Dim Sum with Gary's Family (Sook Sook-Gary's Brother, MaMa -grandma, YeYe -grandpa, and PoPo - Gary's grandmother) |
Since being back in the states, we have craved Chinese food - authentic, only available for the most part overseas, Chinese food. So, last night we had a wonderful meal cooked by hubby of curry, rice and egg {Kare Raisu}which we ate at the food court in his parents' building. The Kare Raisu we ate had an egg cooked- sort of like an omelette - in a pan with the ball of rice on top and then it was flipped over onto the plate with the curry. So, so yummy!!
This weekend (older post - we enjoyed our Dim Sum and our trip to IKEA this day) - weather permitting - we have planned a morning of Dim Sum at a restaurant a little further from our house and tea time at a local Asian buns and coffee house called Sweet Hut. Can't Wait!!! We have made a plan from now on to eat Dim Sum at least once a month and invite different friends along.
The day in Hong Kong begins like the day in most other places around the world with people getting out of the house to go to work. But, breakfast in Hong Kong looks very different there than in the States. You can get eggs and oatmeal and toast, but those aren't the most common items found. Our breakfast here wouldn't last long with all of the walking and moving one does in Hong Kong.
Breakfast of Noodles, Beef and Bok Choy with Egg |
Dim Sum Common Dishes:
Dim Sum is the Chinese equivalent to our southern restaurants that serve food in dishes family style. The dishes are ordered and brought to the table where they are placed on a giant lazy Susan in the center of the table. This is a great way to eat if you are a Chinese food newbie since you will get to try a lot of different things. I love Dim Sum. It is a laid back way to eat, drink tea and visit with friends.
Dim Sum Table |
Congee |
Chicken Feet |
Pork Blood |
I have actually tried most everything there is to try from Dim Sum, including the Pork Blood and Chicken Feet. I do not care for chicken feet as it really is all about the chewing and not really any meat. The Pork Blood actually tastes a lot like beef liver and has the consistency of Tofu. I like both tofu and beef liver so this wasn't a biggie for me.
Congee is a winter staple at our home and it is our equivalent to Chicken Soup when we are sick - Declan loves it! It is so easy and simple to make - only one cup of rice goes a long way. We often add chicken, mushrooms, ginger and scallions to our congee along with the water.
Other Breakfast:
Buns are served as a Dim Sum dish as well as found as a take and go snack. This article tells a lot about the different types. {Buns}
We also often visited a Chinese Bakery for tea time or for a quick snack for Declan. This website has a lot of mouth watering photos of the bakery items we eat most. {Chinese Pastries}
My favorites are the Red Bean Pastries while Gary loves the Egg Custard Tarts. Declan often went for the Hot Dog or Sponge cake pastries. The Sweet Hut tea and pastry shop is where we find these in the Atlanta area.
Baked Goods (Chinese Buns) |
Snacks:
Octopus Balls (Takoyaki) |
Gai Daan Tsai (Waffles) |
Chinese Tea Eggs |
Hot Pot for Dinner:
Hot Pot refers to a way of cooking a lot of food in one pot with a boiling soup base. The water is kept boiling hot and items such as meat, fish balls, vegetables and other items are dropped into the pot where it cooks. You then take out what you want and eat it.
7 Layer Pot for Chinese New Year (Already cooked) Included Chicken, Veggies, Abalone) |