The Food Canon

(At the time of writing, I had just seen with my girls - and loved again - the great movie, Forrest Gump. So, stupid as stupid does, you must excuse some Gump-speak here.)

If you enjoy cooking, CNY is a good opportunity to indulge your hobby. It may be stressful at times, but it will be satisfying.

This blog is almost likened to my cooking notes; I do want to remember what I did for the Reunion dinner this year. It will not be often that these kind of dishes will be cooked and the next time I cook them (next CNY?), this post will be a helpful reference point.

I will give more details here on braising an Abalone dish. If you receive these cans as gifts, this can give you some idea on cooking it well. It does require some prep work but cooking attention is minimal as you leave the pot to simmer.

We needed superior stock (for this dish) and normal stock (for the rest). I used lean pork (0.8 kg, cubed), one "kampung" chicken (remove the skin and fat, cut into smaller pieces), yunnan ham (80g), chicken feet (15) and some herbs like aniseed (2 pieces) and bay leaves (3). After blanching, it was simmered in a deep pot for 3 hours (with about 3 liters of water, so that the stock ingredients are covered.

Thai Galangal - Looks great, smells great, taste great

A dish which will "debut" in our CNY lineup this year is Steamed Chicken in Ginger Sauce. I have already talked about steaming the corn-fed Anxin bird but this recipe is different.

I have already blogged the recipe for this steamed version with ginger sauce. What will make a difference this time round is the fantastic corn-fed Anxin chicken and adding Thai Galangal to the ginger mix.

When using the steaming method to cook chicken, you will be able to tell the quality of the bird. In this recipe, the chicken is cut into small pieces and then steamed for 15-20 minutes. After that, the ginger sauce (prepared beforehand) is added. The Anxin "kampung" bird is fresh, succulent and flavorful. For this recipe, you will need a good "kampung" chicken. White broilers won't do.

My Mum-in-law's collection of abalones (all gifts), from last year and this. Getting them ready for steaming.

I continue with the CNY recipes which will be appearing on our Reunion table.

I come now to the "treasure" dish. When was the last time I cooked this? Unless you are a Chinese restaurant chef, you don't cook this dishe regularly. Mentally, I have to go through the steps again, as the last time I cooked it was last year's CNY.

I can still remember how I painstakingly prepared the superior stock. I left it in the pot and my mama thought those were leftovers.

My mum, the late Auntie Ruby cooking large river prawns and enjoying it

Stir-Fried River Prawns or "Har Lok" is one of the regulars on our reunion dinner table. My brother will normally buy them from Ipoh.

I will post a few recipes describing some dishes which I will be cooking for the coming Chinese New Year Reunion Dinner.

Traditionally, for our Wong dinner, my mum will always steamed a chicken. She will get the best chicken she can find. And by that I mean one with a thicker layer of fat and gelatin with yellowish skin. She will make a ginger sauce to go with it. Normally this dish is overshadowed by other more flavorful dishes, but she will insist on steaming at least one chicken.

You can steam the chicken in advance and chop it up just before you serve. It taste best when served in room temperature or slightly chilled.