Chap Goh Meh away from home..

The Chinese New Year celebration commonly goes on for 15 whole days. The 15th day is known as "Chap Goh Meh" which means in English: The 15th day of the first month.

I had to return to Sydney as classes began half way through the new year celebration. A bunch of us homesick Malaysians decided to have a pot-luck "chap goh meh" get-together for lunch last Sunday. Owen was real nice to volunteer his living room for the day. It was a small group of about 15...but it felt nice to be around friends.Prior to Sunday; I heard that there would be lots of "chicken" that afternoon. I decided fried prawns and a beef dish would be a safe idea. Pinky made her famous fish curry too!
Cooking wasn't too much of a hassle, although I must admit; it was my first go at making stir-fried beef with black bean sauce.
Our Chinese New Year buffet spread turned out a little more 'culturally diversed' than what we had expected! *laughs* We had a range of Japanese, Korean, Western, Indian, Malay cuisine on the table. Apparently; I was the only person cooking anything 'fairly' Chinese! *sigh*I guessed it didn't matter...we had more than just Chinese people with us to celebrate and the food turned out real good~
Here's the recipe for the prawns if anyone's interested.

Frozen/fresh prawns shelled (tail left on)
Marinade: chili flakes, lemon juice, chopped coriander leaves, salt to taste
Fresh egg noodles (available at asian grocery stores)

Marinade prawns for at least 20-30 minutes. Gently shake and pat dry gently before wrapping in strands of egg noodles.
Deep fry in hot canola/peanut oil in small batches. Scoop out when prawn tails turn pink and noodle is crisp and golden. Drain excess oil on a kitchen towelette and serve immediately with sweet chili dressing.

Try serving them right away. I had a couple piping hot and crisp before we made our way to Owen's place; and they were YUM!!! After having been left exposed for more than 30 minutes; the noodles turned a tiny bit soft, but they still turned out tasting alright I guess.

On the 15th day of the lunar calendar; the moon is said to be at its fullest.
A couple of lunatics took a walk to the beach to check it out. *grin* Being in the cold that night was probably what made me sick. *SnEEzE!!* *sniffle sniffle* *Sigh*

Tags: deep fried prawns noodles budget recipe