February 28, 2010
Reunion Dinner 2010
I should have put up these photos together with the previous blog entry, but when I wrote it, I had yet to upload the photos to Flickr. Thanks to a reader who said he'd like to have a look at what my mum cooked for this year's reunion dinner, I've been reminded to give some recognition to my mummy's cooking.
Every year we have yusheng 鱼生. My mum always orders an extra packet of crackers together with the preserved stuff, and my grandmother's helper helps to grate the carrots and radish. Of course, we're always more generous with our salmon since we buy our own fish.
Abalone with spinach. Abalone are auspicious for the new year as they look like the gold ingots that existed in ancient China. You know us Chinese, all we wish for is money! :p
Scallops coated with salt egg yolk served with asparagus
This is a stew that contains, Chinese mushrooms, pork, black moss (发菜), sea cucumber, and tendons. I especially love the black moss. It's supposed to be eaten during Chinese New Year because black moss's Chinese name sounds like the word 发财 (fa cai) which means to prosper and strike it rich.
These spring rolls are one of my favourites. The skin is actually bean curd sheets and inside are mince pork, water chestnut, prawns, Chinese mushroom and cloud fungus. I never get tired of munching on them.
There was also soup but I had forgotten to take a photo of them. No real Cantonese dinner is complete without soup. I don't cook very much in Hong Kong because I don't have a kitchen in the shoebox I live in. If I do cook, it's usually with the rice cooker. Also, it's so convenient to buy food in some cha chaan teng that I often don't bother to cook. What's more, I return home late quite often. Quite frankly, there's not much fun cooking for one as well. Food tastes best when you're partaking in the act of eating with others.
I do miss cooking though. There's something very comforting about cooking and creating something to satisfy the stomach. I miss being in the kitchen cooking and experimenting with food. Wonder when will be the next time I can step into a proper kitchen again...
February 23, 2010
Post-holiday Blues
Returning back to work in Hong Kong after a good nine days in Singapore over the Chinese New Year period is certainly a bit of a struggle. I flew out of Hong Kong on the night of 12 Feb and got home in the wee hours of the morning of 13 Feb.
It was great to be back home with my family for the reunion dinner, what with my sister also flying back home from Sydney where she now resides. With my cousin, grandmother and her helper, plus a long-time family friend of my dad's, the eight of us sat down to a sumptuous dinner lovingly prepared by my mum. There's nothing like homecooked food and nothing in the world beats anything made by one's own mother or father.
The next couple of days at home were filled with just lazing around at home, meeting up with friends, and spending time with family. Last Thursday, I suggested going to the day zoo. I haven't been there since I was a child and I thought it'd be quite nice to visit again. So like two young kids again, my sis and I headed to the zoo with our parents except this time it was me driving and paying. It was a nice morning out and I was very pleased with the trip. :)
Upon returning to Hong Kong suddenly, a wave of homesickness hit me. Sometimes it's not good to spend such a long stretch back home. You just get used to home again.
Gotta get back into the zone!
February 11, 2010
Celestial Court 天寶閣
Contrary to popular belief, I don't have dimsum every day even though I currently live in the land of dimsum. I usually go for dimsum only when I have visitors. I went to Celestial Court at Sheraton Hotel when my friend, R, was visiting in early Dec. He's the same friend I went to Bo Innovations and Tastings Wine Bar with. Every time we meet up, all we do is eat.
As he had a voucher to be used at the Sheraton Hotel where he was staying, we decided to use it for dimsum.
I liked the tea light placed under the tea pot to keep the tea warm. I thought that was a nice touch.
This plate of spring rolls wasn't ordered by me. I usually order the steamed items only. But R had to have his spring rolls. I call it his typical American behaviour! Haha. Anyway he ate all of it. I wasn't going to waste calories on those spring rolls.
Pork dumpling (siew mai 烧卖) the usual suspect, topped with crab roe.
Plump and fluffy roast pork buns (char siew bao 叉烧包)
Prawn dumplings (Har Gow 虾饺)
Some fried radish cakes and slices of lotus root which I actually enjoyed more than the radish cake. It was like eating chips!
This isn't a regular on dimsum menus so we decided to give it a try. I can't remember its name but it had a piece of chicken and a slice of Chinese mushroom wrapped in fish maw and then put to steam. It was light yet tasty and full of the ingredients' natural flavours.
Claypot beef brisket with rice flour rolls (牛腩肠粉). The was really tasty but probably best eaten after eating the other steamed dimsum that are lighter in flavour.
The pièce de résistance which even came in its individual mini bamboo steamer. The bottom orange bit you see is a thin slice of carrot with Chinese mushroom sitting on it. The Chinese mushroom is in turn stuffed with chicken, topped with scallop, sea urchin and bonito flakes. OK, it all sounds very good, but actually I think the raw sea urchin was a bit wasted in this. Its natural sweetness was lost among all the other flavours dancing on your palate as you bite into the piece. A tad disappointing.
We also had steamed fish head in black bean sauce. Nothing like eating the cheeks!
Fancy mango pudding with the gold leaf shreds. Nothing to rave about. Frankly any normal dessert shop in HK could do one just as good.
Black sesame pudding topped with gold leaf shreds as well. All I can say is that the gold is more nicely contrasted in this than the mango pudding. Again, the taste was mediocre and isn't something I'd bother to order if I were to go there again.
Overall it was a pretty good dining experience and service was good. But for now, once is enough as there are many other dimsum restaurants to check out!
Celestial Court
Sheraton Hotel
20 Nathan Road
Tsim Sha Tsui
Hong Kong
Tel: + 852 2369 1111
February 6, 2010
Dragon's Back 龍脊
Dragon's Back (龍脊) is one of the most famous hiking trails in Hong Kong and it's an easy trail to walk. Looking at the crazy crowds in Causeway Bay and the skyscrapers in Central, you'd never guess that such beauty existed in Hong Kong Island.
I went to Dragon's Back in November when my good friend and her fiance (now husband) visited. The length of the hike is a mere 4.5 km and can be completed in 2 to 2.5 hours.
Here are some pictures.
To get to the start of the hike, take the MTR to Shau Kei Wan Station and get out at Exit A3. From there, take bus 9 or a taxi. Then get off at Cape Collinson bus stop. The bus will pass a wooded hillside, then a tiny roundabout. Alight at the stop just after this. The end of the hike will take you to Shek O Road. Then make your way on foot to To Tei Wan village (there are signs to sign post it). From there, take a bus back to Central or Shek O village. I'd recommend going to Shek O to have a look at a more laid-back area of Hong Kong Island.
February 2, 2010
If You're Interested ...
For readers in Hong Kong (if there are any), I'm organising an outing with some friends to go strawberry picking in Fanling (粉嶺) this Sunday afternoon, 7 February. Yes, there ARE farms in Hong Kong! If you're interested in coming along, please drop me a line at dimsumdolly@gmail.com.
PS. This has nothing to do with my previous entry about wanting a little strawberry! ;p
February 1, 2010
Sh!ok
When I feel like having some Singaporean fare, I sometimes head to Sh!ok. In Singlish, 'Shiok' (spelt rightfully with an 'i') is a word us Singaporeans use to express pleasure and delight at something that brings about these feelings.
At Sh!ok, you'll most likely hear lots of Singaporean accents among the diners as my fellow countrymen go there and get their fix of food from home.
I like their longan drink - a nice pick-me-up on a hot summer's day. In winter, you can have it warm.
One of my favourite dishes there is this Fried Pork with Kam Heong. Kam Heong is a paste that's made with some curry leaves and some spices that I, unfortunately, couldn't identify. This dish is really tasty though, and is a definite must-eat.
I also like their fried carrot cake. Their black version is better than the white one, so I'd just stick with the former.
My last favourite is their Kaya Toast. What's special about this kaya is that it's very light and its texture is like custard rather than jam which is the norm in Singapore. This type of kaya is known as seri kaya and is hardly found even in Singapore. It's made the traditional nonya way and Sh!ok doesn't use any preservatives in their kaya, which is why their kaya only keeps for three days.
A friend told me that their Bak Chor Mee (minced pork noodles) is good, so you might want to give it a try if you're there. However, I'd give their Bak Kut Teh a miss if I were you. When I tried those two dishes, they were very disappointing in taste. The Bak Kut Tek soup was a bit bland and flat. There's always a today's special and those of you who love laksa will have to go on Mondays to get your laksa fix. The second time I went was a Tuesday and that day's special was Char Kway Teow. It could have been good except for the fact that it lacked wok hei. Despite some misses, Sh!ok is still a decent place to get some Singaporean fare.
Sh!ok
66 Peel Street
Soho, Central
Hong Kong
Tel: +852 2899 2001