8 Chinese New Year Dishes You've Goat to Try

Busy hunting for restaurants to hold your reunion dinners at? Here’s a list of noteworthy dishes created specially for Chinese New Year 2015 we have come across so far. Most of them are also available for takeaway, just in case the restaurant with that must-try dish is already fully booked.

1. Jade Restaurant’s Fortune Dumpling

We always look forward to Master Chef Leong Chee Yeng’s intricate creations for festive menus like Chinese New Year. This year sees a Poached Minced Fish and Mutton Fortune Dumpling – a perfect combination of two contrasting proteins that form the word 鲜 (“fresh” in Mandarin). It comes served with dou miao for a nice textural variation and will be available in Jade Restaurant’s CNY 2015 a la carte menu. $38++ for 8; Available from 3 February to 5 March 2015 at Jade Restaurant, Fullerton Hotel

2. Antoinette’s Queen Yu Sheng

This year, Chef Pang of Antoinette reinvented the iconic raw fish salad by injecting French elements, a hammer, as well as sweet confectionery to create the Queen Yu Sheng to enjoy at the end of the meal. Great for young children who aren’t able to stomach raw fish, the large chocolate golden egg sits on a ‘nest’ of sweets like chocolate fish, ingots, mandarin orange butter cake and sweet potato chips, cracking open to reveal a mix of Asian fresh fruit (Thai green mango, red dragon fruit, pineapple and pomelo). $88++; Available for dine-in and takeaway from 9 February to 5 March 2015 only at Antoinette, Penhas Road outlet. Note: 1 day advance order is required for both dine-in and takeaway

3. Oceans of Seafood Yusheng

If your eyes gleam at the thought of fresh seafood, you’ll love Oceans of Seafood’s special “Vibrancy of Life” Yusheng, which consists of fresh salmon sashimi, amberjack sashimi and a tasty cooked rock lobster flown in from Tsukiji Fish Market. Besides a creamy homemade peanut sesame sauce, it comes accompanied by a colourful array of toppings such as – Japanese red/white radish and carrots, braised smelt fish, turnip pickles, tobiko (shrimp roe), peanuts, edamame (Japanese snow peas), peanuts and dried cranberries. Each order of yusheng comes with a free bottle of Japanese sake worth $30. $128++ for dine in, $128+ for takeaway; Available for preorders from 21 Jan; in stores from 31 January to 5 March 2015 at Oceans of Seafood, PasarBella @ The Grandstand

4. Forest’s Chilled Coconut Jello with Popping Candy

The chefs at Forest 森 have created a refreshing Chilled Coconut Jello dessert especially for their Chinese New Year lunch and dinner set menus. A smooth blend of home-made fresh coconut juice jello, aloe vera and sea coconut come served in a coconut shell, topped off with popping candy – a lively surprise for the kid at heart. Available from 2 February to 5 March 2015 at Forest 森, Resorts World Sentosa

5. Peony Jade’s 18-ingredient Poon Choi

To those with a huge family gathering coming up, Peony Jade’s “Reaping Abundance Wealth” Australian Premium Whole Abalone Poon Choi would be perfect for the table. It includes 18 superior ingredients such as 10-head Australian abalones, Sakura chicken, pork knuckle, sea-grouper mousse cake and fresh whole scallops. All takeaway orders come with 3 complimentary dishes – Atlantic Salmon Yu Sheng, signature Cherry Wood Charcoal Roasted Golden Duck and Pan-fried Glutinous rice with Lup Cheong. $468.88 for mini package, $598.88 for premium package; Available for both dine in and takeaways from now till 5 March 2015 at Peony Jade @ Keppel Club and Clarke Quay.

6. Min Jiang’s Joy of Abundance Give your family and friends a memorable reunion dinner with Min Jiang’s prosperity special, which lets you ‘release’ a bounty of good fortune by breaking open the salt-crusted delight. Beautifully handcrafted into two kois swimming in the sea by Master Chef Chan Hwan Kee, it holds a sumptuous feast of eel maw stuffed with dace fish paste, Australian 10-head abalones, dried oysters, dried scallops, flower mushrooms and ‘fa cai’ (black moss). $298 for six persons; Available for dine-in and takeaway from 5 February to 5 March 2015 at Min Jiang, Goodwood Park Hotel

7. Cherry Garden’s 25kg Luxurious Pen Cai

Weighing more than 25kg and measuring up to 45cm in diameter, Cherry Garden’s Luxurious Pen Cai currently stands as Singapore’s largest traditional ‘basin dish’. Available in the Success set menu for a miminum of six persons, this meticulously prepared item consists of Chinese mushrooms, black moss, 4-head abalones, roasted duck, roasted pork belly, chicken, dace fillets, Chinese sausages, sea cucumber, dried oyster roll, prawns, conpoy, scallops, lobsters, Tientsin cabbage, wolfberries and seasonal vegetables. $138 per guest dining in (min. 6 pax); Available from 10 February to 5 March 2015 at Cherry Garden

8. Feng Shui Inn’s Layer Cake At first glance, this decadent cake resembles kueh lapis in whole and crispy pork belly when it has been cut into cubes. Either way, Feng Shui Inn’s modern twist on the traditional ‘nian gao’ is a takeaway we would recommend getting for the family. The sweet and chewy layers alternate with those of smooth custard cream and coconut chunks, giving each bite a good balance of each element. $48 per portion; Available from 19 January to 5 March 2015 at Feng Shui Inn, Resorts World Sentosa See Also: Find the best restaurants in Singapore More seafood options for you

Written by Cheryl Chong & Peh Yi Wen