Jamaica’s island flavours to ignite Beijing

WESTERN BUREAU:

Executive Chef Maurice Mullings will take Jamaican cuisine to China this week, leading the island’s first official food festival in Beijing as Jamaica celebrates its 64th anniversary of Independence.

For Mullings, executive chef at S Hotel Montego Bay, the assignment is unlike any he has undertaken.

“I’m excited about the prospects and I’m committed to leaving an indelible mark in China,” he told The Sunday Gleaner ahead of his departure.

The festival was conceived and coordinated by Jala Williams, who has spent months planning the culinary showcase alongside her husband, Jamaica’s ambassador to China, Arthur Williams.

“People are very curious about Jamaican cuisine,” Mrs Williams told The Sunday Gleaner.

“When you introduce yourself as Jamaican, the first thing they say is Blue Mountain Coffee. The second thing they say is Bolt, and then jerk chicken.”

For Williams, those conversations highlighted an opportunity.

While many Chinese nationals have heard about Jamaica, and others have visited the island and developed a taste for its food, she believed Independence provided the perfect occasion to present an authentic culinary experience rather than simply talk about the country’s culture.

The celebrations begin on August 6 with Jamaica’s Independence reception at the St Regis Beijing, where approximately 200 guests – including diplomats, officials from China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, business leaders and members of the Jamaican diaspora – will be served a menu crafted under Mullings’ supervision.

The following day, the luxury hotel will launch a Jamaican Food Festival that will run throughout August.

Mullings will spend the first two weeks training the hotel’s culinary team before they continue preparing Jamaican dishes for diners during the remainder of the festival.

Williams said authenticity has been at the heart of the planning.

Authentic experience

“We’re really trying to give people an authentic experience,” she said.

To achieve that, the embassy searched across China for key ingredients that would allow the dishes to remain true to their Jamaican roots. A goat farmer was found to supply meat for curried goat, a breadfruit grower in southern China will provide breadfruit, and plantains have also been sourced locally, while Mullings will travel with his jerk seasonings and oversee the preparation of the menu.

Guests will also experience traditional outdoor roasting of breadfruit and yam alongside classic Jamaican favourites, including jerk chicken and jerk pork.

The festival represents more than an opportunity to showcase Jamaica’s cuisine.

Despite Beijing’s population of about 32 million people, there is currently no Jamaican restaurant in the Chinese capital.

That makes another goal particularly significant.

Mullings will conduct practical training sessions with the St Regis culinary staff, with the hope that at least one Jamaican dish will remain on the hotel’s menu after the festival concludes.

“We’re hoping that at least one item will stay on the menu,” Williams said.

For Mullings, the assignment marks an important milestone in a culinary career that began in a family of chefs before progressing through the ranks at S Hotel from sous chef to executive chef.

Contemporary flair

Known for presenting traditional Jamaican dishes with contemporary flair, he has previously described the island’s cuisine as “fusion food”, reflecting centuries of African, European, Indian, Chinese and other cultural influences.

His menu at S Hotel has earned acclaim for dishes including braised oxtail, jerk chicken, ackee and saltfish bruschetta and jerk chicken spring rolls, all rooted in authentic Jamaican flavours.

Ambassador Williams said the food festival is intended to deepen cultural ties between Jamaica and China while introducing audiences to another dimension of Jamaican identity.

The embassy is already planning future cultural exchanges, including bringing a Jamaican fashion designer to China through a collaboration with the Beijing Fashion Institute.

For now, however, the spotlight belongs to Mullings and the team behind him, whose hope is that when diners leave the St Regis this August, they will remember Jamaica not only for its coffee, music and sprinting legends, but for a cuisine rich enough to earn a permanent place on one of Beijing’s most prestigious menus.

janet.silvera@gleanerjm.com