International culinary afair - Keith Ballysingh dishes on culinary lessons and travels

Keith Ballysingh prepared his first dish when he was nine years old.

"It was Mother's Day and I wanted to surprise my mom," says the young chef. "I had prepared fried chicken, rice and peas and vegetables and my mom said it was great … . Then again, she probably didn't want to hurt my feelings."

That was 20 years ago. Today, as senior sous chef at Sandals' flagship resort, Sandals Montego Bay, Ballysingh's dishes have evolved immensely, surprising everyone from the low-key traveller to the social bon vivant and well-heeled upper crust.

Lifelong passion

Ballysingh didn't become a chef by accident. He has had a passion for food for as long as he can remember. He got his first lessons in food and nutrition at Marcus Garvey Technical High and then went on to the HEART Trust/National Training Agency, which was instrumental in having him placed at then Grand Lido San Souci as a trainee.

"Working in an actual hotel kitchen was amazing. It gave me so much drive and just ignited my passion. I was like a sponge."

His infectious zeal certainly paid off as the training stint turned into a paying job only three months into the programme. However, his time at that resort was short-lived.

He yearned for unexplored territories and was convinced that his culinary classroom stretched beyond Ocho Rios and Jamaica's shores. So when the opportunity for an epicurean adventure presented itself, Ballysingh packed his chef's kit and started on a journey into the unknown.

His first lesson was the art of preparing fresh seafood. Location: Boston Maine, arguably home to some of the best seafood in the hemisphere.

"While at Grand Lido Sans Souci, I met a French chef
named Jeremy Touzelet," Keith says. "Even after I left that resort,
Touzelet and I kept in contact, and one day, he sent me an email asking
if I wanted to travel. Of course, I said yes, and before long, I was in
St Vincent working under Touzelet's watchful eye."

COOKING FOR SUPER-RICH

This time,
the lesson was preparing exquisite fare for the super-rich with the most
discerning of palates.

"I was working at a deluxe
hotel called the Cotton House as a chef de partie,"
recalls Ballysingh.

"There I was, tasked with cooking
for celebrity guests - from Tommy Hilfiger and Shania Twain to Denzel
Washington and Mick Jagger."

Following his
high-profile sabbatical in St Vincent, Ballysingh touched down in the
Cayman Islands. While working there, he met General Manager Jim Henry,
who provided his next lesson - opening a restaurant. This time the
classroom was the Belizean Shores resort in Belize. It was a small
resort, only 48 luxury rooms.

"Henry had gone there
as general manager and carried me along as his executive chef,"
Ballysingh notes proudly. "In the beginning, the experience in Belize
was nerve-racking. It was a sink-or-swim scenario, but somehow, I
managed to pull through."

LEFT FOR ST
LUCIA

Two years later, he left Belize as a successful
executive chef and a grand champion in the country's main cook-off, and
he could now speak Spanish fluently.

His next port of
call was St Lucia's Discovery at Mahogany Bay. There, he learned to
prepare and savour the manicou and iguana tail.

"Stewed manicou (which is really a large rat) is a
popular dish in St Lucia. There are people who probably wouldn't eat it,
but I've learnt that, as a chef - and if you're to become a student in
the culinary classrooms of the world - you have to have an open mind and
be willing to try things outside of your comfort zone," Ballysingh
stated.

Vowing to settle down once and for all, he
returned to Jamaica in December 2012 and entered the Sandals family as a
chef de partie at Sandals Royal Caribbean.

Within three months, the Sandals team realised his
vast potential and advanced techniques and promoted him to sous chef.
Another promotion followed soon after, this time as senior sous chef at
Sandals Montego Bay.

"Being a chef was never a job for
me; it's a way of life - a never-ending adventure with an endless
supply of foods to try, techniques to master, and lessons to be learnt,
while maintaining that thing which is uniquely Keith about all of my
creations," Ballysingh tells
Outlook.

Before travelling to
Sandals Montego Bay to try one of Ballysingh's delicious concoctions, we
asked the senior sous chef for one of his favourite recipes for our
readers to try at home and, naturally, he obliged. Today, try
Ballysingh's tropical shrimp salad in pineapple
boat.

• Tropical shrimp salad
  in pineapple boat

Ingredients

1lb
baby shrimp

3 jumbo shrimp (for
garnish)

1/2 cup raisins

1 cup
sweetened coconut flakes

1 cup
mayonnaise

1/4 cup granulated
sugar

2tbsp lime juice

Pinch of
salt

1 stalk of scallion or chives (for
garnish)

1 large pineapple
(washed)

Method

Blanch
baby shrimp and jumbo shrimp. Then, in a mixing bowl, combine with the
raisins, coconut flakes, mayonnaise, granulated sugar, and lime juice.
Fold together and add salt to taste.

Cut pineapple
into four.
Remove the middle of three of the shells/boats, then use a large spoon
to fill the shells/boats with shrimp salad.

On a
large plate or
platter, lay out the three shells/boats in desired position. Garnish
with jumbo shrimp and scallion as
desired.