#conpoy

[buffetlicious]

Was invited to my colleague’s Wedding Lunch at Conrad Centennial Singapore last Sunday. At the entrance a large stuffed teddy bear caught my attention as I proceeded up to the second floor to register my attendance. Checked which table number I am assigned to and dropped in the Ang Bao (红包) or red envelope into the collection box. A total of four tables (of 10s) were set aside for current and ex colleagues with many dressed to the nines for the occasion. After the cocktail reception outside the ballroom, we proceeded to our allocated table. As I was the first to be seated, I got to choose one facing the stage where all the activities will be happening.

In front of me is a Wedding Favour enclosed in a red and gold cardboard box. Inside are two squares of chocolate with one being orange flavour. Got a cup of Chinese tea, a glass of red wine and passionfruit drink from the wait staff.

When the time comes for the Luncheon to be served, I was wondering why they did not remove the bowl of flowers on the lazy susan which is the norm so the dishes can be placed there. Turned out the staffs just bypassed the wedding guests and brought the dishes straight to the serving station to be portioned into individual serving plates. Contradictory to the fact that the chefs spent much time on the presentation of the food; ended up the diners never even got a glimpse of it. I would love to see the medley of different appetizers arranged on the Happiness Platter but all we got was this miserable small plate of crispy shrimp ball, tea glazed smoked duck, chicken moneybag dumpling and marinated baby octopus all lumped together. Don’t they know, nowadays the camera eats first. Presentation aside, the items were actually pretty tasty.

The highlight of the lunch must be this Lobster Broth in Mini Pumpkin served in a small pumpkin bowl. The slightly starchy broth is choked full of chunky lobster meat, braised with fish maw, conpoy, bamboo pith and you get to dig out the soft and sweet pumpkin flesh.

[aestheticallypleasinganimeboys]

Conpoy - Food Fantasy

[big-anime-energy]

A new addition has been placed on my list of Favorite Characters That Are Aquatic Themed in case you couldn't tell lol

[panicinthestudio]

Stir-fried Sticky Rice Recipe (生炒糯米飯) with Papa Fung, December 23, 2022

An aromatic sticky fried rice loaded with Chinese sausage, dried shrimp, shiitake mushrooms, green onions and some cilantro. The sticky texture is what makes this rice dish stand out. A great crowd pleaser for pot lucks!

Stir-fried Sticky Rice Recipe  [生炒糯米飯食譜] 

This recipe makes 4 bowls of pan-fried sticky rice [製成四碗] 

Ingredients [食材] 

500 g glutinous rice [糯米] 

2 Chinese sausages [臘腸] 

5 shiitake mushrooms [冬菰] 

30 g dried shrimp [蝦米] 

60 g peanuts [花生] 

1 tsp lard [豬油] 

A few stalks of green onion [青蔥] 

1 stalk cilantro [芫茜] 

2 tbsp oyster sauce [蠔油] 

8 g sugar [糖] 

5 g salt [鹽] 

Some white pepper [胡椒粉] 

Some sesame oil [麻油] 

(250 ml mushroom/shrimp water) [浸冬菰和蝦米水] 

Directions [製作] 

Soak glutinous rice for 4 hours. Strain and set aside. [糯米浸四小時，瀝乾備用。] 

Wash shiitake mushrooms and dried shrimp. Soak until softened. Keep the mushroom and shrimp water for frying the rice later. [冬菰和蝦米先洗乾淨，再軟取出備用，留起水用作炒飯。] 

Dice all the ingredients, set aside. [將所有材料切碎備用。] 

Melt salt and sugar with hot water, mix until combined. Add in sesame oil, white pepper and oyster sauce, mix and set aside. [鹽和糖先用熱水攪溶，再混合蠔油，胡椒粉和麻油置一旁。] 

Roast some peanuts until fragrant, set aside to cool. [白鑊炒熟花生備用。] 

Heat up wok, melt lard, stir fry Chinese sausage until cooked, add in shrimp and cook, add in mushrooms, cook until fragrant. [熱鑊放豬油加入臘腸炒熟，再加蝦米炒香，再加冬菰炒至有香味。] 

Add in rice, continuously stir and add shrimp/mushroom water a little bit at a time and cook with the lid on to speed up the process. Once the shrimp/mushroom water has evaporated, repeat until the rice is fully cooked. [加入米要不停翻炒，同時加些少蝦米水及加蓋焗至水份收乾，重覆以上步驟至飯熟。] 

Once rice is cooked it’ll become sticky, now, mix in sauce that was prepared earlier. [當飯有黏性加入調味料炒勻。] 

Lastly, add in some dark soy sauce for some colour, and cilantro and green onions, and mix until combined. [最後加些少老抽調色和加芫茜和青蔥炒勻即可。] 

Place some cilantro and peanuts into the bowl, followed by the rice, flip bowl to reveal the dish and serve.  [放芫茜和花生入碗內，加上糯米飯，倒扣在碟上即食。]

***

The twelfth lunar month is called laap yut (臘月), the cold and dry weather being appropriate for drying and curing. Some recipes call for cured pork belly (laap yuk, 臘肉), cured belly to go with the (Southern) Chinese sausage (laap cheung, 臘腸) which are traditional season staples. Lard and sources of it were a year-round necessity for oil, fuel, flavouring, and caloric density but particularly important during lean months like the height of winter. Most of the ingredients for stir-fried sticky rice are dry or stable preserved goods that balance out the strong and rich pork and lard.

I made a batch Thursday for the winter solstice (Dongzhi, 冬至) using a different recipe. Like a lot of seasonal and festive foods the idea remains the same while the specifics change, and there may be something new for me to adopt from this version.

My mom used to use a rice cooker to steam the glutinous rice keeping it on the firm side, combining everything in the wok at the end. While soaking then stir-frying the rice from raw to cooked (as the name of the dish states) isn’t actually too bad adjusting for the size of wok or pan but it does take time and practice. I’ve taken to seasoning the soaked and drained rice by mixing it with a bit of oil and salt in a bowl while preparing everything else. The added oil from stir-frying seems to need a heavier hand with seasoning (like oyster sauce, added salt, or soy sauce) than with steaming the rice. 

After soaking, squeezing out most of the excess water, and dicing the mushrooms, she always marinated them with some oil, light soy sauce, and sugar. There was also soaked and shredded dried scallop (conpoy or gong yiu chyu, 乾貝 / 江瑤柱) in addition to the small, dried shrimp when we had some. 

One thing glossed over in the video is that the water can have sediment at the bottom; the initial washing leaves sand and grit that is released after rehydrating and should be discarded. This cold broth from soaking the dried ingredients adds to the savouriness of the rice along with the sausage and lard. The added oyster sauce in this and other recipes boosts the concentrated seafood accent. In the rice cooker/steamed rice version, the broth can be used to cook and soften the stir-fried sausage, mushrooms, and dried seafood, covering and reducing it fully before adding the rice. 

A quality dark soy sauce is often enough to colour and flavour the fried rice. The addition of white pepper and sesame oil to the sauce for the rice is new to me, though I imagine it cuts through the pungency of fat and the concentrated seafood and reducing the additional lard needed.

Peanuts, cilantro, and green onion are not essential, though they do add to the texture and freshness when the overall dish can be heavy. These are often garnishes added last as it is often reheated, softening the peanuts and the greens darken while losing flavour and crispness. Less and less restaurants bother with the peanuts at all: they become hard especially if fried or roasted and stale while others overcook the peanuts by boiling or with steam becoming bulk rather than texture. It’s easy to see why peanuts could be cut from an already long list of ingredients. One local dim sum has replaced them with what I’m certain is rendered pork rinds for a sturdier crunch. There’s probably an element of adapting it with more sensitivity towards peanut allergies, while at home we never had them as a staple. 

Another common addition to improve the overall dark colour is thinly-chopped omelette or a fine scramble. It was fashionable for a time at some restaurants to wrap it omurice-style or reheat portions with rehydrated lotus leaves to impart a different scent. Some recipes use a long grained glutinous rice or cut it with white rice to soften the chew but in the wrong proportion it compromises the structure and ability to keep or reheat.  There was a decade where places would just steam portions in the bowl upright and uncovered resulting in a soggy fried rice.  

Turning the rice out moulded with a bowl is solid, old-school presentation, it demonstrates how well the rice is made: sticky enough to hold a shape even when portioned; the thorough and even mix of ingredients, colour, and flavouring without overworking; and a careful stir-fry that is oiled enough to release. A good fried rice, sticky or otherwise, needs a shine without being greasy.

[thegarlicpressph]

A Feast Fit for Royalty: What’s New at Paradise Dynasty Greenbelt?

We recently visited Paradise Dynasty’s Greenbelt 5 branch and it’s the best decision we made all week!

Known for their bold take on Chinese cuisine, this restaurant has a reputation for combining tradition with innovation and they delivered in every way possible.

Let’s start with their Greenbelt exclusives, which you won’t find in any of their other branches.

The Black Pepper Beef was a standout for me. Tender, juicy beef coated in a savory black pepper sauce, it had just the right balance of spice and flavor to keep you reaching for more.

Then there’s the Spicy Szechuan Crispy Chicken, which is every spice lover’s dream! Crispy, fiery, and packed with those unmistakable Szechuan flavors.

For a sweeter contrast, the Stir-Fried Pork Rib in Honey Sauce was an absolute delight. The pork ribs were fall-off-the-bone tender, with a crispy coating that soaked up the sticky, sweet honey glaze beautifully.

Pair it with the La Mian noodles in Signature Pork Bone Soup, a rich, comforting bowl of hand-pulled noodles exclusive to Greenbelt when served with a Crispy Pork Chop, which was sooo tender and flavorful.

Of course, no visit to Paradise Dynasty is complete without their signature Xiao Long Bao. This iconic dish features eight different flavors of xiao long bao, each one bursting with its own unique twist. Each bite was like a tiny explosion of flavor in your mouth! If you’ve never tried flavored xiao long bao, this is where you start.

Other dishes that wowed us included the Lettuce Roll with Homemade Sesame Sauce, a simple yet refreshing, crunchy appetizer that’s perfect for kicking off the meal.

Then there was the Scrambled Egg White with Fish and Conpoy, a delicate dish that’s light yet packed with umami thanks to the dried scallops (conpoy).

One of my personal favorites was the Crispy-fried Crystal Prawns tossed with Salted Egg Yolk. This dish was the perfect marriage of creamy salted egg yolk and crunchy prawns. Paired with the Yang Zhou-Style Fried Rice, it made for a complete and satisfying combination.

We ended our meal with two unforgettable desserts. The Black Sesame Glutinous Rice Ball in Ginger Soup was warm, comforting, and spicy, with that deliciously nutty black sesame filling oozing out of the chewy rice balls.

And if you’re more into cool, fruity flavors, the Chilled Mango Pudding is a must-try. It’s smooth, creamy, and perfectly sweet! It’s a refreshing finale to an indulgent meal.

Big thanks to Paradise Dynasty for this royal dining experience. Whether you’re craving Chinese classics or innovative takes on your favorites, their Greenbelt 5 branch is a must-visit. Pro tip: don’t leave without trying their Xiao Long Bao — your taste buds will thank you!

So, ready for your royal feast? Let me know which dish you’re most excited to try!

Paradise Dynasty | Level 3, Greenbelt 5, Makati City

[40sandfabulousaf]

大家好! Besides yong tau foo, another healthy meal option for locals is lei cha (tea rice). Brown rice is commonly used in this dish, topped with choy sum (Chinese flowering cabbage), green beans, cabbage, tau kwa (firm tofu), chye poh (preserved turnip), peanuts and anchovies. It also comes with a green tea paste broth made from ground seeds, veggies and tea. I don't like basil and mint so I usually give the broth away. I don't like brown rice either except for congee but once all the toppings are mixed together with the rice, it's acceptable. MI, ML and CL introduced me to a lei cha stall and it was very tasty. The texture of the toppings was mostly crunchy, along with savoury notes from the anchovies and chye poh. YUM!

I thought of skipping news about the genocide in Gaza for this post but decided not to. There's too much suffering inflicted upon Palestinians. All the same, I'll need a short break to keep my spirits up, possibly for 1 or 2 weeks. I'll still be keeping abreast of the news and praying for an end to the war, but won't share articles for a short period of time. Maybe I'll post mukbangs or recipes, something more light-hearted and fun for abit before returning to the events in Gaza and the west bank.

I took leave on Friday so after my daily morning calisthenics, Pa and I treated ourselves to a buffet breakfast. First plate - cold soba, enoki mushrooms, seaweed and a tiny bit of soya sauce, smoked salmon, tofu with bakchoy and fish, steamed wong bak (Napa cabbage) with dried shrimp and conpoy, hashbrown and 2 eggs sunny side up. Next, more vegetables - mushrooms, wong bak, tofu with bakchoy and fish, topshell and cucumber salad, asparagus, braised chicken and siew mai. Third plate, fruit - watermelon, blueberries, dragonfruit, rock melon and delicious grapes. Finally, I shared waffles and ice cream with Pa. I was so stuffed, I went for a 15 minute walk/run at the park near my home later on to help with digestion; mostly brisk walking with about 5 minutes of running since I'm still new to running.

I introduced LL, my expat friend from China, to a place that serves 1 of the best meepok (flat yellow noodles) in Singapore. This isn't found at a hawker centre or hotel restaurant; it's a diner which specialises in siew lat (traditionally refers to roast pork and waxed duck, now commonly refers to roast meats). I ordered their char siew, green beans stirfried with garlic and har mai (dried shrimp), dong guai (angelica herb) roast duck and the star of the show, meepok. The char siew had a nice char and was lightly crispy on the outside and very tender on the inside. We adored it! Also loved their green beans which were fragrant and still retained a slight crunch. The duck was juicy with a robust herbal taste and that meepok, THAT MEEPOK! This is made in-house, not sourced from a supplier. It was slurpable, QQ and oh so smooooooth! This delighted our senses so much. Enjoy the video!

Well! It's the start of a brand new week and I'm feeling less exhausted after taking Friday off. There will be more to come as I clear my leave for the year and carry forward the number of leave days the company allows to 2025. Time really flies; we're approaching the end of the third quarter of 2024. My mini getaway with YL is also happening in 2 weeks. Can't wait! 下次见!

[grungust025]

どんぶりもの

[bellaphon]

Late supper- Steamed everything (Vietnamese sausage, dried scallops, anchovies, salted egg, tomato and rice) and a lovely Languedoc white from Asda. . . . #fatlesdrinks, #fatlescooks, #vietnamesefood, #chinesefood, #Vietnameseham, #chalua, #giolua, #saltedegg, #Vietnamesesausage, steameddinner, #conpoy, #steamedfood, #instawine, #wein, #vinho, #wine, #vino, #winepairing, #vindefrance, #Frenchwine, #vinfrancais, #Languedoc, #GrenacheBlanc, #Marsanne #Bourboulenc, #supermarketwine, #eeeeeats, #instafood, #londoneats, #londonfood, (at Notting Hill) https://www.instagram.com/p/BzJrdU5Hu0G/?igshid=h48tctrtdbtm

[blakeandaffairs]

Phew HOO BOY. Haven't been here in a while.

Compilation of some more Food Souls!!

[intercat-archived]

yes my food fantasy self insert is a food soul SHH my master attendant-sona just works better here. anyway

[freeflowersofmuseums]

Yandere Conpoy Headcannons

-When you first summoned him he thought you were simply too cute to be true. 

- At first, he was excited, having such a cute master attendant would be super fun! But he felt all that happiness die in his chest when he realized just how much food souls you already had and how busy you were on a normal day.

- He first tried to stay as close to you as possible and soon took a position as your full-time bodyguard. Not because you wanted him to, but because you simply couldn’t shake him off no matter how hard you tried to get him to fill another position. 

- And looking back maybe you should have tried a lot harder because what started out as simple infatuation grew into full-on one-sided lovesickness once he got closer to you.

- Wherever you’d attempt you get away from him even for a movement he’d always end up finding you somehow and it seriously creeped you out.

- His favorite thing to do was pretend he’s closer to you than all of your other food souls.

- Seems like to kind of guy who would pick you up and place you on his throne if he didn’t want you talking to other food souls or simply wanted attention.

- Wants so badly to just keep you and never let you talk to anyone ever again. But he knows this is impossible.

- However after a bit of convincing ( and subtle threats) he manages to get you to take a vacation to the dragon palace under the sea. 

- The palace is extremely beautiful and outmatches any castle you’ve sen before on land. With walls made of pure blue jade and a ceiling that sines and glimmers you almost never want to leave.

- While your in the palace Conpoy has all of his servants cater to you in every possible way, bit you notice how they never look you directly in the eye and only talk when absolutely necessary. 

- Conpoy is very much a possessive yandere so he made sure you only talked to him for the entirety of your visit.

- However when your visit was over and you were about to leave he begged you not to go, giving a cute pout and asking you to stay for only a few more days. What can he say! He just love hanging out with you one on one. 

- Even when that time was over and you were about to leave he does his normal routine of pouting and begging, but when you still continue to say no no matter what he does his cute pout drops and is replaced with the most serious expression you’ve ever seen him have. 

- “Huh? What do you mean your leaving. We still have so much to do master attendant…” 

- Next thing you know your vision feels blurry and everything goes black.

- Its from then on he keeps you in the dragon palace for as long as he can.

- You wake up in the most comfortable bed you've felt but your yanked out of your dreamlike state when you try to sit up and feel a cold chain made from pure gold around your ankle, chaining you to the bed.

- “Good morning darling! How did you sleep?”  Right beside you is Conpoy, looking up at you with love crazed eyes.

- Huh? Why are you crying? We can spend every day together now!”

[lucylovesfood]

Conpoy is the taste enhancer behind Chinese soup #conpoy #soup

[ff-ringo]

UR- Conpoy

"If I want to do it,then I will do it, regardless of the cost."

Birth Year: 19th Century

Height: 173 cm

Trait: Unpredictable

CN VA: Fengxiu

JPN VA: Murakami Satoru

[kubotatsuya]

封關前最後一訪。獨樹一格的糕渣前菜，真材實料的濃湯雙拼，煎半熟干貝沙拉跟無敵海景24盎司紐約牛排，這是最高級的料理交響曲。 #不能只有我知道 #燈光美氣氛佳 #1852綻 #newyorkstake #stakehouse #taipei #dinnerdate #conpoy (綻1852_牛排館) https://www.instagram.com/p/Bu33aLzgPi6uzjSmTyzbHuuOCmE06vnKTd_eJs0/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=1uk0xj76a98kz

[conpoy-moved]

ymkr -> conpoy

[40sandfabulousaf]

大家好! Pa had intended to buy me a birthday lunch at 1 of the top Chinese restaurants in the country. Covid, and the hyperinflation which resulted from global economies reopening at roughly about the same time, has turned me off travelling far away and dining at crowded spots. Instead, I requested to have xiao long bao (soup dumplings), stirfried egg whites with conpoy, men mian xian (braised longevity noodles) and red bean pancakes. He obliged and I was happy slurping up the broth from those delicious xiao long bao!

There was a full day of site visits for work and it was like a school excursion! Whilst I can't share videos and photos of the places I visited, they'd arranged for a catered lunch. Crispy wanton, battered fish, chicken, mixed vegetables, spring roll and fried rice - a tasty balanced meal that made me pretty happy. With a full belly, we continued with the back-to-back site visits. It was a hectic day and I was exhausted, but it was interesting and enjoyable.

I don't crave fastfood but when the craving for laksa hits, it's so intense, I dash to the nearest place which serves a decent version to get my fix. QQ thick bee hoon (vermicelli) submerged in fragrant spicy broth is topped with fish cake slices, see hum (cockles), tau pok (bean puff), crunchy bean sprouts and a dollop of sambal. This bowl of laksa cost $5 with added see hum. Toss in an iced local coffee and the total came up to $6.80, roughly about the same price as a Macdonald's meal here. Naturally, I gravitate towards our local favourite since I find it more delicious than fastfood!

A breakfast value meal at Macdonald's is priced at $6 - $9.60 in my country, whereas my hearty morning meal of noodles with bouncy fish cake, onion scrambled eggs and curry vegetables set me back just $3.70. A hot coffee is priced at 70 cents at my usual breakfast hangout, bringing the total to $4.40. High protein and fibre for a fraction of the price of a fastfood meal; why would I not opt for local fare? To me, fastfood meals are overpriced based on their nutritional value.

ASEAN is sending help to Gaza. Singapore has completed its first airdrop of food and critical supplies. Malaysia's NGO, KHOM, will be doing the same for food boxes. More importantly, they're not being hypocritical about it, unlike countries sending weapons to Israel that enable it to commit genocide and in the same breath, pretending to send aid to Palestinians. I mean, you can't sincerely want to save the very same people you're indirectly killing, right? 下次见!