liuzhou

Hunan food never skimps on chilli!

For complicated reasons, tonight's dinner was a delivery app favourite. 青椒肉丝 (qīng jiāo ròu sī), green chilli pork slivers, a Hunan favourite, but found in homes and restaurants all over China. Served with rice, of course.

The only way to get a bird, chicken, duck, or goose, with the giblets is to buy a live one and slaughter it yourself. Many people do. Otherwise, both supermarkets and market vendors remove the precious giblets and sell them separately. This can be in mixed giblet packs like these and include parts I suspect most don’t come with the birds in the west. Intestines? Or, you can buy each type of giblet separately. Hearts, livers, gizzards, intestines, necks, etc. I always have chicken or duck livers and hearts in the freezer but until very recently was unable to find goose liver or hearts that hadn’t been pre-cooked or, in the case of livers, turned into foie gras. I can now buy both online but have to buy a minimum of 2½ kg / 5 pounds at a time. I’m guessing they are mostly sold to the restaurant or foie gras trade. Goose intestines are especially prized.

In drinks I use stainless steel 'ice' cubes. never wet, never dilute your drink.

If you wanted to be "authentically" Xinjiang, I would suggest using your honey, but as I said, there is zero reason not to use maple syrup.

I should say that maple syrup is unknown in Xinjiang or anywhere else in China. It is uber-North American. That's not to say you shouldn't use it should you find a recipe. It is nearly al produced in Canada and the USA and used there, although limited amounts are exported to Europe. I've never had it, ever.

No. That's about a different type of cake. Not the ones I showed. Ba Bao (8 Treasures) is a very common term in Chinese, especially in food names - not only cakes and not only those 8 ingredients. Ba bao soup, ba bao congee, ba bao tea, ba bao beef, ba bao rice, ba bao vegetables, ba bao pickles .... The list is endless.

I'm sorry, I don't have a recipe. I've never met anyone who who home makes them. They are usually sold by street vendors who descend all over China from Xinjiang every year when the nuts are in season.

A bit late, but I found just what you need.

I'm not big on sweet snacks but like these. 新疆八宝切糕 (xīn jiāng bā bǎo qiē gāo), literally ‘Xinjiang eight-treasure cut cake’ a traditional snack or cake from China’s far western province, Xinjiang. As always with number in China, there aren’t necessarily eight ingredients, but around eight. These had ten. Jujubes, almonds, walnuts, sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, peanuts, raisins, black mulberries, and flaxseed, all held with that old traditional favourite, 4-O-α-glucopyranosyl-D-sorbitol syrup aka maltitol syrup. Honey is used in more traditional versions.

You cant really tell from the price alone. What you have to consider is also the average income in China is correspondingly low. It's no less cheap for the average Chinese person. And Borough Market is expensive anyway!

Here for anyone not familiar with the concept are a couple of tree slice boards. Ginkgo Wood These ginkgo boards are found in China and Japan. Ginkgo wood is more on the softer side. However, they are expensive. Pine Board Another softer wood. All these boards also come with steel rings to minimise warping and the price depends on diameter and thickness.

The label is about normal around here. I found toasting improves it.

… and then there’s this Wheat Mix Bread, The bakery is in Beijing and doesn’t claim dual nationality, settling instead on German. However, it’s firmly Chinese and most of their goods are the same old Chinese not-bread bread. They sell these OK 500g loaves for $5.75 a loaf, but recently slapped on a ridiculous $5.16 delivery charge, essentially doubling the price. I had been buying them for about two years at a much lower delivery price. The sourdough above has free delivery, so these fake Germans are now off my shopping list.

One saving grace. I’ve never met anyone in China who knows what sourdough is but I know the Chinese; it’s 酸面包 (suān miàn bāo), literally sour bread. A couple of months ago, I found this online, described by the seller as “Whole Wheat Sourdough Rubon Country Bread Multi-grain French Old Bread German Sourdough Bread”! The sellers are obviously confused. Rubon county doesn’t exist and isn’t even a possible Chinese name and as far as I remember France and Germany are two different countries. The bread is baked in Anhui province, 1,368 km / 850 miles from me. It takes 2-3 days to arrive, but isn’t bad, if not great. It’s also rather pricy for China at $7.25 USD for a 500 gram loaf. But needs must..