Feb 22, 2010

LO HEI


My 4th Lo Hei! (yes sir! i'm counting 4 in this sterile island state)


It is a Singapore dish that is traditionally served during Chinese New Year festivities. Families (in my case, officemates) gather together and toss up for a good fortune ahead. The higher you toss, the more luck you have.


The dish is basically a chop suey of achara-like ingredients. The non-chef in me couldn't identify the mix of shredded vegetables, sauces and other condiments. So, I consulted Mr. Wiki:

"The Singapore-originated Yusheng (Lo-hei) had fish served with daikon (white radish), carrots, red pepper (capsicum), turnips, red pickled ginger, sun-dried oranges, daun limau nipis (key lime leaves), Chinese parsley, chilli, jellyfish, chopped peanuts, toasted sesame seeds, Chinese shrimp crackers (or fried dried shrimp), five spice powder, and other ingredients, laced with a sauce using plum sauce, rice vinegar, kumquat paste and sesame oil, for a total of 27 ingredients. Originally, the dish used raw mackerel, although in deference to the popular wishes of customers, salmon was later offered as an alternative due to the growing popularity of Salmon." - from Wikipedia

Weird blend! You're like nibbling plastic strands. Pickle-like with some sweet after-taste. But with my fortune at stake, I tossed as high as I could.


Eating was a different matter. My Pinoy palate was just too picky.

2 comments:

Unknown said...

before you eat it, you toss it up pa? magkanat ang food, lol.

...nice man kaayo tan awon ang food, murag lami ang taste : )

Unknown said...

lahi sab sila og trip.

chopsuey nga atsara ang tilaw... i dont think i'll like it pero nindot tanawon ang ilang colors. i remember now eating at persian palate, my cousin's treat and they had all those weird stuff they've been serving us, naka igit gid ko sa mall. dili nako mubalik didto. bow.