Traveling Hong Kong: The Food

Honest to goodness, Hong Kong food is largely bland. And I hate it, most times. 

I come from a tropical country whose history is influenced by Westerners rapt with seasoning and condiments.  So, my food choices. 

Hong Kong food normally tastes like stew, a simple mixture of a solid food ingredient cooked in liquid. The aroma? An indistinctive steam of water. No onions, salt, and pepper creating a palatable combination. 

But with less sodium their food, too, is apparently healthier.

Despite the rather insipid eats they also have food which tastes internationally competitive.

Must Eat

Street Food

The Korean Grilled Squid is an appetizing try. My three travel companions and I took the ones in Ocean Park.

What convinced us to buy? The ambrosial smell of a squid meat marinated in soy sauce and what-magic-ingredient included. It's very inviting.

The squid looks cut flatly in half after grilling. The brown-purplish color will tell you it's ready to eat.

It tastes like tender piece of chicken. Its semi-soft meat stretches like shreds of mozzarella cheese in every bite.

The name isn't very suggestive of Hong Kong, but it's sold all over Ocean Park, Disneyland, and Hong Kong Food Districts for roughly HK$30 each.

:: Traveler's Note: Korean Grilled Squid is a popular snack for people of all ages in Korea. It's portable and cheap protein, and can be eaten like popcorn, enjoyed as an anju paired with drinks. [Source: Koreanfood (dot) about (dot) com (slash) fishandseafoodrecipes] ::

Budget Eats

If you're traveling on a slightly narrow budget but still want to eat good food at a reasonable price, try the ready-to-eat meals in Hong Kong. They cost around HK$9 to HK$15 in most convenient stores.

eat-everywhere meal

They come in pork, chicken, and seafood. You can also choose from those served with rice and those served solely as edible veges.

There's no other food like home-cooked meals but these meal packages taste almost equally the same. I tried those with rice drenched in tomato sauce, topped with chunks of chicken and enormous slices of onions, garlic, and carrots. It's like tripe soup except that it is white meat that fudges as I chew. Some flavors have a sweet-sour blend while others taste a bit tangy.

Most Hong Kong locals prefer these meals for its convenience. So why not a traveler?

The meals are in laminated or zipper pouch food packaging and are readily cooked for 5 to 10 minutes using the microwave at the convenient stores.

Microwavable meals from Tsim Sha Tsui, Hong Kong

Utensils are provided, too.

Dining

If you'd like to go for a casual but more decent type of dining in an upscale setting, try to have a buffet dinner at Cafe TOO in Island Shangri-La, Hong Kong.

Cafe TOO Japanese Kitchen, Island Shangri-La, Hong Kong

Cafe TOO offers ten cooking theatres that feature different cooking styles. Unlike other restaurants in Shangri-La, Cafe TOO is a casual buffet type of dining. A co-op for international cuisines-- French, Japanese, Thai, and others. Options are abundant and the choice is yours.

Asian Cuisine

They cook for tongues hungry of sumptuous food.

Chefs serving European Cuisine

Our table was near the dessert kitchen. We had a seemingly absolute affair with ice cream in macadamia and strawberry flavors, ganache cake, and Japanese manju.

Cafe TOO sweets corner

We also went for French Wagyu steaks that extensively tasted like flesh swamped in sesame oil, and Japanese Sushi that tasted like a fresh gang of seafood meat and vegetables wrapped in moist rice.

Japanese Sushi

This chocolate cake had me almost drooling.

heavenly cake!

The faint breeze of Thai curries and Indian sauce served with Naan bread fill the air at one side of the restaurant. And what I hear are part chefs cooking, diners talking, spoons thumping on glass wares, and part good sense of burpiliciousness in my stomach that makes me want more.

I also tried Oshikuro, a traditional Japanese dessert made of red bean soup, rice cake, and chestnut. I, so far, have never tasted a dessert as inebriating as that in my life. But that's just in Cafe TOO.

Oshikuro's delicious look and not-so delicious aftertaste was in a way fun for an experience.

Japanese Oshikuro Dessert

Most of the food are all in all, fit for a king.

Bizarre 

If you also want to try something strange and off-menu, Hong Kong has snake soup in Ser Wong Fun, stinky tofu, turtle jelly, 1000- year old eggs, and bugs on sticks. Their taste is by their name implied.

Click here for more bizarre food guide.

:: Traveler's Note: Did you know that there is only one Jollibee Branch in Hong Kong that offers all-pinoy recipe? It's in G/B Eurotrade Center, 13-14 Connaught Road, Central, Hong Kong ::

Island Shangri-La Hotel lobby

Whether an international dish or an authentic Cantonese cuisine, the general rule in choosing food to eat on your travels is stated in Andrew Zimmern's law,

"If it looks good, eat it."





Photo Credits:
cherryeveryday (dot) com-2nd photo
groupon (dot) com (dot) au-9th photo
japan (hyphen) talk (dot) com-11th photo

References:
philippinecountry (dot) com
shangri (hyphen) la (dot) com (slash) hongkong
japan101 (dot) com

Guilty Pleasure: Häagen-Dazs

I hoard and joined the bandwagon. After hearing that Haagen Dazs and Pillsbury are going to pull out in the Philippine Market, I knew I have the instinctive responsibility to satisfy my palate again. 

Image taken from weeklyguiltypleasure.wordpress.com

The 5-year-old, Bronx New York born ice cream brand served my fantasies for the past 21 years. I took a sabbatical from the wellness world and allowed myself to succumb into the heavy calories that will surely nest around my ever-persistent love handles. Anyway I'll be starting Bikram and Pilates in the next few days, I told myself. 

For a while, I felt like I was slipping along the clouds. The Belgian chocolate melts as it meets my tongue. Now I regained a positive view about having sweets as treat to self every once in a while. 

Excuse me for a little camwhoring. I'm having  a sort of fling with  Häagen-Dazs. I hope I don't get so adulterous with my fitness ambitions. Teehee!

Oh Belgian, My Belgian!

Besides being a wanderlust :D

It's so surreal!

I can't get enough

I don't look so into it, do I? :D

Off it goes

I'm such a self-confessed Dazsinator :P

I promised myself it's going to be a quick post. I still have to get ready for work. Saving lusciousness till later!

Photo Credits:

weeklyguiltypleasure.wordpress.com (1st photo)

Panfry and the Best Food Guide

It's nothing like a chef's knife. Whenever I attempt to open the range I think of something that cooks with ease. For a non-pro cook like me who needs more culinary schooling, I resort to something convenient especially when running errands.

One of the most basic dishes I've learned cooking, and actually the first, are eggs. Sheesh, that's a confession!

We all know that it usually takes no more than  5 minutes to cook one.  And it's also done in sorts. I'm talking of fried, boiled, scrambled, and many other ways you never know possible; besides choosing more of the "medium-rare" or the soft-boiled ones. That's just how I like eggs done. 

To boot, eggs as fast cook are available anywhere and are not costly.

When airing of the pilot episode of Donna Hay's Fast, Fresh, & Simple  was first advertised last March 13 on TLC Asia  I knew I've found a best guide to doing quick and simple cooks.

Donna Hay is Australia's leading food editor and best-selling cookbook author. She shares in her show cooking and baking how-to's that aligns to her philosophy on food-- fast, fresh and simple.

For my love for eggs I found one of Donna's episode on making fast, fresh, and simple Egg on Toast.

Watch the episode below:

Eggs on Toast - Donna Hay - Donna Hay Fast Fresh Simple Videos - LifeStyle Channel

On a personal side note, you can replace your garnishing with some ingredients available in your locale.

Replace:

• Margarine for butter (which is plant in source and healthier)
• Calamansi juice for Lemon juice (with the same citrus taste)
• Salt and pepper or any preferred local cheese products (to get the same salty taste and adorning of your plate)

Or you can add to your comments below other substitutes for the ingredients mentioned.

Whether you're a busy mom, career woman, culinary student, or a plain fan of cooking, you might want to see  more of  Donna Hay's Fast, Fresh, and Simple episodes. Visit here.

Reference: 
donnahay (dot) com (dot) au

Photo/ Video Credits:
google (dot) com (slash) images
lifestyle (dot) com (dot) au