liuzhou

I wasn't sure where to put this, but it is a beautiful video of a young woman from Sichuan making, among other things, my local signature noodle dish, Liuzhou Luosifen (柳州螺蛳粉). She grows or forages what she needs. Beautifully shot.

This is part of a gift I received today. Grown by my friend's grandfather. 粉葛 (fěn gé), Pueraria montana var. lobata, kudzu, Japanese arrowroot. It's not short of names. 16"/ 40cm long. Mainly used medicinally or as animal fodder, but also by humans for its starch and is peeled, sliced and used in soups.

Where do you get the idea that a carrot and an ear of corn cost ¥6? While this store is a bit more expensive than some, the produce I posted is only ¥7.98 a kilo! Around $1 USD. Vegetables are still very cheap in China, although meat prices are rising due to African swine fever.

You're meant to wash dishes and reuse them? I didn't get the e-mail! Sorry, but this is male bovine excrement aimed at selling something else no one wanted! Still, you have to admire their honesty in admitting they've been selling shit for almost 50 years, but now will sell you different shit for another 50 years!

An avocado. Just the way I like them. Perfectly ripe. With olive oil (not vinaigrette), sea salt and black pepper.

Looking, but not tasting a bit brown. Pork with hand-pulled noodles*, celtuce, black beans, garlic, ginger, Shaoxing wine, soy sauce, Chinese chives. by my local noodle puller, not me!

Here's a rarity for you, which I found this morning. Brassica juncea var gemminfera. 儿菜 (ér cài) or 拳头菜 (quán tóu cài; literally 'fist vegetable)', this is a member of the mustard family found mainly in Yunnan and Sichuan provinces. It can be boiled, stir fried or roasted and tastes similar to Brussels sprouts. For me this a good thing!

'Christmas dinners may be affected' Amused me.

Matsutake Soup. Fried rice with 晒兰 (shài lán) ham and more matsutake.

The USA reimagined as a pig. Amusing, but also an interesting, more serious back story.

Pork stir fry with tiger matsutake mushrooms. Served with rice and wilted baby bok choy.

... and today in the market for the first time, fresh, wild 虎松茸 (hǔ sōng róng), tiger matsutake. Foraged in neighbouring Yunnan Province.

I bought these last autumn but never posted this picture here as I couldn't identify the ones on the left. Today I finally managed. They are 黑皮鸡枞菌 (hēi pí jī cōng jūn), 'black skin chicken fir mushroom', Oudemansiella raphanipes. Cultivated from Yunnan Province. They are pleasant enough but very mild in taste, compared to the morels.

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Lemony, garlicky, chilily, shrimply orzo.

I have made my own here - just once. They were good, but not perfect as I can't get the right seasonings in China. But I'm 100% with you on the energy and enthusiasm issue. PS. I hate most Chinese sausages.

It's about 25 years since I lived in England, but I can say that your "banger" looks wide of the mark. It does look to be an emulsified, industrial effort probably made from mechanically separated meat (MSM). A true English banner is seldom to be found in supermarkets (there are exceptions, though), but more in old fashioned butchers' shops, where they are hand made from real meat and appropriately spiced. My own preference was for Cumberland sausages made by my local butcher. Sadly he and his shop are long gone. When I was back in UK this summer I did have one excellent sausage from a pop-up food cart in London's Covent Garden. It was meaty and well-spiced.

Last night. 窝窝头 (wō wō tóu) buns stuffed with beef and Hunan pickled vegetables.

No. It's all over. Tea is often served lukewarm or just room temperature.The exception is in more serious tea tastings, where the tea is central to the event, and it is normally hotter, but never boiling hot.

You'll get no pooh-poohiing from this Scot. The last batch I made (and posted) for dinner reappeared next day for lunch and definitely tasted better (not that they were bad first time round).

Vegetarian? Good Lord! I can be accused of many things, but vegetarian? I do occasionally make vegetarian dishes - like some salads. Or a poached egg. But please be reassured, this was not in the least vegetarian. 晒兰 (shài lán) is ham, ham, ham! Any rumours to the contrary are fake news and lies.

Cauliflower stir fried with 晒兰 (shài lán), green and red chillies, garlic, ginger, Shaoxing wine and soy sauce. Served with rice and wilted spinach.

Looking forward to that !