Chicken, vegetables and soy sauce come together for a quick and easy meal. (Photo courtesy of Petty Elliott)
Next Friday, many people from around the world will begin celebrating the first day of Chinese New Year, the most important celebration in the Chinese calendar. Traditionally, the New Year’s festivities start on the first day of the month and continue until the 15th, when the moon is at its brightest.
People wear red clothes and give children lucky money, or ang pao, in red envelopes. Red symbolizes fire, which according to legend can drive away bad luck.
The Chinese New Year is also known as the Spring Festival and as with festivals in every culture, food takes center stage. All food served during the festivities is loaded with meaning and every table features these dishes.
Spring rolls, Chun Juan , is a Cantonese dim sum dish named after the Spring Festival. The words Chun Juan literarily mean spring and roll, which represent gold bars, symbolizing wealth. Mandarin oranges also feature, as a symbol of good luck. Long noodles represent longevity.
Traditionally, families spend New Year’s Eve preparing dumplings — representing the passing of the old and welcoming of the new — to be eaten at midnight. Whole fish, representing prosperity and chicken served with head and feet intact connoting unity are also served.
There are also some classic sweets. The tradition of eating rice cakes goes back thousands of years. It celebrated the beginning of the rice harvest in the spring. Turnip cake, an absolute must for the Cantonese, represents good luck. Sweet rice balls are also served and typically eaten during the 15th day of the celebration, known as the Yuanxiao festival. The round shape of the rice balls signifies a complete circle of harmony and unity within the family.
With all these traditional dishes, New Year celebrations are never dull and certainly ensure guests are always full.
This week recipe I have Kung Pao Chicken. From the Szechuan region, the dish is easy to make for a weeknight meal or for a special celebration.
Kung Pao Chicken
I use sweet soya sauce and lime juice instead of the sugar, soya sauce and rice wine vinegar that traditional recipes call for. Served with hot steamed rice, this dish is far more delicious than the one you might get at a takeaway. The recipe serves four to six.
Ingredients
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1.5 cm cubes; 2 tablespoons vegetable oil; 4 cloves of garlic, peeled and sliced thinly; 10 cm ginger, peeled and grated; 50 gr roasted cashew nuts; 10 long red dried chilies; 1 medium onion, peeled and chopped into 1.5 cm cubes; 2 small spring onions sliced thinly;1 small red and 1 small yellow capsicum (don’t use green), cut into 1 cm cubes.
Marinade mixture: 4 tablespoons sweet soya sauce; 2 tablespoons of lime juice; 2 tablespoons cornstarch (optional); salt to season.
Sauce: 2 tablespoons lime juice; 4 tablespoons sweet soya sauce; 2 tablespoons sesame oil; 1 teaspoon freshly ground Sichuan pepper; salt to season.
Directions:
1. Mix all the marinade ingredients and mix well. Add the cut chicken and mix well. Marinate for 10 minutes.
2. Prepare the sauce mixture. Add all the ingredients and mix well. Check the seasoning. Add more lime, sweet soya sauce or salt if necessary. Set aside.
3. Heat a wok or large frying pan until really hot. Add the vegetable oil and add dried chilies and stir-fry for 10 seconds until the chilies have just begun to blacken.
4. Add the chicken and stir-fry for around 2-3 minutes. Continue stirring.
5. Add the garlic and ginger then stir-fry for one minute and add half of the onion, spring onion and capsicums. Stir-fry for another minute and pour the sauce and cook for another 1-2 minutes. Check the seasoning.
6. Transfer the chicken mixture to a serving plate, sprinkle with spring onion and cashew nuts. Serve with warm rice.
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