From oxtail spring rolls to culinary success

When we mention spring rolls, we often think of traditional Chinese cuisine: a savoury roll filled with cabbage and other vegetables, wrapped in thin, cylindrical pastry.

Spring rolls are appetisers commonly found in Chinese, Vietnamese, Thai and other Southeast Asian cuisines, with ingredients and cooking techniques varying by region.

This delicacy inspired Chef Anslem Allette to create his own take on the dish when he was invited to cater for a Carnival event a few years ago.

Allette said he had to adhere to Soca Brainwash’s theme that year, “Oxtail Everything”. That was when he used his creativity to produce something “classy” that would catch on and be appreciated by partygoers.

The Ste Madeleine, San Fernando, resident said the oxtail spring rolls were a hit. Prepared on site, they enticed the palates of partygoers, who kept coming back for more.

A passion for cooking

Allette said he had always enjoyed cooking, but his greater ambition was to become a chef and own his own establishment.

He attended Gasparillo Composite, now Gasparillo Secondary School, where he pursued Home Economics. He later earned certificates from the Trinidad and Tobago Hospitality and Tourism Institute (TTHTI) and YTEPP.

Through various career transitions and experiences, Allette secured job opportunities at several restaurants, including J Malones, Snappers and the Chaud restaurant chain around the Queen’s Park Savannah, as well as Krave Restaurant in south Trinidad. He also spent 18 months working between Trinidad and Tobago and Jamaica for the US ambassador to Trinidad and Tobago as a sous chef.

Allette said that while working for the Chaud chain of restaurants, he was able to diversify his skills.

“Working as a personal chef, you kinda follow your regimen, but coming from a restaurant like Chaud, you’re more independent. In terms of a chef, you would grow your workers to be chefs and not cooks, and not be followers; be more leaders. So coming from that background, you come from a strong background of what it is to be a chef, and what it is to lead,” he said.

From pastry to personal chef

He said he became certified as a pastry chef at YTEPP, a qualification that helped him navigate the uncertain period of the COVID-19 pandemic and secure additional work when the job market became saturated.

“I did culinary, but I never baked and did pastry; the only room it had at that restaurant was to do pastry. I did baking and pastry at YTEPP and went to Johnson & Wales and did a small course to kinda enhance my skill in pastry, but working as a personal chef is different because it is a little bit of everything. You have to create, which turned me more into a chef and not a pastry chef. You had to adjust to doing everything; cooking, managing house, guests…it was a lot more work and independence. But I am strong in the pastry aspect because of the years working in pastry. I did chef consultancy for Krave’s dessert menu. My passion was always to be a chef and not a cook,” Allette said.

He said he was fortunate to secure regular catering jobs during COVID-19 because of his track record and expertise. During this period, he relied on his skills and began decorating cakes. He also secured contracts to provide meals for hotels and an offshore company, Trinity Limited.

Prior to COVID-19, he had catered for Trinity, which retained his services during the pandemic. For a year, he provided meals for staff before and after quarantine.

He said he met many people through his catering work, several of whom helped shape his career. One notable connection was Adrian Scoon, son of former Trade and Industry Minister Paula Gopee-Scoon, who is a bandleader and owner of Spirit Mas.

A Carnival hit

Allette said he catered for the band on Carnival Monday and Tuesday for four consecutive years. The Carnival events opened his eyes to the amount of work they generated, not just in preparing “bulk meal dishes” but also in producing specialised items. This allowed him to promote his oxtail spring rolls, as many traditional local dishes are popular during the Carnival season.

He said the oxtail spring rolls began as a signature item at Soca Brainwash. He found a way to remove the meat from the bone, add flavour and wrap it in pastry. The flavourful finger food became a favourite at the event and was among the first items to sell out.

In subsequent years, he added oxtail rasta pasta, oxtail Chinese-style noodles and, this year, oxtail nachos.

He said he understood that, at Soca Brainwash, the preferred choices would be foods familiar to Trinidadians living in the United States—dishes that brought back memories of growing up in Trinidad, such as curry corned beef and rice, which many parents could once afford as a complete meal.

“Long ago they created a lot of things like one-pot meals, the noodles with beef or chicken. And I remembered them as more economy-style dishes that I grew up on,” he said.

“When foreigners come in, they don’t want no fancy things; they want things they grew up on. The rasta pasta might be a little more different, but at the same time, when you’re thinking old school, when you go Soca Brainwash you’ll see things you grew up on: pickled cucumber with salt and black pepper, oil down and a meat, slice of cake,” he said.

Allette said he catered for the Citrus and Hyatt Carnival events for the first time this year.

Learning the business

He said his love for catering and food developed as he grew older, inspired by his aunt, who worked in food and nutrition before becoming a teacher. He said he had faced many battles in pursuing his ambition and remained committed to becoming a chef. His determination to prove others wrong grew stronger.

Allette said he still had much to learn about the business side of the profession. Working as a chef and catering entrepreneur involved unpredictable challenges, from managing events and hiring external staff to finding capable sous chefs who could handle the workload and pressure.

He said he was now focusing on understanding the logistics of running a business, from maintaining food quality to building a solid social media presence, having already developed his culinary skills.

He said his biggest competitor was himself and his goal was to produce the best version of his work each day.

Overcoming the challenges

Reflecting on his setbacks, he identified living in south Trinidad while most of his clients were in Port of Spain as his biggest challenge.

“I never had regrets about being a chef; my only regret is my location when most of my clients are in Port of Spain, so I start at a disadvantage coming from South,” he said, pointing to highway problems, persistent traffic and accidents, which meant he always had to leave at least an hour early to arrive on time.