M
y love affair with the food of Hong Kong
started long before the famous Kai Tak Airport
closed in 1998. I remember wandering through
the crowded streets of Wan Chai, gawking at
the cornucopia of fruits and vegetables at the wet market
and being quickened by possibility. I was mesmerised by
the umami-packed broth of a wonton noodle soup, and
intrigued by the elusive quality of some of its flavours.
I noted the name of this family-run joint: Ho Hung Kee.
Little did I realise that decades later I’d have the chance
to get to the bottom of its broth’s mystery ingredients for
my new cookbook, Hong Kong Food City.
For me, Hong Kong is a culinary wonderland where
it’s possible to eat practically any regional Chinese cooking
style, from Shanghainese and Chiu Chow to Sichuan.
With Guangdong province just over the border, Cantonese
is the predominant cuisine, known for its imaginative and
ethereal dishes. Hong Kong, like its near neighbour Macau
across the Pearl River Delta, was exposed to the West with
the arrival of the British and the Portuguese, and the
region’s culinary heritage was further enriched by their
influence. Many hybrid dishes such as Macanese fried
rice, Swiss chicken wings and bo lo bao – pineapple
buns – loom large in the region’s repertoire.
But there’s more. As one of the most cosmopolitan
cities in Asia, Hong Kong has attracted top chefs from
Shunde – a city renowned for producing some of the finest
Cantonese cooks in Guangdong – and from around the
world. And it’s this mix that has made it such an exciting
and inspiring place to dine. With this in mind, I felt it was
fitting to include a few recipes from some of the best chefs
working outside the Chinese idiom who’ve made this
modern metropolis their home.
Most of the recipes in
the book are wonderfully
accessible, requiring nothing
more than the staples in
your pantry and perhaps
a wok. Others will put
confident cooks through
their paces. But if you wish
to conjure the magical
flavours of Hong Kong for
yourself, it’s my heartfelt
hope that this will be the
book to take you there.Macanese fried rice with cod SERVES 2
“Just under an hour by ferry from Hong Kong is Macau, which was
colonised by the Portuguese in 1557,” says Tony Tan. “By the time
it was returned to China in 1999, a lovely blend of Portuguese and
Cantonese cuisines with some influence from Goa and Mozambique
had evolved into a Macanese cuisine. This exceptionally tasty dish
of fried rice is a fine example of this unique blend. It features salt
cod – baccalà, or bacalhau in Portuguese – and is a cinch to make.
Some cooks and restaurants add olives – don’t be surprised to
find this hybrid dish made with all sorts of different goodies. If you
visit Macau, check out António restaurant and Albergue 1601 for
Portuguese and Macanese food.” Pictured page 116.3 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil,
plus extra to serve
1 egg, beaten
1 red shallot, finely chopped
120 gm soaked and drained salt
cod, cut into small cubes
500 gm cooked long-grain rice,
preferably refrigerated
overnight
30 gm green capsicum,
finely chopped
1 spring onion, finely
chopped
1 small tomato, sliced
(optional)1 Place the olive oil in a wok
over medium-high heat. Pour
in the egg and tilt the wok to
form a thin omelette. Move the
omelette to the side and add the
shallot. Stir-fry for 30 seconds,
then add the salt cod, adding
more oil if necessary.
2 Stir-fry for 1-2 minutes, then
add the rice and stir-fry until
hot. Add the capsicum and
spring onion, season with salt
and white pepper and stir-fry
for another minute. Drizzle
some extra oil over the rice
and serve with sliced tomato.118 GOURMET TRAVELLER