Posted by Taiwan Journal, Taiwan on May 23, 2008 at 08:57:19:
Love of the loaf kneads silver medal success
( By Sandra Shih
Is three a crowd or do good things come in threes? If asking the triumvirate of bakers from Taiwan who traveled to Paris and baked it out with 11 teams representing the world's finest breadmakers at the 2008 Bakery World Cup, the answer would definitely be the latter.
As the nation's first-ever representatives at the triennial event held March 31, Wu Pao-chun, Wen Shih-cheng and Tsao Chih-hsiung did their homeland proud by finishing second to hosts France in an event that demands artistic vision, extensive know-how and a sense of taste to come out on top.
The fiercely fought contest featured the top three place-getters of the 2005 competition--the United States, France and Japan--as well as teams from Argentina, Italy, Mexico, Poland, Spain, Sweden, Turkey and the Netherlands. With "bread, symbol of your country" the theme of this year's event, the Taiwanese trio rolled up their sleeves and got down to the business of mastering the mystery of fermentation by working their magic with yeast, flour and water.
This demanding process called for an uninterrupted eight-hour session, with participant's efforts scrutinized by judges from Belgium, Canada, Chile, Hungary, Ireland, South Korea and Vietnam. The teams were assessed on three specific categories of baking: Baguettes and Specialty Breads, Viennoiserie (Viennese pastry making) and Artistic Design (creations that symbolize a nation).
In addition, the troika's organizational abilities, time and space management, teamwork and individual mastery of skills were put to the test.
According to Pingtung County-born Wu, the team was very anxious prior to the competition, but wanted to do well and repay all those people who had supported them throughout the years. "The temperature in the room was quite warm and I was very nervous," he said, recalling the pressure that forced all contestants to concentrate on nothing but the doughy tasks at hand.
The 39-year-old bread chef at Pasadena Bakery in Kaohsiung City explained that he consumed nothing but water to keep his body functioning during the event, a habit adopted three years ago while giving up smoking. "I was puffing away on two packs a day and had tried so many times to kick the habit," Wu said. "Reaching the Bakery World Cup has been a goal of mine since my 20s and I knew that if I could resist the temptation of nicotine, I could dedicate myself 100 percent to the competition."
In addition to constantly sipping water, Wu found that hard work was another way of easing the pain of cigarette withdrawal. He would often remain on the job until midnight, experimenting with different breadmaking techniques and ingredients in the quest for perfection. Although physically and mentally exhausted at the time, Wu's commitment to his profession helped lay the groundwork for the team's success at the world cup.
As the baker responsible for Baguettes and Specialty Breads, Wu said it was his "secret weapon"--dried longan bread made using sweet fermented rice wine--that won the backing of the judges. "The inspiration for this creation came from childhood memories of my mother cooking longan soup with sweet fermented rice wine to keep the cold at bay during winter," he said. "Maybe it was the 'flavor of mother' that touched the judges' hearts."
In fact, the judges were so impressed by Wu's work that he was selected to take part in the Baguettes and Specialty Breads category at the Bakery World Championships in 2010. An honor also awarded to teammate Tsao with his inclusion in the Artistic Design section.
Wu explained that his creative partnership with Tsao dated back to 1993 when they were both working at a bakery in Kaohsiung City. "He was making cakes and I was baking bread," he said.
Years later, after deciding to test his skills on the international stage, Wu remembered his former coworker's artistic talents and invited him along for the ride. After some persuading, Tsao signed on but the duo needed one more member to fill out their team. Fortunately, they discovered Wen--who specialized in making sweet bread and came highly recommended by a respected local baker.
Along with 25 other teams, the trio entered Taiwan's inaugural Bakery World Cup qualifier in December 2005 and were selected to move on to the second round of the competition held in March of the next year during the Taipei International Bakery Show at the Taipei World Trade Center. Seeing off the challenges of 15 teams from across the nation, the bakers earned a berth at Asia's Bakery World Cup leg hosted in May 2007 by Guangzhou City, China.
Matched against China, Indonesia, South Korea and the Philippines, the three-member team defeated the reigning champions from China and won the "King of Asian Bakers" title. Next stop was the world cup, where as Asia's representatives, they pitted their skills against the best from six other regions comprised of Mediterranean and Africa, North and Central America, South America, Central Europe, North Europe and West Europe.
As a man who readily admits his "addiction" to eating bread, Wen holds his daily loaf in high regard and considers bread a "living organism." Born in Keelung City, the 36-year-old bakery sous-chef at the Westin Hotel in Taipei City--who was in charge of the team's Viennoiserie entry--said that all members were thoroughly overjoyed by their second-place finish. "We were very touched when our national flag was raised at the venue of the competition," he said. "We hope that more Taiwanese bakers will follow in our footsteps."
While kneading dough for a brioche, Wen explained that the competition tested the bakers' mastery of flour because they had to use unfamiliar brands. The flour was supplied by the organizers and distributed on site without any visible branding, so the candidates could not prepare beforehand.
In a bakery, changes often occurred in a blink of an eye and bakers need to be well prepared to handle any situation. For the Kaohsiung City-born Tsao, who was team captain and managed the Artistic Design entry, getting this fundamental down pat was integral to the trio's success. When invited to design with bread, the 38-year-old manager with H&C Food Industrial Co. Ltd., admitted being initially reluctant to agree because his field of expertise was sugar sculpting and cake decorating.
"Artistic bread is still a very new concept in Taiwan," Tsao said. "People seldom use bread for design purposes because the baking process might damage the creation's shape."
As Taiwan only has a limited number of bakers and teachers versed in artistic breadmaking, Tsao was forced to consult with instructors from abroad. He asked them to send their recipes and then scoured his personal library of 500 books and magazines collected over 14 years. "I even asked my friends to take pictures of unique pastry designs when they traveled overseas," he said.
Commenting on other teams' creations at the world cup, Tsao said there were many examples worth learning from, such as the highly artistic and abstract design of the French team's bust of a woman. He believes that the romantic disposition of France as a nation was perfectly portrayed in the offering and more than justified the team's victory.
In order to faithfully represent Asia, Tsao employed more familiar and concrete images like traditional houses, pine trees and an ox cart to create a nostalgic atmosphere. He also managed to incorporate a "Dancing Lion"--a symbol of his home in Tainan County and an integral part of Lunar New Year celebrations in Taiwan.
At the conclusion of competition for the world cup, the three bakers displayed their creations on the table and awaited the judges' decision. Despite being the pain of their aching arms, the proceedings were not finished yet. Part of the evaluation process included assessing the tidiness of their workspace. "Keeping the preparation area spotless is proof of a baker's devotion to his food," Wu explained.
The judges also evaluated teamwork, which they observed throughout the event, and this included trivial chores. "There was no broom available to us on the day, Wu said. "So, Wen squatted on his haunches and began mopping the floor with a tea towel and we followed suit." By cooperating as a close-knit team, the trio of weary bakers finished cleaning their workspace within the allotted time and duly impressed the judges.
Looking back on the day, Wen claimed he could not remember his improvised cleaning efforts, but laughed like Mephistopheles and said: "I haven't squatted to clean the floor since, though I now know how great my wife is."
Write to Sandra Shih at sandrashih@mail.gio.gov.tw