liuzhou

Tagliatelle with Prawns and Matsutake in White WIne.

No, not at all in China that I've ever seen. I can get them but they are imported from Thailand usually dried, but very occasionally fresh. I did see them fresh once in a market in HCMC, Vietnam but don't recall ever eating them there.

Trúc or chanh sác in Vietnam. 箭叶橙 (jiàn yè chéng) in Mandarin Chinese, if you can find them.

Kaffir is a racist slur in South Africa referring to black people. It means non-believer or infidel and is/was also used by muslims to refer derogatorily to non-muslims. So, the word can be very offensive, although there is no clear connection between the slur and the fruit. In South Africa, the fruit is called 'Thai lime'. Makrut is the more common name in Thailand and so has become a more neutral descriptor.

The best sardines I've ever eaten, maybe the best meal, were near my then second home near Perpignan in southwest France, near the border with Spain. They were freshly landed from the Mediterranean and grilled / BBQd on a wharf by fishermen for some religious festival - Assumption Day, I think. Much larger than anything I've ever encountered in a can. I doubt you could get one in a standard sardine can. That was almost 40 years ago and I still think of it every time I eat sardines.

These 'gifts' often are. They just send whatever they haven't otherwise managed to sell. It comes from a large, very general store which sells everything from beer to fresh fruit and back again.

I'm not sure it's that. The term 'sardine' is ill defined and can cover many species and legal definitions vary from country to country. In the UK. the official definition is a young pilchard less than 6" long. Many fish sold as sardines are actually youmg herring. Or sprats. Sardines here in China are very different to what you might get in the UK or the rest of Europe. Chinese sardines - 沙丁鱼 (shā dīng yú)

I had a good day today. I have been dealing with some administrative nonsense regarding my residence status in China and spent the morning in the Immigration Police Office. After examining the numerous silly documents they wanted me to submit, they accepted my renewal application - which means I won! To celebrate I ordered a few beers to be delivered to my home. They just arrived with a surprise 'gift' of some diced watermelon and a tiny plastic fork to transport it to my gob! I've ben buying stuff from this supplier for a couple of years, but this is the first time they have awarded my anything I didn't ask for.

Depending on where you are in the UK, many different red and green chillies are available. When I was in the UK in 2019, I was surprised by the selection in my mother's local small town supermarket. London has many more. I think that is bad writing rather than bad chilli availability.

I'm sorry, but that is kind of meaningless. There are many different small green chillies, some mild , some fiery. And what is 'small'? Can you be more specific?

I'm not sure there is any crayfish in them. It isn't listed.

Today I looked more closely at the 'crayfish' noodles in the previous post. Ingredients as listed in Chinese: Noodles (Wheat flour, starch, refined palm oil, acetate starch, salt, gluconate powder, hexamethonium. monomethylglycerol fatty acid ester, sodium carbonate, phosphatide, natrium tripolyphosphate, sodium bicarbonate, DL-3 fruit acid, turmeric, riboflavin dibutylhtydroxytoluene, ascorbic pamitate. Sauce package (Water, refined vegetable oil, salt, edible essence, Pixian bean sauce, white sugar, spicy 8, soy sauce, msg, glucose, oyster sauce, seafood powder seasoning, high fructose corn syrup, chicken fat, chicken stock (chicken bone, water, chicken fat, salt), capsicum oleoresin, chilli oil, chilli red, 5 aflavin nucleotide disodium, vinegar starch, disodium succinate, potassium sorbate, shrimp powder, butter, aspartame (containing phenylalanine). Vegetable Package (Dehydrated cilantro with Chinese chives) Yum!

As I've already acknowledged and explained upthread.

Being half Scottish, I hate oatmeal porridge (but not oats per se). I grew up the stuff - every morning for decades. However, now once a week I make a large batch of rice congee for breakfast. This I do overnight in my slow cooker. It lasts near on a week in the fridge with no deterioration. I take out what I need, add chopped century eggs and fry some lean pork mince and add that too then heat it up. Breakfast of champions. 皮蛋瘦肉粥 (pí dàn shòu ròu zhōu)

My take on 青椒肉片 (qīng jiāo ròu piàn), green chilli pork slices, a very common dish here. There isn't a restaurant or home cook in the land that couldn't make it. Pork tenderloin, green chilli peppers, garlic, ginger, Shaoxing wine, soy sauce, cilantro and chives. Served with rice and a mixed mushroom medley which escaped the camera.

I obtained some of the Mi Goreng variety (and a re-order of the chicken ones) and the vendor included four 'free' packs of another brand and flavour which weren't even advertised. 麻辣小龙虾拌面 (má là xiǎo lóng xiā bàn miàn) which is Sichuan 'Numbing and Hot' (mala) Crayfish Noodles. Haven't tried them yet, but will report back.

I have no wish to seem ungrateful. Thank you everyone for your suggestions but in the meantime I went back to my instincts and greed so just ate the lot straight out of the pack. I will get some more and experiment further based on all these tips and suggestions.

American matsutake are a different, but related species, Tricholoma ponderosum, Tricholoma murrillianum or Tricholoma Magnivelare. The scent is similar, but less potent (according to reports). The taste is also less intense.

The highly favoured (松茸 Chinese: sōng róng; Japanese: 松茸 or まつたけ) matsutake mushrooms, literally 'pine mushrooms' in both Japanese and Chinese, Tricholoma matsutake, beloved by the Japanese, do grow in parts of China, particularly in the southern provinces of Yunnan and neighbouring Tibet. The name comes from them mainly being found in pine forests. The Oxford Companion to Food quotes this amusing little anecdote. The prize specimens are shipped off to Japan where they fetch silly money, but we are left with some of the second grade. They are still fine and are still not exactly cheap. They tend not to appear in the markets or even supermarkets, but are available on line. Obviously the fresh mushrooms are best, but they are also sold dried. Not recommended. Dried Matsutake We also get these so-called 'tiger matsutake', also from Yunnan, but I've never been able to find any further information on them. The only image on Google that I can see is mine!

I realise that but elevating a dish into something totally different wasn't the point, either.

I just watched episode 3 of the series set in London. The contestants were taken to three London pubs, all of which I know, especially the first, The Lamb and Flag, my local pub. They are all good pubs, but almost the last anyone other than tourists would go to eat. God knows who did the research! I can think of 100 better pubs for food before engaging my brain. Then the most clichéd dishes imaginable. Fish and chips in the Lamb and Flag was a joke. Served with what they called mushy peas but certainly wasn't mushy peas and with tartar sauce, which, although were told they would be served traditional food, is totally untraditional. Then we went through burnt Yorkshire puddings and an almost totally ignorant explanation of the origin of the term Bangers and Mash which actually originated in New Zealand. Then many of the elevated versions bore little connection to the originals. Grrr!

I still have my mother's spurtle!

Lao Gan Ma （老干妈), It actually means 'Godmother'; not 'Grandma'.

Bread of any sort is hard to source here. I used to make my own but recently I haven't been able to for health reasons. Anyway I don't think an Ibérico sandwich is what I was looking for.

Brieland's finest is easy for me to source. Good French bread is a distant dream.