John Lim is one of the few executive chefs in Sarawak that goes foraging in the forest for native ingredients and experiments with them in Roots, a casual-dining restaurant in Kuching, known for their creative and remarkable dishes. In this episode, Chef John teaches us how to make the perfect paella and shares the story of how his bond with the Bidayuh and Iban tribes through his foraging trips inspired his cooking.

“I do not want to cook just for the sake of cooking, but I want to cook because I want to understand [the culture] a little bit more.” - John Lim

Timestamps:

00:00 - Guest Introduction

01:08 - Life in Sarawak

02:37 - Local foods you should try in Sarawak

04:44 - Experiences & lessons in big cities

07:28 - Being an executive chef for Food Journal

08:13 - Foraging trips to the forest

11:45 - Never-before-seen ingredients from foraging trips

13:49 - Exploring native ingredients & throwing backyard dinner parties with the Bidayuh and Iban groups

16:28 - Using humble ingredients and the tri-flavours cooking method at Roots

20:07 - Eggplant is UH-MAZING

22:46 - How to make the perfect paella

27:35 - His cooking philosophy

27:51 - Sustainability in cooking: Check your rubbish bin

31:40 - Is a chef’s life glamorous?

34:55 - Challenges as an executive chef managing 5 restaurants

36:09 - The growing market for fine dining in Sarawak

37:50 - Most important skill for a chef: journaling

40:10 - Our Saturday night creativity project