Chef Malcolm Lee is known for pushing the boundaries of Peranakan cuisines with dishes such as buah keluak ice-cream and bonbons at his restaurants Pangium and Candlenut, which is the first Peranakan restaurant in the world to receive a Michelin star. Now, Lee can add another feather to his cap — the first Singaporean chef to collaborate with American burger chain Shake Shack on a burger.
Staying true to his Peranakan roots, Lee will present the Buah Keluak Burger and Curry Fries on 5 November at the one-day pop-up event at Shake Shack’s Neil Road outlet, which is a stone’s throw away from the original outlet of Candlenut. It opened at Neil Road in 2010.
The hefty burger comprises an Angus beef patty slathered in rich and earthy buah keluak sauce, which features the pungent Indonesian black nut and buah keluak sambal and chicken curry sauce made from Chef Lee’s mother’s recipe. Completing the umami-laden burger are ikan bilis sambal, a sunny-side-up egg, cheese, diced pickles, and fluffy potato buns lightly toasted with garlic butter. Certain elements of the burger are also used in dishes in Candlenut.
The limited edition burger collaboration is a deeply personal one for Lee, who first tried a ShackBurger when he visited New York City in 2011 for a Candlenut collaboration.
Related: Buah keluak the new “it” ingredient in fine dining Singapore restaurants