributed by Steven, we had an awesome spread, which proved too be too much for the dining table to handle. But the Wongs were prepared for such an emergency and immediately whipped out a foldable table to spread the feast.

It was a meal to remember. Chef Woo’s selection was very interesting in its blend of western and eastern styles. The pasta was especially memorable due to the salted fish, and the baked chicken was lovely (I’m fairly certain the special rice wine had enhanced an already wonderful recipe). The spaghetti and chicken were clear favourites and were the first to be devoured. The dory was the next casualty in this battle for the food.

By the time dessert was served, everyone was stuffed. We could barely finish the fruits, remaining cheese tarts and tau fu fah. Then came another delicious surprise - ice cream and strawberries topped with chocolate syrup and whipped cream.

We ended the evening sitting around the table and chatting, simply because we were too full to move very much! Everyone had a great time and the Wongs were most gracious hosts. The excitement finally wound down around ten, when we all reluctantly went out separate ways.