Feeling hot, hot, hot...

I was lucky to join a group of friends tonight for a fabulously spicy dinner at Sichuan Kitchen Da Ping Huo (LG/F, Hilltop Plaza, 49 Hollywood Road, HK). My friend who was organising being Singaporean, she's as much of a spice junkie as I am, and we did enjoy the food tremendously. The food itself was perfectly executed, and had that "home-cooked" feeling about it unique to some private kitchens, and which make the experience pricless.

Da Ping Huo has been around for more than 10 years and earned itself a solid reputation in Hong Kong, as much for the food as for the vocal talent of its owner (who will come out of the kitchen to sing you a bit of Chinese opera at the end of the meal); the menu probably hasn't changed in as many years, and it's a good thing, because I will be looking forward to returning and eating those exact same dishes...

The entrance to Da Ping Huo - the whole restaurant is laid out almost like an art gallery.



That's a lot of attention to details...



Where the magic happens... the hole-in-the wall and the kitchen, where no more than 3 or 4 staff operate. Quite a feast considering the place sits about 40 in 1 service...

Starters 1 (cucumber in sweet and sour sauce) and 2 (Spicy Sichuan salad)

The cucumber dish wasn't spicy at all, and was marinated in soy sauce and vinegar with sugar; we found it a bit unusual to be able to feel the grains of sugar, but the dish was pretty good and quite refreshing. Nice to work up an appetite for what was to follow... The Sichuan salad was announced as medium spicy, and despite the tangy orange colour, was actually not that hot. Shredded carrot, celery, bean sprouts and some cucurbitaceae which I wasn't able to identify (definitely not cuke, more like a firm, green melon), all marinated and tossed in chilli sauce with sesame oil and sprinkled with sesame seeds. Very nice and slightly warming already.

Starter 3 - aka the spicy one: large glass noodles in chilli sauce with toasted soy nuts, spring onion, celery

A powerfully spicy dish. The soy nuts were very crunchy and had a unique roasted, nutty flavour which was delicious. As usual with this type of wide, flat glass noodles, one had to fight with them to fill one's plate, and the table cloth ended up splattered in sauce... In addition to the fresh veggies, there were also some dried and semi-rehydrated ones in the sauce which were quite sweet (possibly dried carrot?) and added texture. A very yummy dish. By this point, the non-spice eaters around the table were starting to think of asking for glasses of milk...

Mouth watering chicken

The chicken was marinated in soy sauce and ginger, and generously sprinkled with roasted peanuts and sesame seeds. This was my least favourite dish of the evening - not that there was anything wrong with the ingredients or the execution, it just wasn't my taste. The chicken was served cold and had a thick fatty skin, and pieces of chopped up bones were everywhere - so even though the meat itself was quite tasty, this was a bit of a no-go for me. I also found the sauce a bit too greasy and not spicy enough. Most diners around our table did not seem to share my opinion and proceeded to (almost) clean the plate.

First soup - minced chichen, napa cabbage and oyster mushroom

The soup had a flavour of bamboo shoots even if these were nowhere to be seen. I also tasted some anised notes, like fennel bulb. The broth was delicious (made with some dried abalone, we were told by the waiting staff). This was absolutely delicious - and not-spicy obviously.

Chilli beef

This was my absolute favourite dish of the evening - period. And I was lucky to get all the leftovers in my doggie bag, which will make for a fabulous lazy lunch tomorrow :-) Big chunks of brisket, full of collagen goodness and perfectly cooked and tender, in a spicy sauce with absolutely gorgeous smoked pepper flavours. I counted 4 different sorts of dried peppers in the dish, plus some fresh ones. Awesome. Brilliant. Gorgeous. The best spicy dish I have had in a long time, and from far...

Sticky rice with shredded pork and pumpkin

A non-spicy dish, absolutely delicious. The pork was packed with flavour, very tender and sweet, and the pumpkin pieces were sweet and almost chestnutty. Yummy.

If happiness was a fruit... one of the smoked peppers from the beef dish, which I could not resist the urge to munch on, to see if my tongue would fall off (it didn't).

Ma Po tofu

Ma Po tofu has always been one of my favourite dishes, and this version was particularly awesome. This was the spiciest dish of the evening - ground Sichuan peppercorn provided that characteristic tingling sensation, and the sauce contained a lot of ground chillies and chilli oil. The tofu itself was smooth and creamy. This one did make my nose sweat ;-)

Second soup: veggie broth, a touch of garlic, and a mystery leaf veggie

The broth contained some potato (or other starchy veg) and was a bit grainy. I could not figure out what the green leaves were - they tasted a bit like pea shoots but looked like the young leaves of a caper plant (!?) Pretty nice and refreshing after the fiery tofu.




Sichuan dumplings

 Big, fat dumplings with thick skin and a moist and tasty ground pork filling, bathing in an absolutely delicious medium-spicy sauce, a bit sweet and packed with flavours. I was very full at this point and was heartbroken to be able to eat only one :*(

Dessert: soybean curd, attap fruit, chopped Asian pear, in sweet soup

I am a big fan of Chinese desserts and this was right up my alley. Slightly sweet, with several different textures - quite good and fun to eat.


A big hug to my friend T. for getting us a table.