Wanton Wrappers

Bedding down well in Langkawi's tropical forest

When the Convent of the Holy Infant Jesus school building in the heart of town was gazetted to be converted into the dining hub, CHIJMES, former students rallied together to petition against it. Unfortunately for them, they failed to block the move. And to this day, old girls of that school lament their lost roots. Fortunately for  the rest of Singapore, there is now one more place to dine surrounded by a poignant sense of the country's past.

And this holds true too for the venue from which The White Rabbit operates. As does Australia's passion in converting historic church buildings, with rapidly dwindling congregational attendance, into private residential homes or self-contained holiday cottages. There is something almost magical about spending a couple of nights shrouded within former churches, surrounded by furnishings nicely in tune to their time in history.

This versatility, wanton as it may sound to church-goers, is mirrored by the humble wonton wrapper.  Born rooted in traditional Chinese cuisine, it can be transformed into deep-fried crisp "crackling" bases on which the Thai infused chicken mixture sits, giving this Australian fusion tapas a cut above the ordinary. As it can make a successful wrapping round a minced prawn and chive patty, morphing into boiled fusion ravioli, drizzled with extra virgin olive oil infused with anchovies, cherry tomatoes and finely shredded basil.

I've even swapped filo pastry for these Chinese wrappers, and so simplified the process of making Moroccan seafood birouats, having retained the Middle Eastern tradition of dipping the deep fried wonton wrapped  tapas into a small bowl of sugar mixed with cayenne and cinnamon.

Similarly, I've thrown out the laborious process of making my own dough for wrapping round the salmon and herb filling for a Jewish piroshki. The humble wonton wrapper serves as a divine substitute that crisps up nicely when you bake the "crescent moons" of piroshki. And you'll want them in no other way save piping hot from the oven.    

As such, this humble Chinese "invention" succeeds in going to bed with diverse cuisines from the world over. And this encourages me to experimentally dip deeper in such wanton "marriages" with culinary recipes that have stood the test of time.