As Chinese New Year (CNY) approaches, I am feeling more and more homesick for family, friends and yummy CNY treats. It has been eight long years since I celebrated CNY back home. I miss my mom’s CNY Eve elaborate meal – Chicken Mushroom Soup with Mee Suah, Steamed Fish, Fried Chicken, Ngor Hiang, Fried Poh Piah, Chap Chai, Stir-Fried Corn with Chicken, Gizzard, and Liver, Stir-Fried Noodles and Chicken Curry (or is that CNY morning?). I miss visiting with family and friends, and tasting all the CNY goodies. There would be an unimaginable amount of cakes and cookies but I especially love steamed or baked Kek Lapis and my favorite cookies are Pineapple Tarts and Kueh Bangkit. I long to eat Bak Kwa, Acar with Keropok, Fried Ikan Bilis with Peanuts, and more. I even miss the 12 AM CNY ear-deafening firecrackers (I wonder if setting off firecrackers is still allowed?). So thus began my quest to relive some of my nostalgic memories by making CNY “comfort food” in the little free time that I have.
The first on the list is Bak Kwa. I am not sure how this recipe comes about anymore but I think it was from consolidating and adapting several Bak Kwa recipes to my taste. I have made this recipe twice so far, and I still can’t get the meat spread out as thin as store-bought Bak Kwa or the flavor exactly the same but hey, it tastes deliciously close and that’s good enough for now.
1 pound ground chicken (can substitute turkey or pork)
4 ounces sugar
1 ½ tablespoons light soy sauce
2 ¼ teaspoons fish sauce
2 ¼ teaspoons oyster sauce
½ teaspoon sesame oil
¼ teaspoon white pepper
1 teaspoon Hua Diao wine
½ teaspoon Mei Kuei Lu wine
1 ½ tablespoons water
- Adjust an oven rack to the middle position and heat oven to 350°F. Line a baking sheet (18″x13″x 1″) with foil (I use Reynolds Wrap Non-Stick Aluminium Foil).
- In a medium bowl, mix all the ingredients until evenly blended. Turn the chicken mixture onto the foil-lined baking sheet, and cover it with a large piece of plastic wrap or wax paper. Using the back of a spoon, spread the chicken mixture as thin as possible without tearing it. Remove the plastic wrap/wax paper.
- Bake the chicken mixture until firm (about 15-20 minutes).
- Cut into 6 slices. Broil until done, turning often (every 3-5 minutes) to prevent the slices from getting burnt or drying out.
Hey Chris,You should try putting the meat between 2 pieces of wax paper and pounding it thin. Then remove one layer of paper, flip the whole thing onto your baking tray and remove the other piece of paper. Nice thin bak kwa! 🙂