Ditch the Christmas ham this Yuletide and try your hand at these holiday recipes created by some of Hong Kong’s most creative Chinese chefs
Christmas is often a time to fall back on traditions—putting up the Christmas tree, hanging up the stockings, and preparing a turkey or Christmas ham for your annual Yuletide bash. But why not mix things up a little bit this year with some centrepiece dishes featuring a bit of local flavour?
Try your hand at these holiday recipes (plus a cocktail!) created by some of Hong Kong’s most creative Chinese chefs. From a drunken turkey roulade to a beggar’s chicken that’ll have millionaires salivating, these dishes are designed to be the focal point of any Christmas dinner.
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Grand Majestic Sichuan
Recipe by chef Theign Phan
“When I think of Christmas, there’s always a whole roast—be it lamb or beef—so I thought of adding a Sichuan twist with a special spice rub. Lamb can be quite gamey and fatty, so I decided on a side of cucumber and coriander salad. The dressing [is inspired by] the pickled chilli used in Sichuan cooking: the flavour profile is slightly spicy and tart, which helps to cut through the fat.”
Sichuan-spiced rack of lamb with pickled chilli cucumber and coriander salad (Serves 4)
Ingredients
- 1 Frenched rack of lamb (roughly 1kg, approx. 8 ribs)
- ¼ cup Sichuan spice cure
- Sichuan peppercorn oil or vegetable oil
- 1 medium cucumber
- 1 bunch coriander
- 2 tbsp pickled chilli dressing
Sichuan spice cure
- 1 tbsp chicken powder
- 4 tbsp salt
- 2 tbsp sugar
- 1 tbsp Sichuan chilli powder
- 1½ tsp Sichuan chilli flakes
- 1½ tsp Sichuan red peppercorns
- 3 tsp black peppercorns
Pickled chilli dressing
- 4 shallots
- 4 cloves of garlic
- 2 tbsp Sichuan pickled green chillies
- 2 tbsp Chinese black vinegar
- 2 tsp sugar
- 1 tsp salt
- 3 ½ tbsp vegetable oil
- 3 ½ tbsp chilli oil
Method
1. Make the Sichuan spice cure: Crush the Sichuan red peppercorns and black peppercorns, then mix together in a bowl with the remaining cure ingredients.
2. Make the pickled chilli dressing: Finely chop the shallots, garlic and pickled chillies, then mix together in a bowl with the remaining dressing ingredients.
3. Rub the spice cure all over the rack of lamb—be generous. Transfer to the fridge and leave to dry cure for at least 6 hours.
4. Preheat the oven to 220°C/200°C fan. Remove the lamb from the fridge 1 hour before cooking. 5. Place the lamb on a roasting tray with the fat cap facing up and rub Sichuan peppercorn oil (or vegetable oil) generously all over.6. Roast the lamb for 20 minutes for rare or 23 minutes for medium rare (internal temperatures of 51°C and 57°C, respectively, measured using a meat thermometer).
7. Meanwhile, make the salad: Shave the cucumber into thin strips, then toss with coriander and 2 tbsp of dressing.
8. Once the lamb has reached your desired doneness, remove from the oven, cover with foil and rest for at least 10 minutes.
9. Slice the lamb into chops and serve with the salad.
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