That Wasn't Chicken

In the annual rush of preparations for Chinese New Year, Hong Kong grocery stores have hauled out massive stocks of boxed chocolates, tinned cookies and most of the major brands of cognac, all conveniently located near the checkout lines.

You know, in case you forgot to get some at one of the aisle-clogging dump bins sprinkled around the store.

View large image Added to the mix this year are boxes of festive fortune cookies, which may be a novelty as the fortune cookie is entirely a western invention. I say may because I suspect that many Hong Kongers who've never been abroad will bite into one and say something pithy such as: "What the—? There's a piece of paper inside this thing!"

I truly hope that's the last of western Chinese food that wriggles its way into local cuisine. I shudder when I imagine finding pineapple chicken balls, a disgusting concoction consisting of a tiny piece of chicken deep-fried in a giant glob of batter and served with a sickly-sweet pineapple sauce (in mall food courts all over North America!), on the menu.

Then again, some restaurants in town eschew the euphemism altogether and actually do serve chicken testicles.

Hmm ... in that light the fortune cookies don't look quite so lame.

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