If there really were dragons in this world, how would their pavilion look like?
It would be an elegant restaurant, if Marco Polo Hotel Ortigas could have its say. And it would serve fine Cantonese cuisine prepared by experienced chefs flown in from Hong Kong.
Such is Marco Polo’s fine-dining Chinese restaurant called Lung Hin, which is Cantonese for dragon’s pavilion. Like a true dragon’s lair, it towers way above mere mortals, 44 floors above the ground to be exact.
Panoramic views of distant mountains and hovering clouds come with the territory, views that look almost dream-like from the cozy dining nooks strategically arranged beside tall glass windows (from where one can also see the buildup of traffic along Ortigas Avenue).
Instead of fire emanating from a dragon’s lungs, however, the fire in this dragon’s pavilion is in the kitchen, where a team of Hong Kong chefs prepare traditional as well as contemporary Cantonese cuisine: dishes like the dainty siomai dumplings crowned with slivers of truffle, which we had for lunch last week, and the mahogany skinned chicken gently smoked with tea leaves.
The fish lip soup with dried scallops was thick and flavorful. The diced beef, on the other hand, glistened on a nest of green vegetables, and was enhanced by cubes of goose liver discreetly layered on one end of the platter.
The barbecued pork buns, which seem to be all the rage these days, look like unprepossessing pan de sal, until you bite into them and discover the morsels of diced pork subtly sweetened by an enigmatic blend of sauces and spices. Then too, there was the stir-fried squid, with steamed salted eggs incorporated into its crisp golden batter.
Dessert choices in Lung Hin include the standards in Chinese restaurants: mango pudding, for instance, and buchi, balls of glutinous rice studded with sesame seeds. But there’s also almond soup, a milky concoction upon which floats a sticky ball filled with lotus bean paste.
Although Cantonese cuisine is its specialty, Lung Hin also serves other regional dishes, like Fookien fried rice and the Sichuan prawns with a spiciness balanced by sweet candied walnuts.
Here is Lung Hin’s recipe for the Sichuan prawns, which I’ve kitchen-tested and adjusted for the home cook.
Lung Hin Chinese Restaurant is at 44/F, Marco Polo Hotel, Meralco Ave., and Sapphire St., Ortigas Center, Pasig City. Call 7207777.
Sichuan Prawns
16-20 pc king prawns
Iodized salt
2-3 stalks celery, trimmed and cut into six-inch lengths
2 tbsp cooking oil
2 tbsp chili garlic sauce (bottled)
Ground black or white pepper
2 tbsp sugar
1/3 c sweet and sour sauce
¼-½ c candied walnuts
Peel the prawns and remove the heads and tails. Slit open the backs of the prawns and remove the veins. Season the prawns with salt.
In a medium saucepan, boil the prawns in one cup water for about five minutes. Add the celery and let simmer for one more minute. Remove the prawns and celery from the pan.
In a separate pan, heat the cooking oil and sauté the chili garlic sauce and pepper. Add the prawns and celery. Stir in the sugar, sweet and sour sauce, and candied walnuts. Heat through. Remove from heat then arrange the dish in a serving platter.
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Cook’s tips:
Bottled sweet and sour sauce and chili garlic sauce are available in the condiments section of supermarkets.
You can substitute candied pili nuts for the walnuts.
For a spicier dish, sauté some dried chilies together with the chili garlic sauce and pepper.