黑社会

Many races can boast of the survival gene, the Chinese are top notch at this, considering how we've been able to penetrate every border and in most cases, survive. But the Chinese can also boast of another survivability trait - that is, the ability to render almost every root, plant, and creature, potable. So it is with no wonder that salted eggs - yes, chicken/duck/quail eggs steeped in brine till its white and yellow innards shrivel - were invented by the Chinese eons ago, and till today are still savoured with a helping of porridge. More often that not, the salted eggyolk, which has even found its way into mooncakes and other expensive pastries, is treasured and the white component discarded. And today at 黑社会,
I had the misfortune of finding that the salted eggyolk had also made its way into 泡饭 (which is not that much of a loss considering how I have never been too keen on porridge):

But alas, the salted eggyolk intruded upon the otherwise lovely 流沙包. That dish was certainly the winner. It was served in dimsum boxes:

Orange-hued buns steamed over a slow flame, encasing a golden liquid centre of custard and...salted eggyolk...one had to eat it ala 小笼包 fashion, peeling off the top and dipping it into the molten centre before swallowing the remainder whole.

I had the privilege of enjoying many other scrumptious dishes, but the one that really stood out from the crowd was the abalone tart.

Sarah! I hope this reaches you before you open the can of abalone. Unless, you decide to brave the barbaric Chinese style of chugging this edit: bivalve out of the can, here is another solution! Morsels of abalone steeped in herbal sauce, places upon some diced vegetables in a pastry case. Brilliant.

And now, Auden beckons. I might upload the whole album of photographs without a narrative in a seperate post. Alternatively, there is a high chance of me returning to this place, so I might do a compare and contrast exercise should I order the same dishes again.

Till then.