Chinese

Before I became a professional chef and went to culinary school, I took a lot of cooking classes and one of my favorites was an extensive Chinese class. It was in the early 80's and taught by a Chinese woman from San Diego, CA. The class was a fantastic and here are some of the recipes we made. I have changed them up a little for our tastes.


Most dishes in Chinese cuisine is prepared in bite-sized pieces ready for direct picking up and eating with chopsticks. Traditional Chinese cuisine is also based on opposites, whereby hot balances cold, pickled balances fresh and spicy balances mild.


One year I took a trip to Hong Kong and had some amazing food, much of it I did not care to know what I was eating. This of course was on the streets, not in the high end restaurants or hotel where we stayed. On the backstreets in Hong Kong we saw many a barbecued "unmentionable meat" hanging in the butchers windows. Made me sick to be honest. One day my friend and I wandered into a little place where we were the only women. The little toothless cook kept waving at us and made us some of the best food we ate in Hong Kong.

Being tall, everyone kept asking me if I was a model or basketball star and actually stopping me on the street to inquire. My main goal in Hong Kong was purchasing my Louis Vuitton handbag, which I ended up getting at the Peninsula Hotel. Another delight at the Peninsula was the wonderful afternoon high tea. The hotel is beautiful and the tea is so lady like and very special, I highly recommend it.


In Hong Kong, Dim Sum is undoubtedly the best in the world and the Yung Kee restaurant has the finest roast goose around. One restaurant you've got to see in the Jumbo Floating - it's not that the food is really great it's the wow factor of this place.


The Star Ferry is a passenger ferry service in Hong Kong. Its principal routes carry passengers across Victoria Harbour, between Hong Kong Island and Kowloon. It was founded in 1888 as the Kowloon Ferry Company. The fleet of ferries operates routes across the harbour, carrying thousands of passengers a day. The Star Ferry is very popular with tourists, and has become one of the icons of Hong Kong heritage.


The open air markets are a sight to see and if you love shopping a must see. You can usually find a lot of "knock off" merchandise and prices are reasonable. If you want custom made shoes or clothing, Hong Kong is the place. I had some shoes made out of snake skin that fit like a glove and were absoutely beautiful. Also, the silk fabrics you can find are luxurious and a great buy.


Another must see is,Victoria Peak, a mountain in Hong Kong also known as Mount Austin, and locally as The Peak. The mountain is located in the western half of Hong Kong Island. With an altitude of 1,811 ft. it is the highest mountain on the island proper, but not in the entirety of Hong Kong. It is a major tourist attraction which offers spectacular views over central Hong Kong, Victoria Harbour, and the surrounding islands.

I hope you enjoy trying some of the recipes listed below. With Chinese cooking everything goes fast, so have all your ingredients ready and prepared. This way you have stress free cooking and it will be enjoyable.


Shrimp Fried Rice


1/4 lb. raw shrimp in shells (get large ones)
3 Tbl. cooking oil
3 eggs, lightly beaten
2 strips bacon
1/4 cup onion, chopped
4 cups of cooked rice
1/4 cup bean sprouts, washed and drained
2 scallions, finely chopped including green part
1 tsp. salt
1/2 Tbl. dark soy sauce
1 Tbl. oyster sauce


Seasoning mixture
pinch of salt
1/2 tsp. soy sauce
1 tsp. white wine
3/4 tsp. cornstarch
dash of pepper


Clean and shell and dice shrimp into 1/4-inch pieces and sprinkle on seasoning mixture. Heat wok and add 1/2 Tbl. oil. Scramble eggs lightly; remove from wok and set aside. Heat wok, add 1/2 Tbl. oil and cook bacon, drain on paper towel and chop fine. Heat wok. Add 2 Tbl. oil, stir fry shrimp and onion for 30 seconds over medium heat. Add rice and stir fry for 6 minutes. Add sprouts, scallions, onion, dark soy sauce, oyster sauce, bacon and scrambled egg, mix thoroughly.

Chicken Stir-Fry with Spicy Peanut Sauce


1 cup sliced chicken breast
1 cup mushrooms, sliced
1/2 cup snow peas, sliced on diagonal
1/2 cup red pepper, slivered
2 Tbl. peanut oil
1 tsp. soy sauce


Sauce1 1/2 Tbl. peanut butter
2 1/2 Tbl. vegetable oil
1 1/2 Tbl. honey
2 Tbl. soy sauce
2 tsp. vinegar
1/2 tsp. sesame oil
1/2 tsp. cayenne
1 Tbl. scallion, minced
1 Tbl. fresh cilantro, chopped


Heat wok and add oil; saute chicken until lightly browned, remove to platter. Saute mushrooms, red pepper and snow peas about 2 minutes, add soy sauce and chicken.


Sauce; mix the peanut butter and oil until smooth, then add other ingredients. Pour over chicken mixture saute for a couple of seconds and serve with rice.


Chinese Hot Mustard (easy)


For every Tbl. of mustard powder, add 1 Tbl. cold water and just a hint of oil, mix well. Serve as condiment for egg rolls, barbecued pork or whatever you like.


Chicken and Corn Soup


6 3/4 cups water
2 lbs. chicken
6 whole peppercorns
1 1/2 tsp. salt
2 sprigs fresh parsley
1 onion, cut into thin slices
1 (1-inch) piece of fresh ginger (peel removed) cut into thin slices
8 scallions
1 can (16 oz.) cream style corn
2 tsp. instant chicken bouillon
1 tsp. sesame oil
1/2 tsp. grated ginger root
dash of black pepper
1/4 cup cornstarch
2 egg whites
2 slices cooked ham, cut into 1 1/2 inch long matchstick strips


Combine 6 cups water, the chicken, whole peppercorns, 1 tsp. salt and parsley in Dutch oven. Add thinly sliced onion and ginger to chicken mixture. Cover pan and cook over medium heat until water boils. Reduce heat to low and simmer 1 1/2 hours. Remove any fat from stock, strain stock and return stock to pan. Cut enough meat off chicken to give you 2 cups. Finely chop 4 of the scallions. Add the chopped scallions, corn, chicken bouillon, sesame oil, the grated ginger and remaining 1/2 tsp. of salt to stock. Cover over medium heat until stock boils.


Blend cornstarch and 1/2 cup remaining water. Stir mixture into stock, cook and stir until soup thickens. Beat egg whites and remaining 1/4 cup water lightly with fork. Drizzle egg whites slowly into stock while stirring stock vigorously. Stir ham into chicken soup. Pour soup into bowls and add remaining scallions cut into thin slices.


Szechuan Soup


1 oz. dried mushrooms
boiling water
6 oz. uncooked boneless lean pork
4 oz. cooked ham
1 small red bell pepper
8 scallions
1/2 cup water chestnuts
8 oz. firm tofu
2 qts. good quality chicken stock
1/2 cup white wine
4 tsp. soy sauce
2 tsp. Chinese chili sauce
2 1/2 Tbl. cornstarch
5 Tbl. water
2 tsp. vinegar
3 tsp. sesame oil
1 egg
8 oz. uncooked shrimp, cleaned and shelled


Place mushrooms in bowl and cover with boiling water. Let stand 30 minutes, drain and remove stems, discard. Cut caps into thin slices. Cut pork and ham into matchstick thin strips. Remove seeds from pepper and cut into thin strips. Cut water chestnuts into slices. Cut tofu into 1/2 inch cubes. Combine chicken stock, wine, soy sauce and chili sauce in Dutch oven. Cook over medium heat until soup boils. Reduce heat and simmer uncovered 5 minutes. Blend cornstarch and 4 Tbl. water. Slowly stir mixture into soup. Cook and stir until soup boils. Add mushrooms, pork, ham, pepper and water chestnuts. Simmer uncovered 5 minutes. Stir in vinegar and sesame oil into soup. Beat egg and remaining 1 Tbl. water with fork. Gradually drizzle egg into soup while stirring soup vigorously. Add scallions, tofu and shrimp. Cook another 2 minutes until shrimp is pink.


Chinese Long Beans - I love long beans and use them all the time


1 1/2 lb. Chinese Long beans
1/2 cup unsalted dry roasted peanuts
2 tsp. soy sauce
3 small fresh Thai chilies, finely chopped
1/2 tsp. salt
1 1/2 Tbl. peanut oil
1 Tbl. garlic, chopped
1 large shallot, halved lengthwise then very thinly slices crosswise
2 Tbl. fresh lime juice


Cook untrimmed beans in a large pot of boiling salted water, uncovered about 4 minutes. Transfer to a bowl of ice water to refresh, the drain and pat dry with paper towels.


Pulse peanuts in food processor until about half of peanuts are finely ground and remainder are in large pieces (do not make a paste). Stir together soy sauce, chiles and salt in a bowl. Heat wok over high heat, add oil then add garlic and stir-fry until garlic becomes pale golden in color about 5 seconds. Add peanuts and stir fry about 30 seconds. Add beans and stir fry until well coated about 2 minutes. Remove work from heat and stir in soy sauce mixture and shallot, stirring until shallot has wilted. Drizzle in lime juice and season with extra salt if needed.


Wonton Pork with Shrimp
 2 tsp. vegetable oil
8 oz. ground lean pork
1 1/2 cups shrimp, finely chopped (peeled and cleaned)
2 Tbl. soy sauce
1 Tbl. rice wine vinegar
salt and freshly ground black pepper
10 bamboo shoots, finely chopped
2 dried mushrooms, soaked in cold water for 30 minutes, drained and chopped
2 scallions, finely chopped including green part
1 tsp. cornstarch, mixed to a paste with 1 Tbl. water
36 wonton wrappers
vegetable oil for frying


Heat oil in frying pan. When hot add pork and fry until pink is gone. Stir in shrimp, rice wine, soy sauce, salt and pepper, bamboo shoots, mushrooms and scallions and fry for 1 minute, stirring constantly. Stir in cornstarch mixture until the pan mixture thickens. Remove from heat and transfer to bowl to cool.


Lay the wonton wrappers on flat surface. Put a little filling inside and pinch edges together to seal. Pull the corners at the base together to seal. Fill all wrappers. Fill a large saucepan one-third full of oil and heat until hot. Carefully add wontons a few at at time and fry for about 3 minutes until golden brown. Remove and drain on paper towels. Serve with dipping sauce.


Mandarin Chicken


2 whole boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into narrow strips
2 Tbl. oil
1 large red pepper, cut into strips
1/2 lb. mushrooms, sliced
1 cup sliced celery
6 oz. pea pods
6 scallions, sliced
3/4 cup good quality chicken stock
1/4 cup honey
2 Tbl. soy sauce
1 Tbl. hot mustard
1 Tbl. vinegar
5 tsp. cornstarch
1 (11 oz.) can mandarin oranges, drained
3/4 cup cashews


Brown chicken in oil until golden. Add red pepper, mushrooms, celery, pea pods and scallions. Cook until tender crisp. In a bowl, mix the chicken stock, honey, soy, mustard, vinegar and cornstarch and add to pan and cook stirring until thickened. Add the oranges cook just a minute. Remove to platter and garnish with cashews. Serve with hot jasmine rice.


Lobster Cantonese
 2 lobsters, cleaned and meat removed, cut into 1 1/2 inch pieces
2 Tbl. oil
1 Tbl. black bean sauce
1 onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, chopped
8 oz. ground pork
3 Tbl. soy sauce
1 tsp. sugar
2 Tbl. sherry
salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 Tbl. cornstarch
5 Tbl. water
1 egg, beaten


Heat the oil and fry the black bean sauce, garlic and onion until lightly browned. Add pork and fry until browned. Add soy sauce, sherry, sugar, salt, pepper and lobster, cover and simmer for about 10 minutes. Blend cornstarch and water to a paste and stir in pan and simmer until sauce clears and thickens. Turn off heat and stir in egg before serving.


Potato Nests - these are so fun to make and serve


1 lb. grated potato, skin removed
3 Tbl. cornstarch
salt and freshly ground black pepper
oil for frying


Combine grated potato, cornstarch and seasonings. Dip basket molds or wire strainers into hot oil. Place 5 Tbl. potato mixture into the basket. Arrange another smaller basket over one with potato mixture. Holding both handles together, dip into hot oil to cover. When potatoes are set , smaller basket can be removed. Continue cooking until crisp and golden. Use for serving seafood, eggs, or anything you desire.


Kung Pao Chicken


3/4 lb. chicken, boned and skinned
2 Tbl. oyster sauce
2 1/2 Tbl. cooking oil
8 small dried red chilies
3 garlic cloves, minced
2 stalks celery, diced
1/2 red bell pepper, cut into 1-inch pieces
1 (8 oz) can bamboo shoots, sliced and drained
2 tsp. cornstarch dissolved in 1 Tbl. water
1/3 cup roasted peanuts


Sauce
3 Tbl. dry sherry
1/4 cup Chinese black vinegar or can use balsamic (easier to find)
1/4 cup chicken stock - good quality
1 Tbl. soy sauce
2 Tbl. hoisin sauce
2 tsp. sesame oil
2 Tbl. chili garlic sauce
2 tsp. sugar


Cut chicken into 1-inch pieces. Marinate chicken with oyster sauce in bowl and let stand for 10 minutes. Combine sauce ingredients in bowl. Place a wok over high heat until hot. Add 2 Tbl. oil and add chilies and cook stirring until fragrant, about 10 seconds. Add chicken and stir fry for 2 minutes. Remove chicken and chilies from wok. Add remaining 1/2 Tbl. oil and add garlic cook about 10 seconds. Add celery, bell pepper and bamboo shoots, stir fry for about 2 minutes. return chicken and chilies to wok stir fry for 1 minute. Add sauce and bring to boil. Add cornstarch mixture and cook stirring until sauce boils and thickens. Add peanuts and stir to coat.

Spicy Eggplant


1/4 lb. ground pork


Marinade
1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. black pepper
1/2 tsp. cornstarch


Sauce1/4 cup good quality chicken stock
4 Tbl. soy sauce
1 tsp. red wine vinegar
1 tsp. sugar
2 tsp. cornstarch

4 Asian eggplants
2 cloves garlic, minced
4 Tbl. oil
2 Tbl. hot bean sauce
2 Tbl. chili paste with garlic
1 tsp. sesame oil
3 scallions, sliced on diagonal for garnish, including green part


Combine ground pork with salt, pepper and cornstarch. Marinate pork for 15 minutes. In a small bowl, combine chicken stock, soy sauce,vinegar and sugar and whisk in cornstarch.


Cut eggplant into 1-inch pieces. Heat wok over medium high heat; add 2 Tbl. oil. When oil is hot, add eggplant and stir fry for 3 to 4 minutes. Remove and drain on paper towels. Add 2 Tbl. oil to wok, when hot add garlic and bean sauce. Stir fry until aromatic. Add ground pork and stir fry until it changes color stirring with wooden spoon. Push pork to sides of wok and add the sauce in middle and bring to boil, stirring quickly to thicken. Add back the eggplant and chili paste. Cook for a couple of minutes and stir in sesame oil. Place on platter and garnish with scallions.


Hoisin Pork


12 oz. Chinese egg noodles, uncooked
1 1/4 lb. pork tenderloin, trimmed of fat
2 tsp. sesame oil
4 garlic cloves, minced
2 tsp. ginger root, peeled and finely shredded
1 red pepper, cut into thin strips
1 1/2 cups snow peas
1/2 cup good quality chicken stock
1 Tbl. cornstarch
1/2 cup hoisin sauce
1 Tbl. soy sauce
1/2 cup scallions, sliced thin on diagonal including green part
1/4 cup cashews


Prepare noodles by cooking in salted boiling water until tender. Cut pork into 1/4 inch thick slices and cut sliced in half. Heat oil in wok over medium high heat until hot. Add pork, garlic and ginger; stir fry for 3 minutes or until pork is no longer pink. Transfer to bowl and set aside. Add pepper and snow peas to work and stir fry 1 minute. Combine stock and cornstarch; mix well. Add broth mixture, hoisin and soy to wok; bring to boil stirring constantly. Add back pork mixture stir fry for 1 minute. Drain noodles and transfer to platter. Spoon pork mixture over noodles and sprinkle with sliced scallions and garnish with cashews.


Chinese Barbecued Pork - serve with hot Chinese mustard, and toasted sesame seeds


1 lb. lean pork shoulder
2 cups water


Marinade1/2 tsp. salt
dash of pepper
1 1/4 Tbl. sugar
2 tsp. soy sauce
1 1/2 tsp. oyster suace
1 1/2 tsp. hoisin sauce
2 tsp. white wine
1 Tbl. honey


Cut meat into 1-inch thick slices about 5x2 inches. To make it easier to cut meat, place in freezer for a little while. Combine marinade ingedients and marinate meat for at least 5 hours or overnight in the refrigerator.


Preheat oven to 375. Put 2 cups water in roasting pan and add any remaining marinate. Place a rack in pan and put meat on rack. Roast for 30 minutes on each side, basting 3 or 4 times with juices from pan. Do not cover! Increase oven temperature to 425 and roast 10 minutes or more on one side to brown meat. Serve.


Broccoli in Oyster Sauce
 1 bunch broccoli (1 1/4 lb.)
vegetable oil
1/4 cup oyster sauce
1 tsp. sesame oil
1/2 onion, thinly sliced
1/2 red pepper, thinly sliced
5 cloves garlic, minced
3 scallions chopped, including green part
2 Tbl. toasted sesame seeds


Clean broccoli and cut into florettes. Steam until crisp/tender. In a heated wok add peanut oil to slizzling, add onion, pepper and garlic and stir fry a couple of minutes, add broccoli and stir about 2 minutes. Add sauce and toss around, add sesame oil. Remove to platter, sprinkle with chopped scallions and sesame seeds.


Szechuan Prawns


1/2 lb. large prawns
1 1/2 Tbl. oil
salt
4 whole dried red chili peppers
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 tsp. fresh ginger, finely chopped
2 Tbl. scallions, finely chopped including green part


Sauce
1 1/4 tsp. cornstarch
1/4 cup good quality chicken stock
1 Tbl. white wine
2 tsp. hoisin sauce
1 Tbl. ketchup
1 Tbl. sesame oil
1 tsp. oyster sauce
1 tsp. soy sauce
1 tsp. sugar


Shell, devein, wash prawns. For sauce; add cornstarch to chicken stock and whisk to incorporate, add remaining sauce ingredients, mix well and set aside.


Heat wok, add oil, whole chili peppers, garlic, ginger and scallions. Stir fry for 30 seconds over high heat. Add prawns and stir fry for 2 minutes, sprinkle with salt. Mix sauce again and add to prawns and bring to fast boil. Cook uncovered for 30 seconds over high heat. Remove and discard chili peppers or leave in if you like them. Serve with rice.


Chinese aren't actually known for their desserts. They eat fresh fruit or ice cream type dishes, along with sweet bean pastes, gao (sticky sweet cake), jellies, pudding or cookies. When I was in Hong Kong, our hotel served a lot of French pasteries, which I guess was mainly for the tourists. I won't be giving any Chinese dessert recipes.


Bon Appetit

Seek the Lord and His strength: seek His face continually

Psalm 105:4