Halloween in the 852

Last weekend was Halloween. It isn’t a traditional holiday in Hong Kong, and was barely celebrated when I first arrived. When I lived in my little subdivided flat, I encouraged my neighbors to celebrate by putting a bowl of candy out in the hall with a pumpkin and a sign for the kids to help themselves. I returned to an empty bowl so I take it that my neighbors approved. 

I’ve also invited various friends over to carve pumpkins. I still hold a grudge against a little girl who yelled out, “曱甴 gaat6 zaat2!” when she saw my stuffed pill bug. It is most certainly NOT a cockroach. 

This year I haven’t celebrated much outside of some general fall activities (pumpkin bread for the win!), but Hong Kong is really making up for it. 

I heard that the government was trying to promote Halloween as a way to get more people back to LKF (the party area in HK) and stimulate the economy. More people buying costumes, more people frequenting bars and restaurants, more people creating a fun environment. Whether it really was a government push or not, it certainly worked! 

The lines just to get into LKF were two hours long! In my opinion, you’d have to be very dedicated to partying in order to wait two hours just to get in. I avoided the lines and actual LKF but I did go to a friend’s show that was nearby. While swimming through the crowds trying to escape, I did enjoy seeing various costumes. 

There were quite a few Woody costumes, which was a surprise. A sprinkling of Chinese zombies and mythical creatures. A friend group of vegetables. Traffic cones (I wonder if they blocked anything off). 

All this Halloween hype has led me to ponder what are the scariest Hong Kong wet market foods. Yes, this is the kind of shower thoughts I often have. Nothing spookier than some of the things that find their way onto your plate. 

I’ll start my list with snow fungus 雪耳 syut3 ji5. It translates as snow ear, but it doesn’t look much like an ear; more like a sponge. You can get that in the dry goods section where they sell the stuff for soup. I use it every few months to make that apple, pear, and red date dessert soup. I think it’s supposed to be good for your skin or something. Anyway, anything that is called fungus and is edible is automatically on my list. It also looks kind of weird and has a slippery/crunchy texture. 

Wood ear (木耳 muk6 ji5) comes next. They are also a kind of fungus but get extra points for actually looking like floppy ears. I do say I am pretty fond of them. I have been steaming them with chicken, mushroom, and Chinese sausage and I also tried making that cold fungus and cucumber dish which turned out ugly bug delicious. 

Celtuce (萵筍 wo1 seon2) is a very Frankenstein-looking vegetable. It always catches my eye when I step into a wet market stall. Very big for a vegetable, they loom over the other veggies like some kind of brooding, mangy tree. If you take one home, slice it up, and refrigerate the pieces, it makes for a delicious summer veggie dish. I only recently heard that their leaves can be stir-fried as well. 

While there are many odd food items that could be on my list, the one that takes the crown for scariest veggie is definitely ice vegetable 冰菜 bing1 coi3 (also called ice flower 冰花 bing1 faa1). The first time I bought it, I was in a hurry and didn’t look too closely at this new vegetable I bought. It wasn’t until after I got it home and pulled it out of the bag that I had quite the shock. This vegetable looks like it has clear warts all over it. I was wondering if somehow it had gotten plastic melted onto it. Or maybe wax? Or perhaps the vegetable got cancer. 

Thankfully, I asked a group chat, and I am sure I amused them with my concern. They informed me it was just a normal vegetable and I could stir-fry it without worry. I followed their directions, but I will say I have not bought it since. Maybe I should…

For next year, instead of traffic cones or cobs of corn, consider dressing up as a 冰菜 bing1 coi3. Or if LKF is too much trouble, skip the lines and buy some veggies and fungus instead.