Words of advice

Executive chefs Lo Kam-wai and Chan Wing-yuen, from Ye Shanghai Hong Kong and Ye Shanghai Kowloon, offer this advice for a successful home-cooked and Chinese Valentine's menu:

Plan menu and prepare ingredients in advance

Practice once before the actual day

Choose recipes which you can manage. Don't be too aggressive in choosing complicated recipes

The easiest Chinese dish is steamed fish. It is considered a classic and elegant dish, and is always one of the courses in any Chinese banquet menu as it symbolises good fortune, luck, money and love in excess.

All it requires is to wash and clean the fish, add sliced ginger, spring onion julienne, Chinese soy and cooking oil and steam for eight to 10 minutes.