Joy Hing Roasted Meat
Block C, G/F, 265-267 Hennessy Road, Wan Chai
灣仔軒尼詩道265-267號地下C座
Laying right at the intersection where Hennessy and Johnston meet lies a small little Chinese bbq shop. Joy Hing has been a joy in my life since I was young. My grandmother would take us here after tea in the morning to buy a "cha siu fanh hup," or a BBQ Pork Rice Box. I would clutch the little styrofoam box in my hands ever so tightly, making sure I protected the contents with my life. Upon arriving at home, I would run to the table, open the bag and take out my little treasure chest. Opening it's contents was like opening the gates to heaven. The savory, sweet and salty aroma just wafts into your nostrils and the taste buds begin to flow like floodgates. Your eyes start to water as the hot aromatic steam surrounds you, and if the box had a mirror, I would be able to see my eyes shimmering from the generous amounts of fat on the surface of the meat, with just the right amount of red from the bean paste used to marinade and tenderize the meat, and the honey glucose mixture that is brushed on as a glaze as the meat is char grilled on the fork.
This was also a must stop every time we visited Hong Kong.
Sadly, a few years back, due to the Avian flu scare and the results of domestic inflation, Joy Hing attempted to prevent themselves from raising their prices by using cheaper, lower quality meats from China. With the wallets of Mainland Chinese people stuffed with cash, they began buying superior products from Hong Kong, and exporting poor quality products to Hong Kong.
The results were clear. People in Hong Kong were not happy about this change. The evidence was in the taste. What used to be tender, moist, succulent goodies were now dry, flavorless cardboard. Sales dropped, and even though my family and I don't even make a fraction of a percent in their revenue, we even stopped going. But we never found an alternative.
Fast forward to the present. After numerous other places, I decided to give Joy Hing a try again. I guess 10 people waiting in line ahead of me for take-out wasn't a bad sign. We decided to get a sample box, a roast goose wing, a soy sauce chicken wing, and a half catty of the bbq pork. Walking home, I held the box in my hands like a treasure again, excited to go home and relish on the goods.
The results were extremely satisfying.
The Goose had beautifully roasted crackling skin. The semi fatty drumstick had just the right amount of fat and just the right amount of cooking. Normally, goose would tend to be a bit drier than it's counterpart duck, but this was just as tasty and guilt inducing. Pair it with the plum sauce they give you and it's a match made in heaven.
The soy sauce chicken was equally as delicious. Though 1/4 size of the goose, it had very succulent flesh. The soy sauce had penetrated into the meat so well and one can taste the slightest bit of Chinese Xiaoshing wine. It's a small amount that lingers just at the back of the palette for a brief moment before disappearing. The meat was literally falling off the bone. You can tell this was some good quality chicken as well, as there was a bit of gamey flavor. Most people don't associate chicken with game, but in good quality free range chicken, there's a noticeable difference from the flavor of mass produced caged chickens. Absolutely phenomenal.
As finally the last and most important of all. The BBQ Pork, aka Cha Xiu. Did it do it? Is it the same? And the answer of course, is YES. Oh what a joy it was to be able to eat this quality again. The pork is just melt in your mouth delicious due to the gratuitous amounts of marbling of the high quality pork loin. The surface, glistening with the glucose honey glaze, with just the right amount of "char spots," you know, those black burnt bits on the edges. Everyone knows those are the best little bits to nibble off! Lisa would disagree with me for health reasons, but for "NOMMING" (yes, that's a culinary term) purposes, those are the best NOMS (yes, that one is too).
The meat also isn't that weird unnatural apple red that we find in the States. That's because there isn't food coloring. Don't believe me? Next time you eat Cha Xiu in the States, pick up a piece and let it sit on your rice for a few seconds, then lift the piece off. You''ll notice that your rice has been dyed red.
In authentic restaurants, the red is a natural pigmentation from 紅腐乳/南乳 or red fermented bean curd. The red comes from the use of red yeast rice in the brining liquid for a distinct flavor profile and aroma. This is used to marinade the pork before it is later barbecued.
All three cost $125HKD for take out, which rounds up close to $16USD. This is considered expensive in Hong Kong, but if you want quality you have to pay for it.
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