‘LUTONG MACAU’ A taste of Macanese delights

:: Welcome to Manila Bulletin Online :: ‘LUTONG MACAU’ A taste of Macanese delights By LAI SUAREZ–REYES When a Macanese invites you for lunch, don’t show up at 12 noon... that’s too early! Lunchtime in Macau starts at 1 p.m., and surprisingly this was observed during the media launch of the “Macau Food Festival” at Edsa Shangri-La Hotel. Well, the Macau Government Tourist Office (MGTO) Philippines had good reasons to keep their guests in waiting. For one, the Macanese culinary delights (which taste so good) were whipped up fresh by chefs Chon Kin Kei, Wong Man Su and David Wong of the Macau Institute of Tourism Studies. "These culinary geniuses are in Manila to give Filipinos a ‘taste’ of Macau," said Narz Lim, MGTO Phils. general manager, while digging into chef David’s salad with pig’s ear and coriander. This dish is of Portuguese origin and very popular in Macau. "The dressing is made of fresh lemons marinated in salt for over a month (then washed off and finely chopped) with extra virgin olive oil," explained chef David. There are three distinct cuisines in the former Portuguese colony — Chinese, Macanese and Portuguese. The Chinese cuisine is pretty much as we know it although it tends to be spicy, mostly likely influenced by flavors and spices common to Portuguese dishes. Macau’s cuisine is heavily influenced by Portugal, having been its colony for many centuries before it became a Special Autonomous Region in 1999 of the People’s Republic of China. According to chef David, a signature Macanese dish is the Caldo Verde. The thick green broth, which is made of pureed potatoes and kale, gets its distinct flavor from the Portuguese chorizo. "This soup is served in practically all restaurants in Macau," noted chef David. Another popular appetizer is the deep–fried bacalhau balls... salted codfish with potatoes, corriander, and other spices. "We brought in pints of Portuguese chorizo and 50 kilos of Bacalhau from Macau especially for this food festival," he relates. Main course is the flavorful African Chicken. This dish betrays its inspiration, lavished with plenty of herbs and spices from Mozambique and Angola. A fresh spring chicken is marinated in coconut juice, herbs and spices and grilled to perfection. This dish is best relished with Portuguese wines. "The famous wines of Portugal, widely found and enjoyed in Macau, will be served during the Macau Food Festival," says Thomas Naegeli, F&B director of Edsa Shangri-La Hotel. Portuguese egg tartlets capped our meal. The small, round flaky pastry tart filled with a sweet egg cream is simply irresistible. You too can have a taste of Macau as Edsa Shangri-La Hotel lays out an array of superb culinary specialties for lunch and dinner for the "Macau Food Festival" on Sept. 2 to 8, at the Garden Cafe. The celebration carries on to the atrium at the Shangri-La Plaza, Sept. 24, where a Macau Roadshow unfolds, to afford visitors a closer look at the sights, sounds and tastes of Macau. There will be film showings, performances of the 24-member Macau Dance Troupe, artisans demonstrating various arts and crafts, and free samplings of Macanese delicacies (recipes below) and wines. BAKED CRAB MEAT IN SHELL Ingredients: 1.2kg crab meat 350g onion 4 pcs sliced ham 420g mushroom 40g red pimentos 25g butter 700ml Bechamel sauce 4 pcs egg cheese bread crumb salt and pepper to taste Procedure: Separate crab meat from shell. Clean the crab meat and boil together with ginger, onion, bay leaf and lemon. Coarsely chop onion, garlic, ham, mushroom and red pimentos. Sautee the chopped veggies and then add crab meat to fry, put in salt, pepper and cheese, stir until cheese dissolve. Pour in Bechamel sauce to mix. Portion the mixture onto a crab shell, brush with egg wash and sprinkle with bread crumb and cheese. Put in the oven and bake until golden brown.