Do you think fusion food is just something new and flashy? Macanese cuisine, the world’s first fusion food, actually has a history dating back to the 16th century. You can find it in the city of Macau, which was a Portuguese trading post for 400 years. Most classic dishes emerged out of Chinese-Portuguese families’ home cooking. From restaurants dedicated to Macanese food to the local version of Cantonese diners, let’s go on a food crawl to learn more about this sophisticated cuisine with a fascinating history.
0:00 What is Macanese cuisine?
2:04 A classic meal in a Macanese household
4:34 Blending into Cha Chaan Teng menus
6:37 Long-lost family recipes
8:24 Sharing a mother’s legacy
9:16 Producer’s thoughts
Restaurant address:
Belos Tempos (老地方)
10 Rua da Felicidade, Macau, Macau
**Customers need to book in advance if they want to order dishes not on the menu.**
Wengo Coffee & Food (文哥咖啡美食)
G/F, 31Travessa Lou Fu, Vila de Taipa
This City Bites edition is supported by the Macao Government Tourism Office.
If you liked this video, we have more editions of City Bites featuring other cities in Asia:
Saving Macau’s Dying Language
https://dai.ly/x745vyj
5 Popular Street Snacks in Macau
https://dai.ly/x7n3v8v
Follow us on Instagram for behind-the-scenes moments: http://instagram.com/goldthread2
Stay updated on Twitter: http://twitter.com/goldthread2
Join the conversation on Facebook: http://facebook.com/goldthread2
Have story ideas? Send them to us at hello@goldthread2.com
Producer: Yoyo Chow
Videographer: Wayne Hon, César del Giudice
Editor and Mastering: César del Giudice
Narration: Dai Qian
Animation: Stella Yoo
#Macau #Macanese #Food
0:00 What is Macanese cuisine?
2:04 A classic meal in a Macanese household
4:34 Blending into Cha Chaan Teng menus
6:37 Long-lost family recipes
8:24 Sharing a mother’s legacy
9:16 Producer’s thoughts
Restaurant address:
Belos Tempos (老地方)
10 Rua da Felicidade, Macau, Macau
**Customers need to book in advance if they want to order dishes not on the menu.**
Wengo Coffee & Food (文哥咖啡美食)
G/F, 31Travessa Lou Fu, Vila de Taipa
This City Bites edition is supported by the Macao Government Tourism Office.
If you liked this video, we have more editions of City Bites featuring other cities in Asia:
Saving Macau’s Dying Language
https://dai.ly/x745vyj
5 Popular Street Snacks in Macau
https://dai.ly/x7n3v8v
Follow us on Instagram for behind-the-scenes moments: http://instagram.com/goldthread2
Stay updated on Twitter: http://twitter.com/goldthread2
Join the conversation on Facebook: http://facebook.com/goldthread2
Have story ideas? Send them to us at hello@goldthread2.com
Producer: Yoyo Chow
Videographer: Wayne Hon, César del Giudice
Editor and Mastering: César del Giudice
Narration: Dai Qian
Animation: Stella Yoo
#Macau #Macanese #Food
Category
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LifestyleTranscript
00:00 (speaking in foreign language)
00:03 When you visit Macau,
00:09 you know you've signed up to taste food
00:11 that cannot be compared to anything else
00:13 in Cantonese kitchens.
00:15 (speaking in foreign language)
00:19 Apart from its landline glamor,
00:24 the city's also a paradise for fusion food,
00:26 thanks to its rich multicultural heritage.
00:30 We're curious to find out what's really on the daily menus
00:32 for local folks,
00:33 beyond the long list of recommended dishes
00:35 found on travel blogs.
00:37 Welcome to City Bites, Macau edition.
00:58 Traces of Portuguese influence are everywhere in Macau.
01:01 These are the remnants of the more than 400 years
01:06 it spent as a Portuguese trading post.
01:09 This chapter of the city's history
01:10 also gave birth to Macanese cuisine.
01:12 (speaking in foreign language)
01:18 Meet Chef Anna, the owner of a Macanese diner
01:23 on a century-old commercial street
01:26 next to the ruins of St. Paul's.
01:28 (gentle music)
01:31 (speaking in foreign language)
01:40 When Portuguese sailors came and settled down,
01:48 they missed home-cooked food from back in Portugal,
01:51 so their Chinese partners would try to cook something close,
01:55 using the ingredients available in local markets.
01:58 This was the beginning of Macanese cuisine.
02:01 We tried some of Anna's home recipes.
02:05 (speaking in foreign language)
02:24 (gentle music)
02:27 (speaking in foreign language)
02:32 - I actually understand why children
02:40 would like to eat this dish,
02:41 because with the pork and potato,
02:44 after they are being stir-fried,
02:45 it's actually quite fragrant,
02:46 and it's just savory, so it's similar to snack.
02:50 At the same time, you have the egg,
02:51 and everyone loves egg, so.
02:54 I like this dish.
02:55 (speaking in foreign language)
03:04 (crackling)
03:22 (speaking in foreign language)
03:26 - This is because the Portuguese sailed
03:31 through many different regions,
03:33 and were influenced by their cultures
03:35 before they reached Macau.
03:36 (speaking in foreign language)
03:44 (gentle music)
03:47 - So in this dish, instead of Portuguese sausage,
04:06 they actually use Chinese sausage.
04:09 (clinking)
04:11 (crunching)
04:13 Mm, my favorite item in this dish
04:19 would be the pork skin, because it's very chewy,
04:23 and it also absorbs the taste of the soup,
04:26 so when you bite into it,
04:27 it just bursts out in your mouth.
04:30 - As authentic Macanese dishes like dà shòu
04:36 took hours to cook, you're more likely
04:38 to see them on special occasions.
04:40 Small diners here adapted these recipes
04:43 to cook them faster.
04:44 They sell them at a lower price
04:47 to serve the local community.
04:49 The Hong Kong-style cafes, also known as tá chánh tháng,
04:54 are common in Macau, but their menus
04:56 are slightly different from in Hong Kong.
04:59 Here you get Macanese flavors, such as mince,
05:03 only in versions that have been simplified
05:05 to cook faster.
05:07 (speaking in foreign language)
05:11 You can also get Macau-style chicken bilau.
05:19 Instead of using the wide range of ingredients,
05:24 which end up in home-style chicken bilau,
05:27 such as Chinese dry-cured ham and pine nuts,
05:30 tá chánh tháng chefs cook with fewer
05:32 and cheaper ingredients, mimicking the flavor
05:34 of this complex dish.
05:36 (speaking in foreign language)
05:40 See the sauce here they use, compared to those
06:01 we order in a Macanese restaurant,
06:03 it's actually quite thick, it's not dry at all.
06:06 Here are some iconic tá chánh tháng dishes
06:08 that are unique to Macau.
06:11 Macaroni with oxtail soup.
06:12 (speaking in foreign language)
06:17 There's also the spicy sardine bun.
06:31 Sardines are a key part of the Portuguese diet.
06:34 Each year, the government hosts the Lusophonia Festival
06:49 to introduce the cultures of Portuguese-speaking
06:51 communities to the public.
06:53 Many Macanese people come together and attend.
06:59 (singing in foreign language)
07:03 (speaking in foreign language)
07:10 (speaking in foreign language)
07:23 (speaking in foreign language)
07:27 We invited Macanese families around the world
07:41 to send us recipes that they can find at home,
07:44 and the response was very, very good.
07:47 Joining forces with the government,
07:49 since 2020, the Macau Institute for Tourism Studies
07:52 has sent out an international open call
07:54 for Macanese recipes.
07:56 They've already got hundreds of recipes in their collection.
07:59 - Couple of years ago, it was very, very difficult
08:03 to collect Macanese cuisine recipes
08:06 because they were kept as a secret within the families.
08:09 But now the mentality is totally different.
08:12 We have these recipes inside our library,
08:15 and they are also available online.
08:17 (gentle music)
08:20 (speaking in foreign language)
08:27 - Anna learned how to cook these dishes
08:33 by helping her mom in the kitchen back in the day,
08:35 and through her own research.
08:37 (speaking in foreign language)
08:47 In 2013, she opened her Macanese restaurant,
08:50 Belus Tempus, meaning Great Times in Portuguese.
08:54 (speaking in foreign language)
09:16 - Hi, everyone.
09:17 I'm from Hong Kong, so it's just one hour away from Macau.
09:21 It's definitely not my first time traveling here,
09:24 but it may be my first time trying Macanese food.
09:27 I remember when I was a kid,
09:28 my parents want me to like Portuguese restaurant,
09:31 so I'm not sure if what I had
09:33 is Portuguese food or Macanese food.
09:35 But after I know more about Macanese food,
09:38 I'm quite impressed because it has a long history.
09:41 It's complicated.
09:42 It's also a family food.
09:44 So basically, when you are eating at a Macanese restaurant,
09:47 you are like being someone's guest at their house,
09:49 and you are eating what their family,
09:52 what their mom used to cook for them.
09:53 So I think that's very meaningful.
09:55 It's very personal.
09:56 Comment down below, is there any food
09:59 that is similar to Macanese food in your home country?
10:02 It's like fusion food, but complicated.
10:05 And one last thing,
10:07 I'm sorry if I look intense during the interview.
10:10 I don't know what's wrong with my face.
10:13 I will do better next time, okay?
10:14 So, see you next time.
10:16 Up next, did you know
10:18 there's a big Burmese Chinese community in Macau?
10:21 Stay tuned.
10:24 (upbeat music)
10:26 (bells chiming)
10:29 [BLANK_AUDIO]