BORN and raised in Italy, 24-year-old Yang Qiying has worked for several Michelin-starred restaurants in the famed culinary country over the past six years, including Osteria Francescana, which was named as the planet’s top eatery by the World’s 50 Best Restaurants in 2016.

Yang moved to China at the end of that year, bringing with him all the skills he had accumulated over the years since he became interested in cooking at the tender age of 12. He was appointed executive chef of Italian cuisine at the Grand Hyatt Beijing and was the youngest senior chef ever to be hired by the hotel.

Last year, a new Italian restaurant, Simply Fresh, offered Yang the chance to head their kitchen and create his own menu to showcase his talent for creating Italian food with a modern twist — and Yang jumped at the opportunity.

“I have much more freedom when I’m creating new dishes,” says Yang.

Adjacent to Guomao, Simply Fresh occupies a bright space on the second floor of China Overseas Plaza in Beijing’s central business district. With key colour tones of white, light grey and black, half of the restaurant’s bespoke wooden tables face the dramatic floor-to-ceiling windows.

The owner of Simply Fresh, Xiong Jing, set out from the very beginning to give her customers a place where they could sit down with family and friends and just enjoy the food. “I want people to feel cozy and relaxed as they savour their meal,” says Xiong.

Large, leafy plants lend a peaceful ambience to the informal minimalist space, while the floral centrepieces placed on each table add a further soft touch.

The tempting patisseries that are displayed in the cake fridge in the centre of the restaurant are all handmade by Yang’s team. After taking over the kitchen ahead of the restaurant’s opening, Yang insisted on using his solid culinary background to create all the sauces, pre-meal breads, desserts and patisseries directly on the premises. The tangy, citrus sauce that Yang created for his baby-spinach salad made of oranges, raisins, pine nuts and Parmesan cheese helps to elevate the flavour of this simple dish.

He uses the peels from an orange, grapefruit and lemon mixed with concentrated juice to create the sauce, which has to be boiled in water several times before it’s boiled with orange juice.

“I got the idea in Naples, Italy, where I grew up. They always use fruit to cook,” says Yang. “Even though it takes us a long time to create, we make the sauce every day to ensure it’s fresh.”

Organic eggs with porcini besciamella, asparagus and truffle sauce is another signature dish that highlights Yang’s innovative approach to cooking. When the egg yolk is mixed with the white sauce, an interesting combination of soft and creamy flavours melt in the mouth.

“Many people think eggs are an everyday ingredient and the way of eating them is a bit boring. So I wanted to cook an egg dish in a way you wouldn’t normally try at home,” says Yang.

Yang adds five different types of porcini mushrooms to the white sauce, which he leaves to soak beforehand, to add a strong, earthy flavour to complement the truffles. “I also add some dry mushroom powder to enrich the flavour,” says Yang.

The main dish, Yang’s sous vide Angus beef tenderloin with sea sedge powder, is a must-try. He matches the no-nonsense presentation of the beef dish with a simple yet artistic mustard-and-pea sauce and a red wine reduction — or any other sauce that the customer requests.

“I lived in Guangdong province for a while, and I noticed how people there liked to make soup using seafood and meat. So I thought of using sea sedge powder to lift the freshness of the beef,” says Yang. The black-tailed prawn and seafood bisque, a traditional favourite, has been winning praise from users on Dazhong Dianping, a popular Chinese food-review website. The creamy soup is made from fresh prawns, clams, scallops and octopus — and a handmade tomato sauce as a base.

For his take on lava cake, Yang uses the world-famous Valrhona chocolate, which he recommends customers pair with a cup of Lavazza coffee as the perfect summer treat. —China Daily

Published in Dawn, June 6th, 2018