Danforth Dragon Restaurant – 861 Danforth Ave, Toronto, ON M4J 1L8
Country: India 
Must-try dish: Manchurian Chicken
Dinner guests: Pornstar Sam
Seating: Indoor seating only. 
The high: The food comes to the table incredibly quickly. 
The low: If you’re used to incredibly spicy Hakka, you’ll want to ask them to spice the dishes up upon ordering. 

Hakka cuisine represents a culture within Asia as opposed to representing a specific country, however each country that specializes in Hakka food has its own adaptation of the recipes that blend with the local cuisine. An example would be Chinese-style Hakka, or Indian-style hakka, which are the two most pronounced types. 

The Hakka people on the other hand have their beginnings in Northern China, and they slowly migrated south, and then into other surrounding countries. During this migration, they shared their cooking methods and flavours that ultimately created a world-renowned cuisine that spreads across borders. 

Our first attempt at Hakka is the Indian way, and the dishes are a perfect marriage between ingredients and flavours from China and India. We ordered the Shrimp Pakoras, which are typically a deep-fried Indian appetizer that had eastern flavours with chunks of shrimp and a green chutney for dipping. These were the size of golf balls, and could be ordered in half or full portions. It’s an excellent kick-off to a meal as long as you can handle the 15 minute cooking time. 

Another blend of both countries’ ingredients is in the Hakka Chow Mein noodle dish. The thick saucy noodles are sauteed with shrimp and chicken pieces, vegetables, and a generous portion of ginger that makes its presence known quickly. It’s a textured dish that will please anyone who loves Chinese noodle plates. Keeping in theme is the Hakka Style Fried Rice is a Chinese classic with a twist. The rice is cooked with coriander, onions, tomatoes, and chillies then shrimp and chicken are added to the mixture. The rest is all about the egg cooked into it.  

The chili stir-fried meats are a classic Hakka delight and there are tofu or eggplant options for the vegetable lovers out there. In India, it’s unlikely that you’ll find Chili Beef on a menu due to religious restrictions on eating cow, but in China all things beef get a green light. The pieces of beef are thin and tender, they’re cooked with onions, green chilis, and soya sauce. Chili Chicken is one of the most popular dishes in Hakka cuisine no matter what country you’re in. 

The final and favourite dish of the dinner is the Manchurian Chicken, which are lightly battered chunks of chicken in a spicy, tangy sauce made with all the best ingredients: garlic, ginger, chili, onions, and coriander. Like the name of the dish, the sauce is called Manchurian. 

Although the above are the dishes we ordered, there are a number of delicious sounding creations from the Hakka-style of cooking that include sauces, meats and stir-fries. There are certain dishes that lean more towards India because of the curries, while others use a heavier range of Chinese ingredients. 

The majority of the dishes at Danforth Dragon’s Restaurant have a flame beside them indicating that they’re spicy, but most of the dishes that we ordered were lacking the infamous Hakka heat. This does make it more accessible for all spice levels in the end.  

We can confidently say that our first Hakka experience was a culinary success, and we look forward to tasting more national variations of the dishes.  

Eat with you soon,

Mandrea Bike
(Mat & Andrea)