From time to time I get cravings that are too specific, and sometimes too weird — such a mystery! (I can’t for the life of me understand 🤪)
People close to me knows that I’m a foodie and that my opinions/critiques on everything food is pretty credible, considering I didn’t have formal training whatsoever. I’ve learned from the best, you see! 🥰 Apart from learning from my Mom, I think the Filipino food culture and my being a food “adventurer” both played its part.
Chinese food is one of those cuisines that I crave, no matter how heavy the umami taste feels afterwards. I wouldn’t say that it’s one of my comfort foods though, but close enough. Anyhow, here are my go to Chinese dishes and the restaurants where I usually get them, as cravings hit!
Dimsum
You’re not a true blue Cebuano if you don’t know and appreciate Habour City Dimsum House and Dimsum Break restaurants. These are Cebu’s homegrown dimsum places. They offer a variety of dimsum menu that would satisfy each one’s likes and feels. My usuals here are steamed fried rice, stuffed shrimp or shrimp toast, and quail’s egg siomai. I’d sometimes get a bola-bola siopao for take out too.
Steamed fried rice, is a fried rice topped with a rich, thick sauce with pork cut in small cubes. The rice and the topping are both prepared separately, and then placed in a bowl to serve. Before eating, you have to mix them all together making sure that every grain of rice is evenly coated with the rich sauce. Pro tip: always ask for extra sauce on the side (you should not skip this! 🥰), as this allows you to add the sauce little by little to your desired consistency. Over the years they’ve expanded the variety of their steamed fried rice offering. They now have beef and spicy variants. I believe this is that one product of theirs that sets them apart from their competitors. Other dimsum places don’t offer this, and if they do, the taste and consistency of the sauce is just not the same.
Should you crave way past midnight or into the wee hours of the morning, fear not as there are certain Dimsum Break restaurants that are open 24/7 and they’re also available in grab food and foodpanda for deliveries.
Sweet & Sour Pork
Another Chinese food staple in my list is the sweet & sour pork. It is medium sized cube cut pork, coated with light breading and deep fried until golden brown and crispy. This dish also comes with vegetables like carrots, bell peppers, pineapple chunks or tidbits, and red onions that are fried until tender or cooked through. All of these are then combined in a made ahead sweet & sour sauce, such that every piece is evenly coated with the yummy sauce.
My go to places for this dish, is either Master Po or Majestic restaurants. Like Dimsum Break and Habour City, both restaurants are also homegrown. I like their versions/take on this dish especially the sauce as it has the right balance of sweet & sour. Others tend to be more on the sweet or sour side. Also, the pork cubes have little to no pork fat included which are really cooked well, but still juicy and tender. What I love with both restaurants is that they don’t skimp on these veggies making it one legit restaurant quality, delish and yummy dish!
Shanghai Rolls
These are seasoned ground pork, wrapped in spring roll or egg roll wrapper and fried until golden brown and crispy. These are usually served with a dipping sauce like sweet chili or ketchup or sweet & sour sauce.
This can be eaten alone or paired with Chinese noodles, fried rice, or fried bread. These rolls are about an inch or two in size, and usually each serving has about 3 to 4 pieces of rolls. This dish may be ordinary but it hits the spot, just right! ❤️
I’d get this dish from Majestic Restaurant. Their à la carte is good for sharing between 2 to 3 persons. It’s restaurant quality with no overpowering smell of spices and seasoning. Other restaurants have that annoying smell and after taste, sometimes lasting for hours. You’ll feel it in your burp! Yikes!
Fried Rice
My Chinese food experience is complete when I have these fried rice to pair with my viands. As I’m a Filipino, an Asian, rice is a staple. 😛 Having rice in a meal just has a different sense of fullness, especially for Chinese cuisine.
My go to fried rice in Majestic is their Majestic Fried Rice (left picture) while at Master Po, it’s their Bagoong Fried Rice (right picture). Both restaurants’ Yangchow Fried Rice are also good, by the way.
I like my rice when it is not soggy. This happens with it’s being cooked with a little too much water. The rice from these restaurants are cooked well which makes their fried rice the best in town! It’s not oily and are seasoned just right making it good to pair with anything on the menu.
The majestic fried rice is loaded with ham and Chinese sausage bits, fried in just the right amount of oil. I especially love the smokey smell and taste of this fried rice. The bagoong fried rice is made of ground pork and bagoong or shrimp paste with lots of crunchy garlic bits. Shrimp paste has a distinct smell, especially when uncooked. However, at Master Po, the smell is not overpowering (it’s just a hint) in the fried rice. 👍 Oh so very delicious!
And that’s about it. My not exhaustive (not even close) list as I know that there are still a lot of Chinese dishes out there and other restaurants to try. Just sharing with you all my top picks. Do let me know what other Chinese dishes I should try out. Who knows, I just might include that on my list.
SingleBakedMiss by KiaraC 