A good chef is like a magician, whipping up an astonishing dish from a mishmash of ingredients that makes you wonder: “How on earth did he do that?”

I fell under the spell of chef Chow Kwok Sing’s creations when I lunched at the Imperial Treasure (Cantonese Cuisine) recently.

Take, for example, the fat, juicy scallops paired with the humble egg white. On their own, the scallop and egg white combination is nothing to shout about. But add a few drops of white truffle oil and the dish is transformed into something magical, decadent even.

Magical because the truffle oil added a luxurious, distinctive perfume – which reminds me of fresh earth and mushrooms – to the slightly sweet egg white and intoxicated my taste buds.

Decadent because truffles and their products do not come cheap. It was reported recently that premium white truffles were selling at $6,000 per kg this year. Thankfully, chef Chow’s sauteed scallops with egg white and truffle oil are not out of reach. They go for $28 for a small portion.

Another charmer was the poached live soon hock fish with Chinese rice wine ($8 per 100g).

First, the heady aroma of the soup bearing the catch hits your nose, promising you all things good.

Then, the fish delivers on the promise.

The soon hock was unbelievably fresh (I had no doubt it died just minutes ago to feed me), and infused with the captivating rice wine.

I had three bowls of the fish soup. It was that tasty.

If you are not a fish lover, you might want to consider this: Regular consumption of fish, defined as two servings per week, helps to protect against heart disease and stroke, said Health Promotion Board nutritionist Corina Chan.

The first two dishes of Imperial Treasure’s healthier menu, where items are mostly braised, poached or steamed, were a delight and two other items I tried were excellent too.

That’s a wonder, considering how rare it is to find pleasure in every single dish you try at a restaurant.

The crab meat wrapped with Chinese cabbage ($16) was another interesting pairing that worked.

The cabbage leaves were so well-cooked that they almost melted in my mouth, leaving in their wake the sweetness of the crab and prawn filling.

And instead of the usual noodle suspects, chef Chow presented his carbohydrates in the form of vermicelli with assorted mushrooms in fish soup ($7 per person).

The soup is light, tasting predominantly of the earthy and somewhat woody flavour of Chinese straw and lingzhi mushrooms.

By the end of the delightful meal, I was giggling happily, bewitched by the food.

Imperial Treasure
Great World City #02-06
1 Kim Seng Promenade
(S) 237994
Tel: 6732-2232
It is open daily for lunch and dinner.

For the list of restaurants serving Healthier Choices, go to www.hpb.gov.sg/healthierdining