Savouring Shunde

Shunde has long been widely regarded as the basis for exquisite Cantonese cuisine. While the cuisine of Guangzhou has been historically very minimalist in the use of flavorings, food from Shunde is celebrated for its liberal use of ingredients such as sun dried tangerine peel and dates, resulting in simple but powerful flavors. Many of the dishes appear as humble, home-style cooking, but the preparation techniques and careful balances of tastes and texture require experience and extensive culinary know-how, making Shunde a major hotspot in Cantonese culinary tradition.

Fresh from the River

Situated in the Pearl River Delta, Shunde cuisine springs from the easy access to a wide range of river water delicacies. Freshwater fish are prominent fixtures on many Shunde menus and play a central role in some of the region’s most famous dishes. Of the few Shunde restaurants in town, Siu Shun Village Cuisine offers one of the most impressive selections of freshwater produce. Their MegaBox outlet displays massive fish tanks out front to show off their offerings, which include everything from chub and mud carp, to freshwater prawns.

Just like saltwater fish, freshwater breeds can be prepared in many different ways, but one of the most popular and entertaining traditional Shunde methods of prepping whole fish is by steaming it whole in a concentrated broth at the table. This cooking method keeps the fish heated through and allows the flavors of the broth to gently seep into the dish. At Siu Shun, the broth is made from a mixed stock of chicken and fish and is flavored with scallions, pepper flakes, onions, and thin slices of ginger to balance out any fishy taste. The result is a richly flavored fish and a fortifying broth. Various varieties are suitable for steaming with this method but Siu Shun’s chefs suggest the pearl gourami and grouper (both market price) for their soft and sweet flesh and minimal bones.

Copper Cooking

Another classic cooking method is baking in shallow copper pans. According to Siu Shun’s manager, Leung Ping-nam, the copper pans provide excellent insulating properties, which are useful for cooking ingredients in an even and controlled manner. In one of the restaurant’s signature baked chicken in copper casserole ($98 for half; $188 for whole), uniform chunks of free-range chicken meat and sliced scallions are covered with aluminum foil and cooked in a copper pan for several minutes until succulent. This simple dish exemplifies the importance of balance in Shunde cuisine—the baking method draws out most of the chicken fat while the aluminum covering and short cooking time ensures that the meat still remains moist and tender. The dish is brought up a further notch with the addition of red date purée prior to baking. The purée is the soul of the dish—releasing a tantalizing aroma when the foil covering it is cut open at the table, and adding the signature tinge of sweetness to the chicken meat.

Visiting Chen’s Village

Paying homage to the famed cuisine of this Guangdong region, Miramar Group’s Cantonese restaurant, Tsui Hang Village, have launched their third annual Shunde-themed à la carte and set menu, available throughout the month of June. For the special menu, chef Sin and his team journeyed to Shunde to learn the tricks of the trade from the region’s native chefs, and the result is a menu of traditional Shunde elements combined with contemporary twists and top-notch ingredients. One example off the menu is stir-fried rice noodles ($108). Keeping with Shunde custom, Tsui Hang Village uses Chencun fen (literally “Chen village noodles”)—steamed rice sheet noodles from the Chencun town of Shunde, prized for their wafer thinness and chewy texture. While Chencun noodles are usually regarded as a humble, simple ingredient, chef Sin and his team give the dish a luxury edge by stir-frying the noodles with fresh, plump shrimp.

Got Milk?

The region is well known for its dairy-based dishes. Buffalo milk (a particularly famous product of Shunde’s Daliang sub-district) is often used alongside regular fresh cow’s milk. One of the most famous traditional dishes in Shunde’s culinary repertoire is sautéed fresh milk. Traditionally, buffalo milk is most often used but Siu Shun also offers a popular and healthier rendition made from fresh soy milk ($78). The milk becomes solid when mixed with egg whites and then sautéed, the snow-white mixture remains slippery smooth and soft, but is firm enough to be picked up and eaten with chopsticks. The mound of milk is then laid on a bed of deep-fried vermicelli noodles and spiked with fresh shrimp and conpoy, which add a savory bite and body to the dish.
On top of the savories, dairy desserts are also a must on any Shunde menu. For their month-long promotion, the experienced chefs at Tsui Hang Village are offering the region’s trademark sweetened milk pudding—a creamy, custardy concoction, which uses ginger juice to coagulate liquid milk. And to add a touch of indulgence, the kitchen team tops the milk pudding off with a generous dollop of bird’s nest ($78).

Homestyle Cookin’

One great achievement of Shunde cuisine is that its fame is largely based on the exceptional quality of its home-style dishes. Seemingly rough and basic stir-fries and small dishes make up a vast majority of the region’s signature culinary offerings, from deep-fried Daliang-style “chicken rolls,” which, ironically enough, are not made with chicken meat (Tsui Hang Village’s promo menu offers glammed-up versions filled with Japanese pork loin and goose liver for $148), to golden-brown deep-fried fish beancurd. Homey dishes made with simple, cheap ingredients stuffed with freshly pounded mud carp paste are an especially common feature on Shunde menus. At Siu Shun, diners can sample a range in the combination platter, which includes pan-fried carp-stuffed lotus root, green peppers, and deep-fried carp fishballs ($78).

Where to find Shunde cuisine:

Siu Shun Village Cuisine
Shop 6, 7/F, MegaBox, 38 Wang Chiu Rd., Kowloon Bay, 2798-9738; 9/F, Causeway Bay Plaza 2, 463-483 Lockhart Rd., Causeway Bay, 2572-6938.

Tsui Hang Village Restaurant
2/F, New World Centre, 16-18 Queen’s Rd. Central, Central, 2524-2012; G/F, Miramar Shopping Centre, 132 Nathan Rd., Tsim Sha Tsui, 2376-2882.

*Tsui Hang Village Restaurant’s Shunde menu is available until June 30, 2010.