Meet Momofuku Noodle Bar's Director of Culinary Max Ng

For those who not able to savor the moment at Momofuku Noodle Bar’s pop-up at Crawfish & Noodles (on November 8th and 9th), here’s a taste of Director of Culinary Max Ng.

What inspired you to first get into cooking? What do you love most about it?

I grew up in Singapore which is such a melting pot of cultures and amazing food at every corner. Surrounded by all that, I knew pretty early on that I wanted to be a chef. Before Momofuku, I interned at Pan Pacific hotel in Singapore, worked in the catering arm and Au Jardin within the Les Amis Restaurant Group, and also spent time working at their vacuum pack meal production facility.

I’ve been exposed to a huge variety of dining styles, cuisines, and realized that I love working on good food that's approachable on a daily basis. I've been at Momofuku for a decade now so the opportunity to mentor the next generation of cooks is what keeps me going.

How do you believe Momofuku will be popular in Houston during Its 2-day pop-up?

My wife's family is from Houston, so I've gotten to spend a lot of time here over the past few years for Thanksgiving and Christmas. Momofuku draws inspiration from across the world, and Houston is such a diverse city that I know the food will connect with Houstonites. We're cooking in a Viet-Cajun restaurant here and we're all about finding the natural overlap of cuisines like that. You see it in our Chili Crunch, for example, it is based on the OG Chinese Lao Gan Ma Chili crisp and Mexican salsa macha.

What do you see for the future of the restaurant? (expansions, etc.)

We're always looking to bring Momofuku to more places. Noodle Bar on Tour is a way for us to connect with our Momofuku community across the country and test our new markets. Who knows what the future holds?

How has the restaurant changed since its initial opening?

Dave opened Noodle Bar almost 20 years ago. On the surface, you could say not much has changed. We're still serving ramen and buns. But we are constantly tweaking and updating those dishes. We're probably on something like version 16 of the ramens and buns. We have learned a lot more about our dishes and recipes through these Noodle Bar pop-ups in all the different states and working with the different kitchens and chefs. That constant evolution is at the heart of what we do at Momofuku.

What is your favorite recipe for the holiday time?

I have spent most of my recent Thanksgiving and Christmas gatherings in Houston and I've been smoking whole Turkeys and Prime Rib in an offset smoker. This year my Mum from Singapore is coming to spend Christmas with us in Houston, so we're going to try and source a Whole Goose from Pete's Fine Meats or Central Market. The Truffle Chili Crunch will come in handy with that Goose. A good next-day meal with all that leftover turkey or goose meat will be great in a congee with the Chili Crunch, or a quick lunch with the Spicy and Tingly Momofuku Noodles with all that picked meat.