Four weeks ago, we celebrated my sister-in-law (SIL) Ying’s birthday.
As usual, she picked CHINESE FONDUE as her birthday meal choice!
Chinese Fondue is the German way of referring to our Singapore-style Steamboat.
Steamboat (or Chinese Fondue) is a cantonese soup-style hot pot in which everyone communally cooks and eats simultaneously. The flavourful soup broth is brewed beforehand, and a spread of meat, vegetable, and other raw dishes are chopped/soaked/prepared and set up for buffet-style access during the meal.
Ying’s birthday comes around every summer, during which temperatures hit a whopping 40°C some years!! Because the hottest days of summer typically last no longer than two weeks per year, the norm is for establishments to not have air-conditioning.
You can imagine the sweltering experience when the entire family once headed to a restaurant with multiple fire pots contributing to the trapped hot air inside for Ying’s yearly steamboat feast! The Mann said it felt hotter inside that restaurant-sauna than the 40°C temperature outside!
I’m so glad I wasn’t living in Germany then..Even with the free food, I’d gladly pass on such a sticky eating experience. ;)
On Sunday morning, my FIL got up early to prepare two soup stocks: One chicken-based soup with lots of tofu fishcakes floating inside. . .
and one vegetarian broth for my mother-in-law (MIL) who does not eat meat, garlic, and onion for religious reasons.
He also made his trademark dipping condiments — an onion-filled soy sauce base and an enhanced version of store-bought chilli sauce.
Then it was time to prepare all the other food items.
He soaked black fungus.
Sliced up yams and lotus roots.
Washed various veggies. I made photos of the:-
Lady fingers,
Chinese cabbage,
my SIL’s favourite vegetable (I’m not sure what the english name is!!),
. . . and bean sprouts!
Tired of looking at veggies? Feast your eyes on The Mann's favourite shabu-shabu beef slices! =D
Grey prawns!
There were also Korean rice cakes — my favourite! When cooked through, they are chewy, tender delightful sticks of happiness! :)
My father-in-law (FIL) also prepared some tofu-based ingredients especially for his wifey!
Fried beancurd skin balls..these were not yummy at all to me :(
Beancurd skin. . . also not my favourite. . . I'm an egg-face, remember? ;)
Around 11:00, The Mann started to set up the electric hot plates. Meanwhile, I joined the family team of dumpling-making minions (these were made with a chicken-filling because Ying's husband is a muslim).
I found out something really cute!! The Mann had wrapped the hanging lights above the dining table with plastic bags to protect them from the steam and whatever splashes may occur. ;)
As each food item was rolled out, we carried them out and set them around the table. The whole table was filled!
Then it was time to CHOW!!
We threw in a bunch of prawns to make the soup base more flavourful. Then everyone started adding their favourite ingredients! The Mann and Ying started cooking shabu-shabu meat slices in the long wire 'spoons' as well.
Once items were cooked, we would transfer them into our bowls, which were already filled with dipping condiments.
Halfway through, we added a bunch of kimchi into the pot.
Time for kimchi steamboat!
Everyone was full to bursting, but there was still tons of leftover food. As is the norm, we will be eating steamboat using the leftover ingredients for another 2 meals after this.
This is my third #BeautifulSunday entry :)
The #BeautifulSunday contest is run by my fellow Singaporean steemian @ace108.
He's a really cool dude, and he's even funding the contest from his own pocket. So join the contest, or send his initiative a donation. Either way, it will go a long way into injecting more colour into this community each Sunday at the very least :))
You may click on the photos below to read my other #BeautifulSunday stories. :)
Darf ich dir auch auf Deutsch antworten, also verstehst du das gut? (:
Ich finde das Detail mit den Plastiktüten sehr amüsant :D
Das ist soooooo viel Essen, was ihr da zubereitet habt, damit würden wahrscheinlich über 20 Menschen satt werden. Es sieht aber furchtbar lecker aus und finde es eine wundervolle Tradition, die ihr da ausübt.
Liebe Grüße und einen schönen Sonntag (:
Natürlich darfst du @cobalus :)) Danke für die Nutzung einfacher Vokaben, damit ich die Sätze verstehen kann :)
hehe ich habe auch darüber gelacht ...
Das viele Essen ist normal jedes mal dass mein Schwiegervater kocht weil er Angst davor hat, dass Leute nicht genug essen haben.. Er macht immer so viel, und wir essen immer die gleiche Gerichte noch wieder..es ist ja eine tolle Tradition, aber manchmal ein bisschen chaotish ;)
Entschuldigung für meine tollpatschige Deutsch..bitte korrigier meine Grammatik-fehler, wenn du Lust hast :)
Nein ich möchte deine Fehler nicht korrigieren und finde es super, dass du mir so geantwortet hast (:
Deine arme Schwiegermutter muss dann ja jeden Tag sehr viel essen!
Schönen Abend noch und schreib weiterhin so fantastische Blog Posts (:
Ich bedanke mich bei dir für deine nette Worte vom Herz..aber wenn du unter meine Fehler nicht mehr leiden kannst, sag einfach was und wie..ich würde gerne auch besser weitergehen :))
Meine arme Schwiegermutter darf zur Zeit sehr sehr wenig Zucker essen wegen Gesundheitprobleme..weniger weißen Reis, Nudeln, Weißbrot, Kuchen, etc..
Liebe Gruße @cobalus, und einen schönen Tag wünsche ich dir noch :))
@Foodie.Warrior... Okay, it's still very early in the morning BUT Your post has my "mouth watering" for the food photographed in Your Post... haha
Sunday is almost always a Good Day and just wish there was a restaurant open right now that could serve some of the food here in this Post.
Thanks Again... Hope You're having a Good Weekend !!
Aww what a sincere compliment from the
heartbelly @sacred-agent!! =DDHave you eaten 'Chinese fondue' before? I hope that a restaurant opens up near you serving up awesome Chinese food so that you can share the experiences as well :)) You have a lovely, lovely Sunday today!! :))
Hi F.W. Have only had "Chinese fondue" once... but I did go to China Town in Los Angeles for Dim Sum many, many times. The main thing, the photographs looked so Good... I really started getting hungry and my mouth started to salivate... >> : ~ ))
Hope You're having a Good Weekend !!
Aww my mission has been accomplished!! Way to boost my confidence in my photo-taking abilities :)
Btw, so glad to hear that you've had dim sum many many times in LA and that you've at least tried 'Chinese fondue'.. :) Anddd..it's gonna be weekend soon again..have a lovely Thursday @sacred-agent! :)
It looks great! Wonderful post you did! Follow you!
Thanks for dropping by and leaving your footprint, @tanata! Have a lovely Sunday! :)
What a fantastic post. Now, that really is a celebration meal, I am envious. :)X
Hehe thanks for dropping by, dear @allaboutpastries :)) Go have a bowl of your homemade pasta! You'll feel better ;)
Lovely photography. I particularly enjoyed the hot evening story; and the covered light bulbs. What did they expect you to do? Have a food fight? Great post sweetie! :)X
Thanks for your sweet words and compliments, @get-baking! :) I'm glad you enjoyed the distraction story ;)
Well, we couldn't possibly fight during someone's birthday meal, could we ;) But I guess the food may have fought to be the first ones in the bday girl's mouth!! :))
This is one of the greatest feast that I have ever experienced in my life! Having everyone around the table and cooking the food like that, wow simply amazing!
I just love how The Mann wrapped the hanging lights! Hahaha! Great idea!
Cheers
@progressivechef
hehehe I also found that hilarious of him to do :)) The lights are new fixtures; I guess that's why he wanted to protect them :))
Have you never tried a Chinese-style steamboat feast before, @progressivechef??
Oh yes i've tried it several times before, infact we do have a good Chinese community in Mauritius and many restaurants too! And I've made some for some guests too when I was in the hotel industry!
One of the best experience ever!
I guess the Chinese are everywhere ;)) Goodie, you're no stranger to this then! I'm sure it was a pleasant break to have the guests cook for themselves for once ;))
Oh yes some free time for the chef! hahah! The Chinese are really everywhere! World invasion! Lol! But I really love Chinese guests, they are not difficult at all! Well I've never got any issue serving them food!
hahahha really? yeah, they seem to mostly like hot water or warm milk ;))
Yes that's true...Hot water/milk and they are happy! All the food just need to be steaming hot too! And that's it, you have very happy guests!
Haha not a fan of steamboat but the wantan thing looks good. #deepfryplease
hehe I know..you're not a soup man :))) the dumplings are one of my fav items as well :) deep fried would require some pork, shrimps, and water chestnuts :))
Lovely feast for #beautifulsunday.
Chinese fondue huh?
My American friend calls popiah Chinese burritos :-)
hurhur that has to be the smallest burrito ever then!!!
I was ??? when my husband kept talking about Chinese fondue when I first met him..hahaha..then I ate it, and it was just normal steamboat lol..
The sauce. It's the sauce. I figure peanut butter and some chilli sauce may not. Maybe?
hmm? don't we have peanut butter like sauce in SG too? they have it here as well :))
Yes, we do have at the more expensive place
Ahhh this looks incredible! I seriously want everything! Even the tofu skin balls! All of it! Resteemed!
Thanks for the resteem, @jaymorebeet! The tofu skin balls look much better than they taste..you've been warned ;))
I guess you're right - they look like little fritters! How bad can it be?!? I guess I'll trust you!
hehehe then again..what is one girl's meat might be another girl's poison :))
Hey egg-faced friend, just kidding haha :D
Lovely post!
That food looks so tasty, I would love to try cooking like that sometime. Is it a traditional way to cook in Singapore?
Also what does FIL and MIL mean? Sorry I'm so bad at abbreviations :D
LOL proud to be your most egg-obsessed friend around (do I get that prize, Dan?)..
I wouldn't go as far to say it's a traditional way to cook in SG (Singapore). t's more a Chinese-style of eating, I think. Having said that, Singaporean Chinese people typically 'eat steamboat' (as the locals term it) at least once a year during Chinese New Year or to celebrate a birthday, etc..friends may also plan a steamboat gathering just for the lol's..
Also what does FIL and MIL mean? Sorry I'm so bad at abbreviations :D
Oopsie..
FIL = father-in-law
MIL = mother-in-law
Thanks for notifying, Dan the Dane! :) I edited the text in my article so that it's clear for anyone who might have an abbreviation allergy ;))
I got a bellyRub and this post has received a 2.27 % upvote from @bellyrub thanks to: @zeartul.
Thanks bellyRub and @zeartul! Looks like you do have a good taste for all sorts of cuisines :))
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STOPAmazing post! All of those dishes looked delicious! I love Asian food. The only bad thing is that I'm hungry now! haha
Hehe thanks a lot, Asian food lover @ariane :) I hope you've got food on hand!! :))
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