tong

i was raised in a family that had dinner together every night. at each dinner, i was certain of 2 things, i would have to yum tong before dinner and yum tong AGAIN after dinner. (for those of you who don't speak cantonese, yum tong means to "drink soup")

the tong varied, sometimes there was chicken and carrots, sometimes pork, nuts & berries, sometimes snakes, you get the point, it was mystery soup. i once caught my mom in a lie, she told me it was chicken soup and after i drank it, i learned it was frog soup. other times i would ask what was in it and if she answered with, "it's healthy, drink it." i knew i was about to drink something really gross.

whenever i visit home, my mom packs a bag of cooked food for me (she's not completely convinced i can cook) and i can always count on her to include a container of tong. "pretend like it's water and drink it up!" she says.

here's a picture of one of her more creative tong containers. take notice of the plastic wrap so that it doesn't spill during transporation.