Messy festive fun
Days on end of candy, pineapple tarts, fireworks, festivals and red packets – Chinese New Year might rival the advent of the fat man in the red suit as the most beloved season in the calendar! But there is a way to remind your kids of the true meaning of Gong Xi Fa Cai without losing anything on the fun front: the answer is Yu Sheng!
What it is
The prosperity toss, otherwise known as Lo-Hei (with the emphasis on high if you want to increase your chances of good fortune), is salad making with lots of chefs and lots of mess. It never fails to put a smile on the dial of even the most reserved adult, so it’s a sure thing for kids. Under the auspices of a gentile food fight, young and old can unite as one on the 7th day of Chinese New Year and share some goodwill.
What you need
Mess aside, this is a really healthy meal and a very easy way to make dinner! Consisting of shredded vegetables (carrots, white radish, capsicum), strips of raw salmon, spices (five spice), a sauce (plum, sesame oil, rice wine vinegar) and nuts (peanuts, sesame seeds), preparation is very simple and requires sourcing easy to find ingredients. If you don’t want to grocery shop you can pick up a set from a Chinese restaurant, or most of what you need can be purchased online from RedMart and delivered to your door – they now stock chilled items and fresh produce!
How to do it
Before wielding chopsticks, the ingredients first need to be added to a plate in a certain order as a list of auspicious greetings are said. Actually, back up a bit, and lay out a big plastic mat on the floor and one of those disposable table cloths for the surface you’re doing this on. Your rug/helper/sanity will thank you for it! When all ingredients have been added, it’s time to mix it up, up, up! Now it’s time to feast on an almost wholly Singaporean tradition.
Some alternatives
Ok, we know that having that many people in the small confines of your house or apartment, let alone all throwing food simultaneously, could be a recipe for disaster rather than a salad, so if you really can’t face doing this at home, check out these restaurants that will host the whole family. We particularly like Cocotte’s modern spin on Lo Hei using duck – though purists may not agree.
Main image: Cocotte