Gastro888

Sugar in the gai loong doh? Ick...wouldn't that be too sweet for the savory filling? Re: Toisanese and Cantonese. I always mix my Toisan wah and my Gongong wah together. It doesn't sound right. If you talk to me long enough, you'll notice my mixing. It's a product of hanging with Cantonese and Toisan folks. Well, Nonya and Toisan.

I don't know how the neen goh will be prepared. I will request fried but if it's just steamed, it's ok. I'll remember to leave some fish on the plate. Hey, spaghetttti's married...she's higher up in the hierarchy than I am. 'Sides, you're assuming that I'm older than spaghetttti!!! hee hee. Yes, yes, yes, "ngoh gee doh lah"....*sighs*...but...I reeeeeeeeeeally like the black cod and I must admit, it was my own selfish wish to have it on the menu instead of the whole fish. But now I feel guilty and will ask to see if they can do steamed flounder instead...ai ya.

Auntie spaghetttti! How are you? Err...the head on shrimp is representative of "ho taow, ho may" - good beginning and good end. Same with the whole chicken. The lobster as well. Other than that, um, not so much...this is more like a regular banquet menu than CNY menu. The restaurant's CNY menu is kinda skimpy. It's actually Yeen Yung Fan - the pair of mandarin ducks that represent a couple. I guess it's just translated as Ying Yang to make it easier.

Oooh! That sounds really good! I'm sure grape jelly would taste good on it as well. The whole sweet n sour thang goin' on.

AH! Thanks, judyfoodie! I was wondering what "ham sui gok" was. Every time I see it on the dim sum carts, it doesn't look the same like my mom's. The ones in the photo are more like "ham sui gok" that I see at dim sum - my mom's dough is crisper and fluffier. (Ok,ok, mom's are the best!) You're lucky you know exactly where in Toisan y'all are from. *sigh* I'm trying to figure it out. Hey Uncle Ben, thanks for this thread. It's totally prompting me to talk to my parents more and understand where they're coming from. You know, we should plan some mass eG Toisan meeting or something like that if that's possible. (Well, considering how FRUGAL us Toisanese are, would that be possible? Hee hee hee )

Finally! Here's the offical menu below. I am getting people party favors - lil' good luck charms on a string. Hopefully those (and my cheongsam!) will arrive in time. PCL, check it - we got some neen goh. Good luck charms, cheongsam AND neen goh - I get Chinese points, huh? hee hee. I did cod filet (suet yee) b/c it's a tasty fish and everyone will enjoy it. I would do the whole fish instead but it's hard to find good flounder nowadays. Traditional Chinese Cold plate which includes: Jellyfish, pig's feet, cuttlefish, marinated flank steak and roast suckling pig Golden Mushroom Seafood Corn Soup Lobster Stir Fried w/ Scallion and Ginger Head on Shrimp w/ Salt and Pepper Coating Stir Fried with Scallions and Chiles Young Snow Pea Shoots Stir-fried w/ Garlic Cantonese Style Fried Chicken Golden Beef in Black Pepper Sauce Steamed Black Cod Filet w/ Ginger and Soy Sauce Stir-fried Noodles Ying Yang Rice Chinese New Year Cake Tea

Hey, I would turn on the burners with one knee - that's how we roll in the restaurant!!! How about "Hack Jew Ngow Pah"? The black pepper steak on a hot pan? That's got great visual appeal and is not cliched. Westerners will be able to relate to that as well.

"Gah yeng" is the Cantonese-fied way of saying "kaya" which I think is the Malay word. The Nonya have their own slang that's unique to Malaysia.

Never heard of those! Are they specific to HK or the West Coast? That's neat.

I would guess that the temperature would have to be high enough that you fry the mantou and get a cracklin' crust outside and soft insides. Why not try making smaller mantou (instead of gi-normous ones) to make it easier to control the deep frying process? Anything will soak up oil if you don't have a good frying technique. Test some out and see what the optimal temperature and time is. I wonder what would happen if you brush it with an egg wash and THEN deep fried it? How would the crust turn out?

Hey spaghetttti! Umm, they look like lil' bells - supposed to be bright red with a bottom that looks like a blossom end? They sell them at Eden Center - but they're paltry and pale pink there. In Malaysia, I though they were tasty, but mild tasting. I liked them there. Any tropical fruit here pales in comparison to what you eat back home...

Going tomorrow or Sunday to finalize the menu! Will keep y'all posted. Now I have to do the party favors. I was thinking of getting some red chopsticks and putting a red bow around it. The party favors are coming out of my pocket, not the group fund, so cost is a big factor (especially since last year we had 4 tables). I wanted to make it a special event for everyone so suggestions? Did I ask this before? If I did, apologies. I'm working on very lil' sleep here! I was thinking- Chopsticks Small charms Chopstick rests (can I give that out or is that bad luck?) Candy in red netting

What about "fah sang goong yee jai"? You know, the deep fried fishes with the peanuts and chiles? Does anyone know how to make that? Could you make lo poh beng with "gah yeng"? Nonya coconut jam?

Yuki! Bravo, it looks faboo! I'll have to get Grace Young's book. And Rosemary Hong's! Who had the coconut milk recipe?

Hey, I didn't grow up on that stuff and I still am not a waif. I ate Toisanese food! I think it's cause everything's injected with hormones here. Yeah, but a girl in a cheongsam that is too large looks odd. You know how the off the rack size goes.

Does anyone know the shelf-life of neen goh? If I bought it now, would it be good for the end of the month? If so, how do i store it? Does anyone have a recipe they can share? I might have to make some for my banquet and I'm a newbie at this. Gawd, I can imagine everyone doubling over....

That would be cool beans, Uncle Ben! I'm debating between Peking Duck and the Roast Duck. I know the peeps would like the Peking (heck, me too!) but the Roast Duck is so yummy. We do have "Jai Gee Gai" but hmm. Ai ya! Crap, I'm wearing a cheongsam to this. *smacks forehead* This is going to involve some dieting prior so that I can eat at the banquet. (Or I could be extremely gauche and just bring some clothes to change into if I'm too full! hee hee) Man, how did our ancestors do this back in the day when all they HAD were cheongsams?!?!

Fish is problematic with a non-Asian crowd if it's not in filets or steaks. The idea of a whole fish is very foreign to most non-Asians. (No pun intended). I feel very odd not eating a whole fish - unless it's sushi or McD's Filet-O-Fish (sorry, I grew up eating that as a treat...). How 'bout a dish where you deep-fry the fun see? You get a big visual "pop" when you deep fry those babies. Salt and Pepper Scallops?

OK, so pops and I were talking about the menu last night. He helped me figured out what I should pay for the menu so that I don't get taken advantage of at the restaurant. Hey, I'm not stupid - I know when people see an ABC come in, they think they can milk the cash cow 'cause we are unsure of how to do stuff. Based on what I told him about the CNY menu the restaurant's doing (which is none...a la carte), Pops suggested that I do the following menu: Pan Poon (traditional cold platter dish) Golden Mushroom Soup Suckling Pig Roast Duck/Peking Duck Sitr-Fried Snow Pea Shoots Stir Fried w/ Garlic Steamed Black Cod Filet w/ Ginger and Garlic Cantonese Fried Chicken Lobster w/ Ginger & Scallions Noodles Fried Rice Dessert - PCL, I'm scoping out the neen goh but if they don't have it, I'm going to make some. Hopefully I won't poison everyone. Comments, feedback?

Hey, does anyone know what we're supposed to do for the rest of the days?

Wontons? Sidebar - I'm all about freaking out Westerners/Easterners. People need to open up their world, especialy when it comes to food! =)

spaghetttti, you're so lucky to be able to eat that faboo fruit!!! More, more, more, please! Oooh, do you have the cashew apples in season now?

How about an "over rice" dish? Wat Dan Ha Yen Fan? Shrimp with Eggs over rice? Simple peasant food but if well done, everyone likes it. And it's hard to get it right. Or Signapore Rice Noodles?

Yau fan is GOOD! Extra lap yuk and salted duck, please. We were supposed to have loh bak goh last night but didn't. Boo. Ah, my family's a bit odd anyways. No worries.

As for the lard, perhaps it's best to render your own? Cha xiu bao, are you the same person who's the blogger of the website I referenced? The traditional foo yee that we eat is no longer carried in our grocery stores. I have to hunt that jar down. It was sooo good. Had some good foo yee in Guilin, too. Yuuum. Oh, I have to be carried piggy-back by the mui yun? Dude, no wonder Chinese girls back in the day were so skinny. Sorry, I ain't no waif - I work out. Dragon boating does a body good! Ben, start taking your vitamins! hee hee!