Asia Market Announces Family-Friendly Food Experiences Extravaganza To Welcome In Chinese New Year
To welcome in the year of the tiger, Asia Market – Ireland’s Premier Asian Supermarket since 1981 – has announced a series of sensory family-friendly Asian food experiences to celebrate Chinese New Year (Tuesday 1st February) and the Lunar New Year Festival.
Between Monday 24th January and Monday 21st February, the family-run business will host a melting pot of cultural food events across its two Dublin stores and online, introducing traditional Chinese New Year customs and rituals to the streets and suburbs of Dublin, and further afield.
During Chinese New Year it is customary for families to meet up and make dumplings together, with everyone from the very youngest members all the way through to their elders getting involved in their preparation. To celebrate this time-honoured tradition, Asia Market will be throwing complimentary Dumpling Parties across both stores (Drury Street, Dublin 2 & Ballymount, Dublin 12) on Saturday 29th January, 12pm to 5pm. Asian aromas will fill the air and tempt you towards tuk tuk street stalls serving a range of lip-smacking Japanese Chicken & Vegetable Gyoza and Chinese Pork & Chinese Chive Dumplings. The Drury Street store will also host a number of indoor Dumpling Demos & Tastings and Traditional Chinese Tea Experiences throughout the course of the afternoon that will transport your senses to the streets of China. All of these events are free to attend with complimentary food and drink on offer, and no pre-booking is required.
On Sunday 30th January (6.30pm to 7.30pm), Asia Market’s Eva Pau will host a live and interactive online ‘Explore Cook Eat Experience’ including a cook-along collaboration with celebrated Malaysian Chef, Shamzuri (Sham) Hanifa of The Cottage Restaurant in Jamestown, Carrick-On-Shannon, Co. Leitrim. This exclusive after-hours tour of their flagship store via Zoom will give you the chance to discover the latest trends, tastes, sights and delights of Asian food and drink and learn first-hand from one of Ireland’s most respected Asian chefs. In advance of the event, those participating will be sent a ‘Journey To The East’ Box (serves two people) to their home, which will consist of Chinese tea, New Year snacks and nibbles, and a special Asia Market 40th anniversary goodie bag. The box will also include the majority of the ingredients (Shamzuri Hanifa’s famous ‘one for all’ sauce, Shaoxing wine, sesame oil, soy sauce, rice, garlic, ginger, scallions, red chillies, and pak choi) needed to create Chef Sham’s signature Steamed Sea Bream as part of a live and interactive 30-minute-long cook-along that he’ll host on completion of the tour. Please note that the Sea Bream isn’t included as part of the box – participants will need to purchase this or another ingredient (other types of white fish, chicken, pork, or beef are all suitable) separately. Tickets for the ‘Explore Cook Eat’ experience (including nationwide delivery of the ‘Journey To The East’ Box) are priced at €45.00 each and must be purchased online at www.asiamarket.ie before midnight on Monday 24th January.
To mark the official beginning of Chinese New Year on Tuesday 1st February, you can join Eva Pau online at 6.30pm for her annual complimentary cooking demonstration. She’ll be kicking off the festivities by showing you how to make a traditional Tomato, Chilli & Prawn dish that is packed with flavour and which symbolises laughter, joy and happiness to the whole family. You can pre-order the prepared box of fresh ingredients required for the complimentary cook-along with Eva online at www.asiamarket.ie.
And, what better way to ring in Chinese New Year, than with a sumptuous festive feast! The Hong Kong Meat Master at Asia Market’s Fade Street restaurant, Duck, has created a special Chinese New Year-themed Banquet for you and your friends to enjoy either in their restaurant, or in the comfort of your own home. Mouth-watering festive dishes include Hong Kong Style Roast Duck, BBQ Pork Char Siu, Crispy Pork Belly, Duck Spring Rolls, Duck Dumplings, Steamed Jasmine Rice, Fried Noodles, Fortune Cookies, and Soft Drinks. The Chinese New Year Banquet is priced at €50.00 (serves 2 people) and will be available to order for collection from Fade Street online at www.duck.ie, or for delivery within Dublin city centre via Deliveroo, in limited numbers from Monday 24th January to Monday 21st February 2022.
Commenting on Asia Market’s plans for the upcoming Chinese New Year celebrations, the company’s Commercial Director, Eva Pau, said: “We are very much looking forward to celebrating the Chinese New Year with new experiences created for outdoors and also for online. We hope that you enjoy them and look forward to ringing in the new year of the Tiger with a roar.”
