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Ward off the winter blues by eating cosy mood-busting foods such as a piping hot cuppa soup and feel the cold, and any stress from all the Christmas shopping, melt away with every slurp.
Soup is the top go-to comfort food for the season and is a traditional delight in many countries around the globe such as China. Bubbling hot pots are a favoured custom, in particular from the Sichuan province, that are usually served in the cold of winter featuring every ingredient imaginable including beef, lamb, chicken, seafood, noodles and vegetables. The hearty dishes are flavourfully cooked in an upside-down funnel pot with a circular belly over a flame.
The fire pots create an intimate atmosphere and when consumed it is called weilu or ‘surrounding the stove’. It is a symbol for reunions in which family and friends gather around the table cooking thinly-sliced strips of meat and veggies in the giant boiling bowl to feast and celebrate the auspicious New Year.
In the spirit of the season and New Year, Sheraton Bahrain Hotel’s Soie fine dining is dishing up the spicy Sichuan style hot pots for the month of January.
The award-winning Soie restaurant is best known for its authentic delicacies inspired from different parts of China including South East Asia, Guangzhou, Hong Kong and Beijing and this time Chef Lee Bak Lee is making his mark with a fiery winter hot pot Ma La Huo Guo.
Typical hot pot dishes include thinly-sliced meat, leafy vegetables, mushrooms, wontons, egg dumplings, tofu, and seafood. The cooked food is usually eaten with a dipping sauce.
The Malaysian chef, who has more than 30 years of culinary experience specialising in Asian cuisine and has been with the five star hotel for 13 years, is serving a Sichuan meat hot pot and a seafood hot pot with the assistance of two sous chefs from China.
According to restaurant supervisor Femia Eniego, this is the perfect dish to keep you feeling warm and toasty for the New Year.
“The hot pot is quite spicy and will complement the kingdom’s weather well,” said Femia. “Although guests can request it as spicy, or not, as they would like. The chef will prepare all the ingredients and soup in the kitchen and it will continue to boil at your table. Diners can choose to have the meat hot pot which includes beef, lamb, chicken, bok choy, Chinese cabbage, bean curd, celery, coriander and white noodles or from the seafood hot pot. The seafood includes similar vegetables along with the cuttlefish, shrimp, squid and hammour.
“Our guests will not have to travel far to experience the tastes and flavours of China. We will offer the best of Chinese cuisine and the spicy Sichuan style.”
My husband, Sam, and I gladly put the spicy soup to the test, ushering in the New Year in sizzling style while being serenaded by melodic Christmas songs in the 65-seat restaurant.
As we waited for the meat version to appear, we couldn’t help but admire the dramatically-lit venue featuring wooden floors, porcelain ornaments, silky canopies and lanterns and of course the festive Christmas decorations. Within a few minutes a hot pot, which is great for sharing by the way, appeared alongside complimentary steamed rice. We also opted for a side of Sambal Prawn with steamed rice as it’s a bestselling dish full of flavour. It did not disappoint as the prawns packed a punch with every bite.
The pot was piping hot and enjoyable to the last slurp. The meats were tender, juicy and spicy just the way we like it. I poured the meaty, veggie noodle soup on my rice and had it curry-style at one point. While the hot pot is shared by two, it can easily be devoured by three or four people as we had around three bowls each.
We ended the evening on a sweet note devouring a sugary coconut crepe and a delicious deep-fried ice cream with a side of fruits.
People can snap up the hot pot promotion, which runs until the end of January, for BD12.9+++ for the meat or BD13.9+++ for the seafood portion.
Aside from the promotion, there is also a Malaysian and Chinese-inspired menu with meat, seafood and vegetable offerings that will surely tantalise the taste buds. The restaurant is open daily from 7pm to 11.30pm and is closed on Saturdays.
Check out Mai’s interview with restaurant supervisor Femia by placing your smartphone over the QR Code.
