From Guangdong province to Takapuna Auckland.
Chef Lucky Li, 46, and his wife Li Xian, 45, made the bold move of opening their eatery Lucky Life in Auckland’s North Shore - selling a poultry delicacy inspired by flavours from his hometown.
Lucky’s “five cup duck”, named because it uses five key secret ingredients, has won over many hearts.
Served half or whole with a glistening layer of brown sauce overflowing on the sides, Lucky shared that it took 2 to 3 hours to cook the dish to the point where the duck was well-seasoned and moist.
But if you’re hoping to find this back in Guangdong, you might find the flavour but not the dish.
“This is a delicacy in Guangdong, but we cook it with pigeons and not duck,” Lucky said.
“I feel this is one of the best flavours from my hometown, but you can’t get too many pigeons commercially here, so I decided to use duck instead.
“So far, I am happy with the feedback from customers that they like it.”
Opening the Lucky Life restaurant in May has been a “dream come true”, Lucky said.
He has worked in kitchens and restaurants in China since he left school as a teenager, and more recently in Australia and restaurants in Auckland that include Wang Wang Pancake in Dominion Road and Canto Canto in Westfield Newmarket.
“I love to cook, but my dream has always been to do my own cooking style and share that people who enjoy my food,” Lucky said.
Guangdong food is more commonly known as Cantonese cuisine, and Cantonese are known to have an adventurous palate.
Unlike many other regions of China, Cantonese style cooking does not use much spice and the emphasis is about bringing out the natural flavour of the meat, seafood and vegetables.
Lucky’s style is mixed of cooking skills that he has learned from the west and other Chinese regions, but his basic believe is still that the ingredients’ natural flavours has to be preserved.
“Even with the five cup duck, the sauce is to complement the dish, and the duck still remains the hero of the dish,” he said.
Lucky’s entrepreneurial path however has been a long and winding one.
Li Xian said her husband used to work in fishing ports in Guangdong after he left school, where he would often bring home seafood he got from fishermen and cooked for the family.
“He is happiest when he is cooking, and even more so when he sees people enjoying his food,” Li Xian said.
When her sister, who runs a restaurant in Perth, offered him a job, he jumped at the opportunity thinking it would be a chance for him to introduce his cuisine style.
But his bid to get residency and bring his family over failed, and decided to venture across the Tasman to New Zealand instead.
“We thought of just giving up and return to China, but after spending quite a few years in Austraila, our children couldn’t adapt,” Li Xian said.
“So Lucky took a gamble and came over to New Zealand, while me and our two boys went back to China.”
Li Xian said her husband was overjoyed when he got his residence visa last year.
“I still remember that phone call when he told us to pack our bags, telling us we will be moving to New Zealand and live as a family again,” Li Xian said.
“I got emotional too, it was a long journey but I was really happy, especially for the sake of our children.”
Li Xian said that while they have worked in restaurants, Lucky Life is the first restaurant they’ve owned.
Other signature dishes at Lucky Life include their Salted Egg Yolk Soft Shell Crabs, made with their very own salted eggs and Honey Pepper Chicken.
“This restaurant will be our base on where we can build our lives, and Lucky can realize his dream of creating dishes with flavours of home,” she said.
“We’re not doing it so we can get rich, we will be happy if we can earn enough to just get by. But most important is that we are and that our food make our customers happy.”
Lucky Life Restaurant Huron Street, Takapuna, Auckland
This article is a collaborative sponsored content brought to you by Lucky Life Restaurant.
