Chinese in Vancouver 2002 - 2006

[canucklehead]

Fruit salad and mayonnaise?  A common Chinese dish?  Really?

←

Yes - in HK it is very common. My mother made a fruit and prawn salad for xmas dinner. The fruit was canned and it was heavy on the mayo - but the prawns were steamed live prawns that were quickly cooled and tossed into the salad. The prawns were excellent - the rest left me scratching my head also.

Unfortunately, I don't know the name of the dish and simply ordered it when I saw a waiter deliver it to a neighboring table. It was prawn with walnuts in what I believe was a sweet mayonnaise sauce.

←

Not sure what it is called - but it have seen the dish prepared with candied walnuts in the U.S. - does that sound familiar? Recently - I have seen a real fashion for tossing deep fried slices of pork chop in a sweetened mayo (basically Miracle Whip and condensed milk). It's not bad - in that homey kind of way.

[eatvancouver]

A friend and I went to the Taiwan Beef Noodle restaurant on Granville around 70th. It was really quite good. I like contrast between the hot, spicy soup and the cold (also spicy) little appetizers.

The relevant post on Eat Vancouver is here

oh and it's 24 hours. great after a trip to the casino.

[Vancouver]

Yes, I was surprised at the quality of the place considering it is 24 hours. But when I saw a 24 hours sign and a crowd during the day I figured it was worth trying as well.

The beef noodle soups are quite good, and I also really enjoy the hong you chao shou there. The blend of the chili, vinegar, and sesame is quite addictive. Their fried chicken combo comes in a bento box that has a bunch of different side specialties of the day and is a nice way to round out a group meal.

Cheers!

[flowbee]

yeah, we recently discovered this place as well. i had the spicy beef noodle soup with thick noodles. it was good, except it was just way to spicy to enjoy. now, i love spicy food, but this was just killing me! that layer of chili oil on top of the soup, combined with the temperature of the soup, oh man... next time i'm getting non-spicy with thin noodle, and a side dish of chili sauce... the thick noodles were also clumping and sticking together, so maybe the thin noodles would be easier to eat.

we also had the deep fried tofu, which was really smooth and creamy inside. definitely yummy! too bad they don't serve it "stinky-style"

the ground pork on rice was excellent--the tastiest i've ever had, although i've only tried it at Crystal Mall, Lingering Flavor, and some places in Richmond before...but i like how they give you a lot of pickled veg on top. that and the short grained rice is a great flavour combination.

their green onion pancake and beef wrap is ok...i always want more sauce and meat inside, but most places are kinda stingy. plus i'm kinda sick of that dish cuz it's just so heavy and filling.

but i'll definitely go back there to check out their other dishes. i do like how it's clean and it's 24 hours

[eatvancouver]

Yeah they make the spicy soup pretty spicy, which I think is great and shows they aren't tempering it for the masses. Although I have never failed to finish it, I do find it noticably spicy, which is pretty rare for me. It also makes me really happy.

A bubble tea and the cold appetizers are a good foil for the hot and spicy soup.

[Ling]

Fruit salad and mayonnaise?  A common Chinese dish?  Really?

←

Yes - in HK it is very common. My mother made a fruit and prawn salad for xmas dinner. The fruit was canned and it was heavy on the mayo - but the prawns were steamed live prawns that were quickly cooled and tossed into the salad. The prawns were excellent - the rest left me scratching my head also.

Unfortunately, I don't know the name of the dish and simply ordered it when I saw a waiter deliver it to a neighboring table. It was prawn with walnuts in what I believe was a sweet mayonnaise sauce.

←

Not sure what it is called - but it have seen the dish prepared with candied walnuts in the U.S. - does that sound familiar? Recently - I have seen a real fashion for tossing deep fried slices of pork chop in a sweetened mayo (basically Miracle Whip and condensed milk). It's not bad - in that homey kind of way.

←

Ughhh...the prawn/fruit/mayo combo. I can't STAND it!

I like the fried pork in sweetened mayo, though. I've had it at Deer Garden in Richmond, but I think they changed chefs a year or so ago?

ETA: One of my students is really into food and he went to that Emperor's Feast at Fook Luen in Burnaby I mentioned a few months ago. He said the food was incredible, and the knife work on the decorations was on par with what he's seen in China.

Has anyone been to Fook Luen for dim sum? He said that's his family's favourite place to go for dim sum, and he recommends the "king" ha gao (steamed shrimp dumplings.) His family seems to be huge foodies...they've eaten in many of the great restaurants all over China, Hong Kong, and Vancouver.

In Richmond, he likes Gingeri and Jade.

Edited March 27, 2006 by Ling (log)

[canucklehead]

Just wanted to give people the head's up that we are at the very tail end of Alaskan King Crab season at Chinese Restaraunts. Jade in Richmond is serving them ala carte for $13.88 a pound or as part of a set menu.

On Friday, I had the Jade menu for 10 people which had the Crab three ways (steamed legs with garlic, deep fried body in XO sauce, and Portoguese Fried Rice served in the Shell), Peking Duck two ways (Skin with steamed pancakes and Meat with Lettuce Cups) along with other dishes. The standard menu is $368 - great deal. I asked that yee mein (soft white noodles) be tossed in the garlic/crab juices left over from the steamed legs - and it was fantastic (a $15 upcharge).

I'll try to post some pictures later - but get out there a try some now. Jade has menus for 4 or 6 also - but Sun Sui Wah also has set menus (as reported by Jamie Maw in VanMag and Stepen Wong in the Straight).

It is a seasonal treat that is worth checking out.

Edited March 27, 2006 by canucklehead (log)

[BCinBC]

Yee mein = noodles of the peasants ... and the Gods.

[flowbee]

Yee mein = noodles of the peasants ... and the Gods.

←

is that the spongy thin long noodle usually served near the end of chinese banquets? i love that stuff! kids love that stuff! although it scares me cuz i think they're flash fried in oil like how most instant noodles are...my mom had some in the cupboard and it was big round block of dry fried noodles which (i guess) get soaked and cooked.

[Ling]

Yee mein = noodles of the peasants ... and the Gods.

←

is that the spongy thin long noodle usually served near the end of chinese banquets? i love that stuff! kids love that stuff! although it scares me cuz i think they're flash fried in oil like how most instant noodles are...my mom had some in the cupboard and it was big round block of dry fried noodles which (i guess) get soaked and cooked.

←

Yes, it is. Yee mein is the best!

[eatrustic]

Just wanted to give people the head's up that we are at the very tail end of Alaskan King Crab season at Chinese Restaraunts. Jade in Richmond is serving them ala carte for $13.88 a pound or as part of a set menu.

On Friday, I had the Jade menu for 10 people....

Wow Lee! We know that you can give Ling a run for the money when it comes to culinary grazing but you outdid yourself there!

[flowbee]

another taiwanese place called Lingering Flavor:

here we got a combo with beef ribs (deep tasty ribs!) on the left (also includes some veg and a soy sauce marinated egg), your typical beef noodle soup on the right, and deep fried chicken ankles on the top right. they sprinkle a bit of spicy chili powder on the finished product. the crispy batter and the crunchy cartilage is great!

google map

it's located right beside the London Drugs...weird location, but convenient!

Edit: i took this picture around Nov/Dec last year.

Edited March 28, 2006 by flowbee (log)

[Ling]

^I've never had chicken ankles before...I'm guessing they're the same as chicken knees?

[flowbee]

i know it sounds weird, but it's good. it's mostly cartilage (no bone) with a bit of meat.

i must stop message boarding at work

[Ling]

^No, it doesn't sound weird. I've had them before, but they were called "chicken knee" on the menu.

[canucklehead]

Just wanted to give people the head's up that we are at the very tail end of Alaskan King Crab season at Chinese Restaraunts.  Jade in Richmond is serving them ala carte for $13.88 a pound or as part of a set menu.

On Friday, I had the Jade menu for 10 people....

Wow Lee! We know that you can give Ling a run for the money when it comes to culinary grazing but you outdid yourself there!

←

Urp!!

Here are pictures of the star attractions of the Jade King Crab menu:

Crab Legs Steamed with Garlic

Fresh and briny - perfectly cooked. The garlic was sweet and mellow.

Deep Fried Body with XO Sauce - note the garlic chips mmmmm

Portuguese Fried Rice served in Crab Shell

Portuguese Fried Rice means a coconut milk curry sauce in HK cuisine. The fried rice was huge and rich with crab meat and tomally.

Has anyone else had King Crab this year - it looks like it was a good season.

[mangez]

Has anyone else had King Crab this year - it looks like it was a good season.

←

Yes, very yummy! As the wife doesn't trust how restaurants weigh them, she started buying from T&T and cooking them at home.

[canucklehead]

Has anyone else had King Crab this year - it looks like it was a good season.

←

Yes, very yummy! As the wife doesn't trust how restaurants weigh them, she started buying from T&T and cooking them at home.

←

You know - I have the same suspicion also. We got an extra 4 pounds - but the amount of legs we got seemed to be same as the table beside us. But we got way more deep fried body and fried rice (with a huge crab shell).

Is it hard to cook at home? I don't think that I have anything close that would hold the amount of legs I want to eat.

[*Deborah*]

Has anyone else had King Crab this year - it looks like it was a good season.

←

Yes, very yummy! As the wife doesn't trust how restaurants weigh them, she started buying from T&T and cooking them at home.

←

You know - I have the same suspicion also. We got an extra 4 pounds - but the amount of legs we got seemed to be same as the table beside us. But we got way more deep fried body and fried rice (with a huge crab shell).

Is it hard to cook at home? I don't think that I have anything close that would hold the amount of legs I want to eat.

←

California King, canucklehead. That should do 'er.

[canucklehead]

If only THAT were my problem.

[~cayenne~]

Has anyone else had King Crab this year - it looks like it was a good season.

←

Yes, very yummy! As the wife doesn't trust how restaurants weigh them, she started buying from T&T and cooking them at home.

←

They have live ones at New Chiu Yeung Fresh Seafood Co. Ltd. along with all kinds of fresh and/or live fish, shellfish and crustaceans. The king crab are huge, although I'd love to try preparing it at home, the prospect is very daunting to say the least. Do they sell you the whole crab? It's a great little store, if anyone is interested. Located at 8191 Westminster Highway, quite close to the Richmond Public Market just across the street.

[makanmakan]

I've just waddled home from a ridiculously huge dinner at Imperial Court Beijing Cuisine Restaurant. We had a set dinner that was meant for 10 people....there were 7 of us.

Highlights were definitely the courses of King Crab. I wish I had a camera with me to take pics of the crab before it met it's fate. The first course of the crab was the legs steamed with garlic. So sweet and delicate. Second was the body deep fried with chili and garlic. Third was the yee mein with the sauce from the steamed legs. Then the final course was a lightly curried fried rice with a cream sauce on top done in the crab shell. The other highlight was the crispy skinned chicken, crispy skin, very juicy meat.

We also had a snake soup as a course. Interesting indeed. Very delicate and tender meat, with fungus, and little bits of dried orange peel. It was alright....the orange peel flavour is not my favourite.

Other courses were a cold plate (jelly fish, smoked fish, pork hock, bean curd skin), pea tips with dried scallops (yum), prawns with sugar snap peas, and a gai lan with wannabe abalone (thinly sliced mushrooms).

I now need a lesson on how to pace myself on these types of meals. *groan*

[~cayenne~]

I've just waddled home from a ridiculously huge dinner at Imperial Court Beijing Cuisine Restaurant.  We had a set dinner that was meant for 10 people....there were 7 of us. 

Highlights were definitely the courses of King Crab.  I wish I had a camera with me to take pics of the crab before it met it's fate.  The first course of the crab was the legs steamed with garlic.  So sweet and delicate.  Second was the body deep fried with chili and garlic.  Third was the yee mein with the sauce from the steamed legs.  Then the final course was a lightly curried fried rice with a cream sauce on top done in the crab shell.  The other highlight was the crispy skinned chicken, crispy skin, very juicy meat. 

We also had a snake soup as a course.  Interesting indeed.  Very delicate and tender meat, with fungus, and little bits of dried orange peel.  It was alright....the orange peel flavour is not my favourite. 

Other courses were a cold plate (jelly fish, smoked fish, pork hock,  bean curd skin), pea tips with dried scallops (yum),  prawns with sugar snap peas, and a gai lan with wannabe abalone (thinly sliced mushrooms). 

I now need a lesson on how to pace myself on these types of meals.  *groan*

←

Oh my, sounds delicious! Any hint on the cost of a set for 10? TIA

[Ling]

I corralled some fellow egulleters and based upon the good word from Nondual1 and Vancouver - decided to check out Hu Nan on South Main.

The first dish was a house speciality and on the (Chinese only) special board - stirred fried cured pork belly with garlic chives - this was my favorite.   They smoke and cure the meat themselves and it is hung to dry so the flavours can concentrate.  It was like smokey spicy bacon that was perfectly matched with the crisp fresh greens. 

←

I went to Hu Nan for dinner last night, and we got a lot more chilli in our dishes. My favourite was the dish you have pictured above--the Hunan smoked pork belly with garlic chives. I love how the outside bit of fat is slightly charred and chewy. It was great.

We had another chicken dish that was entirely covered in Szechuan peppercorns--I couldn't believe how many peppercorns were used in that dish! Very fragrant and quite spicy again.

The fish we had was also entirely covered with chopped chilli. I had to brush away most of the chilli for it to be edible (sorry, I'm used to bland Cantonese food! ) but my date can take more heat than me and he really liked the level of heat in the food.

Edited April 3, 2006 by Ling (log)

[makanmakan]

I've just waddled home from a ridiculously huge dinner at Imperial Court Beijing Cuisine Restaurant.  We had a set dinner that was meant for 10 people....there were 7 of us. 

Highlights were definitely the courses of King Crab.  I wish I had a camera with me to take pics of the crab before it met it's fate.  The first course of the crab was the legs steamed with garlic.  So sweet and delicate.  Second was the body deep fried with chili and garlic.  Third was the yee mein with the sauce from the steamed legs.  Then the final course was a lightly curried fried rice with a cream sauce on top done in the crab shell.  The other highlight was the crispy skinned chicken, crispy skin, very juicy meat. 

We also had a snake soup as a course.  Interesting indeed.  Very delicate and tender meat, with fungus, and little bits of dried orange peel.  It was alright....the orange peel flavour is not my favourite. 

Other courses were a cold plate (jelly fish, smoked fish, pork hock,  bean curd skin), pea tips with dried scallops (yum),  prawns with sugar snap peas, and a gai lan with wannabe abalone (thinly sliced mushrooms). 

I now need a lesson on how to pace myself on these types of meals.  *groan*

←

Oh my, sounds delicious! Any hint on the cost of a set for 10? TIA

←

I managed a quick glance at the bill before my dad took care of it (thanks dad!) and if I remember correctly, it was a little under $400. The crab was somewhere around $8.80 a pound, I think.