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Lai Ching Yuen Chinese Restaurant at Grand Millennium Kuala Lumpur is the place to be for a lovely Chinese New Year dinner.
Lai Ching Yuen ticks all the right boxes when it comes to pleasing the most discerning Chinese food connoisseurs. Although it’s known for its Cantonese food selection, the chefs here also bring subtle Szechuan and regional Chinese influences to the table.
This Chinese New Year, the restaurant has put together a special menu to celebrate this season of red packets, mandarin oranges and family gatherings. With 9 courses in the lineup, Lunar New Year staples are given fresh touches while keeping in mind the significance of the ingredients.
Yee Sang with soft shell crab
Although Yee Sang is normally served with raw salmon or abalone, Lai Ching Yuen kicks it up a notch with the addition of soft shell crab. This bold yet, interesting combination brings about a fresh change as compared to the usual run-of-the-mill Yee Sang dishes. What makes this popular appetiser stand out is the sweet and delectable plum sauce blending surprisingly well with the soft shell crab, giving it an overall sweet and savoury taste.
Steamed seafood dumpling with scallop
The texture of the seafood dumpling is soft and chewy, yet still firm enough to hold the succulent scallop within. Topped off with salmon egg roe, the entire dumpling is a beautiful play of flavours and textures, perfect for a typical Chinese New Year dinner.
Seafood tart with fresh fruits & almonds
The seafood tart with fresh fruit and almond flakes, topped with mayonnaise is simply delightful to the palate. The pairing between the seafood and fresh fruits is refreshing with a nice crunch courtesy of the almond flakes.
Double-boiled dried scallop soup
Comfort food at its best, the double-boiled dried scallop soup comes with Chinese cabbage and ten head mini abalone. The soup is savoury and heartwarming, an ideal interlude in this 9 course dinner.
Wok-fried prawns with salted egg-yolk
The first main dishes of the course, the wok-fried prawns with salted egg-yolk are paired with deep-fried enoki mushrooms for that added savoury crunch. The prawns are perfectly cooked as the shell can be peeled easily with minimal effort. What makes this dish addictive is the deep-fried enoki mushrooms in salted egg-yolk batter, which makes it the perfect snack to have once the prawns are all polished off while waiting for the next dish.
Cantonese-style roasted crispy duck
Prepared in a typical Cantonese style, the roast duck comes with a crispy skin and tender, juicy meat. With bits of fats still intact, all the juices are retained in the meat to give it that extra surge of flavour. Although roast ducks are typically paired with a sweet sauce, eating the duck on its own will taste just as delicious.
Braised crab meat with broccoli
A slightly healthier alternative after a smorgasbord of meat and seafood, the braised crab meat with broccoli is light and flavourful, allowing you to taste the rich and creamy texture of the crab while having the crunch of the broccoli. Simple and delightful, the braised crab meat is prepared beautifully with a spectrum of colours, making it worthy for the camera.
Chinese wax meat rice
Served in a claypot, this dish traditionally signifies the end of the main course. Fun fact: rice is usually served last as it is generally seen as a poor man’s meal. If one were to serve rice at the start of the dinner, it would indicate that your host is less generous. The fragrance of the rice paired with Chinese sausages (lap cheong) is tantalising as an eruption of new flavours emerges with each bite.
Double-boiled sweetened white fungus
The double-boiled sweetened white fungus served with longan and glutinous rice balls were paired with deep-fried ‘Nian Gao’ to end the meal on a high note. This combination is a good blend of something light and sweet. The longans were fresh while the glutinous rice ball was stuffed with red bean, which blended very nicely with the white fungus soup.
For more reunion dinner dining ideas, how about authentic Teochew food at Pak Loh Chiu Chow.
