#9006 - Nov 1990

Digital Archiving Completed by the Ethnography Lab, A University of Toronto Anthropology Initiative
and Produced in Collaboration with David Perlman/Wholenote Media Inc between July-December 2015.
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MARKET GOURMET
Peigi T Rockwell
Winter months are cold months in Northern China and in
the old days charcoal fires burned in the centre of the homes
to provide heat and to cook the main meal in what was called
a hot pot.
Meat was kept frozen outside Jln the roof and then thinly
sliced when needed. Vegetables, broth and meat were all
cooked together in the same pot. This economical and
flavourful method of cooking is still possible today: Hot pots
can be purchased in Chinatown or you can rig up your own
using a fondue pot.
David Sun runs a Northern Chinese restaurant, the Tung
Lai Shung, in the Dragon City food court and he owns an
establishment on Kensington Ave. which used to feature hot
pots as its specialty but now is used as an auxilliary kitchen
for the Tung Lai Shung.
According to Sun, the Chinese say lamb is the best meat to
eat in winter in order to keep warm but any meat or fish can
be used in the hot pot as long as it is thinly sliced.
First •. one must start with a variety of condiments. Soy
sauce, sesame oil, rice vinegar, rice wine, sugar, green onions
and sesame butter should all be accessible to the diner. In a
small bowl, the diner puts a little bit of Bull Head barbeque
sauce (made from brill fish and available in Chinatown) and
mixes it with an egg and whatever combination of sauces suits
the palate.
Meanwhile, a broth is boiling in the hot pot in the centre of
the table to which is added the raw vegetable or meat. The
meat is added to the hot pot in small individual sieves while
the vegetables are thrown into the broth on their own and
shared. Sun suggests the vegetables should include Chinese
cabbage, small cubes of frozen and fresh tofu, mushrooms,
spinach and whatever other vegetables the diner craves.
Once the vegetables or meat are cooked, they are placed in
the sauces combined in the small bowl and eaten while
another vegetable or meat goes in the hot pot. The evening is
spent cooking at the table until all the meat and vegetables
are finished. Then the flavourful broth is divided and consumed.
For those of you wanting to try this meal with a real hot
pot, they range in price from $14 to $50 and can be purchased
at most of the kitchen supply shops on Spadina.
MARKET MARKET The Kensington Market Drum, November 1990
Keep.Warm with ~~~
a Hot Pot'di:- ~-,:~~ -~ ~·~. c ~
David Sun and his grand-daughter Tracy demonstrate the charcoal burning hot-pot.
Speaking of
Hot Pots:
that was quite a
soup kitthen in front
of the Harbour Castle
Hilton, during the
November 7 Tory
$500-a-plate
fundraiser: let's hear
it for pumpkins,
thyme and garlic
from Sanci's, 66
Kensington Ave.
Market of Markets
Masha Buell
photos Buzz Borza
Balmy Indian Summer.
November. Springlike except
for the omnipresent pumpkins.
Trip to the Ontario
Food Terminal begins at 9:30 ·
a.m. Reasonable. We climb
into the van. Bobby: " ... more
interesting to go when the
serious market stuff is happening
- say about 6:30 but
it's crazy then .. .fork lifts and
skids and you gotta watch
your back all the
time ... nobody'd have time to
talk ... "
Off we go to the place
where thousands of people
buy and sell tons of produce
for millions of dollars, all
year round. Somwhere in
Etobicoke.
The first part of the Food
Terminal looks like a huge
semi-covered parking lot .
This is where you find the
outdoor stalls. About 400
spots rented out to growers
from all over Ontario. Right
now besides pumpkins:
superb apples, pears, many ·
kinds of squash, beets, carrot,
turnips, cauliflowers, and
a wonderful variety of men
and women of all ages.
Peace. Plenty. How is possible
that people go hungry in
Ontario?
Inside the warehouse - the
wholesale produce companies.
Fruits of the earth,
trees, vines from every part
of the planet. Anytifue you
want them. The action here
is pretty lively. Trucks, forklifts,
buggies trundling boxes,
sacks, barrels and crates. No
small talk. Only big talk.
Many vigorous young men,
and a few imperial older
photo: Buzz Bur?.a
ones. No women in sight.
Bobbby's friends at the market
notice his little entourage
with cocked eyebrows and a
grin. And we try to keep out
of the way.
On to the smoky little coffee
shop for breakfast. Here
I am one of two women. The
woman and the man behind
the counter are producing
eggs n bacon, western sandwiches,
coffee, and yes,
Ontario potatoes turned into
crisp french fries, with
·astounding speed.
And then it's pumpkin
time. Back to Kensington for
the work day world of the
Market. With a truckful.
And an eyeful
Out in the parking lot, with the city skyl(ne in the distance, to put it all in perspective