There are just a few days left to the start of Chinese New Year, and Yu Sheng is one of those items you can’t order too early to keep in the fridge — it needs to be fresh. And with the new rules of no shouting during the tossing of Yu Sheng in restaurants, all the more reason to enjoy it in the comfort of your own home. GrabFood has a wide selection of restaurants and of course the convenience of delivery; here are my top three picks of Yu Sheng on GrabFood:

DON DON DONKI

Don Don Donki recently made its debut on Grab; they offer a good selection of their ready-to-eat meals (sushi, sashimi, bentos and noodles), popular Japanese groceries (fruits and frozen meats), health and beauty items, and this season… Yu Sheng! There are five types of Yu Sheng available: Plain ($22), Vegetarian ($25.80), Scallop ($38), Salmon ($35.80) and Premium ($40), which has two types of raw fish and everything from the other platters.

Above: Don Don Donki Premium Yu Sheng ($40), with island-wide delivery.

Above: The Yu Sheng comes pre-packed with all ingredients including two types of fish (yellowtail and salmon).

Above: A Close-up of the pre-packed ingredients.

Above: The fish is extremely fresh with no fishy smell or taste. It complements the rest of the flavours of the dish well.

If you want to add your own raw fish or other premium ingredients (like abalone), get the Plain Yu Sheng. But really, any of the Yu Shengs from Don Don Donki will give you good value; the ingredients are supermarket fresh and conveniently packed according to the “steps” (for the steps, scroll to the bottom of this article).

Don Don Donki is available for island-wide delivery on GRAB while stocks last. The restaurant is open for orders 11am-8pm.

CANDLENUT

Candlenut is the world’s first Michelin-starred Peranakan restaurant, and serves up a contemporary take on traditional Straits-Chinese cuisine. It was also featured in the Netflix travel documentary, Somebody Feed Phil, specifically in the episode where Phil visits Singapore. Popular dishes include their Buah Keluak Fried Rice, Chap Chye and Ikan Assam Pedas; while their Sambal Belachan is so tasty and sought-after, they now sell it by the jar. For Chinese New Year, they’ve introduced their version of a Yu Sheng that is extremely flavourful and premium with fresh abalone.

Above: Candlenut Yu Sheng ($94.15), includes abalone, carrot, white and green radish, iceberg lettuce, cucumber, sweet red ginger strip, white sour ginger strip, pickled leek strip, pickled cucumber strip, pickled yellow and brown melon strip, arrowhead chips, dried orange peel, candied wintermelon, roasted peanuts and pomelo.

Above: Scattering the golden crackers (遍地黄金 piàn dì huáng jīn).

Above: Close-up of the candlenut yu sheng with a generous helping of abalone.

Above: The abalone is fresh and delicious, chewy but not tough; A good quality abalone.

The Candlenut Yu Sheng is my personal favourite of the three featured here; the chef captures the traditional and authentic flavours of Yu Sheng, doing an excellent job of balancing all the proportions and ingredients into a perfect mix. If you want a high quality Yu Sheng, this is it.

Candlenut is available for island-wide delivery on GRAB. The restaurant is open for orders 11.30am-9pm daily.

MAJESTIC RESTAURANT — STRAITS VIEW

Everyone wants a good, reliable Yu Sheng, and a safe bet would be ordering one from a reputable Chinese restaurant; in this case, Majestic Restaurant at Straits View. The restaurant is helmed by award-winning owner-Chef Yong Bing Ngen, and is famous for their dim sum selection, Peking duck, and other contemporary Chinese dishes. The Yu Sheng is packed in a way that cuts most of the steps; you just need to add the salmon, pepper and spices, plum sauce, and if you added it to your order — snow pear.

Above: The yu sheng package arriving from grabfood delivery.

Above: Majestic restaurant atlantic salmon lo hei (small) with snow pear ($79.18).

Above: adding the pepper and five-spice powder (招财进宝 zhāo cái jìn bǎo).

Above: Close-up of the salmon.

MAJESTIC RESTAURANT — Straits View is available for island-wide delivery on GRABFOOD. The restaurant is open for orders 11am-4pm AND 5PM-8.30PM DAILY.

These are my top three picks for Yu Sheng available on Grab. You can tap on the Food icon in the Grab app and search for these restaurants. To explore other Yu Sheng options, you can also tap on the Food or Mart icon and search “yusheng”.

About Lo Hei:

Lo Hei translates to prosperity toss, while yu sheng (魚生) means raw fish or the other yu sheng (余升) means an increase in abundance. Either way, it’s such a great word; and both the two terms “lo hei” and “yu sheng” are used interchangeably during Chinese New Year, and refer to the tossing of this vibrant dish. It is believed that the action of tossing and the symbolism of the ingredients bring luck and good fortune; and the higher you toss, and louder you shout, the greater your fortunes will be.

The Steps:

You can start by playing The Lo Hei Song performed by the Singapore Chinese Cultural Centre.

While the music plays, follow these steps in preparing the fish while saying the phrases.

Step 1  — Arrange the slices of raw fish
Say:  年年有余 (nián nián yǒu yú)
Meaning: There’s fish every year, which refers to abundance every year

Step 2 — Squeeze lime juice over the fish
Say:  大吉大利 (dà jí dà lì)
Meaning: Great luck and great profit

Step 3: Scatter pepper and five-spice powder
Say:  招财进宝 (zhāo cái jìn bǎo)
Meaning: Usher in wealth and prosperity

Step 4: Drizzle the oil in a circular motion over the ingredients
Say:  财源广进 (cái yuán guǎng jìn)
Meaning: Receive wealth and fortune in abundance from all directions

Step 5: Throw in the julienned carrots
Say: 鸿运当头 (hóng yùn dāng tóu）
Meaning: Fortune shines down and good luck is imminent

Step 6: Add the shredded green radish
Say: 青春常驻 (qīng chūn cháng zhù)
Meaning: To stay young forever

Step 7: Add the shredded white radish
Say: 步步高升 (bù bù gāo shēng)
Meaning: Promotions at work or in school

Step 8: Sprinkle finely chopped peanuts
Say: 金银满屋 (jīn yín mǎn wū)
Meaning: Household filled with riches

Step 9: Sprinkle sesame seeds
Say: 生意兴隆 (shēng yì xīng lóng)
Meaning: Thriving, booming business

Step 10: Scatter golden crackers
Say: 遍地黄金 (piàn dì huáng jīn)
Meaning: Let there be gold everywhere you step

Step 11: Pour the sweet plum sauce
Say: 甜甜蜜蜜 (tián tián mì mì)
Meaning: To be blessed with love and sweetness

Step 12: Toss with chopsticks
Say: 发啊! (huat ah!)
Meaning: Prosperity!

🥢