Everything about Cuisine Of Hong Kong totally explained
The
cuisine in Hong Kong is
Cantonese cuisine with extensive influences from parts of non-Cantonese-speaking China (especially
Chaozhou,
Dongjiang,
Fujian and the
Yangtze River Delta),
Western world,
Japan, and
Southeast Asia, due to Hong Kong's past as a British colony and long history of being an international city of commerce. From the roadside stalls to the most upscale restaurants, Hong Kong provides an unlimited variety of food in every class. Complex combinations and international
gourmet expertise have given
Hong Kong the reputable labels of
"Gourmet Paradise" and
"World's Fair of Food".
Background
Modern Hong Kong has a predominantly service-based economy, and restaurant businesses serve as a main economic contributor. With the 3rd highest density population per square meters in the world and serving a population of 7 million, Hong Kong is host to a restaurant industry in which competition is cutthroat. Due to its small geographical size, Hong Kong contains a high number of restaurants per unit area.
With
Chinese ethnicity making up 98% of the resident population,
Chinese cuisine is naturally served at home. A majority of Chinese in Hong Kong are
Cantonese in addition to sizeable numbers of
Hakka,
Teochew and
Shanghainese people, and home dishes are
Cantonese with occasional mixes of the other three types of cuisines.
Rice is predominantly the main
staple for home meals. Home ingredients are picked up from local grocery stores and independent produce shops, although supermarkets have become progressively more popular.
Traditional Chinese preference of food freshness means grocery shopping happens much more frequently, and in small quantities, for Hong Kong's population than the Western world.
Take-out and dining out is also very common, since people are often too busy to cook with an average 47-hour work week.
History
The cuisine of Hong Kong could trace its beginnings to its founding as a British colonial outpost in 1841. Soon after the colony was founded many British and other Western merchants flocked to the settlement and many Chinese from Guangzhou followed suit to conduct business. Initially much of Hong Kong society was segregated into expatriate Westerners, a majority of working class Chinese
coolies, Chinese farmers and fishers, and Chinese merchants. Cuisine was rudimentary when compared with the cuisine of 19th century
Canton, with simple peasant fares.
As the colony developed there were needs of business entertainment meals. Some Chinese restaurants were founded in the late 19th century and early 20th century as branches of renowned restaurants in Guangzhou and offered elaborate meals consisting of traditional Chinese "eight main courses and eight entrees" (八大八小) types of banquets for 2
teals of silver or equivalent of a month's worth of office clerk's wage at the time. Before 1935 when
prostitution was legal in Hong Kong
escorts often accompanied diners in restaurant meals, especially those of business entertainment nature. Opium was also offered which lasted until
World War II. For Chinese who were not part of the business cliques, dining out in restaurants was non-existent and celebrations such as birthdays were often done by catering by specialist catering services. The restaurant scene for Europeans in Hong Kong is another world and segregated from Chinese dining. Elaborate colonial dining existed at the likes of
Hongkong Hotel and subsequently
Gloucester Hotel.
Hong Kong's dining lagged behind the then-leader of Chinese cuisine, Canton, for a long period of time and many chefs in Hong Kong spent their formative years in Canton. Traditionally Canton was renowned for its food and there was a traditional saying of "Eat in Canton" (食在廣州). Cantonese cuisine in Canton reached its peak during the 1920s and was renowned in the care in preparation even for peasant fares such as
char siu or
boat congee.
Dai San Yuan was renowned for its braised
shark fin dish that charged 60 silver yuan, equivalent to 6 months' wage for a working class family. The cooking in Canton trickle-downed to the culinary scene in Hong Kong.
The victory of
Chinese Communists in the
Chinese Civil War in 1949 created a wave of refugees into Hong Kong. A sizeable number of refugees are from non-Cantonese speaking China including the
Yangtze River Delta and introduced
Shanghaiese cuisine to Hong Kong. On the other hand, many renowned chefs of Canton, now known as
Guangzhou in pinyin romanization, were stranded in Hong Kong to escape from Communist rules. Prostitution and opium had by then been long gone from Chinese restaurant dining scene, and in order to survive, many restaurants extended into winning businesses for families by offering yum cha and wedding banquet, while on the other hand, the end of strict colonial segregation by the British colonial government and expatriate Westerners had opened Western dining to Chinese circles after the Second World War.
Egg tart and
Hong Kong-style milk tea became part of Hong Kong's food culture at this time. It could be argued that the Hong Kong society as understood today wasn't sown until 1949, and the cuisine of Hong Kong had its direct roots tracing back to this period.
By the 1960s Hong Kong has gone past the worst economically speaking, and there had been a long and continuous period of relative calm and openness when compared with the Communist misrule in
Mao Zedong-era China and martial law isolation in
Taiwan. The Cantonese cuisine in Hong Kong had by then surpassed those of Guangzhou, which had witnessed a long period of decline since the Communists came to power. The rising prosperity from the mid 1960s had given birth to increasing demand for quality dining. Many of the chefs, who had their formative years in pre-Communist Guangzhou and Shanghai, started to bring out the best of fine dining specialties from Guangzhou and Shanghai before 1949. Families had largely abandoned catering services and resorted to restaurants for celebratory meals.
This wave of prosperity also propelled Hong Kong Chinese's awareness of foreign food trends, and many are willing to try foreign ingredients such as
asparagus and
crayfish from Australia. Foreign food styles such as
Japanese cuisine, cuisines of Southeast Asia started to creep into local Cantonese cuisine offered in Hong Kong, which pace of change accelerated by the late 1970s and early 1980s. This gave birth to nouvelle Cantonese cuisine (新派粵菜) that incorporated foreign dishes such as
sashimi into Cantonese banquets. For the first time, many Hong Kong Chinese started to have the economic means to visit many Western restaurants of the domain of mainly wealthy expatriate Westerners such as
Gaddis of the Peninsula Hotel.
China initiated
economic reforms when
Deng Xiaoping came to power after Mao Zedong died. The opening up of the country gave chefs from Hong Kong chances to reestablish ties with chefs from mainland China severed in 1949 and opportunities to gain awareness of various regional Chinese cuisines. Many of these cuisines also contributed to nouvelle Cantonese cuisines in Hong Kong. The lift of martial law in
Taiwan in 1987 jump-started Taiwanese links with mainland China and has caused a proliferation of eateries specializing in
Taiwanese cuisine in Hong Kong as Taiwanese tourists and businessmen used Hong Kong as a mid-point for visits to mainland China.
After Hong Kong was
returned to China in 1997, the
Asian financial crisis and
SARS epidemic gave birth to a decade-long depression of Hong Kong. The boom in Hong Kong eating scene was over and many restaurants, including a number of renowned eateries, closed down for business. It is argued that the catching up in prosperity in
coastal China has driven up the costs of many delicacies such as
abalone, and many celebratory dishes have become outrageously expensive that they're no longer within any reach of even many upper-middle class Hong Kong families. At the same time, Hong Kong people's tastes have become cosmopolitan when compared with one generation ago. Many are able to appreciate specific European countries' cuisines rather than a generic
Western cuisine, and appreciation of other Asian cuisines, especially
Japanese cuisine and
Thai cuisine has been ever increasing. These has produced a proliferation of many specialist ethnic cuisine restaurants geared towards young middle class couples on one hand, and a consolidation of fine-dining Cantonese restaurants on the other.
As of the early 21st century Hong Kong, many pundits argue that with Hong Kong's uncertain long term economic fortune vis-a-vis mega-rich cities in China such as Shanghai and Guangzhou, Hong Kong no longer has the economic base to support super fine-dining that's required to sustain an active dining scene in a real estate property development-based economy. Modern Hong Kong's labor market has also disrupted the traditional grooming process of Chinese chefs, which had to be conducted on a very gradual basis. Very few chefs are willing to sacrifice their time and effort to produce tradition simple cooking that discourages cutting corners, and emphasizes techniques over ingredients' values. On the other hand, Hong Kong may well develop a foodie culture similar to other developed economies and preserve the best of traditional cooking.
Historically Hong Kong's food source came from a combination of mini stores instead of supermarkets. Some of the stores included:
rice dealers (
Chinese: 米舖), serving as mini rice storage warehouses;
wine shops (辦館), which offered beverages;
see-dor (士多), which were single convenient stores, most notable for serving fresh baked bread. The main component was
wet markets (街市) - one of the first market gatherings in Hong Kong was
Central Market that began in the
1840s.
The idea of a single facility or supermarket that provided all food ingredients didn't take place until the early
1970s when
Wellcome, a local grocery chain, changed its format into a supermarket. Air-conditioned supermarkets didn't become standardised until the 1980s.
Eating habits
Most restaurant serving sizes are considerably small by international standards, especially in comparison to most Western nations like the
United States or
Canada. The
main course is usually accompanied by a generous portion of carbohydrates such as
rice or
mein(noodles). People generally eat 5 times a day. The term
Jau Gwei became associated with the hawkers trying to avoid restrictions.
» Includes:
*
Fishball » *
Butzaigo
* Roasted chestnuts
Dai Pai Dong
These are small Chinese style casual outdoor dining restaurants, serving mostly Cantonese and Teochew peasant fares. The business is catered toward the locals with many menus exclusively in Chinese.
» Includes:
*
Congee and
Youtiao » *
Sweetened Condensed milk Toast
*
Wonton noodle
Specialty Shops
Specialty stores usually dedicate to selling a certain type of snack or dried goods. If the focus is on
beef jerky for example, the store will offer 10 to 20 different types of the highest grade and quality. During holiday times, specialty stores are sometimes the premiere place for purchasing food gift items. Sun-dried goods and Chinese candy are also common merchandise found.
» Includes:
*
Beef Jerky » *
Almond Biscuit
*
Dried Shredded Squid
Hong Kong-Style Fast Food
Hong Kong-style fast food is either served in fast-casual restaurants such as
Café de Coral,
Maxim's
and
Fairwood or in food courts typically attached to malls or supermarkets such as
CitySuper. The food offered is a mix of Canto-Western cuisine (see
Hong Kong-Style Western Cuisine below), Cantonese fares, and increasingly Asian food from outside China.
» Includes:
*
Pork Cutlet - Japanese inspired
» *
Chinese Broccoli with
Oyster sauce - Cantonese
*
baked pork chop rice - Western (specifically British) inspired
Chinese Pastry
Hong Kong-style Chinese pastry offers a plethora of choices for the discerning taster. Depending on location, some shops may carry a wider selection than others, and some may bake goods on the premise while others have it delivered from an off-site bakery. Most bakeries carry standard fare such as
Pineapple Buns and
Egg Tarts. During the
Mid-Autumn Festival,
moon cake is one of the hottest sellers. Pastries are baked fresh daily (and sometimes throughout the day), and it's said that Hong Kong people have taste buds so sophisticated that they can tell the difference between something baked 1 hour versus 5 hours ago.
» Includes:
*
Wife Cake » *
Jin deui
*
Cream Bun
Cuisine: Cantonese
As the most predominant cultural group in Hong Kong, Cantonese food forms the backbone of homecooking and dine-out scenes. Many early celebrated Cantonese restaurants, including
Tai San Yuan,
Luk Yu Tea House, were originally
Hong Kong branches of the famed Guangzhou-based restaurants, and most chefs in
Hong Kong until the 1970s had spent their formative years working in the restaurant industry in Gaungzhou. Most of the celebrated dishes in
Hong Kong were introduced into the territory through
Guangzhou, often refined with awareness of international tastes. Cantonese food prices perhaps cover the widest range, from the
small businesses
lou mei to the most expensive
abalone delicacies, which involves
abalone.
One well developed dish in Cantonese cuisine is
dim sum. Waiters cart around stacks of steamer baskets or small plates of food for customers to choose. Dim Sum includes dishes based on meat, seafood, vegetables, as well as desserts and fruit. The term
Yum cha (literally "drink tea") is synonymous with eating Dim Sum. It is customary for families to eat Dim Sum on weekends.
» Includes:
*
Cart noodle » *
Siu mei
*
Cha siu baau » *
Shaomai
*
Har gau » *
Crispy fried chicken
*
Seafood birdsnest
Cuisine: Buddhist
This cuisine is essentially
vegetarian specialties using
tofu,
mushroom and other non-animal sourced ingredients. Despite the name, the cuisine are enjoyed by many non-Buddhists. Hong Kong's vegetarian dishes, as part of the Cantonese branch of Chinese vegetarian cuisine, puts emphasis on
meat analogues substitutes to the point where it can taste and look identical to real meat, often by using deep-fried gluten and tofu to recreate meat-like textures, and heavy-flavored sauces are prepared for the dishes. Even committed meat-eaters enjoy the cuisine regularly. Unlike western countries, vegetarian diet in Hong Kong isn't considered a commitment. This cuisine is also served in some temples and monasteries like the
Po Lin Monastery. The vegetarian cuisine served in some
Taoist temples or monasteries, such as the
Yuen Yuen Institute, can also be classified under this category.
» Includes:
*
Mantou » *
Buddha's delight
Non-Cantonese Chinese vegetarian cuisine is extremely rare in Hong Kong, although there are some isolated temples and restaurants offering Shanghaiese-style vegetarian cuisine. Compared with Cantonese-style vegetarian cuisine, dishes are less oily and some food items favored by non-Cantonese Chinese, such as bamboo shoot, picked vegetables, are often used.
Meat analogues are prominently featured, albeit expressed in differently manners from Cantonese vegetarian cuisine.
Cuisine: Hakka
This form of cooking style from the
Hakka people originally came from
Guangdong and
Fujian in southeastern
China. The style uses dried and preserved ingredients.
Pork is by far the most common meat in the style.
» Includes:
*
Poon Choi » *
Salt baked chicken
Cuisine: Beijing
This cuisine have one of the longest history in terms of style development. The variety and complexity provide a glimpse of what imperial
Chinese Emperors might have eaten at one time. Exotic dishes in this category often require a considerable wait time before it's served.
» Includes:
*
Peking Duck » *
Hot and Sour Soup
Cuisine: Japanese
Sushi is the most common association made to Japanese cuisine in Hong Kong. From small cafe shops to
conveyor belt sushi restaurants to restaurants specializing in
Teppanyaki, Japanese-style cooking is fairly popular. Depending on the locale, many sushi-centric restaurants are designed to mirror close to those in
Japan.
» Includes:
Cuisine: Indian
Unlike in
India which may separate into regional variants such as
Punjabi, the Chinese population in Hong Kong overwhelming identify Indian cuisine with
curry spices. Because meat is always expected, it can also be said that HK Indian cuisine leans toward
Northern Indian Cuisine.
» Includes:
*
Curry Chicken with
Biryani » *
Curry Beef with
Naan
Hot Pot
This hot pot cuisine, known as
daa bin lou (打邊爐) in
Cantonese, is unique in the sense that everyone is a
chef. A boiling pot of water (soup-based, and customers can choose their preferred soup taste), is placed in the center of the table, and essentially everyone boils their own ingredients in that pot. This is highly popular and is usually accompanied with a bottle of cold beer or soda. This style is common during frigid winter times, since people are essentially cuddled around a fire. This format is also considered entertaining.
» Includes:
*
Beef,
Pork,
Chicken » *
Crab,
Prawns, and
clams
*
Chinese cabbage,
carrots and
lettuce » *
Fish balls and
beef balls
*
Tofu
Hong Kong-Style Drinks
Non-alcoholic beverages are served at restaurants of all classes, but most notably at
Cha chaan teng, a unique kind of restaurants in
Hong Kong. Since drink recipes are not franchise based, most drinks can vary depending on the restaurant.
Rock sugar and
syrup are commonly used to add sweetness.
Some beverages that was originated in
the tea culture of
Taiwan, such as
bubble tea and
honey green tea, had been brought to Hong Kong and become part of Hong Kong's beverage culture.
» Includes:
*
Hong Kong-style milk tea » *
Red Bean Ice
*
Soy milk » *
Sugar Cane Juice
Chinese Tea
A large wide variety of tea leaves and combinations are used for Chinese tea. In the 50s and 60s, citizens would go to tea houses accompanied by their pet birds locked in a bird cage.
Noon tea was an essential break in the middle of the day. Though tea nowadays go along with any meal.
» Includes:
*
Chrysanthemum tea » *
Bolay
*
24 flavors
Western Styles
Hong Kong-Style Western Cuisine
Dishes derived from cuisines of the
Western world, but not classified into a particular country, belong in this category. Outside Hong Kong it's termed
Hong Kong-style Western cuisine or
Canto-Western cuisine. Small restaurants that offer Sai Chaan are usually
Cha chaan teng at the popular end or "Sai Chaan Restaurants" at the more upscale range. Restaurants that have come to expect
tourists will likely offer both east and west menus. Most dishes are localized with Chinese tastes and contain Chinese and specifically Cantonese influences, such as
steak marinated in
soy sauce, served in a soy sauce dominated gravy, and with
fried rice as on the side, or wok-fried spaghetti with meat sauce . The cuisine's detractors term the cuisine
soy sauce Western cuisine (
Chinese:豉油西餐) since the use of soy sauce was unheard of as an ingredient in Western culinary art before international cuisine took off in the late 1980s.
As Hong Kong became economically more prosperous which drive more commercial contacts with the West and fuel foreign travels, people's tastes have become more broadened and
Sai Chaan Restaurants have become a rarity due to proliferation of more authentic Western restaurants focusing on local Hong Kong Chinese clientale. Those that remain, such as Goldfinch or Tai Ping Koon, have become quaint relics drawing customers with their 1960s and 1970s nostalgia.
Cha Chaan teng has tended to incorporate more Chinese food and remain popular as ever in the Hong Kong dining scene.
» Includes:
*
Macaroni in broth with
Fried egg and
Sausages
» * Fried chicken wings
* Swiss sauce chicken wings
» *
Instant noodle with Sausages
*
French Toast, called "Western Toast" (西多士) in Chinese
Western Fast Food
Western style fast food are essentially replicas of US or European franchised fast food restaurant models.
McDonald's is likely the most common. Others include
Hardee's (formerly),
Pizza Hut and many more.
» Includes:
*
Big Mac » *
Hotdog
*
Pizza
Western Pastry
The general association made is that western pastry are much sweeter and potent in taste than typical Chinese pastry. Pastry of this category are reciped by western countries. Some western style pastry lean very close to their western counterpart, while others are modified with a reduction in
cheese,
whip cream and other western ingredients.
Chinese Bakery shops often sell both east and west goods.
Maxim's is one of the most popular franchise found in nearly every
MTR subway stations.
Délifrance is another place that offers western sandwiches.
» Includes:
*
Donut » * Fruit Tart
*
Croissant
Cuisine: American
These are standard meals taken from the
U.S., except with a significant reduction in usage of
butter. For example, an order of
mashed potato in Hong Kong will seem relatively plain and light compared to its U.S. counterpart.
Popcorn in Hong Kong is sweetened. If served in the U.S., Americans would classify it as
Cracker Jack instead. Steak can be classified as Sai Chaan or American food.
» Includes:
*
Sirloin steak » *
Buffalo wings
*
Clam Chowder
Cuisine: Italian
This cuisine is usually considered up-scale, following a 3 course
antipasto, primo and secondo format. Italian food in Hong Kong are generally considered more Modern Italian, instead of being authentic Traditional Italian. Though if one was to explicitly look for
Venetian style, it can be done. Drinks and desserts are often mixed with Chinese options. The main course itself will lean closer to American-Italian. "Fat Angelos" is an example of an HK Italian restaurant.
» Includes:
*
Pasta with
Beef Brisket,
Veal » * Saltimbocca alla Romana
*
Risotto
Cuisine: French
Common French dishes can be found in Hong Kong along with
delicacies. Many of the French desserts like
Crème brûlée have been modified into some form of pudding (Chinese: 布甸) to be served with Chinese dishes. So aside from being a standalone style, influence of French cuisine in Asian dishes are apparent.
» Includes:
* Lamb Fillet
» * Pan Fried Duck Breast
Western Drinks
Beverage from the west have been deeply integrated into the food culture. The line between east and west drinks are blurred to the point where many westernized drinks can be found in Chinese style restaurants. Especially in
Cha chaan teng, they've essentially become just another item on the menu.
British malt drinks have become closely associated with breakfast in Hong Kong.
» *
Ovaltine
*
Horlicks » *
Coke
*
Milkshake
Western Coffee
Coffee from the west has become heavily franchised in recent years. The arrival of
Pacific Coffee and
Starbucks changed the landscape of western style coffee in Hong Kong. While independent coffee shops do exist, franchise stores are often situated in favorable locations that cater to foreign workers.
» *
Espresso
*
Iced Coffee » *
Frappuccino
Locales
Major food districts are
Causeway Bay,
Kowloon City,
Lan Kwai Fong,
Tsim Sha Tsui and
Soho.
Stanley, with its expatriate population, has many seaside pubs and European restaurants.
Sai Kung,
Lamma Island,
Lau Fau Shan and
Lei Yue Mun serve
seafood. Old fishing towns such as
Cheung Chau and
Tai O also have many original restaurants.
Most pubs and bars are at
Lan Kwai Fong,
Lockhart Road and
Jaffe Road of
Wan Chai;
Canton Road,
Tsim Sha Tsui East; and around
Prince Edward MTR station in
Mong Kok. Since
1991,
Oktoberfest has been held annually on
Canton Road.
Famous chefs
Hong Kong diners are willing to pay top dollar for the best food and service, this helps to attract many celebrity and star chefs to open restaurants in Hong Kong, including:
» * Spoon by Alain Ducasse (
InterContinental Hotel) -
Alain Ducasse
*
Pierre (
Mandarin Oriental Hotel) -
Pierre Gagnaire » *
Amber (
The Landmark Mandarin Oriental Hotel) -
Richard Ekkebus
*
L'Atelier de Joël Robuchon (
The Landmark) -
Joël Robuchon » *
Nobu Matsuhisa opened Nobu Hong Kong at the
InterContinental Hotel in late 2006.
*
Aspasia by former
Michelin three star restaurant chef
Roland Schuller.
» *, operated by Australian chef
Geoff Lindsay, operator of
Pearl Restaurant in Australia.
*
Four Seasons Hotel brought in many staff from its
Michelin three star restaurant
Le Cinq in Paris and opened
Caprice in Hong Kong in 2006.
» *
Uwe Opocensky, who trained at
El Bulli, voted by
Restaurant Magazine as the world's number 1 restaurant, has been appointed executive chef at
The Krug Room in the
Mandarin Oriental Hotel.
Culture
Truffle madness
Truffle madness began to take off in Hong Kong 2005 when a group of citizens paid what was then a world record HK$863,000 for a 1.2kg
White Alba truffle. It was prepared by chef Umberto Bombana of Toscana restaurant at the
Ritz-Carlton hotel.
A 1.51 kilogram rare
White Alba truffle, was sold for 125,000
Euros/HK$1,250,000/US$160,000 on
November 13,
2006 to Hong Kong property tycoon Sir
Gordon Wu. This price beat the previous world record of 95,000 Euros for a 1.21 kg White Alba truffle in 2005. Both the 2005 and 2006 truffles were sold in Hong Kong.
The record price paid for a single white truffle was set again in
December 2007, when
Macau casino owner
Stanley Ho paid US$330,000 (£165,000) for a specimen weighing 1.5kg (3.3lb). One of the largest truffles found in decades. It was unearthed near
Pisa and sold at an auction held simultaneously in Macau,
London and
Florence.
Further Information
Get more info on 'Cuisine Of Hong Kong'.
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