My young auntie C and her husband KK invited us over to her home for lunch before our return to Europe. I vaguely remember visiting their home in the 80’s. Surprising for Hong Kong, the surrounding areas have not changed much at all.
All the dishes were cooked by C and her domestic help while I believe KK made the dumplings from scratch.
First up was a soup made with pork, mushroom, lotus roots, and other good stuff. For those not familiar with Chinese soups, a majority of them are clear and broth-like. C’s version is not clear due to the lotus roots but it is not thick like western soups. Tasted fantastic and no MSG for sure.
Next, we had “Swiss” chicken wings. We wondered about the origin of the name, but in practice it was made with a marinate of sugar and thick soy sauce.
The other dishes were Malaysian style curry beef brisket (coconut-y and tender), steamed bean shoots (green and light), freshly wrapped dumplings (when you make your own, you would know what meat is used inside), and waterchestnut steamed minced pork (forgot to take a snapshot but it was a treat for my sister).
The pièce de résistance is the steamed fish served in traditional style – ginger, scallion with oil and light soy. Cantonese and Hongkongers (who live by the South China seas) pay top prices in restaurants for fresh seafood done this way, hence the wall of display tanks in front of the seafood restaurants. Northern Chinese do not eat much fish and tend not to savor the delicate taste. This steamed fish is one of the best ones I had in recent memories – thick and firm (but not tough) white flesh without too many bones.
To finish, C made steamed milk with ginger juice. She taught us how to make it too – the tricky part is to make it congeal as it cools. I will try the recipe using Swiss milk.
Chris & Sue's Excellent(?) Adventures 