Hakka cuisine
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| Hakka cuisine | ||
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| Chinese: | 客家菜 | |
| Mandarin | ||
| Hanyu Pinyin: | kèjiā cài | |
| Cantonese | ||
| Jyutping: | haak8 gaa1 coi3 | |
| Hakka | romanization: | [hag2 ga11 coi55] |
Hakka cuisine is the cooking style of the Hakka, and originally came from southeastern China (Guangdong and Fujian).
Hakka people are migratory tribes of ethnic Han people originated from central China. Their ancestors exiled themselves from foreign rulers such as the Mongols during the Yuan Dynasty. Due to their late migration to the southern areas of China, they found that all of the best land had been settled long before. The Hakkas then were forced to settle in the sparsely settled hill country.
As a result, fresh produce was at a premium, forcing the Hakkas to heavily utilize dried and preserved ingredients, such as various kinds of fermented tofu and much use of onion. Due to the hill country being far inland seafood is a rarity. Pork is by far the most favored meat of the Hakkas, with belly bacon being the preferred cut as it has alternating layers of fat and lean meat, providing an excellent texture.
[edit] Famous dishes
Famous dishes in Hakka restaurants in Hong Kong include:
- Salt baked chicken (東江鹽焗雞) - originally baked inside a heap of hot salt, but today many restaurants simply cook in brine, or cover it with a salty mixture before steaming it or baking it in an oven.
- Duck stuffed with rice (糯米鴨) - a whole duck is de-boned while maintaining the shape of the bird, the cavities being filled with seasoned sticky rice.
- Beef ball soup - very simple clear broth with lettuce and beef balls.
- Fried pork with fermented tofu: this is a popular Chinese New Year offering which involves two stages of cooking. As previously mentioned, fresh food was at a premium in Hakka areas, so the marinated pork was deep fried to remove the moisture in order to preserve it. When a meal of pork was desired, the fried pork was then stewed with water and wood's ear fungus. It is a Hakka equivalent to canned soup.
- Ngiong Tew Foo (釀豆腐, stuffed tofu cube or 東江釀豆腐煲): one of the more popular foods that originated from deep Hakka roots, it consists of tofu cubes heaped with minced meat (usually pork) and herbs, then fried till golden brown, or sometimes braised. Variations include usage of various oddments including eggplants, shiitake mushrooms, and bitter melon stuffed with the same meat paste. Traditionally, Yong tao foo is served in a clear yellow bean stew along with the bitter melon and shiitake variants. Modern variations that are more commonly seen sold in foodstalls are made by stuffing the tofu with solely fish paste. Usage of oddments to replace the tofu are more noticeable in this version, ranging from fried fish maw slices and okra to chili peppers.
- Kiu nyuk (扣肉, sliced pork with preserved mustard greens): thick slices of pork belly, with a layer of preserved mustard greens between each slice, are cooked and served in a dark sauce made up of soy sauce and sugar. A variation of the recipe on Wikibooks Cookbook is available here.
- Lei cha or Pounded Tea (擂茶): A consortment of tea leaves (usually green tea), peanuts, mint leaves, sesame seeds, mung beans and other herbs, which are pounded or ground into a fine powder which is mixed as a drink, or as a dietary brew to be taken with rice and other vegetarian side dishes such as greens, tofu, and pickled radish.
- Poon Choi (盆菜): A variety of ingredients served in a basin.
Hakka food also includes takes on other traditional Chinese dishes, just as other Chinese ethnic groups do.
