As the Chinese community in Mumbai celebrated their New Year last Thursday, we thought it's time to let you in on century-old secrets about the food that's served during the festivities. Dhamini Ratnam tells you what's the real deal behind Prawn Dimsums and why Chicken Claws aren't as ugly as you think
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Chef Yui Kwong To smiles as he greets us in front of Ming Yang, Taj Lands End's Chinese restaurant. Behind him, the carved dragons flanking the entrance look towards the ceiling, and you can almost hear cymbals clash somewhere in the distance.
It's the day before Chinese New Year, and there is a lot of work to be done for the 10 day-long food festival that is to start the following morning.
"Call me David," he says, extending his hand. "That's the English name I took on in India."u00a0Chef David leads us into his kitchen, our footfall hushed in the cool carpeted restaurant, laughter tinkling in the backdrop. The kitchen however is a very different scene.
Harried looking men wearing tall chef hats, chop vegetables, carry heavy trays, and splash masala into deep pots bearing boiling oil. Steam bellows from metallic contraptions, and a haze of white smoke hangs in the air. On the counter, two stuffed chickens with green stems peeping out of one end, wait patiently for their fate to be decided.
Chef David grabs hold of a large cooking pot, and looks towards us with a look that says, "Now, pay attention".
The next few minutes are a blur -- we see some chopped yellow capsicum fly into the pan -- and the next thing we know, the Tsingohi Chicken, a delicacy to be served in Ming Yang's Chinese New Year menu, is ready.
And then, with infinite delicacy, Chef David places a carrot cut into a blossom on the side of the plate.
"Har as in Ha Ha Ha"
Chinese New Year is a 15-day long celebration that heralds the birth of the new year in the Chinese lunar calendar. And just as each Indian festival is celebrated with specific dishes, the Chinese New Year too has its fixed menu of mouthwatering delicacies.
But for the Chinese, the delicacies are determined by the symbolic significance of the food items -- from the way they sound to the meaning attachedu00a0 to them over centuries. Chef David points to Sin Harkow (freshly marinated Prawn Dimsums) and demonstrates how the Chinese really care about homophones.
"Harkow sounds like a person laughing -- 'Ha Ha Ha'," says the chef, mimicking the sound heartily so that guests at the restaurant turn around to see what's going on. "This liveliness is good, and we believe, if you eat this dish on New Year day, you will laugh throughout the year."
"Back in Hong Kong, where my family lives, they serve chicken legs with claws intact. Since the claw looks like a rake, it's symbolic for raking in the money," says the Chef. 'Yu', the Cantonese word for fish, sounds like another Cantonese word that refers to someone who always has surplus -- "much balance in the bank," adds the Chef -- but don't bother trying to pronounce it. We try, and the guests turn around again, wondering if someone's choking.
"The New Year," Chef David carries on unconcerned, "is like Diwali here. The whole family comes together, eats together. There are firecrackers. It's a family reunion." Which is why, perhaps, the symbolism centres around happiness, luck, and lots of money -- essential ingredients to any happy family, as we are well aware.
"Tonight, my family in Hong Kong will be sitting around the dining table, eating together. And I'll be celebrating New Year with them, in my head," says Chef David. Ming Yang at the Taj Lands End's (Bandra) Chinese New Year food is on till February 13.
For reservations, Call 66681234. Red Zen, Courtyard by Marriott (Andheri east) is hosting a festival till February 15. Call 61369999.
Chinese New Year menu decoded
>>u00a0Tangerines and oranges are popular during Chinese New Year since their names sound like 'luck' and 'wealth' respectively.
>> The Cantonese word for lettuce sounds like 'rising fortune', so it is common to serve a lettuce wrap.
>> The word for fish, 'Yu', sounds like words for 'wish' and 'abundance'. It is customary to serve a fish at the end of the evening meal on New Year's Eve. The fish is served whole, head and tail attached, symbolising a good beginning and end for the coming year.
>> Chicken's feet and a whole chicken are popular since they symbolise fortune, a good marriage and the coming together of families (serving the bird whole emphasises family unity).
>> Fresh tofu is taboo at the Chinese New Year, since it's white; the colour of misfortune. But the tawny dried tofu skin is much loved.
>> Noodles represent a long life, and it's considered bad luck to cut them.
>> Clams and spring rolls symbolise wealth, because of their resemblance to gold coins and bars.
