happy (belated) chinese new year
I really don’t cook as much Chinese food as I’d like to. That is going to change over the next week or so, as a result of my weekend shopping spree at Hong Kong Supermarket (on Elizabeth and Hester, in Manhattan). First up was a dish known as Buddha’s Delight (羅漢菜), so named because of its traditional consumption by vegetarian Buddhist monks. It is commonly eaten during the first day (or days, or weeks) of the new year, along with other vegetarian dishes. As my dad once casually explained to me, “the point is to begin a new year without ending a life… you know, like of the animals we eat.”
My version of Buddha’s Delight has cellophane noodles (aka bean threads or glass noodles), tofu skin, black mushrooms (I love the dried kind because they have more flavor, and you can use the soaking water for cooking), Chinese chives, bamboo shoots, garlic, and ginger (napa cabbage would’ve been nice too), simply seasoned with rice wine, soy sauce, and a tiny bit of sesame oil. More elaborate versions may include lily buds, lotus seeds, wood ear, and this really cool vegetable that looks like hair (and whose name is a near-homophone for “prosperity”).
新年快樂! (Happy New Year!)
3 years ago