Triple Delight (Chinese dish of chicken, beef and shrimp)

The Chinese dish of “Triple Delight” has come to mean a combination of chicken, beef and shrimp, but early citations of the dish had other ingredients, such as lobster, duck and/or pork. “SOM GIP DAI (Triple Delight) An exotic authentic Chinese Dish consisting of Lobster Meat, Roast Pork, Chicken with Chinese Mushrooms, Water Chestnuts and Bamboo Shoots. Assorted Chinese Vegetables” was printed in the Bergen Evening Record (Hackensack, NJ) on August 17, 1959. “The entree (Triple Delight—ed.) was a combination of roast pork, lobster meat, shrimp, and chicken” was printed in The Record (Hackensack, NJ) on September 18, 1964. “Triple Delight made with chicken, roast duck and crab meat and the shrimp with black bean sauce” was printed in the New York (NY) Times on December 12, 1969.
 
“Triple delight, a many-faceted entree consisting of chicken, pork and shrimp sauteed with Chinese mushrooms, Chinese greens, miniature cobs of corn, sliced carrot and other ingredients, served over crunchy sizzling rice” was printed in The Evening Star (Washington, DC) on May 18, 1972. “‘Triple delight’ of chicken, shrimp and barbecued pork” was printed in the Independent (Long Beach, CA) on August 18, 1972. “Triple Delight with Crispy Rice—Beef, shrimp and chicken, w/Chinese vegetables prepared at table side with crispy rice and sizzling hot plates” was printed in The Washington Star (Washington, DC) on November 2, 1978.
 
Similar Chinese combination dishes include “Double Wonders,” “Dragon and Phoenix,” “Three Musketeers,” “Triple Crown,” “Triple Harvest,” “Four Precious Jewels,” “Four Seasons,” “Hawaii Four-O,” “Hawaii Five-O,” “Happy Family” and “Happy Together.”
   
 
17 August 1959, Bergen Evening Record (Hackensack, NJ), pg. 27, col. 1 ad:
Grand Opening
TUESDAY, AUGUST 18th
SAI-HO
Bergen County’s Newest & Most Beautiful
CHINESE RESTAURANT
Opening Specialty of the House
SOM GIP DAI
(Triple Delight)
An exotic authentic Chinese Dish consisting of Lobster Meat, Roast Pork, Chicken with Chinese Mushrooms, Water Chestnuts and Bamboo Shoots. Assorted Chinese Vegetables.
14-22 PLAZA ROAD
FAIR LAWN
 
18 September 1964, The Record (Hackensack, NJ), “Chinese Menu Fully Explained At Glen Rock’s Golden Phoenix” by John H. Kuhn, pg. 55, col. 2:
(Golden Phoenix. 936 Prospect Street, Glen Rock.—ed.) 
Triple delight was Mr. Hom’s choice for our approval. It was served with fried rice. The entree was a combination of roast pork, lobster meat, shrimp, and chicken. The vegetables were Chinese mushrooms, water chestnuts, bamboo shoots, and snow peas.
 
20 March 1966, Miami (FL) News, “Dining Out,” pg. 7B, col. 6:
KANA HURA (...) South Sea Chicken, Polynesian Duck, Sizzling Go Ba, Lychee Shrimp, or Triple Delight.
 
12 December 1969, New York (NY) Times, “A Guide to Dining” by Craig Claiborne, pg. 68, col. 5:
(Lucy Jung, 206 Canal Street.—ed.)
She found equal delight in the Triple Delight made with chicken, roast duck and crab meat and the shrimp with black bean sauce was very much to her taste.
     
18 May 1972, The Evening Star (Washington, DC), “From Chinatown with Cheng, Chi” by John M. Rosson, pg. B-7, col. 2:
(Mandarin Inn, 14 Mott Street, Chinatown, and the Mandarin Inn, 3045 Mt. Vernon, Alexandria, VA.—ed.)
The result was a delicately handled but properly pungent offering.
 
THE SAME can be said of the triple delight, a many-faceted entree consisting of chicken, pork and shrimp sauteed with Chinese mushrooms, Chinese greens, miniature cobs of corn, sliced carrot and other ingredients, served over crunchy sizzling rice. An intriguing and mouth-watering treat.
 
18 August 1972, Independent (Long Beach, CA), “Table Talk” by Tedd Thomey, pg. A20, col. 2:
(Shanghai Kitchen, 4470 California Place in the Bixby Knolls shopping center.—ed.)
Among the delicious a la carte specials, with steamed rice, are cashew nut chicken with two kinds of mushrooms and Chinese peas, $2.25; the “triple delight” of chicken, shrimp and barbecued pork, $2.25, and Peking Emperor Palace Chicken with peanuts, $1.95.
 
1 September 1972, Poughkeepsie (NY) Journal, pg. 19, col. 6 ad:
Triple Delight…$4.95
(Dynasty Luau.—ed.)
 
4 February 1973, New York (NY) Times, “No Ox ad Year of Ox Fete” by Audrey Shavick, New Jersey sec., pg. 81, col. 4:
(Jade Lantern, Blauvelt, NY.—ed.)
... and Triple Delight, a blend of chicken, ham, sea cucumbers, bamboo shoots and mushrooms.
   
8 March 1974, The Arizona Republic (Phoenix, AZ), pg. D-16, col. 3 ad:
THE TRIPLE DELIGHT…$4.95
(Peking Restaurant.—ed.)
     
9 April 1976, Evening Journal (Wilmington, DE), pg. 44, col. 5 ad:
Spicy Triple Delight (Chicken, shrimp & pork) ... $4.95 per person
(Oriental Garden, Meadowood Shopping Center, Newark.—ed.)
 
2 November 1978, The Washington Star (Washington, DC), pg. A/A-2, col. 5 ad:
TRIPLE DELIGHT WITH CRISPY RICE
BEEF, SHRIMP AND CHICKEN, W/CHINESE VEGETABLES PREPARED AT TABLE SIDE WITH CRISPY RICE AND HOT SIZZLING PLATES
(Peking Garden, 6802 Commerce Street, Springfield, VA.—ed.)
 
Google Books
Milwaukee Eats:
An Insider’s Guide to Saloons, Cafes, Diners, Dives, and Neighborhood Restaurants
By Cari Taylor-Carlson and Lynne Bergschultz
Milwaukee, WI: Serendipity Ink
1993
Pg. 16:
The reviewers recommend the Triple Delight — shrimp, chicken, and beef tenderloin with mushrooms, broccoli, snow peas, bok choy, and baby corn.
   
Google Books
Time Out New York Eating & Drinking 2000:
Time Out New York’s first annual guide to eating and drinking in New York City
By Shawn Dahl
New York, NY: Time Out New York Partners
1999
Pg. 53:
If you like variety, try the inclusive triple delight: sliced beef, chicken and shrimp sauteed with vegetables in a pungent brown sauce.
 
Twitter   
deanfurbush
@deanfurbush
O’Tasty’s is the name of the Chinese restaurant in Adams Morgan where I get the same soup every day: Triple Delight—beef chicken shrimp.
9:55 PM - 16 Apr 2009
   
The Bald Chef
Best Triple Delight Chinese Recipe
by Glenizett June 20, 2016
The Triple Delight or sometimes reverend to as Happy Family is a great Chinese recipe. The Bald Chef show you how to cook this Chinese restaurant carry out classic recipe for Happy Family or Triple Delight often found on the Chef Specialty section of almost any Chinese restaurant. This is a great stir fry recipe that includes Shrimp, Chicken, and Beef.
(...)
COMMENTS
LYNDSAY WELLS, THE KITCHEN WITCH
June 29, 2015 at 3:45 am
We call it Happy Family up here and your rendition looks incredible! I have to try this!
 
Twitter
Anh Nguyen
@anh_when
New triple delight at #Isshin Chicken, beef, and shrimp!  #bandcamp2017 @jsusoutherners The discount card is good all year here! ⭐️
6:23 PM - 7 Aug 2017
 
Twitter
Erong Tu
@tu_erong411
Replying to @rihanna @fentybeauty
U Want (TRIPLE DELIGHT) CHICKENS WHITE BREAST JUMBO. SHRIMP BEEF. SNOW PEA BROCCOLI. 
NO MSG. http://www.scgreengarden.com  PICK UP
6:39 PM - 17 Sep 2017
 
Quora
Tuck Emswiler, retired cook, and active foodie
Answered Jan 16, 2018
What’s the “Four Seasons” dish on Chinese restaurant menus?
Four Seasons is one of a group of entrees on a Chinese menu that are just one recipe but with different meats. Triple delight usually has chicken, beef, and pork. Seafood Delight usually has shrimp, scallops, lobster, and crab. Four Seasons adds shrimp to the Triple Delight. Happy Family adds crab meat and scallops to the Four Seasons. I’ve also seen either 5 Stars over the moon and Hawaii 5-O that have 5 types of meat. They are then stir fried with brocolli, carrots, chestnuts, bamboo shoots, celery, and other veggies and then a sauce made to cover it.