Sanqingtan 三清潭 @ Shanghai

Lunch with the Shanghai team, we went to our favourite Cantonese restaurant in the mall next to our office.

It is quite difficult to get to Sanqingtan Restaurant because you need to get their private life on the third level to get to the fourth level. But everyone knows how to get there because of its reputation for authentic and wonderfully executed Cantonese fare.

金银菜燉白肺 Double-boiled Cabbage and PIg’s Lung Soup

Cantonese custom always starts the meal with a nice bowl of soup. And double-boiled pig’s lung has been one of my favourite Cantonese soup, and the perfect remedy to fight against cold symptoms and side effects. Hence its popularity has risen after Covid.

金银菜 “Gold and silver vegetable” refers to the use of dried Napa cabbage 白菜干 with fresh bokchoy in the preparation of this double-boiled soup. Napa cabbage is also called 菘菜 “Song Cai”, and it is good to eat cabbage during autumn (“秋末菘、初春韭”). And dried cabbage has the positive effect for the respiratory system. The combination of the two, together with pig’s lung, has the effects of clearing heat in the body and detoxification.

玫瑰豉油鸡 Soy Sauce Chicken with Rose Wine

Contrary to popular belief, Cantonese-style soy sauce chicken 豉油鸡 is marinated in dark soy sauce brine after cooking the chicken instead of cooking the chicken in soy sauce (which is the Northern style instead). And rose wine is added to give it a rather unique taste. And they have nailed this homey dish perfectly with enough savouriness on the skin and tenderness, moisture on the chicken meat.

三清潭烧鹅 Signature Roast Goose

But we came for this dish specifically, their signature roast goose. I was disappointed that the goose they have chosen was quite small, but the roasting technique compensated the difference. Should have ordered half a duck instead of a standard portion.

萝卜牛腩煲 Stewed Beef Brisket and Radish Casserole

This is a dish where the supporting ingredient tastes better than the star. Radish is added to the casserole to add sweetness to the dish. Instead it absorbs all the flavours of the braising liquid, the beef brisket and its own sweetness in a juicy, soft package. The beef brisket is fork tender, but that doesn’t matter. I would advice to order a bowl of steamed plain rice to go with the sauce.

港式点心 Hong Kong Style Dimsum

And complement our meal we ordered some Cantonese dim sums, mainly rice rolls and dumplings. Nicely done, but not something I would return for.

古法蒸老虎斑 Steamed Tiger Grouper

The sliced grouper has been steamed with ginger, pork, pickled mustard green and rehydrated dried mushroom, all shredded and placed on the fish. Then the shredded ingredients are all removed and the fish is finished with a soy sauce mix. Delicious.

清炒豆苗 Sautéed Pea Sprouts

A simple vegetable sautée. Pea sprout was in season.

腊味煲仔饭 Waxed Meat Rice Casserole

Casserole rice 煲仔饭 is a classic dish from Guangdong region. It is made with Thai jasmine rice cooked in the casserole with chopped up Cantonese sausage and salted pork belly, and finish with salad oil, sesame oil and dark soy sauce. Of course there are many variations, but it’s the waxed meat 腊味 that is the most popular.

Because the rice is cooked inside the casserole, it is unavoidable to have burnt rice crackers 锅巴 on the bottom. Many connoisseurs actually seek this smoky, crunchy rice because of the unique taste.

I have weak jaw so I usually skip the rice crackers. But I love casserole rice for its smoky taste that is different from wokhei. And this example is one of the best in Shanghai I have eaten so far.

I do not have faith on any of the guidebooks in China, many are pay-to-play. Even for the famous tyre company, they can be hit-and-miss (and mainly misses). So their credentials do not affect me. I came for their solid Cantonese food and impeccable service. And the roast goose and double boiled soup have so far never disappoint. Reservation recommended but you have to do it through an app unless you are a regular.

Sanqingtan Roast Goose 三清潭烧鹅（兴业太古汇店）
石门一路288号兴业太古汇南区L3层L379BL441
Tel : +86 18101736869

Visited Oct 2024

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