Basin Of Treasures
Pen cai, the hanyu pinyin name translates to “basin of food”, is also called poon choy in Cantonese, is a pot of various meats, braised dried seafood and stewed vegetables all stacked in layers, with a tasty oyster-sauce gravy ladled over them just before serving.
The dish supposedly came about in China when the Song emperor was fleeing from Mongol invaders and arrived at a village in the Guangdong area. To serve him and his army, the local folk collected the best food from each household. There wasn’t a bowl big enough to hold the food, so they put everything into basins, and pen cai was created.
Shark’s fin, sea cucumbers, Japanese flower mushrooms, fish maw, dried scallops, abalone, prawns, dried oysters, roast duck and poached chicken. And pig tendon, sea moss etc, etc……………………….Yummy, yummy! But the price may burn a hole in your pocket hor…………
