‘Culinary wizard’ Luke Nguyen and the premium party Taste of Australia

Truffle risotto is made from Italian rice and truffles served with cheese – Photo: LINH TO

Famous Vietnamese-Australian chef Luke Nguyen told Youth Online: “We haven’t been able to gather with friends and colleagues for the past few years. If only holding a sit-down party, the largest scale can only be 100 guests.

So when the COVID-19 pandemic subsided, we decided to hold a canapé party in this auditorium for about 300 to 400 guests. People are free to walk around, enjoy the food and chat.”

Australian-Vietnamese chef Luke Nguyen speaks at the Taste of Australia Gala 2022 – Photo: LINH TO

The chef prepares Australian roast pork with dumplings at the Gala Night of Australian Flavors 2022 – Photo: LINH TO

Canapé is a buffet style, serving small portions of food for diners to enjoy and chat with.

The Taste of Australia Gala Night 12-5 brings a quality experience to guests with dishes made from premium Australian foods such as wagyu beef, truffles, lamb, oysters, king fish…

Luke Nguyen shared that the gala night’s menu was all inspired by Vietnamese cuisine and each dish was more or less combined with Vietnamese flavors.

“Me and the chef preparing today’s meal are very knowledgeable about high-class Australian food” – the Vietnamese-born “food witch”.

The gala menu includes raw oysters that diners can feel the true taste of the sea; raw king fish served with perilla and Vietnamese dipping sauce; Raw beef served with tartar sauce is similar to beef rare with lemon.

Shrimp products farmed in Vietnam the way Australians are present at the dinner party – Photo: LINH TO

One of the highlights of the gala night was truffle risotto, rice cooked with truffle mushrooms then mixed in a block of parmesan cheese; dumplings with roasted pork combined with Vietnamese herbs.

Some Australian dishes on the night of Gala Tastes Australia 2022:

The chef cooks amberjack imported from Australia and eats it raw as sashimi – Photo: LINH TO

Raw oysters are imported directly from Australia – Photo: LINH TO

White leg shrimp are raised according to Australian production technology, becoming the filling for tacos – Photo: LINH TO

Australian raw beef served with toasted black bread and tartar sauce – Photo: LINH TO

Vietnamese sandwiches with Australian lamb cooked at the Taste of Australia Gala – Photo: LINH TO

Guests attend the Gala Night of Taste of Australia 2022 at Park Hyatt Hotel – Photo: LINH TO

After two years of being affected by the COVID-19 epidemic, the Taste of Australia Gala night in Ho Chi Minh City has officially returned. This is an annual event that celebrates Australian food and drink in Vietnam.

About 400 guests, most of which are diplomats and businesses, freely enjoy Australian cuisine without worrying about COVID-19 at the Taste of Australia Gala night taking place in Ho Chi Minh City on the evening of May 12.

The gala night taking place at the Park Hyatt hotel is the highlight of the Taste of Australia series of events throughout April and May.

Luke Nguyen – who accompanies special events of the Taste Australia food chain – is the author of his own food books: The Secret of the Red Lantern, The Song of Sa Pa and Vietnam by Mr. I.

Not only containing recipes, his works also take readers along the S-shaped country, lifting the veil over the culinary culture and people from the North to the South.

Luke Nguyen is also a guest of many big shows such as Gordon Ramsay’s Great Escape, Master Chef Australia, Master Chef Vietnam 2014. Luke Nguyen is also the host of a series of famous TV shows broadcast in over 160 countries, including including Luke Nguyen’s Vietnam, Luke Nguyen’s Greater Mekong…