Luxury Travel Secrets

July 28, 2010

A List of the Must Try Dishes in Hangzhou

Filed under: Cuisine Special — admin @ 3:52 am

1. West Lake Vinegar Fish

   < Westlake Carp in sweet and sour sauce

2. Dongpo Pork


    The name Dongpo comes from the Song dynasty poet, Su Dongpo (1036-1101)  who is not only a renowned poet, but also a politian and a food gourmet. He was demoted from Beijing to Hangzhou  for offending the emperor. During his service in Hangzhou, he devoted himself to the local people. Thus on a Spring Festival, the folks all sent him his favorite pork as a way to express their appreciation. He got so much pork at one time, so he instructed his family to cook all the pork with wine and distribute to every household. To commemorate him, people name this aromatic bouilli as “Dongpo Meat”.

3. Beggar’s Chicken


    Don’t be fooled by its plain looking. It actually comes a long way before it’s ready to serve. Firstly, massage the chicken. Secondly, smear its inside and outside with ginger juice and marinade ingredients and leave it for 1 hour. And Stir-fry sliced pork with greens and mushrooms, adding soy sauces, rice wine or dry sherry, sugar, sesame oil and five-spice powder when it’s almost done. Stuff the chicken loosely and wrap the chicken tightly in the lotus leaf(sometimes they use soil / aluminum foil instead). Place it in a roasting pan and bake for 75 minutes. Remove the stuffing and finally it can be served with the chopped up chicken.

4. Fried Shrimps with Longjing Tea


    This dish is big river shrimps cooked with newly-picked fresh longjing tea. Its traditional flavor specialized by white and juicy shelled shrimps and the green and fragrant tea leaves. Pleasant color and unique taste.

5. West Lake Water Shield Soup

    This soup is also called “Chicken, Ham and Water Shield Soup”. The Water Shield (or water sunflower), which contains rich protein and Vitamins, is a rare water vegetable growing in lakes and pools. Presently, only Taihu Lake, Xiaoshan Lake and West Lake produce these water shields and those from West Lake are the best.

July 26, 2010

West Lake Vinegar Fish

Filed under: Cuisine Special — Tags: , — admin @ 7:26 am

 < The No.1 Popular Dish in Hangzhou

    People who have tasted this dish are unlikely to forget its special flavor, a bit sweet with a bit sour. It is a common dish in China, but the taste may differ from region to region. Shanghainese is good at braises and stews, but this dish is best in Hangzhou. The fish here tastes fresher and softer than any where else, and the sweet and sour sources are perfectly mixed.

    There is a story about this special dish:

 

    Long Long ago, there were two brothers with the surname of Song, living by fishing around the West Lake. One day, a local official, Zhao, came and saw wife of the elder brother washing near the lake. Driven by his evil desire, the official set up the elder brother and tried to make the beautiful woman his. His trick led to the death of the elder Song. The younger brother was so angry that he went to the local government to sue Zhao, hoping justice could be done. However, he only got a heavy beat and was framed.

 
    On the night back home, his sister-in-law encouraged him to flee before Zhao could do any further harm to him. She cooked a plate of special-flavored fish and told him, life is just like this plate of sweet and sour fish. You should always keep faith in life and in yourself, believing the good exists, and never forget the bitterness when life seems sweet. The young man was greatly moved. He finished the fish and left, with those words in mind.

 

 < Though with many bones, it’s definitely worth the effort

 

    Several years later, the younger Song came back as the new head of local governor who was appointed by the emperor of the country. Eventually, he made Zhao pay for what he had done, but he couldn’t find his sister-in-law. When he almost gave up, a special-flavored fish in a dinner out caught his attention. Of course, he immediately recognized it’s from his sister-in-law and thus was able to find his sister-in-law who had been living in disguise.

 

Therefore, this dishe becomes one of the most typical Hangzhou cuisine. And it’s really nice!

July 12, 2010

Shanghai Cuisine

Filed under: Cuisine Special — Tags: , , , , — admin @ 10:42 am

People in China love to talk food as much as they love to eat.
Shanghai alone, there are a lot to talk about: the best street-side Shanghainese xiaolongbao or Xinjiang hand-pulled noodle shop; where to find the tastiest Cantonese dim sum or fieriest Sichuan dishes; the best American burger joint; the most exquisite new fine-dining establishment. The list goes on and on…

< Lynn in Shanghai, buffet

Shanghai cuisine offers a sweeter flavor than other well-known regional Chinese cuisines, favoring use of vinegar, ginger, sugar and soy to create brown sauces for braising meats, stir-frying, dunking dumplings and flavoring seafood.

Make sure to try the following local dishes:

Xiaolongbao (steamed pork dumplings, sometimes known as “soup dumplings“).

They’re made with thin dough wrapped around seasoned minced pork and a kind of gelatin which melts into a delicious juice (or “soup”) as the dumplings steam. Be careful—the soup is scalding hot for minutes after steaming. Let your xiaolongbao cool, dip in vinegar, and carefully nibble a hole in it to suck out the soup before finishing it off. It’s a good idea to support it with a spoon as you bring it to your mouth with chopsticks. Line up with the masses for Shanghai’s best-known xiaolongbao at Nanxiang Restaurant in Yu Gardens or try your luck at any number of small local eateries.

 < Dazhaxie or the “hairy crabs”

Locals love river crab (dazhaxie). The crabs are harvested during September and October. Boiled in large pots or cooked in a coating of flour or red sauce, river crabs make a tasty—and messy—meal.

Guotie (potstickers) are another Shanghai favorite. These fried dumplings contain a juicy pork filling, much like xiaolongbao. You can find guotie out on the street—look for vendors tending large, shallow frying pans—or in local restaurants. Greasy inside and out, some claim they’re the ultimate hangover food.

Shengjianbao are another soup-filled Shanghai treat. Stuffed like xiaolongbao with lightly spiced pork filling that sweats out a delicious juice during cooking, shengjianbao are fried in a large covered shallow pan (often alongside guotie). Browned to a crisp on the bottom, a thick mini-bun puffs out around the filling, resulting in a wonderful combination of textures. The perfect shengjianbao is crispy, soft, and slightly chewy, the pork inside floating in “soup.” Again, be careful not to burn your tongue.

Shanghai is also a great place for food all over China. You can get fiery Hunanese ribs at Dishuidong, Xinjiang lamb kebobs and flat breads at Afanti, filling Northern fare at Dongbeiren, Cantonese dim sum at Crystal Jade, Beijing Duck at Ya Wang, Hotpot at Hotpot King on Huaihai Lu, ect. For more details of restaurants, can check at “Eat in Shanghai”

For a break from Chinese food, the city is also home to excellent Thai, Japanese, French, German, Spanish, American, and Indian restaurants, among other international options.

Try reasonably priced Italian at Da Marco, Thai at Baan Thai, Spanish and Vietnamese at Le Garcon Chinoise or all-you-can-eat Teppanyaki at Tairyo. For a special night out, you can find some of the city’s best high-end dining (and views) along the Bund—splurge at M on the Bund, Laris, the Whampoa Club or Jean-Georges.

June 4, 2010

Best food in Singapore I

Filed under: Cuisine Special, Uncategorized — Tags: , — maggie @ 2:51 am

This articles is dedicated to Anita X…Thanks for all your help with our blog.

    One of the best things about Singapore, undoubtedly, is the food. And almost every Singaporean is an expert in this area. It is said that one of their amusements is to drive around with friends and discover good food and new places to eat. Each time can be intimidating or ecstatic.

    Because of its unsupassed diversity, it’s impossible to include everything. Below is my collection of deserts that are common yet tasty in SG. If anyone get a recommendation, do email me, so we can share more here.

 

**Steamed Egg Custard with Ginger Juice**

    Favourite! The Egg is covered with a silky smooth custard that warms your stomach with a sweet and slightly spicy flavor. After you broke the clothes, the snow white steamed egg will come out. Its not that sweet but has a strong egg flavor.  Also, if you like something creative, you can have **The Coffe Flavored Steamed Milk Eggs &  **Steamed Milk Eggs with Red Beans

**Mango Sago with Pomelo**

    Mango Sago is easy to find in SG, but not many has Pomelo inside. The Pomelo meat inside the mango sago enhances the feeling of eating it. The slight sour of Pomelo along with the strong sweet taste of mango, hence, you will not be sick of too much sweet. If you are lucky enough, you may find their mango is fresh and juice and the sago has a Q feeling when chewing it, like the black pearls in bubble tea. If you add in icecream, it will be Superb!

 **Papaya Boiled in Fresh Milk**

    It’s pretty awesome when served hot. The fruit is boiled in the milk to the point that they are pretty soft and basically breaks apart in the mouth, coupled with the nice aroma of hot milk. But if you don’t like the flavor of papaya, you may not enjoy that much.

May 31, 2010

Variety of Macau’s Cuisine: Section One

Filed under: Cuisine Special — Tags: — Jean @ 10:08 am

 In Macau there are two things you have to do. Firstly, go to the casino. Secondly,try out the local cuisine. I am not a gambler, so I’d rather focusing on Macau’s cuisines. 

First Part: The delicious come from ancient

Macau’s mixed cuisine is also a product from its colonial history.

The Chinese Style foods:

As part of China, Macau’s cuisine heavily inherits Chinese culture both in architecure and food.

 Wife Cake

One of the old time snacks. Inside the crispy golden skin is soft sweet fillings. And the creative Macau people made their own special Wife Cake, the so-called Macau’s feature Wife Cake. The different from the traditional one is the fillings. And a shop owner told me, the way they baked also a bit difference.

    Compared with wife cake, Husband Cake has samilar looks but bigger in size and tastes salty. The cake skin of Husband Cake is harder than that of a Wife Cake.

Almond Cake

 Though called Almond Cake, it actually is not made of almond. And people name it so all because it looks like a almond cake…And the Chinese saying ”never judge a thing by its looks” makes sense here…

Then what is Almond Cake made of? The answer is green bean! But unlike the traditional green bean cake this one is less sweet, more crispy and no fillings.   

Chicken Cookies

If you used to eating Danish style cookies, maybe this ia a chance to have a change. The highlight of this cookie is its fillings. Due to its mini size, even you are not the sweet tooth, it would be lovely to have one or two of them.

As some and some said, Macau people know how to enjoy life. Have a short break in a busy day, enjoy every sunset with a cup of tea with local snacks.

The sweet wife cake, the salt husband cake, the crispy almost cake or cute chicken cookies, all of which enrich your memory in Macau.

Now, you may want to know where to buy these lovely snacks, check below:

“礼记” (LAI KEI)

This is a century-old brand. And now, it becomes a representatives of Macau. “LAI KEI” is not only the brand for foods but also the brand for Macau’s feature.

In “LAI KEI” the famous snacks are: egg roll, peanut sugar, wife cake, husband cake, walnut shortbread, sesame cake, moon cake and so on.  

 

“咀香园” （CHOI-HEPONG-YUEN）

Another famous brand in Macau. Tourists may more familar with this one, as the advertise is on air oversea. And you may notice it has a nicer wrap than in other stores.

And it’s also a century-old brand, so no need to worry about its quality.

The most popular one in “CHOI-HEONG-YUEN” is the Almond Shortbread. There are more than five flavored almond shortbread, sure can find one you like.  

CHOI-HEONG-YUAN website: http://www.choi-heong-yuen.com/current/index.php

TIPS: You can find these two brands in Macao every where. Especially Places of interest.

May 12, 2010

The story from a poetic dessert — Tiramisù (Tiramisu)

Filed under: Cuisine Special — Tags: — Jean @ 3:39 am

Italian revel in cuisine, from the appetizer to the dessert all the dishes are cooking aborative. Thus Italian foods always left a deep impression to us. And when we talk of the Italian dessert, believe that there are thousands of voice will mention Tiramisù.

Now you can find this dessert in the menus whatever the famous restaurants or the no named café.  Indeed, Tiramisu, This sweet pleasure is latest craze in the world, even beaten chess cakes become a winner in the dessert stage. The people give Tiramisù a nice comment, a mature flavor dessert. Certainly, use small amount materials to create an artifact, give the people a new reorganization for the sweet. Tiramisù, a simple dessert leaves the thin breath of sorrow.

The bitter from Espresso, the soft taste from the egg and sugar, the alcohol from wine, the fragrance from chocolates, the crispy from biscuits, the creamy from chess and whipping cream, and the end the fresh feeling from coco powder. This is the coloful world of Tiramisù.  The different tastes full of your mouth and the different parts give your the different moods.  Thus try the Tiramisù with diverse tempers, and tell yourself which flavour you perfet today? Bitter, sweet or the alcohol?

Tiramisù usually put in the glass cup, thus Tiramisù also got the gallant appearance.  So Tiramisù is not just pleasure you in the taste but also in the nice appearance.

Addition, when you having Tiramisù do not forget come with a cup of Cappuccino. Because of the Cappuccino can help to taken out the Tiramisù taste.

Maybe the Tiramisù is so popular in nowadays is because the meaning behind. Some people said, Tiramisù means “remember me”, but the other voice tell us the really meaning is “go with me”. However the most romantic edition is said that the Tiramisù represents love.

No matter which meaning, they are increasing the lovely of Tiramisù. And next time when you having this dessert please remember the story, and listen careful what the really story your Tiramisù tell you.

May 10, 2010

Make Your Italian Ice Cream Sandwich

Filed under: Cuisine Special — Tags: , , — maggie @ 11:00 am

Pizza and pasta are widely regarded as the iconic cuisine for Italy; however, there are many other local delicacies.

Don’t feel bad that you can not try them all. Here is a recipe for you to make your own Italy Crunchy Ricotta Ice Cream Sandwich.

Ingredients:

**serves four people

For the ice cream
250g ricotta (ewes’ milk ricotta if possible);
100ml full fat milk; 50g glucose; 75g sugar;
75g candied orange and citron peel; 50ml rum.

For the biscuits

150g filo pastry; 50g butter, softened;

25g icing sugar; 25g best cocoa powder;

Grated chocolate for garnish 

Procedure:

1. Boil the milk with the ricotta, the glucose and the sugar. Filter, and allow to cool.

2. Once cold, add the rum, mix well and put into an ice cream maker.

3. When the ice cream is ready, mix in the candied peel. Place the ice cream in a rectangular container and put in the freezer.

4. Lay the filo pastry out flat to make the biscuits for the ‘sandwich’.

5. With a pastry brush, lightly butter two layers of pastry and place one on top of the other then sprinkle with the cocoa.

6. Place another two buttered layers and sprinkle with icing sugar on top. Place on a baking tray and cook in a preheated oven at 1800C with a weight on top (for example a second baking tray of baking beans).

7. Cut into squares of about 6cm, when the pastry is about half cooked (approx. 10mins), then put back into oven, uncovered, until golden brown. Allow to cool.

8. Spread a thick layer of ice cream between two biscuits and place upright on plate. Garnish with a sprinkling of grated chocolate.

9. Enjoy it!!

DECODE: ITALIAN CUISINE (Pizza)

Filed under: Cuisine Special — Tags: — Jean @ 3:06 am

 

    Pizza is anther Italian food which is well known in the world. And I belive many people think pizza is Italian fast food. However, traditional pizza in Italy, pizza actually is a complicated cuisine. From ingredients selecting to kneading dough after that set up the oven and so on. All the steps to cook pizza are complex and full of fun.

    Why the traditional pizza is quite different from the pizza we had before. An Italian pizza chef told us, lots of people pay attention on ingredients part. In fact, if want your pizza outstanding then you might need to consider more for your baking tool—— your oven.

    The oven to do baking job is normally specially-made. For sure the most traditional and the professional is made in Italy. Nowadays, we can see many Italian restaurants all over the world got their own specially-made oven in their kitchen for the perfect pizza and attracting customers.
    The traditional oven’s appearance likes fireplace, and as the chief introduced, the amazing place is how the oven handle the oil. If use the normal oven we can see abundant of redundant oil was remained in the pizza, but the same problem never happen to the traditional oven. And this is catering to the healthy diet in nowadays as well.

    According to figures there are more than twenty thousands pizza restaurants in Italy. And in Napoli (Naples) got about one thousand and two hundred pizza restaurants. And the Neapolitan is crazy about pizza as well. Most of Neapolitan eat pizza almost once a week, some even eat pizza every day. When they are tasting pizza, they like to fold the piece of pizza and without use folk and knife. The Neapolitan said use this way to having pizza can know the pizza’s quanlity. If pizza’s bottom is not broken after folded that means the pizza’s crust is perfect which is either too hard.

    The chief decoded, a good pizza depends on: fresh paste, the pupose-made pizza-sauce, fresh ingredients and classic chess.

  •  The paste has to make in that day. And the flour is from the top-level wheat which is grinded by the wheat harvest in spring and summer. Use this flour can bake out the perfect paste that crisp outside but soft inside.
  • The pure chess is the soul of Pizza. The traditional pizza usually selected the Mozzarella chess, Mozzarella chess is full of protein, vitamins, minerals, calcium and low calorie. 
  • The purpose-made pizza sauce is proud of chiefs and increasing the pizza taste as well. The pizza sauces normally use the tomato sauce as basic and add some spices.

May 7, 2010

DECODE: ITALIAN CUISINE (Pasta)

Filed under: Cuisine Special — Tags: — Jean @ 9:21 am

One of my friends said the place she really wants to travel is Italy. The reason is quite simple, she is an epicure. And it is no a secret that Italian cuisine is mouth-watering. As some people said the people who love the delicacies must like the life as well. Thus maybe we can believe that the Italian should be very happy, you can find the Italian cuisine was full of the passion and they also got the high request for cooking. Moreover the historical background and the geography provide their ability for cooking and appreciate for cuisines.

The modern Italian foods’ style is traceable to the Renaissance. Florence (Firenze) and Venice (Venezia) as major commercial hubs in Italy, the different spice and food materials were introduced from others countries. This situation decides the Italian cuisine associated with variety cultures.

In western of Italy the people like to use tomato and olive oil, and the chef in western of Italy seem prefer to use chess and milk to improve the taste. No wonder some people said know the Italian cuisine is the way to know the Italian history and culture.

When people ask what the typical Italian food is? I believe that the answer should be PASTA. But when the people ask how many you know about the Pasta, then what is the answer?

I think most people know that there are varieties of pasta. But maybe you do not know there are at lest five hundred kinds of Pasta. And adds the different sauces can create more than thousand of pasta delicacies.

Many people think that Pasta is the Italian noodle, just like the noodle from other countries, but different shapes. However, the pasta is made from the hardest wheat — Durum Wheat. Thus when cook the pasta we need more time to boil it and after boiled just mix with some olive oil. The olive oil can remain the luster and crunchiness.

Maybe you find that the different between pasta and the normal noodles. The normal noodles we will put them in the cold water or ice water to remain the crunchiness. This is because the different raw materials. Expect the original pasta, the other colorful pasta are made with the vegetable or the fruits sauce.

The common pasta that in our life is: Spaghetti, Fusilli, Penne and Linguine. Why the pasta got so many forms? The reason is the different kinds of pasta will cook with the different sauces. Thus the pasta sauces can say is the soul of the pasta.

Normally the most comment pasta sauce can be divided into four kinds, Tomato Sauce (red sauce), Pesto Sauce (green sauce), Cream Sauce (white sauce) and Squid-lnk Sauce (black sauce).                                                                      

  • Tomato Sauce I think no need to explain too much, because this kind of sauce should be the most comment one. Maybe the only one thing have to mentions is in Italy, tomato sauce usually use the fresh tomato.
  • Pesto is a sauce originating in Genoa in the Liguria region of northern Italy.
  • Cream Sauce is made from the non salt cream and usually this sauce is used for bake-pasta such like Lasagne and seafood pasta.
  • Squid-lnk Sauce always cooks with the cuttle fish seafood pasta.

If you are lazy cooking kinds then you should try the most simple but original one. I mean try just putting olive oil and chess powder in your pasta, trust me you will love it. But don’t forget the chess and olive oil should be the classic one. A little tip for you olive oil and the chess are others famous products in the world which are belonged Italian.

May 3, 2010

Order a steak

Filed under: Cuisine Special — Tags: , , , , — maggie @ 10:19 am

Some friends have written to me about their negative dining experience at some steak restaurants. However, it seems that most of them do not know exactly what they have ordered. They may have little idea about the different cuts, how the steak is supposed to be prepared. Thus, they’re simply guessing every time when ordering, in return, the experience are likely to be disappointed.

Steps to order a steak are stated below. Hope it may help in some way ^. ^~

Step 1: Learn the cuts.

This is first step to being able to order a steak. Most people know that filet mignon (don’t pronounce the -t or the -g) is highly considered, but don’t know why. Understanding the cut of meat may help. There are many different types of steak, but some of the most popular are filet mignon (very lean and tender, but with less flavor), sirloin (a little more fat, more flavor), rib eye (the most fat and flavor), and the T-bone or Porterhouse (these consist of the tenderloin and strip loin around the T-Bone; the difference between a Porterhouse and a T-Bone is the size of the tenderloin).

Step 2: Know how you like it cooked.

Unlike other foods, the waiter will usually ask you how you like your steak cooked. Your basic answer choices are: rare (outside is cooked, but the inside is still partially raw), medium (outside is cooked more thoroughly and the inside is cooked, but still slightly red), and well done (outside is charred and the inside is completely cooked through). You can also create a combination of any two of these basic choices to have your steak cooked between two levels, for example, medium rare.

Step 3: Try many different types of steak.

This is the only way that you’ll know what you like and don’t like. Don’t be afraid of trying a rare steak. Likewise, don’t let what other people say prevent you from trying one that’s well done. The only way to know what you like is to sample them all.

Step 4: Differentiate between good and bad beef.

Several breeds of cattle produce significantly better beef than others. For example, Angus Beef is considered one of the best types of beef around. Likewise, good beef is usually treated for a set length of time before it is sold. Once you have had good beef, you will always be able to tell the difference.

Step 5: Add sauces, or choose not to.

Some people swear that sauces make the steak. However, beware of strong sauces that overwhelm rather than complement the natural flavors of the meat. Many gourmets believe that you should never use sauces with good beef. It’s a decision you’ll have to make for yourself.

 Step 6: Choose your side dishes.

This will vary country by country, but it is usually a good idea to have some type of a starch to complement your meat. For example, many people eat some variety of potato alongside their steak.

 Step 7: Pick a wine

Although many people prefer to drink beer with steak, wine is still the traditional drink to go with beef. Remember choose a heavy red wine to go with the natural flavor of the meat.

**If you’re new to a restaurant or unsure about what to order, ask your server. They know better about the menu and what the kitchen does well.

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