"There are no pork dishes in banquets in Indonesia, but overall the tradition for Chinese cuisine wedding banquets are similar across Southeast Asia," Goh says.

He was inspired by the pumpkins his family used to make soup in Indonesia and brought the inspiration back to Singapore, adding mashed pumpkin to soup bases to add more color and reduce the aromas from the meat.

In 2011, Goh received a job offer from Beijing, which he promptly accepted.

"I felt proud about returning to China, the land where my ancestors hail from-especially since I believe that real Chinese cuisine should be served to Chinese people," Goh says.

Goh used to lead his team to serve large dinners to thousands of people. Three years ago, he prepared a buffet for 5,000 people with a team of 20 chefs.

"The process is totally different when you are designing a menu for 5,000 rather than 10 people," Goh explains. "Food safety is the most important thing in mind as you can't cook everything at the same time. Some dishes have to be prepared the day before and put into insulated containers, and the meat and seafood must always be properly cooked."