Header photo credit: @hkfoodies90
Hey, eggheads! Salted-egg-yolk fish skins and potato crisps have been sweeping the city, and it looks like other snack vendors are starting to catch on to the flavour trend. We’re diving straight into this briny, sodium-driven tornado and letting it take us through the wonders of haam daan.
Photo credit: @foodcaptain.hk
Palmiers from Meltlyplace
An unlikely union, but we’ll take it. The challenge to combine the sugary sweetness and delicate pastry of palmiers with the depth of salted egg yolk is a daunting one, but it seems that Caine Road boutique bakery Meltlyplace has risen to meet it. Just look at that crumbly egg yolk dusted on those golden palmiers…
55 Caine Road, Central, 3643 0084
Photo credit: @supertastermel
Photo credit: @victors_belly
Eggettes and waffles from Master Low-key Food Shop
What better way to kill two birds with one stone than to combine salted egg yolk with some of Hong Kong’s most popular snacks? We’d expect no less from award-winning street-snack stall Master Low-key, which has shown time and again that its antennae are finely tuned to the latest food trends. This is a union we saw coming from a mile away (which is, coincidentally, just about how far away we’re usually standing while queueing up for a salted-egg-yolk-schmeared waffle from Master Low-key).
Shop B3, 76A Shau Kei Wan Main Street East, Shau Kei Wan, 6601 5300
Photo credit: @fishbbma
Egg tarts from 蛋撻王 King Bakery
Yes, it’s true, salted egg yolk has come to our favourite tart. What’s better than a fresh, steaming egg tart straight from the oven? I’ll tell ya: a fresh, steaming egg tart with a thick blanket of salted egg yolk that’s straight from the oven. King Bakery’s got the right idea.
13 Wang Hoi Road, Kowloon Bay, 2305 0866
Photo credit: udn.com
Bagels from 好丘貝果 Good Cho’s
This is a time-sensitive one, friends. City’super in Causeway Bay is hosting a Taiwanese food market pop-up from 23 May–3 June 2018, and popular Taipei restaurant Good Cho’s will be making an appearance along with their taro and salted-egg-yolk bagels. You thinking what I’m thinking?
Basement 1, Times Square, 1 Matheson Street, Causeway Bay, 2506 2888
Photo credit: @phonebus.phonebus
Fried chicken from Sodam Chicken
We don’t know what the chefs at Sodam Chicken were thinking – slap the baby egg back on mama chicken and call it delicious? – but we’re on board with this whack idea. Battered and deep-fried golden chicken chunks are elevated with a generous sprinkling of salted-egg seasoning, cranking the umami factor up to 11. Now that’s finger-lickin‘ good. Take note, KFC.
Causeway Bay: 7/F, Bartlock Centre, 3 Yiu Wa Street, 2728 0200
Central: 31 Wyndham Street, LKF, 2905 1668
Pasta from Linguini Fini
Linguini Fini is loved for many reasons, and their seafood linguine is one of them. We weren’t entirely sure what was so special about this pasta dish until we tried a bite and a wholly unexpected, savoury flavour of salted egg yolk bit right back. Dotted with scallops, shrimp, calamari, clams, a touch of homemade salumi and the holy trinity of roasted garlic, parsley and lemon, this was a polished little dish and surprisingly light on the palate for being loaded with such hearty, assertive ingredients.
49 Elgin Street, SoHo, Central, 2387 6338
Photo credit: @hkfoodventure
Risotto from Hami Harmony
What is it? Salted-egg-yolk-cream-sauce risotto with Japanese crab stick. How do we feel about it? Incredibly keen. Overall, it seems like the sodium factor of this dish would be utterly overwhelming – there’s cheese and salted egg yolk – but the result is actually quite well balanced; a moderate and restrained amount of cheese allows the salted egg yolk to shine, while the crab stick and microgreens provide relief in texture and subdued flavour. Hami Harmony also does a salted-egg pasta if that’s more your jam.
Shop A, 161 Sai Yeung Choi Street North, Prince Edward, 2327 0665
Photo credit: Ztore
Fried dough from Wah Yuen
This one’s interesting. Marketed locally as vegetarian “faux” roast goose, Wah Yuen‘s fried-dough snack has been given a timely salted-egg-yolk makeover. We like that the flavour’s not too overwhelming, but we found the texture a bit too dry, which can only mean one thing: it‘s the perfect snack to accompany a round of beer! And it‘s readily available at PARKnSHOPs around the city.
Available at PARKnSHOP
Photo credit: @moonberry
Fish skin from Irvins
The winner of our salted-egg-yolk fish-skin Food War, Singapore’s Irvins is the likely culprit that sparked this whole flavouring craze, and the OG is showing no signs of slowing down. We’ll be the first to lay down our lives to defend their claim to being #dangerouslyaddictive; the depth of salted egg yolk followed by a medley of curry leaf and spices is simply unbeatable. Pair that with crisp fish skin, a wafer-like texture and just a hint of briny saltiness and we’re on cloud nine.
Kiosk 3D, 3/F, Gateway Arcade, Harbour City, TST
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