bleudauvergne

Wow! Those jianbing are HUGE! I don't have a pan as big as the one in the photo, and I do not have a hat like that. Do we need to wear that kind of hat if we make jianbing? One thing that is interesting is that it says in order to keep it from sticking to the pan, they use a cloth with oil to wipe down the hot pan. This is useful information. But how can this be possible, William, that your mother does not know? The article says that in addition to needlework, if a woman cannot make jianbing, she will never be married! Aiya! Ah but your father married a city girl, from Beijing. She probably has a whole list of wonderful Beijing foods she makes at home. I loved the food there. I am going to try it, but my biggest flat pan is not that big.

I've found people's advice very interesting in this thread! I'm taking notes here!

You can point at the menu.

Lovin' this blog!

Project noted on another thread that he measures the soy and vinegar for his jiaozi dipping sauce. What are your soy/vinegar ratios and what brand vinegar are people using? I normally use Narcissus brand Yongchun Laogu (Black vinegar) - I add garlic finely minced (I do not put garlic in my jiaozi, only ginger) and a few drops sesame oil in each dish of sauce. What do you do for jiaozi sauce?

I learned to speak and read it and when in China that was when I learned the most. These days I can get the gist of most simple things but don't ask me to analyze literature or philosophy! My skills have really suffered since coming to france and going through the language learning process here. Gary - Pretty much all of my work was with the London Metal Exchange through my Swiss head office although I was involved in a number of physical trades out of Shanghai, I was there a few times a year. So William! Can you get us a jianbing recipe from your mother? I also looked through all my Chinese cookbooks and did not find a recipe.

No. This can't be true.

Rachel, thank you so much for sharing that amazing experience! Your photos are excellent.

I'm so sorry to hear what some others have been and are going through. My thoughts are with you guys. It's true, it does depend on what kind of chemo it is. Yes, do the creme brulee, if that's what your friend is asking for. And ask him how brullee'd he wants the top. When my dad fought his battle, I cooked for the helpers. I could not cook long simmering comfort foods in the house. A neighbor was really gracious and turned her kitchen over to me so I cooked and brought the finished dishes back home for people to eat. One thing I was able to do at home was I made Jaiozi (Chinese dumplings) for everyone and little itty bitty jiaozi with very little filling and lots of skin just enough for him to feel the warm soft dumpling skin and swallow it for him. He was craving tart flavors and the vinegar hit the spot. Also fresh squeezed orange juice and fresh made lemonade. He appreciated the fresh squeezed citrus juices. I suggest cooking for the helpers most of all, do it off site, and bring things ready to heat up and eat. The helpers are not going to be taking care of themselves much. Do your best.

Yes, that's a great place for oysters. You can also get a fabulous fish soup there.

Here is a link to another Jianbing photo. I loved the story of the kid who's mom made him the jianbing on your link. It was very sweet. Do you have memories like that of jianbing?

William - WOW this is making me want mantou now! ...mantou mantou mantou... And thank you for the link it's lovely. Lucy

Yes, Steve, most definitely exaggerated, an example of what at the time I thought a restaurant back home (in the U.S.) serving a blanquette de veau would describe it as. Atypically ridiculous? Not sure what you mean by that. I was attempting to illustrate that very simple home style dishes are often over-explained in menus back home. Who said top French restaurant? Sorry if I gave that impression by posting the Lyon fine dining thread!

Pot hole cover on road in morning sun = shortbread.

It sounds heavenly.

When I was in North Carolina, I had a very basic backyard wood smoker and smoked meats and cheeses in it. Unfortunately I was forced to leave her behind. My father used to smoke a lot of fish and got to smoking turkey for Thanksgiving in his later years. The technology is very simple and can be very cheap, I urge anyone who sees backyard smokers for sale at their local hareware to pick one up. I got mine for around 30 dollars at the time, about 6 years ago. Nick's looks like the mother of all smokers - whew! Does that thing work inside? Wow! edited to ask did you get the new smoker for your BIRTHDAY? Happy Birthday Nick!

Another question about the grand tasting - sorry if you've already covered them, 1) are all of the vignerons who participate in the grand tasting local? 2) can people buy or place orders on the spot? 3) What is the price range of a bottle of table wine? That pizza looks mighty good. We can't get it like that over here.

I post a link to an interesting discussion of menus and their language here. note: if a word or phrase comes up orange colored, it's most likely a link to another thread or post.

Welcome, Mark! At the same time we have been talking about translations of menus from the French over in the France Forum (click), headed up by Bux. A couple of years ago in a discussion group for anglophones in France, people were bringing up ideas of kinds of work we could do in France, and I was talking about how being a menu translator would be a great job when I posted: This was way before I found eGullet, and unfortunately there were not enough like minded people to continue the discussion to any great length. I am going to take the side of Lisa's "As a substitute for a standardized cultural vocabulary of recognized dishes?" and say I think the recipe on the menu phenomenon was born stateside, where multi-ethnicity requires an explanation of a dish. The embelllishments and plays on this (like the "Buck Run Farm’s Grass Fed Beef burger") come from that tradition. I have noticed too that this is not just a French phenomenon. In countries other than France, names for dishes are simply stated and the discussion at the table is not what is in them, but how well the dish is done, based on the diners' criteria for the dish. In China, you will never find descriptive menus like the ones in the States, because there is no learning process involved when ordering dishes that are served in all restaurants. All dishes contain 3 or 4 syllables and no more. In fact many restaurants in China did not even have menus, you'd just go in and order, and they'd bring you the dishes you ordered. Specifically, on the Lyon Fine Dining (click) thread, we have been musing on a freakish translation of one of Lyon's finest dining establishments. Happy you've come to join us. -Lucy edited to remove some spaces

We were told that this was the way to make cinnamon toast. So after mixing it up and eating a little to make sure there was enough cinnamon, I'd spread it at least 1/2 inch thick on the top of toast and put it under the broiler, and lick the bowl. Then before the surface could even begin to even sizzle, I'd remove it and eat it thick and cold and good like that. Even better in the heel of the bread when you can really mound it in there.

Yes, you could do that. Other ideas: Tartiflette! Or you could use the ham in a pot of beans. It's wonderfull served with cantaloupe as an appetizer.

I could be just that, Bux. I am thinking of offering to translate their English version in exchange for a meal there. Do you think they'd go for it?

Thanks for sharing that with us.

To Kangarool who is having trouble turning out good jiaozi - here's a thread that covers a great deal about many facets of jiaozi making - click! I hope you solve your jiaozi problem soon! L

Hi William! Welcome to eGullet. I used to work for a trading company in Beijing, but now I live in France. What do you trade? I used to trade nonferrous metals. I LOVED the food in Qingdao. The seafood was the best I ever had. I have very good memories from the place. Man tou. Excellent dipped in sweet sugar sauce. Shiewie: embarrased to admit this = -Lucy