End of September 2014, I was grateful to have the good fortune to do a short few months (relatively speaking) backpacking trip with friends and family which included China (Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, Part 6), Malaysia, Cambodia, Vietnam, Indonesia, Singapore and Korea. I’ll be writing an 12-part series of the trip on the food that was memorable enough to have made it onto my camera.
China – Part 5
Where? Guangzhou, Hong Kong, Macau
Well, we barely stopped by Guangzhou. I would’ve liked some more time there mainly to visit the ancestral village of the Chen clan in Toisan. The majority of overseas Chinese in Canada and America left their rural farming villages from there in search of a more prosperous life. Had I structured my trip better I definitely would’ve landed myself there to see what it is like.
Guangzhou is a sprawling metropolis of a city, yet tourism-wise there isn’t anything too exciting about it compared to its more international cousin, Hong Kong. I did some sightseeing here and there and that’s it.
Though throughout China, Guangzhou has the reputation of being a premier food destination. It is arguably the most famous of the 8 culinary cuisines of China. I asked our driver in Shanghai who has gone there what is fun there to do? He replies, “Oh, I don’t know. I just go there to eat.” This seems to be quite a common theme. I have also heard that Cantonese chefs are highly sought after throughout the country due to their expertise and craftsmanship in cuisine. This is mainly due to it’s advantageous lush productive four seasons, abundance of ingredients, proximity to the sea and one of the original ports that was opened up for trading back in 1800’s China. Indeed, even people from other parts of China joke about the Cantonese “The Chinese eat everything with four legs, except tables, and everything that flies except airplanes.”
With all that being said, next time you go to Panda Express having some Chop Suey, Ginger Beef, Orange Chicken – you can trace it all the way back to Guangdong and Guangzhou, though the locals won’t know what you’re talking about and you’ll never find those dishes there.
With that food-gushing preamble, I am embarrassed to say that I barely have any interesting representative pictures here of it. Theoretically speaking this should be the absolute longest post of the entire series since I have the most expertise. But with a Cantonese chef dad, it’s part of my upbringing I don’t really think too much of it. Whatever I had in Hong Kong was 100% normal to me, which pretty much never got any pictures. Maybe I’ll start an introduction to Cantonese food series when I have the time.
One thing I did get to have in Guangzhou that I don’t think I will get to have for a long long time was some fine cognac. As much as I like a fine whiskey, it’s actually the second spirit I learnt to appreciate and not just take shots with. The first one was brandy from my parents as the Chinese seem to have an affinity for it.
Hennessy XO and Remy Martin Louis XIII
I’m pretty lucky in general and especially so when it comes to food. And when the opportunity comes up to have some XO, I don’t say no. And when the opportunity to have some Louis XIII, I most definitely won’t say no. It just so happened that one of my relatives had some bottles at open at home; the Louis XIII was gifted to him and he encouraged us to try some. As a somewhat broke 20 something who appreciates the finer things, this is as once-in-a-lifetime as it gets.
I’m not a hardcore cognac fanatic and drink it casually, so for those who are cognac aficionados who are reading this, please excuse my un-educated description of fine brandy. I just merely appreciate a good drink. A brief thing about brandy is that “All cognacs are brandies, but not brandies are cognacs.” Cognacs are only produced in the Cognac region of France. As for aging generally speaking, VS (very special) = 2 years minimum, VSOP (very special old pale) = 4 years minimum in cask, and XO (extra old) = at least 6 years.
Hennessy XO is a gold standard in cognac land and is often gifted or flaunted as a status symbol in Hong Kong Chinese circles. It’s expensive at ranging from $150 to $300 depending on where you are. It’s a very mainstream cognac, but its consistent, smooth, floral, with a good depth and complexity in notes. There’s minimal burn and a great pleasure to drink. You can’t go wrong with it. Usually when I’m buying bottles I settle for VSOP since it’s more in my price range. Hennessy XO is expensive, but still affordable if you really want it. However, at that price, I do think you can buy smaller batches from different distilleries that offer more unique flavour profiles.
Remy Martin Louis XIII is something I haven’t heard of it until 2 years ago. It won’t be on your radar unless you’re really interested. Kinda like Patek Phillipe where if you’re not into watches, that won’t mean anything to you. But in cognac land, Louis XIII is a thing to aspire owning or tasting and truly a luxurious item. It’s an incredibly rare bottle and one of the most expensive in the world. A bottle of it sets you back a cool $2100 to $5000 USD with the median falling around $3000. It’s blended from grapes only in the Grand Champagne region of France, from 1200 eaux de vie (raw brandy) ranging from 40 to 100 years old and aged in oak barrels several hundred years old. Oh yea, it comes in a gorgeous Baccarat crystal decanter.
So how does it taste? I’m terrible with creative descriptors when it comes to liquor and generally think they’re somewhat BS (I just lost all my foodie street cred here), but what I can say from memory, what comes to mind was very floral, fragrant, delicate and subtly complex. There was no burn, incredibly smooth and an elegant drink. Almost a Schweppes Cream Soda soft drink quality about it in flavour which translates to sweet and vanilla-ish. That’s really all I have to say about it. I wish I was more into it so I can pick up more nuances on it. It’s unmistakably a cognac, but yet different than anything I’ve tasted.
When comparing it to the easily accessible Hennessy XO, they’re just two different drinks with two different profiles. I can confidently say neither one is ‘better’ per se. But a matter of pure tastes at this point. The Louis XIII isn’t necessarily $3000 better, for it’s not a utilitarian object. Both are fantastic cognacs, and it just so happens that the one with a more unique flavour is 10x more expensive.
We leave Guangzhou to HK over land. After 3 weeks in China, it was a breath of fresh air, literally and figuratively speaking. It was great to find order and queues on the streets again.
One of my favourite places in the two times I’ve been to Hong Kong is the ubiquitous Cha Chaan Teng. HK style tea restaurant cafes. They serve you cheap eats, and a strange eclectic menu if you’re not used to it. I always go for the western Chinese menus. Below here are greasy scramble eggs with thick buttered condense milk toast, a plate of macaroni and ham (this is what I had growing up instead of Mac and Cheese) and a glorious cup of Hong Kong Milk Tea (strong black tea, sugar, evaporated milk).
Typical Cha Chaan Teng Breafkast
Our hostel was in the Wan Chai district and we were searching for some serious cheap eats since Hong Kong was one of the most expensive stays for us based on cost alone. A 150 ish square feet room, with 9 people still cost us $35 a night! Around the corner was a Char Siu (Chinese BBQ) restaurant which was recommended by the front desk clerk. I love this stuff, as char siu and roast duck rice is one of my favourite cheap meals. Little that we know, it was actually a 1 star Michelin rated restaurant! I remember wandering around to go to the MTR station and these Korean tourists asked me where this restaurant was (I seem to get this travelling all the time), and luckily I wasn’t too far so I walked them there. This place was pretty good I must say and the price is definitely right. Cheapest 1 star Michelin meal I’ll ever eat.
Half Fat, Half Lean Char Siu. The best.
We were craving for some Xiao Long Bao (XLB), little soup buns, and there is no better place to go than Ding Tai Fung. We make these at home too to a very comparable quality, but it takes a ridiculous amount of labour so we don’t do it too often. Ding Tai Fung is a famous Taiwanese chain famed for their XLB’s with restaurants even in America. Though they’re way out in the burbs though so I’ve actually never tried it in the states.
There they also had Beef Noodle Soup, a Taiwanese MUST HAVE. One of my favourite noodle soups ever and is even better when they have thick chunks of soft gooey beef tendons inside.
We also ordered a Wonton in Chili Oil, which is ok. And also an almond flavoured soft silken tofu bean curd dessert. It’s light, delicate, floral with a strong tofu taste. I love this stuff.
DTF XLB.
Wonton’s in Chili Oil
Beef Noodle Soup
Almond Tofu Hua
Guys at work wrapping stuff those XLBs!
We took a day trip to Macau, a first for me. The primary objective there was to eat Pastel De Natas, Portuguese style egg tarts. And eat them we did. I just can’t get enough of these flakey sweet pastry and slightly charred custard.
This makes my heart ache with sadness, melancholy and yearning. Please, come back to me little sweet egg tarts.
You’ll find these everywhere, but the best ones seem to come from one of these two chains that dominate the entire tourist area. You walk around for 5 minutes and you seem them repeating themselves over and over again.
Other than these scrumptious tarts (I think I ate 4 that day), they made some amazing sweet pork jerky as well. None of this is particularly healthy for you and I like it that way.
I posted a picture of some salted fish drying out on the streets as well. I didn’t eat any here, but I thought the picture looked cool. One of my favourite family dishes is steamed salted fish with fatty ground pork. I mix all the juices and fat over a multiple bowls of steamed rice. It is the ultimate comfort food for me and it’s amazing.
We checked out the Venetian as well, which was cool. But then I realized I couldn’t afford to lose any money and I didn’t know how to play any of the games.
Pastel De Nata’s!!!
This is why I’m fat.
Salted fish drying…
One thing in Asia where I still haven’t had the opportunity to try was delivered McDonalds. I mean really, what am I doing with my life? I need this.
I’ll cap off this post with a bowl of Clay Pot Rice. I believe this is indeed a Southern Chinese specialty. Little clay pots of rice with whatever topping you want on top of it. The bowl below has chicken leg meat, some vegetables and Chinese sausage. Typically you pour some soy sauce in and mix it all together to eat. The thing that everybody enjoys the most about rice in claypots is the burnt rice you find at the bottom and is most definitely a prized part of the dish. You scrape it off and chew on it as it gives a satisfying mouthfeel of crunchiness and chewiness.
