DURING the just concluded Shanghai Coffee Culture Week, Corentin Delcroix, a Shanghai-based French chef, pampered the city’s caffeine addicts with his desserts that contain a touch of coffee. He shared the recipe for his non-alcohol whiskey-flavored coffee caramel pudding with Chinese netizens via social media, and gained thousands of “likes” for his delicate design. Shanghai, an international metropolis diverse in taste, boasts more than 7,000 coffee shops and the world’s most Starbucks outlets — over 940 franchises. For Delcroix it’s just a 15-minute walk from his home to the nearest 10 coffeehouses. “There are various assortments of flavors, and you could always find new beans and recipes,” he said. Like many foreigners in the city, Delcroix takes a cup of sugar-free black coffee brewed in a French press with his wife every morning. In the afternoon, he prefers to share coffee and desserts with colleagues. Hailing from Douai, northern France, the gourmet recalls family members enjoying coffee at teatime during his childhood. As a child, he would always wonder about the bittersweet taste of coffee. “It was a little too bitter for a kid, and I thought I would have to truly grow up to be able to savor it.” Though the chef always comes up with new ideas on novel dishes, he regards himself “a conservative coffee drinker.” Nevertheless, he finds many unexpected coffee products in Shanghai that taste great. The Frenchman was fascinated by a myriad of Chinese cuisines when he first visited China in 2002. Trained as a chef back in France, he returned to China and started his own business in Shanghai, developing new dishes while updating food blogs. “I once put some preserved vegetables in foie gras to add a touch of Shanghai flavor and it was a success. It’s only natural to add coffee to my caramel pudding,” he said, because locals love coffee. “Think outside the box and you will find many opportunities in Shanghai,” he said.(Xinhua) | 