If the reunion dinners of extended family members and friends aren’t quite over, and you’re a little bored of the templated set of dishes you’ve been having since Day 1, here’s an all-in-one flavor solver that’ll reignite your Lunar New Year: grilling.
Not only does grilling add smoky deliciousness to your dish, it’s a wonderful way to avoid the uncomfortable personal questions that tend to be asked during these occassions. Just lift the lid—but not too many times—and switch the topic to what goes into the making of the Fa Cai Smoked Lemongrass Chicken you’re roasting.
Here are a few more dishes that will fire up the mingling and sharing at your own party.
Salt-ifaction guaranteed
Don’t have anything exciting in the pantry in terms of ingredients? You won’t need them to make this always welcomed classic—Salt Baked Herbal Chicken. With basic garlic, shallots and a lot of salt, you can bake a dish that’ll work as part of a grand feast or a modest midnight snack for those who stayed for your late night mahjong game.
A little balance
Everyone knows that, all meat and no greens makes for an unhealthy diet. If you’re trying to encourage your guests to adopt a plant-based diet that won’t put them off visiting you forever, you’ll want to put a luscious plate of this Grilled Asparagus & Brocolli in Abalone Sauce on the table—completely meatless, but you won’t even miss it.
Grains of comfort
After a full day of visiting, snacking on nuts and biscuits and cakes, sometimes all anyone wants is a comforting bowl of savory Rice with Chinese Wax Meat, served steaming hot in a dutch oven straight from the grill with a handful of fresh cilatro.
Not only will it be a surprise to your guests (“I didn’t know you can bake rice with a grill!”), it’s easy and quick to make—only 35 minutes required under the lid for guests who show up last minute, hungry for something more substantial.
No plates needed
It’s late at night when the last guest goes out your door, and you can’t wait to hop into the shower and settle down for some ‘you’ time. To ensure that you get to do exactly that (and as soon as possible), reduce the amount of cleanup you have to do with just a simple tool—bamboo skewers. Portable and fun to eat, you can even make up festives names for your treats on a stick, like we did for our Lucky Lamb Skewers.
