Ap Lei Chau Market and Cooked Food Centre

To truly understand Hong Kong Cantonese cooking from the grassroots level, as well as the definition of «wok hay», one needs to look no further beyond dai pai dong. The classic street food stall eatery of lore (where retired government employees were given a license to sell cooked food that was quick fast dirt cheap and insanely tasting with a ton of atmosphere).
Now with regards to seafood, to truly understand it you need to go straight to the source, or as close to it as possible. Short of boarding a fisherman’s boat, which not many people can do, there are many popular options, such as Sai Kung (which all the visitors know about), Lei Yu Mun (SE tip from Kwun Tong area, also a touch touristy but a bit less than Sai Kung), Lau Fau Shan (a bit further out to the NW), and of course scattered places like Lamma Island and maybe Cheung Chau (really cheap, but not much variety or skill in handling). You do not get seafood from the big tourist barge known as «Jumbo», and you certainly don’t have to spend an arm and a leg at the places nicknamed «canteen for the rich» or even those so called Michelin star Cantonese restaurants.
You can do better than that though. The next best thing is to go straight to a place like Ap Lei Chau market (and the cooked food stalls upstairs in the same city government building). ALC is situated right across the strait from Aberdeen (where the largest wholesale fish market is located), and if you come sometime past noon, the first floor wet market rear section will be bustling with the best catches of the day, some fresh on ice, and others alive and kicking. Spend some time to look at the photos of this listing, and the variety is just stunning.
A wide range from locally caught, to top notch stuff imported from various parts of the world. Many of the seafood vendors in the market also come from a family line of fishermen, so they have particularly intimate knowledge all the way from the nomenclature, characteristics, seasonality, flavor, preparation methods, as well as best ways to enjoy the fish.
The number of vendors in the market are not many, but the variety can be astounding even during early January. At least 10 varieties of shrimp and prawns, 8 or more species of crabs, 20++ varieties of clams/​shellfish, and so many different kinds of fish. The rest is up to your whim and fancy to figure out what you will sample.
Once you have decided on your seafood selections and purchased them, take the escalator upstairs, and choose your pick of several cooked food stall vendors. Assuming you have a reservation (if on the weekend), hand your loot and have them prepare the food for you (for a fee). Gather some friends, and have the blast of your life! Dim sum? Forget that. Kick it up a few notches with seafood!
Here are some random picks from various visits
Whiskered Velvet Shrimp 赤米 — this smaller sized shrimp packs a punch in flavor despite having a firmer texture. Parboiled then dip in sauce for best results
九節蝦 («Japanese» King Prawn) — these are typically striped in two shades of brown, alernating upwards of nine times (hence «nine striped prawn», native to the NW waters off the coast of Lau Fau Shan, but once in a blue moon you might find some here. Parboiled as usual, but incredibly sweet and delicious, even without a dipping sauce.
東風螺 Spiral Babylon — a very classic and cheaper variant than the sea conch 花螺 (also quite excellent). Parboiled as usual, remove the crispy non edible «foot» (base) of the meat, use a toothpick to scrape it out, dip it in the sweet sauce and it’s incredible eats. Can’t miss it by the sea snail shaped shell with leopard like spots.
花蟹 (fa hai) Blue Crab — it ain’t blue, but a large specimen can go for a hefty sum (and a huge markup at restaurants). The large ones are hard to find but a medium sized one can also be very tasty.
花蛤 (Common Basket Lucina) — weird English name, but sometimes they are also referred to as «sea melon seeds». The best and only way to enjoy them is to steam them in saltwater with a little oil, add vermicelli rice noodles, scallions, ginger. The soup that comes out of this prep is out of this world. 油鹽水花蛤
I kid you not, there is actually a mysterious looking fish that resembles a Japanese sea bream, but for inexplicable reasons, the local fishermen have decided to call it New York了約. I personally have not tasted it.
For something fugly but delicious, 九肚魚 (Bombay Duck) is a hideous looking slimey sluggish looking devlish almost mini eel-​like, and is typically served deep fried salt and pepper style. Good beer food too.
沙鯭 (Filefish) — looks a little bit like Dory from Finding Nimo, but the eyes look a bit evil. I don’t know about other preps, but if I see this Hong Kong Dory, she’s becoming my soup.
大眼雞 (Big Eye/​Kapok) — haven’t seen a fresh one lately, but also fantastic if made into a boiled soup.
Let’s not forget the fresh abalone! steamed of course!
This is just scratching the surface too…