Tag: Chinese Food

After more than ten years across four different locations, we were finally reunited with the flavour that we thought had been lost for good.

Fusion food is hard to pull off, but 15 Stamford does it masterfully

April 2, 2022September 16, 2023 Alvin Lee No comments

It’s easy to descend into fusion/confusion when mixing ingredients, cooking methods, seasonings and presentations across so many different cuisines, but 15 Stamford navigated it wonderfully.

Prosperity yusheng with a Japanese touch from Tanoke

Food

February 9, 2022June 17, 2022 Alvin Lee No comments

Japanese ingredients in the Tanoke Prosperity Yusheng set it apart from others. Hamachi, ikura, shiso flowers, honey yuzu and goma dressing add a nice touch to the traditional Chinese New Year salad.

Home-grown vegetables make home-cooked food taste even better

Food

November 27, 2021February 23, 2022 Alvin Lee No comments

You can’t rush Nature, but when you give it time to do its thing, the results can be quite delicious.

Early morning expedition to Shunfu Market for Hakka soon kueh

Food

November 24, 2021June 22, 2022 Alvin Lee No comments

Late one night, as The Wife was scrolling through her Facebook feed, she noticed a friend’s photos of soon kueh that she had bought from Mei Zhen Hakka Delicacies (美珍客家美食) in Shunfu Market. I knew that the outcome was inevitable and pre-emptively said to her: “Gaja (가자)!” Which, as we all know, is Korean for “resistance is futile”.

Recreating the Chong Qing Grilled Fish experience at home

Food

October 9, 2021February 23, 2022 Alvin Lee No comments

“A” for effort, but some things just taste better in a restaurant.

There is such a thing as a purple radish

Food

August 25, 2021February 23, 2022 Alvin Lee No comments

Kawaii desu ne!

Sorrowful rice of ecstasy 《黯然销魂饭》

Food

August 11, 2021April 14, 2023 Alvin Lee No comments

1996 was a great year for Hong Kong movies. Because in 1996, the fantastic 《食神》 (God of Cookery) was released. There are so many classic scenes in that movie, but one unforgettable segment has to be when Stephen Chow made 《黯然销魂饭》。 It’s a challenge to translate the name of that dish to English, but “Sorrowful rice of ecstasy” is probably as close as it gets.

Ang ku kueh doesn’t always have to be red

Food

August 7, 2021July 7, 2022 Alvin Lee No comments

It’s good that traditional shops like Ji Xiang Confectionery are experimenting with different flavours and colours, instead of simply sticking with the classic tried-and-tested ones.

While some might think that this dilutes the original symbolism of the beloved ang ku kueh, these innovations do make it more attractive and relatable to the younger generation, who may otherwise just give it a miss totally.

Head up to Wulai for a break from the bustle of Taipei city

Travel

July 10, 2021February 21, 2022 Alvin Lee No comments

The first time we visited Wulai (烏來) was in the winter of 2005. We were on vacation in Taipei and wanted a change of scenery from the tall buildings and crowded streets of the city but didn’t want to travel too far. So we booked a night at 美人湯溫泉會館, a hotspring hotel up in the Wulai mountains.

We enjoyed the stay and told ourselves that we would visit Wulai again. But we got distracted by the central, eastern and southern Taiwan and didn’t manage to return until the spring of 2019.