THIS Chinese New Year, why not toss for prosperity high up in the hills at Resorts World Genting, as the season’s ubiquitous plate of Yee Sang makes a comeback on every celebratory dining table.
Quality time shared with family and friends over a classic Chinese meal should undoubtedly be paired with equally solid food, like offerings from Genting Palace located on the second floor of Genting Grand hotel.
In a recent food review of its festive menu that will satisfy concerning palates, executive Chinese Chef at Genting Palace Genting Grand Yap Sak Choong brought his Cantonese-cuisine chops in several dishes on show that day.
With over 20 years of experience, the veteran chef’s take on the typical soy sauce chicken is elevated using his “secret blend” of the sauce, and the use of free-range chickens left to roam the fresh mountains of Titi - or Titi Kong, as the chef calls it- in Jelebu, Negeri Sembilan.
But, of course, a Lunar New Year spread isn’t complete without the addition of the auspicious Chinese salad that is Yee Sang - and dishes with extravagant names – to start the meal.
For RM 1,388 nett (per table of 10), the nine-dish new year meal starts you off with the Lucky Salmon Yee Sang.
The juicy burst from the pomelo, zing from the pickled vegetables, plus rich raw salmon and, crispy crackers, makes this house-made yee sang a familiar and fresh appetizer that you can take comfort in enjoying.
On the same menu is the traditional soy-marinated, free-range chicken. The enthusiastic chef who joined the table for a friendly chit-chat said that while sourcing for ingredients, came across a farm for mountain-roaming chickens in Titi.
From the refreshing air to the poultry’s green living space, and even feed made from grass-type hay - the same ones apparently fed to horses - Chef Yap was initially sceptical of the claims.
“Sure or not? [Free-range chickens] in the mountains? I had to make sure, and see it for myself,” according to the chef who then paid a visit to the place, confirming what he had read.
What you get in the resulting soy-marinated dish is a meatier yet succulent bite that is not at all mushy or tough. Coupled with the lovely dark hue on the skin from the salty condiment, the delicious taste of soy sauce penetrating the meat means the chef has certainly done justice to the bird.
Expect other dishes on this menu like braised baby abalone, arrowroot with sea moss and dried oysters with garden greens, and fried rice with stewed waxed meat and sausages.
Dried seafood lends a natural sweetness and depth of flavour to the double-boiled fungus, dried scallops with deer root and fresh Chinese yam pottage that comes in its own individual serving bowl, kept warm with a tea-light candle burning underneath.
At first glance, the yam in this soup course of the RM1,888 nett menu for a table of 10, looks like the common white radish, which is why the slight potato-like texture, with a milder taste - save for flavours absorbed from the broth - comes as a pleasant surprise.
This menu starts off with a prosperous Japanese tuna yee sang, and dessert includes a Homemade almond cream with lily bulbs and lotus seeds dish.
There is also a menu fit for a smaller table of six, priced at RM888 for eight courses. If you love munching on crispy prawn heads, you will find the stir-fried golden sea prawns in oats with salted egg and butter satisfying for both its execution and flavour.
Genting Palace Chinese New Year set menus are available from Jan 4 to Feb 19 for lunch and dinner, starting at RM588 (four pax), plus a limited a la carte menu.
Pre-Chinese New Year or Sau Kong set menus are also available from Jan 2 to 31 (lunch and dinner) at RM1,388 and RM1,888.
For more information visit www.rwgenting.com or call 03 - 6101 1118.
