Guizhou Chicken Pot

Here's something you don't see everyday-Chicken pot! I had a mala chicken pot from Spring Trinity in North Point in Hong Kong. After you finish eating the chicken from the pot, the servers pour pork bone soup into the pot to shabu shabu. 

You choose which veggies and meat you want to add to your shabu! 

 

 It was very tasty. A little on the spicy side! 

 

I'd say you'd need at least 3 people to enjoy this dish. It's a very filling and big dish. They don't offer individual mini pots so come hungry and come ready to share!

Happy Eatings! 

Make Me Drool!

I told the guy to make me drool. I'd say he delivered, aye?

Cold cuts are so delicious and City Super in Hong Kong is one of my favorite places to wander around looking for food and snacks. I'm usually eating 3 things in my hand while trying to shop for other foods while I'm there. Damn you amazing Japanese supermarkets!

I'm posting from Hong Kong right now. I'll be back in L.A. in a few days. Until then, for the latest follow me on Instragram at: kristiehang


Happy Eatings!

What's an Authentic Chinese New Year Meal?

Chinese people are very superstitious people. Depending on where you may be from, the New Year traditions can vary immensely. Certain fruits and foods are seen as auspicious in certain Chinese cultures are seen as a sign of bad luck in others. But let’s be serious, many of the so-called “Chinese New Year” meals you read about aren’t really special. Chinese people make up nice-sounding names for all the dishes and tell you that it’s a “unique” New Year dish. So, here’s your look into what’s in a real, authentic Chinese New Year dinner. This is what I had for my New Year Dinner.

(Here's my poon choy. Don't let the picture fool you, the pot is very deep.)

Poon Choy, which translates to Big Bowl Feast, is a traditional type of dish originating from Hong Kong. According to legend, it was said the dish was invented during the Song Dynsasty when Mongol troops invaded China. The locals apparently tried to aid the Emperor and his army which fled to Hong Kong and Guangdong, by collected whatever foods they had and threw it all into a big bowl.

(I was really full so I picked out just a few of my favorite things-abalone, fish maw, and sea cucumber.)

Today’s moden poon choy has ingredients such as abalone, ginseng, shark’s fin, duck, fish maw, crab, radish, shrimp, lamb, beef, chicken, mushroom, eel, squid, goose feet  tofu, to name a few. The dish is eaten with everyone using their chopsticks and mixing the food to bring good fortune in the coming year. 

 Another dish with similar meaning eaten for the New Year is “lo hay”.  “Lo hay” is particularly a South East Asian custom very popular in certain regions of China as well. Lo hay is, is a dish filled with vegetables, crackers, nuts, sweet and sour sauce, spices, raw salmon, and fruit. Each of the ingredients symbolizes some form of prosperity.

 (Some mixing in action!)

Everyone then raises their chopsticks and mixes the platter by picking up the items with their chopsticks. This action is to signify good luck by mixing all these symbolic forms of prosperity.

Happy Lunar New Year!

Pissing Shrimp & Squid Ink Noodles

Hey all! I just got back from Hong Kong and am currently back in Los Angeles for the time being. So let’s recap another one of my meals then. Shall we? 

 Let me introduce you to mantis shrimp. In Cantonese cooking, it’s nicknamed the “pissing shrimp". Literally translated into Chinese as 攋尿蝦, (lài niào xiā ) due of their tendency to shoot water when picked up.

 I personally refer to the shrimp as the shrimp on steroids. Them babies look huge! After it’s cooked, its meat tastes more like lobster than shrimp. That was a lot of fun!

Next up is my do-it-yourself squid ink noodles that I had during hot pot/shabu shabu! (Please note I’m not engaged. Those are my Aunt’s hands.) 

 We got to squirt the ink into the shabu shabu pot and make our own noodles. I love playing with my food! In retrospect, we shouldn’t have made one long set of noodles. We should have stopped and given it a break because once the noodles cooked, it was hard to separate it and divvy it up later.

 Squid ink is high in cholesterol so I wouldn’t recommend having it too frequently. I love squid ink anything. One of the best ramens I’ve ever had was a squid ink ramen from Japan. This was more of a novelty thing just so we could play with our food.

Happy New Year! May your stomaches be filled with delicious foods this upcoming year!

Happy Eatings!

Hairy Crab Crossandwich, Anyone? Hong Kong Edition

Let me introduce you to one of my new favorite places in Hong Kong: Hysan Place. Sure it has floors and floors of shopping that exceeds the Times Square nearby, but I love it for its bakery!

 Urban Bakery has tons of tasty breads, cakes, and pastries like any other Asian bakery. Sure, their cranberry cheese bread is good, but the best part of Urban is their… croissants! I’ve never been a fan of eating croissants. Why, you ask? The crust has to be perfect for me. It should be toasted and flake off as you take each bite. Damn skippy, it should!

 How can you not love a bakery with a sign like this? Bonus points! Well, Urban’s croissants are amazing. They are so good and in demand that they sell out everyday. Their usual flavors include Ham & Brie and Langoustine. If you’re a foodie though, you know that it’s currently Hairy Crab season, which is the best of the seasons we have each year! Ha!

 Well Urban Bakery has added a new, seasonal “crossandwich”! Ha! Aren’t they clever with the name? Love it! Feast your eyes on the amazing Hairy Crab with Caviar and Chives! As the sign says the crossandwich is “handpicked seasonal hairy crab crossandwich tailor made for foodies searching for the extreme”. *Raises hand*

  Review: The crossiant in itself was absolutely delightful. I could eat it all day. I have to admit that although I love Hairy Crab, it didn’t make for the best flavor croissant. I would go with the Ham and Brie if you have a choice. I’ve had that multiple times and that remains my favorite flavor. The Hairy Crab is in demand because it’s special right now. I think it’s worth trying just because it’s kind of gimmicky? Is that a word?

 Well, Urban Bakery is still a win! Here are the other croissant choices available currently.

Put them on your to-visit list whilst in Hong Kong!

Address: Jasons‧Food & Living, B2/F, Hysan Place, 500 Hennessy Road, Causeway

Happy Eatings! 

New Favorite Themed Restaurant in HK!

Hello, Readers! I’m currently in Hong Kong, again. I’ll be returning to Los Angeles soon. Until then,  I’d like to share a new restaurant that I’ve been enjoying.

 I may have found my new faveorite themed-resturant in Hong Kong. Am I a bit biased because of my family’s Singaporean roots? Maybe, from the menus to the detail in the paper placemats, Shiok! is at the top of list.

So how do you even pronounce that? You’ll have to ask a Singaporean but according to Urban Dictionary, shiok is “used to convey a feeling of sheer pleasure and happiness”. Shiok! is located in the new Hysan Place on the 11^th floor of the Food Court. What makes this place memorable is really the branding and thought put into everything.

 Everything had a Pop Art Comic on it. Even down to their placemats! I loved it!

 Onto the food! The food is pretty good. Certain items could have been more authentic, but how could you not love their Pop Art style comics? And bottomless refillable garlic/ginger sauce? Yes, please.

 This was their Bak Kut Teh aka Pork Bone Tea Soup. The color of the soup is supposed to be dark, dark brown. In many Singaporean and Malaysian customs and traditions, women who had just given birth are encouraged to drink this herbal, medicinal soup to restore their nutrients from childbearing. True, authentic Bak Kut Teh can be hard to stomach. It can taste like Traditional Chinese Medicine. Although not the most authentic, this Bak Kut Teh was tasty.

 And of course what kind of meal would be complete without the quintessential Singaporean drink, Milo? This is a Milo Godzilla drink. For those that don’t know Milo is essentially many Asian countries’ version of Ovaltine of Nesquik. Very popular in Singapore, Milo Dinosaur is a cup of milo with an extra spoonful of powdered undissolved Milo added to it and  Milo Godzilla is a cup of Milo with ice cream or topped with whipped cream. Both can be ordered hot or cold.

 Back to the food at Shiok!…Here was my order of Chai Tow Kway aka fried radish cake. I was sad to find that they only had the black kind. This traditionally comes in black and white.

 Here was my order of Hainan Chicken Rice. It was pretty good. Again, not the most authentic, but the bottomless sauces made up for it. Many places are stingy with their chicken and chili sauces!

Shiok! only had one kind of laksa. Their seafood laksa was on point. I enjoyed that you could choose what type of noodle you wanted. Laksa is a spicy noodle dish that is popular in Malaysia and Singapore. The soup base is made with curry.

All in all, I enjoyed my experience at Shiok! The booth was well thought out and executed. The location was convient. You can’t get to the 11th floor directly so I suggest taking the elevator from the ground floor to the 10th floor, which is a joy to walk through anyways. The 10th floor is the famous Eslite Bookstore, formerly only available in Taipei, Taiwan. From that, take one flight of escalators to the 11th floor. Also, there’s a Honeymoon Dessert Booth close by to end your meal! It’s perfect!

Many of the better Singaporean restaurants I have frequented in Hong Kong are very far away and expensive. For me, true Singaporean food should be hawker-style. It’s hard to justify spending the big bucks when you know an old lady roasting a satay in the middle of the street is one of the most savory things you can ever have!

And with that considered, I quite enjoy Shiok! It’s cute, modern, and fast. Of course it can’t come close to being in Singapore, but for being in HK it’s A-OK in my book!

11/F,Hysan Place, 500 Hennessy Road, Causeway Bay

Hong Kong Continued...

I think this will be the last or next to last Hong Kong post for now. I've been back from HK for quite some time now. Actually, I'm in Boston on Auntie duty. =) So here we go!

 Che Kee in Causeway Bay has a Michelin Star. In recent years, they've been included in all the guidebooks so it's been increasingly annoying to go with some many tourists making the line extra long to get seated. What's awesome about CK is that their prices are on the low end compared to the usual prices for Michelin Star restaurants. If you want a taste of real, authentic Cantonese food-this is it. The location is also great. It's right across from Times Square, close to a Ladies' Market for shopping, and close to lots of street food. 

 Their straight forward lunch menu

 Can you spy the mini oysters in the spicy sauce? These are deep fried fish balls. The sauce was amazing. 

 Dumplings and soup filled with MSG. It's the food of champions! 

 Egg waffles! This has Hong Kong written al over it! But what makes it better than usual? You see, instead of the regular vanilla flavor this one is called the ying yang. Half chocolate and half vanilla! I loved it! I've had all the flavors there are to offer, but to have 2 flavors in one is AMAZING!!!  

 And just for kicks, here's a turtle bread my mom thought was cute. The chocolate eyes melted off in the humidity before I got home. Usually my rule of thumb is never buy anything that is too cute, but since the turtle's shell was made up of a pineapple bun I decided to humor my mom and buy it for her.

And of course, I was right. Bleh. Not impressive! It was also $6 US for that puny thing! 

Happy Eatings!

Back at Hana Sakazuki Again!

If you are a frequent visitor of my blog, then you know  Hana Sakazuki in Causeway Bay is one of my must go to restaurants in Hong Kong. It comes out to about $30 or $35 US for their lunch meals. 

 Salad and an appetizer. Egg plant was our appetizer for the day! 

 Toro chirashi with an udon side. 

 My mom got the sashimi combo. Came with miso, udon, rice and egg. 

I'm drooling looking back on these pictures right now! I love Hong Kong! Hong Kong is actually one of the best places for Japanese food. They fly over their sashimi fresh every single day. Enjoy these last few posts because I've been back in the U.S. for awhile now. This blog will shortly return to Los Angeles blog posts.


Until then, if you are in the San Gabriel area, check out 626foodettes.com for ideas of what to eat in the ethically diverse city! 

Chinese food in Hong Kong

Nom, nom, nom! The food just never ends! I'm back in the US of A already and I still haven't finished posting my Hong Kong food pictures.

 Egg whites, crab, and egg yolk make for deliciousness all around! Don't worry when you mix it all in, it cooks the yolk. 

 Dan dan noodles are my comfort food! Well, they're a good alternative to standing in an 1 hr 30 min line for Japanese ramen.

 shaorou! Goes great with vinegar! 

 shanjeanbao! 

 dumplings 

grapefruit dessert

Enjoy the food porn?