Yee Sang

Eating Yee Sang in Malaysia and Singapore is a tradition every Chinese New Year. Yee Sang is basically a Chinese raw fish salad. Unlike Japanese, Chinese do not eat raw fish, preferring it cooked. However, this is the only Chinese dish which we know contains raw fish. However, I must add that this is a dish invented in Singapore and is popular only in Malaysia and Singapore. So, if you ask Chinese outside of Malaysia and Singapore, they will very likely not know what Yee Sang is.

The Yee Sang is characterized by it's colorfulness. It is served in a large flat platter with vegetables arranged around a small serving of raw fish in the middle. For the raw fish, the above dish uses jelly fish.

The important thing is presenting this on the platter. First off, arrange all the vegetables on a ring around the platter. Arrange it so that the colour balances. Next, the raw fish is places in the middle and topped with some sliced ginger. Squeeze some lime juice over the raw fish. Sprinkle the crispy dough around the dish, not covering the raw fish. Next, season the platter with five spice powder and pepper. Finally, drizzle the sauce with equal amount of vegetable oil around the entire dish. This gives a gloss to the dish.

Half the fun in eating Yee Sang is by a communal tossing of the salad with chopsticks. The action of tossing is known as Lo Hei which symbolizes increasing prosperity, abundance and vigor. That is why this dish is very popular among businessmen.

The vegetables, which provides the crunch to the salad & color, are a mix of:

* Green Papaya
* Daikon
* Carrots
* Turnip
* Jicama
* Yam
* Ginger
* Other vegetables suitable for this dish are cucumber and red cabbage. Any fruits or vegetables that can be thinly julienne and dont turn brown will be great for this dish.

The sauce consists of

* Plum Sauce
* Sesame Paste, and
* Honey