liuzhou

I was sitting there contemplating my navel and trying to decide if another G+T was appropriate at 4:30 pm. (Stupid question). When my cell phone bleeped at me. I thought it would be some spam asking me to invest in rubber chopstick technology or something, but no. It was clearly addressed to me and informed me in no uncertain terms that my order had been deposited at the online shopping delivery point within yards of my home. Well I call yards, metres, but that is another story! I was confused. I had already picked up the only deliveries I was expecting today, the T in my G+T and some bleach I felt the need for. I did check the tracking on the remaining few items I had ordered, but they hadn't registered with the orderees at all. What was it? So, I strolled out with my old man shopping trolley. Hey! It could have been a mooncake! I have one friend who regularly sends me weird stuff like that. Or it could have been the beautiful 300 kg Chinese coffin on my wish list. I didn't know! I joined the line at the collection point. The guy in charge isn't the brightest dish on the menu, but I whiled away the time by looking at the various parcels scattered around the floor of his premises. I spotted a box of mangoes and had a bit of a closer look. I saw where they came from. 百色 (bǎi sè), a small city in Guangxi near the borders with Vietnam as well as Yunnan and Guizhou provinces in China. It is considered to be China's mango heaven! I've eaten mangoes there straight from the tree, and totally agree. "Lucky someone", I thought, then noticed something I recognised. My cellphone number! Right there on the delivery label! I picked the box up, the guy noticed this in a rare moment of lucidity and nodded, so I grabbed it, balanced it on top of my trolley as it was too big to fit inside (although the coffin would have been worse), and trotted off home, mangoes in tow. Then sat down with that other G+T to try to work out who the helicopter (one of my late father's euphemisms) had sent them. When I resolve the mystery, I'll let you know. Maybe! Here is the package.The mangoes are now in the food fridge (not the drink fridge) as I have to go out tonight, but I'll update tomorrow with the full gory details I know you crave.

Thanks. In my experience, they are more commonly called atta dosa (atta meaning wheat) or Godhuma dosa, but rava comes from Godhuma rava, which I thought was semolina. No doubt wiser heads will pitch in their thoughts.

I call this fun. At noon or just before, I took delivery of 24 cans of this Hong Kong brand of tonic water. The delivery wasn't in the least bit fun, but I know the resulting gin and tonic will be. I also know there are only 23 cans in my picture, but I had to test one, hadn't I? That's breakfast sorted out for the next few days! I also received 1.5 litres of bleach in the same delivery, but don't concern yourself with that.

Breakfast this morning was some leftover hamburger mix from last nights's dinner, formed into a sausage and fried, with a fried duck egg and fried tomato. No picture, alas. It was too early!

@Porthos That better? 🙂

A pear of funnies?

Nothing better than a good game of 'chase the cherries' to get you going in the morning. Stunning sandwich.

Dinner tonight was late and unusual for me. A couple of burgers. The burgers were a mix of approximately 40% beef, 40% pork and 20% bacon. I didn't measure anything; just eyeballed it. Seasoned with sea salt and chilli flakes. Served on Chinese flat bread with tomato and shredded lettuce. More sea salt. I'd say the burgers were the best I've ever made. Juicy and flavourful without being over-complicated. Just a couple of quick cellphone snaps tonight. Burger No. 1. That patty was 12 cm / 4¾ inches in diameter. Burger No 2 - Same size

@TropicalseniorI'll address that by Private Message rather than here.

Spoons are nearly always supplied automatically; if not it's perfectly acceptable to request one.

I'm sorry, but that article is nonsensical. Medlars were common when I was growing up in the 50s and 60s. My grandparents had them growing their large garden. Medlars are still commonly grown. I saw them in England in 2019. both growing and the fruit one of the supermarkets selling them, although the article says no supermarkets sell them! Nor were either Shakespeare or Henry VIII 'medieval' as the article states.

Sure, although I can only think of one myth that may not be a myth at all. I'll deal with that first. Most etymologies will tell you that the 'chop' in 'chopsticks' means 'quick', as in the expression 'chop-chop' and came into being through a Pidgin English spoken in China in colonial times. I'm not so sure. 快 (kuài) means quick and 筷子 (kuài zi) means 'chopsticks'. The kuài pronunciation in both are the same but not the characters. They are homophones, but have different meanings as well as being written differently, a common feature of Chinese. There are thousands of such examples. Also, I can't find any evidence of any Chinese dialect or other source pronouncing kuài anything like 'chop'. Nor can I think of any reason why the pronunciation would have changed so dramatically It may be possible that the 筷 character used in chopsticks was introduced later, but again I can find no evidence of that in any of my Chinese sources. I'll leave that one open until I can delve further, but even my favourite source, the OED, gets in a complete tangle with this. Note: this meaning of chop is unrelated to that in 'chop-suey'. As to superstitions and etiquette, I'd say they overlap. The most serious chopstick faux pas is to plant your chopsticks upright in your rice bowl and leave them there. This is a symbol of death as it resembles incense being burned in honour of the departed. If you need to put your chopsticks down, use the chopstick rests supplied, if any. If not, lay them flat across the rim of your bowl, but not pointing at anyone (see below). Dropping a chopstick is also considered unlucky, but happens all the time. Not serious at all. Stabbing or piercing food to pick it up is a no-no. If it's difficult to catch hold something, use your chopsticks to slide the food into a spoon, then convey that to your bowl. Using your chopsticks as drum sticks is very rude, as is pointing at anyone with them. Playing with them is strongly discouraged in children; unthinkable for adults. Don't dig around in a plate of food to find the choice bits. This is referred to as 'grave digging' and again bad luck (as well as bad manners). Don't lick your chopsticks. I'm sure there are more, but those are what come to mind immediately. Neither taboo or superstition, but the mistake most chopstick neophytes make is to hold the chopsticks too near the points. They should be held near the top. It seems counter-intuitive to many people, but they are much easier to control that way. You will see guides on how to hold chopsticks 'correctly'. Ignore most of them. I've seen Chinese people hold them in many different ways. The trick is to hold to hold one steady and move the other one. If you try to move both, you will go hungry!

The earliest archaeological evidence dates to around 1200 BCE, yes in China. They were originally longer and used in cooking rather than for eating. Spoons were used for eating. Eating chopsticks seem to have come in during the Han Dynasty (206 BCE to 220 AD). They quickly spread throughout eastern and south-eastern Asia, where they are used to this day. It is worth noticing that most, if not all, of those cultures favour family style eating, in which chopsticks are much more practical. Spoons are still used for some dishes in China (see fried rice above). In Thailand, Malaysia, Laos, Singapore and some other countries most dishes are eaten with a fork and spoon, except noodles for which chopsticks are used. Forks are rarely used in China. Cooking chopsticks are also still used. I use mine almost every day – at least once. Square or round? Just style. No functional difference. Just like there are many variations in western cutlery. One real difference is that Chinese chopsticks are nearly always blunt ended; whereas Japanese and Korean tend to be pointed. I have both. Top left to bottom right: Japanese eating chopsticks; Chinese cooking chopsticks; Chinese eating chopsticks. The cooking chopsticks are 42 cm / 16½ inches long; the Japanese 23 cm / 9 inches; and the Chinese 25 cm / 9¾ inches.

Another 'noodle' dish from Xi'an. 驴蹄子面 (lǘ tí zi miàn) - Donkey Hoof Noodles. Also known as 偷懒的面 (tōu lǎn de miàn) - Lazy Noodles, as this is what people make when they are too lazy to roll or pull noodles properly! The dough is cut into shapes resembling donkey hooves, or so they say. No donkey is involved here.

I don't recall ever having wheat dosa, although I know they exist. What does your local place use for dosa; the traditional lentils and rice?

Yes. Same here. The washing up liquid is soapier. Detergent for clothes washing is also a different formulation. Washing machines are all cold water. Automatic dishwashers are very rare. I only know one person who has one and she is a returnee from America with new American husband in tow. Most dishwashers, including mine, look like this.

I don't. It's not mine. The apartment is rented and it was there when I arrived. That said, many people here have them. I think they are a hangover from a time when few kitchens had a hot water supply. Many still don't. People washed dishes in cold water, then sterilized them in these. I have hot water. Most restaurants still have these.

Turn north-west at Hong Kong!

Thai-style red curry shrimp.

I'd say both are true. It is widely accepted that the fuel theory is behind the invention of stir-frying as the main cooking technique to this day. It requires that the food be cut into small pieces by the cook in order for it to cook rapidly. (It also has the side effect of being easier to eat with chopsticks.) At the same there is also still a strong taboo about knives being brought to the table. Doing so is seen as an aggressive, potentially treacherous act. I've seen people visibly anxious in western retaurants in China.

21. "the Chinese home cook crouched over a wok on a brazier fed with twigs and cow chips" When I first came to live in China in 1996, it was said that 80% of the population was rural and 20% lived in cities. Today, we are told it’s the opposite, but while certainly many people, especially the younger generations, have moved to cities, it is often only temporarily. Many have become migratory workers, travelling to wherever the work is and moving on when the work moves on. Most of these end up working in the coastal areas in the east and south-east of the country. Also, many of these, men and women, have children whom they leave behind with the grandparents while sending money back. Many of these people fully intend returning home; many already have. As China’s economy has grown incredibly over the last couple of decades, its reputation as a source of cheap labour has correspondingly diminished and the large foreign companies are looking for other places to exploit instead. The Chinese government has thrown billions of hard cash into developing the interior and western regions, so reducing people’s dependence on migratory work. But for sure the number of city dwellers has risen considerably and, in general, people are more affluent. This new affluence has, of course, led to a rise in living standards and a new middle class. They demand everything new. There is very little demand for second-hand cars and I have never seen the type of second-hand shops which are common elsewhere. I can only think of one second-hand store here in town and that is a second-hand cell phone outlet. And it’s the same with housing. The new middle class only want newly built homes. These they buy unfinished and then arrange to have builders in to finish the interior layout to their own specifications. Even those who do buy pre-owned homes do the same, ripping out interior walls, plumbing etc and rebuilding the interior. They call this ‘decorating’. And of course, this extends to the kitchens. Chinese domestic kitchens tend to be on the small side and have little storage space compared to western kitchens. Most people cook on one of these. So, do I. I’ve never seen anything resembling a western stove. They may have a microwave, but that is mostly used for heating up dishes that have cooled down a bit. A rice cooker, for sure. And often a pressure cooker. No oven. This is my kitchen as it was on the day I moved in. There is another counter and more storage space on the other wall, too. I didn't rebuild anything. The thing on the left of the counter near the window is an infra-red or UV steriliser for bowls and plates etc. I moved it. This is not the most luxurious, but better than many. So, although the kitchens may be more modern looking, they still generally contain the same limited equipment. Not that the Chinese consider there to be any limitations. They have what they need. Out in the countryside, in many places, the “wok on a brazier fed with twigs and cow chips” tradition lingers but is becoming rarer and rarer. Except it wouldn’t just be twigs. And no cow chips. There aren’t that many cows in China. (I had to look up ‘cow chips’; not an expression I’ve heard, though I did guess the meaning.) That said, yak dung is used for fuel in Tibetan areas. Most of these home cooks would use wood, which they gather throughout the year and store for future use. Firewood stack The hut is firewood too I think! This old lady was cooking her lunch over a pile of firewood in a metal bucket in a sort of outhouse. As to what people cook, I don't think the new-found affluence has changed much, other than people eat more of the same. More meat, for sure, but still prepared in the traditional ways. Despite the oft-repeated claims that the Chinese eat everything (another myth), I find most people to be rather on the conservative side in terms of what they will eat and, especially, cook. I’d estimate that 90% of the restaurants here in Liuzhou are serving either local cuisine or dishes which have been well-known all over China for a very long time. When I lived in Hunan, it was the same. Restaurants did Hunan food. We do have a few restaurants serving other region’s cuisines in town, but I don’t think many people would be cooking those dishes at home. I know my friends never do. Even in places like Beijing and, even more so, Shanghai, which have restaurants serving food from all over China and the world, few people will be making that at home. For a general idea of what people cook at home I can recommend Fuchsia Dunlop’s Every Grain of Rice: Simple Chinese Home Cooking (eG-friendly Amazon.com link), which covers many of the dishes cooked regularly across China. Regional cookbooks are hard to find, even in Chinese. I have a couple on Sichuan cuisine, but that’s it. I suspect this reply to @Tropicalsenior's question may raise even more questions. If so, please fire away!

Good question which merits a good answer. It's complicated. I'll try to answer fully in the morning. Bedtime here in the land of the rice eaters.

Sounds about right