Lim Bian Yam and Y3K Recipes Issue no.16

Raise Your Glasses
Toast To Spring
Raise The Lanterns
New Year’s Here

Y3K Recipes Issue No.16 (Jan - Feb 2004)

In the Chinese community, traditional customs of presenting gifts before the Lunar New Year to family members, close friends and associates have existed for a long time. Ours is a society who would present a whole range of auspicious items as gifts, all steeped in beliefs and symbolism. This can be considered doubly good to those who receive them as it convey good wishes for the year ahead. Waxed ducks, cured meats, Chinese sausages are all air-dried in the cold winds from China.

These are snapped up by consumers opposed to those that are machine-dried locally. But surprisingly, many homemakers have no knowledge of dealing with these delicacies apart from the normal norm of frying with simple ingredients or plain steaming them. Probably it’s difficult to be adventurous with cooking when you simply don’t have the know how.

Yearly, a group of Master Lim Bian Yam’s students play hosts to their culinary mentor by inviting him to Hong Kong for the festival celebrations. This travel couldn’t come as a more timely boost as chefs in the island are noted for dishing up fanfares of exquisite specialities using the waxed delicacies. After several eat-outs, Master Lim decided to have his own concoctions. Recipes were developed and tested in his cooking studio and later presented to us for print. This is probably the best gift from the master to his students and our loyal readers.

It was certainly generous of him to cook three Australian lobsters for the lobster noodle dish during the food review. Needless to say, every recipe indicated their tasty taste. Let tradition play on as we welcome a new year. May it brings you all wonderful tidings.