EATDRINK: A Chiu Chow adventure

2009/11/07

KITTY KAYE

KITTY KAYE samples some authentic Chiu Chow cuisine and is awed by its elegant simplicity.

WHEN I travelled through China, I have to admit that not everything I ate was palatable. I love Chinese food, mind you! In fact, it was a mystery trying to decipher their local cuisine, which is influenced by the myriad of clans and provinces.

It came to a point, by the third week or so, that I’d depended on a default — pointing to someone else’s dish that looks edible in a restaurant.

A relatively new one to me, Chiu Chow cuisine.

Chiu Chow or Chaozhou is an area at the eastern coastal part of Guangdong province. Located so close to the sea, Chiu Chow is known for its seafood.

It has been said that the cuisine is the healthiest of all Chinese cuisines. After an afternoon of overindulging in them at the Pak Loh Chiu Chow restaurant at Feast Village of Starhill Gallery in Kuala Lumpur, I tend to agree.

From what I learnt, Chiu Chow dishes are usually either cooked slowly over low heat, by steaming, stewing, slow braising or simply pickled over time.

The backbone of Chiu Chow cuisine are dishes such as slow braised goose (no, not duck), cold crab, oyster omelette and the unique oyster rice porridge.

My conclusion of the cuisine is this, it has an elegant simplicity to its flavours.

While you may find, let’s say, oyster omelette on the street at much cheaper prices than at Pak Loh’s, the ingredients they use are superbly fresh and with very minimum flavour enhancers.

Remember, if all else fails, you can order it up at the restaurant. Dishes begin at RM16++ right up to RM328 for a goose large enough for 12 people!