Hong Kong’s best summer desserts: chocolate meets matcha in the reimagined the classic opera cake
Two of the city’s best chefs – from Island Shangri-La Hong Kong and The Royal Garden – have updated the classic opera cake and given it an Asian twist using matcha, the Japanese green tea powder that is as healthy as it is tasty
From ice cream to chocolate and cake, a matcha pairing is a match made in heaven.
Chef Uwe Opocensky, executive chef at the Island Shangri-La Hong Kong, and assistant executive pastry chef Don Ng at The Royal Garden’s fine foods shop both reimagined the classic opera cake, giving it flair and a contemporary twist by using matcha, the popular powdered green tea, as the main ingredient.
At Island Gourmet, Opocensky says his opera cake has sesame biscuits as the base, thin layers of green tea mousse, sponge cake and dark chocolate, which perfectly complement the zesty cherry jelly and yuzu cream.
The colourful macaroon on top, he says, is a cheerful sign of summer.
