Happy Yuan Tan - YOU, The News International

Happy Yuan Tan

In connection with the Chinese New Year's celebrations P.C, Karachi, recently organised a four-day long Chinese food festival at Taipan...

By Waqas Hasan Sharif

The Chinese New Year is called Yuan Tan by the Chinese. The Chinese year 4706 begins on Feb. 7, 2008. According to the Chinese calendar the year 2008 is the year of the Rat. In China, the New Year is a time of family reunion. The Lunar New Year is the most significant festival for ethnic Chinese around the world. The origin of the Lunar New Year Festival can be traced back thousands of years, involving a series of colourful legends and traditions. At Chinese New Year celebrations people wear red clothes, decorate poems on red paper, and give children 'lucky money' in red envelopes. Red symbolises fire, which according to legend can drive away bad luck. Chinese New Year ends with the lantern festival on the fifteenth day. Some of the lanterns may be works of art, painted with birds, animals, flowers, zodiac signs and scenes from legend and history.
As in all such festivals, food plays an important role throughout the Lunar New Year Festival and dinners tend to be especially lavish. To the Chinese, food is life but it is also health and a symbol of other good things such as luck and prosperity.
Due to antiquity, the Chinese cuisine is generally considered, along with French, as one of the two greatest cuisines in the world. All over the world Chinese food has earned a high reputation owing to its exquisite aroma, taste and appearance. Chinese food is also very popular in our region. One can see a lot of Chinese restaurants offering sumptuous Chinese food. In fact Pakistani Chinese has developed its own distinctive flavour and tang over a period of time. Hence, in connection with the Chinese New Year's celebrations P.C, Karachi, recently organised a four-day long Chinese food festival at its authentic Chinese restaurant - Taipan.
Since I am a great fan of Chinese food, an invitation to dinner at Taipan by my friends made my weekend enjoyable. It was on the occasion of my best friend's birthday and it seemed most appropriate to celebrate it the Chinese way. We (four of us) were greeted by the gracious staff. The ambiance was cool and cheerful. We also got a chance to meet the Chinese chef Xiao Bing who briefed us about the history of Chinese Lunar Year Festival. It was quite intriguing to know about their Chinese zodiac animal.
We started our meal with delicious hot and sour soup. Keeping the chilly weather in mind, the soup was just right to soothe our senses. There was a choice between ala'carte and buffet but we opted for the latter as we all had big appetites. Since the restaurant is known for its delectable fried prawns we did not hesitate in grabbing the hot golden brown prawns straight from the pan. The taste was divine and the yummy Chinese sauce added a tangy flavour to it. We then savoured Chow mein in which the noodles are pan fried and then mixed with stir-fried vegetables, meat, and seafood.
For our main course dish we decided to try Chinese fried rice with beef chilli and fish in sate sauce. We relished the delicious combination of rice and chilli and loved the fish curry. Sweet and sour chicken also looked very tempting to us but due to the fear of catching 'bird flu' we restricted ourselves to sea food and beef.
Although I don't have a sweet tooth, I ate caramel on my friends' recommendation and I was not disappointed at all.
Now it was time to foot the bill which my friend happily paid as according to him, "It was the most enjoyable evening he has ever had with his friends." A very happy Chinese New Year to all of you.