Food insider: The Spring Festival dish on every Cantonese table

Hong Kong chef Cheng Chi Keung cooks poon choi for his family every year during Spring Festival. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

Where did you have this dish last year?

At home with my family in Hong Kong.

How long does it take to make this dish at home from scratch?

Four days, if counting the process of soaking dried ingredients.

How many ingredients are there in the dish?

Usually between 10-20.

How are the ingredients organized in the basin?

Vegetables such as radish and taro are placed at the bottom so they can be bathed in the broth longer to get a richer taste. The premium ingredients such as abalone, fish maw and scallops are placed on the top. The rest of the ingredients such as tofu and pork are placed in the middle.

What's the correct way to eat it?

Start from the top, and enjoy as it is prepared—layer by layer.

On Spring Festival eve, do people cook this dish at home in Hong Kong?

Yes, it is a tradition. But nowadays, more and more people prefer to eat in the restaurant or have it delivered to home. Many Hong Kong restaurants have poon choi delivery service.

Do you make this dish every year?

Almost every year. It is our family tradition.

How long do restaurants sell poon choi for during Spring Festival?

Usually until the fifteenth day of the first lunar month.

Besides Spring Festival, when else is the dish served?

When there are celebrations connected with rituals, such as weddings, birthdays and ancestral worship.

This year, Chef Cheung has prepared three poon choi options: the vegetarian (288 yuan/$41), the cattle's feet (688 yuan) and the traditional seafood (1,280 yuan), each enough for up to 10 people. Call 010-5798 8998 for details.