Lunar New Year Lo Hei At Grand Park, City Hall

Chinese New Year is about less than a month from now and most of the hotels and restaurants are all coming up with lists of attractive Luna New Year Lo Hei menu catering for everyone preference and budget. And just last Saturday, I have attended a Media Lunch at Park Palace where I would share some of their highlight New Year dishes which you might be interested with.

金箔顺德黄尾鱼捞起
Golden Shunde Yu Sheng

This Spring Festival, Park Palace brings you the the art of tossing Yu Sheng where you would get a shimmering gold boost with its Golden Shunde Yu Sheng (S$88.00++).  As what shown above, their yu sheng was quite different from the usual one we had as they replaced shredded lettuces with crispy fried vermicelli. On top of it, this dish was also given the finishing touch with gold dust and gold flakes.

The Golden Shunde Yu Sheng also comes with two plates of Fresh Yellowtail rather than salmon slices.

Tossing our way "High Up (撈起)" together with a list of auspicious wishes hoping that each and everyone of it will come true soon.

Other than crispy fried vermicelli, Golden Shunde Yu Sheng also consists slices of ginger, spring onion, crunchy capsicums and finely grounded peanuts which tossed in their special combination of fragrant peanut oil and premium soya sauce.

乐宫乳猪皇
Imperial Suckling Pig (first course)

I am sure most of you love Suckling Pig especially it's thin and crispy outer skin which goes well with the steamed pancake and savory sauce. At Park Palace, the piglet used for the Imperial Suckling Pig (S$238.00++) weighs about 5kg and it was air-dried and roasted in the restaurant itself. So in order to avoid disappointment, guests are advisable to make reserve for the order at least one day in advance. 

Some of us were amazed by the thinly sliced cracking skin which we could hardly see any fats or meat on it. The skin was also flavoursome even without the accompany serving sauce and it leaves you craving for more servings too.

乐宫香茅翻烧
Imperial Suckling Pig - Oven Baked with Lemongrass (second course)

Other than the crackling skins, the left over portion (the meat) was then made into another dish by oven-baked it with lemongrass and other seasonings. Each piece of the meat was infused with lemongrass fragrance and the taste was also not too overpowering.

鱼跃龙门庆丰年
Golden Happiness Crispy Garoupa

Even though I am a fish lover, I don't really fancy this Golden Happiness Crispy Garoupa  perhaps it was a bit too dry towards my liking even though it was served together with some special sweet and sour sauce drizzling on it.

火焰乐宫团圆盆菜
Chinese New Year Flambé Pen Cai

Prosperity Flambé Pen Cai was the highlight of the day where it boasts 18 luxuriant ingredients and with a twist it was infused with Cognac, and flambéed to bring out the rich flavours and tastes of its ingredients with a tang of alcohol.

Prosperity Flambé Pen Cai is available for both à la carte and takeaway from 21 January to 24 February 2013 at:-

~ S$268++ (for six persons)
~ S$428++ (for ten persons)

As you could see from the above, this delicacy is brimming with 18 luxuriant ingredients including Sliced Abalone (鲍鱼片), Sea Cucumber (海参), Whole Conpoy (柱脯), Prawn Balls (明虾球), Scallops (带子), Roasted Duck (烧鸭), Roasted Pork Belly (火腩), Duck Web (鸭掌), Soya Chicken (油鸡), Sliced Sea Perch Fillet (鲈鱼片), Fatt Choy (发菜), Black Mushroom (北菇), Lotus Root (莲藕), Broccoli (西兰花), Radish (白萝卜), Beancurd Skin (豆筋), Gingko Nut (银杏), Black Fungus (云耳) and Tien Shin Cabbage (津白) with quality stock in a casserole pot.

The pot we had (refer to above) was actually for 6 persons serving and yet the 10 of us at the table can't even finished it! So you roughly could gauged there were indeed a lot of treasures in the pot and you might be surprised on what you could scoop out from it too!

鹅肝腊味糯米饭
Auspicious Glutinous Rice with Foie Gras And Preserved Meat

As usual the second last dish is always either noodle or rice, and on that day we had something fusion which served in individual portion that was known as Auspicious Glutinous Rice with Foie Gras and Preserved Meat.

Each glutinous rice ball was wrapped with diced preserved meat fillings, pan-fried till crispy at the base and served with a generous slice of Foie Gras on it.  The juice and fragrance from the preserved meat had definitely enhance the taste of the glutinous rice but most of us find portion of the rice was a bit too much for an individual serving.

南瓜庆团圆
Steamed Mini Pumpkin Dumpling with Green Bean Paste

Dessert was served in a bamboo steamer and when the lid was opened, everyone was in excitement because of the bright orangey pumpkin alike dumplings. These Steamed Mini Pumpkin Dumplings were made using the natural colour from the pumpkin puree and wrapped with generous amount of green bean paste which is lightly fragrance with tangerine peel or something similar.

Lastly I would like to thank Jean (Assistant Marketing Communication Manager of Grand Park City Hall) and Park Hotel Group for the warm invitation and hospitality at Park Palace.

If you are planning for family,  office gathering or business lunch this coming Chinese New Year perhaps you would like to take note of their Early Bird Special: Book now and dine in from 21 January to 07 February 2013 and enjoy 20% off Lunar New Year Set Menus and a la carte at Park Palace.

Chinese New Year Set Menus (view full menu details here)
~ $78++ per person (a maximum of two persons)
~ $288++ per person (for four persons)
~ $438++ per person (for six persons)
~ $588++ per person (for eight persons)
~ $788++ to $2388++ (# for ten persons)

*Orders to be made at least one day in advance
# Enjoy a complimentary bottle of house wine per table with booking of ten tables or more (ten pax per table)


PARK PALACE
Grand Park City Hall
Mezzanine Level (level 2)
10 Coleman Street
Singapore 179809
Telephone: (65) 6432 5543
Website: http://www.parkpalace.com.sg/

Huiji Mui Fan

Mui Fan (烩饭) is one of my favourite childhood dish and even until now I still love this dish despite of whether homecook or store bought from the Cze Char stall(煮炒摊). You can easily create your own style of Mui Fan with different ingredients such as seafood, meat or vegetables. In this post, I would share with you a new version of my "herbal flavour" mui fan using Huiji Waist Tonic and Red Wine Lees.

HUIJI MUI FAN

With a twist and inspiration from my usual mui fan, I decided to come out with something herbal and nourishing for the family. Also mui fan can be consider as a quick one dish meal which consists of cooked rice, meat, vegetables, egg(optional) and gravy in a plate. I love this type of comfort dish which is so easy to prepare and with less washing up to do too.

(Serves: 2 | Preparation: 5 minutes | Cooking: 5 minutes)

Ingredients:
150g Pork Fillet, thinly sliced
60ml Huiji Waist Tonic
2 Serving Of Cooked Brown Rice
4 Slices Ginger, shredded
1 Stalk Spring Onion, cut into sections
2 Tablespoons of Hong Zao (red wine lees), optional
2 Tablespoons Sesame Oil
1 - 2 Eggs

Method:-
1. Preheat frying pan with 2 tablespoons of sesame oil, sauté ginger and spring onion till fragrant.

2. Stir in pork slices and cook 10 seconds, add in the red wine lees if using and continue to fry till meat is cooked.

3. Pour in 60ml Huiji Waist Tonic, crack in egg(s) and gently give the mixtures a few stirs. Simmer the mixture for 10 seconds.

4. Off the heat, season mixture with salt and pepper before spooning it on top of the cooked rice.

5. Garnish with some chopped spring onion, cut chilli and serve immediately.

As for this dish, try to use either pork or chicken fillet so that the meat can be easily cooked and remains tender when bite. And also for those who like pork liver, you can add in some together with the pork fillet to create a better flavour and texture for this dish.

Oatmeal Fish Porridge

If you have being following this blog, you can find another similar Savory Oatmeal Porridge which I had shared the recipe a few years back. I still remember that recipe was taught to me by my ex-boss wife who always include it in their breakfast menu. And since we can easily purchase either Instant/Quick Cook Oatmeal from leading supermarkets and they both works well on Sweet (recipe) and Savory (recipe) dishes, hence oatmeal became one of my favourite pantry ingredients.

OATMEAL FISH PORRIDGE

This Oatmeal Fish Porridge can act as a great idea for weekend brunch or you can even serve it for dinner too. The idea of using fish slices is because I wanted to create something similar to Fish Congee but with more nourishing ingredients like carrot, wolfberries, gingko nuts and egg. But then it is still up to individual to mix and match with the ingredients that you prefer.

(Serves: 2  | Preparation: 5 minutes | Cooking: 15 minutes)

Ingredients:
1/2 Cup of Quick Cook Oatmeal (Quaker brand)
750ml Chicken Broth
150g Mackerel Fish Slices
1 Egg, lightly beaten
2 Stalks Spring Onion, cut into sections
Some Diced Carrot
Some Gingko Nuts
Some Wolfberries
Some Chopped Spring Onion

Method:-
1. Lightly marinate fish slices with salt, pepper and sesame oil, cornflour and set aside.

2. Preheat a saucepan with some oil, lightly fry the diced carrot and spring onion till fragrant, add in soup broth and gingko nut, simmer over low heat for about 10 minutes until carrot is soften.

3. Next add in quick cook oatmeal and continue to simmer till almost done (if the mixture is too thick, add extra 150 - 200ml of hot water/soup broth to dilute), add in fish slices and wolfberries.

4. When fish is cooked through, switch off the heat, drizzle beaten egg and give it a quick stir.

5. Ladle oatmeal into serving bowls, top with some chopped spring onion and fried shallot, serve immediately.

I guess for a change, this is not a bad idea for rice replacement as it look and taste somehow or rather similar to congee. And if you prefer more dilute version, add in either more chicken broth or reduce the amount of oatmeal. For me, I prefer a sticky texture if I am looking for some comfort food during cold weather.

SunnyHills 2013 CNY Special Edition Pack

Welcome to 2013 and I wish everyone a fruitful year ahead. As you know Chinese New Year (CNY) is approaching in roughly a month's time and you can also notice most of the bakeries and shopping malls are all getting ready for new year too.

Recently we have received a complimentary box of Pineapple Cakes from SunnyHills as a snack preview of their 2013 CNY Special Edition Pack. I love their CNY edition pack which brings in colours of spring that cheers up your day and makes you feel that CNY is around the corner.

As usual their pineapple cakes taste great like what we had previously and it is definitely made with real pineapple fruits without any artificial flavouring. And also with its buttery crust it goes well with the generous amount of pineapple fillings which enable to satisfy your craving for a good quality of pineapple cake.

Moreover these buttery pineapple cakes also resemble "Gold Bars" from it's shape and colour which are auspicious for Chinese New Year gift. If you are considering to get some, below might be some useful information for you. These pineapple cakes are available in boxes of:-

~ 10 pieces per box @ S$25.00
~ 15 pieces per box @ S$37.50
~ 20 pieces per box @ S$50.00

There will be FREE delivery (to one location) for orders above S$100.00 or a delivery fee of S$8.00 per location. But if your order is above S$350.00 they will be free delivery plus 10% OFF.  To make orders or queries you can either email: service@sunnyhills.com.sg or call/send SMS to (65) 8522 9605 between 10.00am to 6.00pm.

SUNNYHILLS AT RAFFLES HOTEL
Raffles Hotel Arcade
328 North Bridge Road
#03-05
Singapore 188719
Telephone: (65) 8522 9605
Facebook site: http://www.facebook.com/SunnyHills.At.RafflesHotel

Opening Hours:-
Tuesday to Saturday - 11.00am to 8.00pm
Sunday and Monday - 11.00am to 6.00pm