Take it easy with these CNY food recommendations

Chinese New Year is my favourite festival for food, but the choices can overwhelm. To get your Year of the Rat off to a stress-free start, here are some items you may want to buy.

CRYSTAL JADE

Crystal Jade's bountiful abalone treasure pot (from $308) is one to consider for the value and the consistency of the food.

It is not the most luxurious pot by any stretch but it is decent, with key ingredients such as whole 10-head abalone, sea cucumber, fish maw and pig trotter.

The sauce is important for the overall experience, and this has a full-bodied one that is perfect even after reheating.

As a set, it starts from $418 and comes with extras such as yusheng and carrot cake.

You will also receive a bottle of red wine if you order via estore.crystaljade.com

WAN HAO

Wan Hao (Singapore Marriott Tang Plaza Hotel, Tel: 6831-4605) is dependable for good Chinese New Year dishes.

No surprise that its Imperial Pot of Prosperity pen cai (from $688) is one of the better ones, with 15 ingredients such as fish maw, Irish roast duck and sea cucumber. Visit

singaporemarriott.com/cny to order.

LINGZHI VEGETARIAN

How about a vegetarian Chinese New Year meal? This has everything you need for a festive time.

The Vegetarian Take-Home Feast from LingZhi Vegetarian restaurant at Liat Towers and Velocity@Novena Square is available from $268 for six.

 

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PRIMA TOWER REVOLVING RESTAURANT

Another dependable place for pen cai is Prima Tower Revolving Restaurant (201 Keppel Road, Tel: 6272-8822).

The fan favourite is Superior Treasures Fortune Pot in Peking Style ($728 for 10 people) with goodies such as abalone, sea cucumber, fish maw and conpoy.

What is different is that instead of a thick sauce, it is soup-based.

Call the restaurant or visit www.primatower.com.sg to order.

KAM'S ROAST

If you have leftover roast meats, dump them into the pen cai pot the next day and it is a new meal.

Kam's Roast Prosperity Trio Set ($108, for up to six) has the signature roast duck, Iberico char siew and crispy roast pork.

You can place your order at the Pacific Plaza or Jewel Changi Airport outlets.

WAH LOK

If you are tired of pen cai but still want a luxurious pot of food, Wah Lok's Buddha Jumps Over The Wall (from $526 for four people) is perfect.

It contains premium ingredients such as abalone, scallop, sea cucumber and fish maw, with a flavourful soup base.

Wah Lok is located at Carlton Hotel Singapore. To order, call 6349-1292 or visit www.signa tures.carltonhotel.sg

NEW MOON

One good thing about buying a pen cai for home is that you can jazz it up with your own ingredients.

If abalone is on your mind, getting the New Moon ones can also help raise money for charity.

Till the end of January, just head to the 1.5m-tall Prosperity Cats at FairPrice Xtra outlets (Hougang 1, Singapore Sports Hub and Changi Business Park) and Giant Hypermarket in Tampines, take a picture with the figurine, tag @NewMoonSG and #NewMoonProsperity on either Facebook, Instagram or TikTok (post must be public), and $1 will be donated to SPD to help those with disabilities.

IKEA

Chances are, you will head to Ikea to buy something for the Chinese New Year festivities.

While there, add the Ikea barbecue pork bak kwa ($22.80) to your shopping cart. It is available at the Swedish Food Market while stocks last.

Yes, there are many brands of bak kwa available, but you can get all your buying done here. Plan your shopping list in advance by visiting ikea.sg/stores