Chinese Cuisine, Hong Kong Food at its Best

Regional and Cantonese Cooking, Dim Sum and Fresh Seafood

Oct 25, 2009

Quality, variety and the talent of local chefs are the hallmarks of the food scene in Hong Kong, a city hailed by many as Asia's culinary capital.

The whole gamut of Asian and international food is available in Hong Kong but Chinese cuisine comes top of the list with specialities from many provinces. Most popular is Cantonese cooking where menus feature a wide choice of relatively mild dishes, including the all time favourites, dim sum and seafood.

Hong Kong has over 11 000 restaurants from stylish venues in luxury hotels, often with fabulous views, to popular eating places in shopping malls or al fresco dining in Temple Street or other markets. The QTS label, awarded by Tourism Services, guarantees quality Hong Kong food in approved restaurants while the Best of the Best Culinary Awards highlight some of the finest dishes.

Peking cuisine is hearty, based on dumplings, noodles and bread, but for most visitors, the signature dish is the aromatic Peking duck with a crispy skin, or the slow cooked beggar’s chicken, stuffed with cabbage and herbs. Shanghai dishes are strong on vegetables and pickles and include the ‘1000 year old eggs' with a dash of ginger and lime.

The Chiu Chow province serves goose in soya, bird’s nest soup and roast oysters in scrambled eggs while visitors keen on spicy food should try menus from the Szechuan and Hunan provinces, with generous helpings of garlic and chilli. Favourites include soups, crispy beef and bean curd rolls.

Cantonese Cooking, Delicious Dim Sum

Cantonese cooking relies on rice, seafood, chicken and pork. It’s fresh and juicy and may be flavoured with soya or chilli sauce. Dishes include some unusual items for western palates, such as chicken’s feet or snake soup, but the choice of vegetables, fish and seafood is unrivalled.

Dim Sum are the stars of Cantonese cuisine, once served as an accompaniment for the Chinese tea drinking ritual, now almost a meal in their own right. Dim Sum are presented in bamboo baskets, offering different flavours and tastes from spring rolls to shrimp dumplings, from spare ribs to rice balls for dessert. Dim sum means ‘touching the heart’ and are ususally served for breakfast or lunch.

Hong Kong is a dream for seafood lovers who may choose their fish live from the tanks. Then there are crabs, oysters, prawns, scallops clams and more, all deliciously fresh and prepared to perfection by local chefs.

All restaurants feature seafood on their menu but best places to enjoy it are in fishing villages and waterside venues. Top spots include the districts of Sai Kung and Lei Yue Mun, the small island of Cheung Chau and Lamma island where gourmets dine al fresco in local restaurants on stilts. It’s a great place to enjoy garlic prawns, fried squid, chilli crab or steamed fish with ginger.

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