Leek Soup The Dragon & the Phoenix by Katya

It has cashew nuts, chicken
And prawns – my favourite.
My husband is chef in our restaurant,
So he developed this dish.

As a child, I loved sweet and sour best!
As I grew, I liked more spice.
The crunch of crisp cashew nuts,
Bean sprouts, water chestnuts –
Not quite so boring to eat!

Your body absorbs the water,
This is very good for your skin,
In China, the stir-fry is so quick,
It keeps the vitamins in.

As children, we loved Pork Balls, in sweet and sour,
But some pork has much fat,
And I want health for my customers,
So, no pork balls now. Chicken, instead.
Also we cook everything quick and hot,
Cook it too long – the vitamins are dead.

Cashew nuts. First boil, then roast them,
When the meal’s nearly ready, sprinkle them in,
They will be crispy – but not too much,
So the elderly, too, can eat this meal.

In Hong Kong, when I was a child
Most men did the cooking. My father cooked.
I see him come in with the vegetables –
‘Are you going to make sweet and sour?’
But sweet and sour takes a long time to prepare,
Squeezing by hand, for the fresh fruit sauce,
The apple, oranges, lemons -
Usually – we would have stir fry.

As a child, I would clean the vegetables.
One day, I went to make the soup.
But the water boiled dry, the cooking pot broke,
The smell was so bad! And my mother said -
I must not go into the kitchen again,
And that when I grew up, I must marry a chef!

I was six years old. Very naughty.
I just wanted to try everything!

In the restaurant, here, we have a machine.
We spend a long time making juices.
But I don’t want chemicals in our food.
We hope the meal will let people know
This is natural food, made with love –
In harmony and kindness, beautiful and delicious.
I want good health for our customers,
And they tell me, our sauce tastes so different,
That’s because it is made with fresh fruit.

Hong Kong is so very busy ! Pollution is high,
When I was little, I had asthma so bad,
But in England, and especially here, in Leek,
The air is much cleaner, no need for the doctor,
I love it. I don’t like to be very hot,
I love when it snows! So beautiful!
I like it in Leek.