This chef is making way for a flavoursome route to China

“Tao stands for ‘way’ and Peng takes the name from chef Peng Zu, who introduced Chinese food to the world. Similarly, we wanted to bring authentic Hunan, Cantonese and Sichuan food to the South of India,” recalls Tenzin Phuntsok, the Chef De Cuisine at the Intercontinental resort in Mahabalipuram, which houses this restaurant.

The restaurant soon rose to winning several food awards in the country for its contemporary offerings of authentic Chinese. Through a pop-up, this famed restaurant has descended upon Chennai’s Crowne Plaza hotel to take the city on an oriental tour. “We wanted to offer the people of journey a taste of our food so they are tempted to come visit us,” the 32-year-old chef tells DT Next.

From lobster dumplings to wok-fried sea bass in exotic Toban chilli sauce to mapu tofu in Sichuan preserved vegetables, this pop-up takes one across the flavours of China. “A lot of diners often don’t even like to look at the menu when it comes to Chinese food. They stick to dishes like chicken Manchurian, hakka noodles and the likes, and stay away from trying anything new. I insist and tell them that they try my food first and that I would do their favourite dishes if they don’t like mine,” he says, adding that, he hates the term ‘Indo-Chinese’ as it is far from the authentic. “We want to respect the food cultures of China,” he stresses.

Sourcing most of his key ingredients like meats globally, chef Tenzin makes sure the sauces, including kung pao sauce, black pepper sauce and bun chilli oil, are all made in-house. “The idea is to keep food authentic, less complicated, while also creating memories through each course, through fun personalised menus and dramatic plating," he says.

"Many assume Chinese food uses monosodium glutamate (commonly known as MSG) or too much oil, but, in fact, it is one of the healthiest cooking styles since most food is steamed, pan-fried or wok-fried. It uses fewer spices and ghee or oils compared to Indian food,” he asserts.

Hailing from Tawang in Arunachal Pradesh, Tenzin grew up watching grandmother cook. “The food we ate at home has many similarities to Chinese food. So, I started working at restaurants and hotels right from the age of 17, as a dishwasher, while teaching myself how to cook when the kitchens were closed for service. I slowly grew up the ladder in this challenging industry, specialising in Chinese cooking,” he adds.