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I took a look at this forementioned websites. The cleavers they showed are interesting. When I looked at the price tags, theyranged from $100 to $300. At first I thought it was in some other local currencies. Later I realized that they are in US dollars. Be brutally honest, I can't imagine how someone can justify spending US$300 on buying a cleaver. Maybe beauty (or value) is in the eyes of the beholder. The bone cleaver that I recently bought from "The Wok Shop" in San Francisco: costed me about US$20. The brand name is Jin Lih (金美), made in Taiwan. I really like it. I also recently bought a not-so-known-name cleaver for cutting vegetables. Very light. Much easier to maneuver. Does the job. US$12 in local Asian grocery store. I find it really hard trying to shop for a cleaver online. To me, I always have to pick up the cleaver to see how it feels on my hand, and look at and touch the cutting edge before I decide. Bone cleavers are much heavier than regular cleavers. We need the swinging momentum combined with the sharp edge to split bones with a clean cut. Cleavers take good maintenance works. Manually grind them with a small grinding stone often and clean and wipe immediately after use. For day to day cutting/chopping, I still prefer to use my chef knife.

Yeah... and the whole family reading newspapers instead of conversing to each other while they are at it! In Hong Kong, Yum Cha has become such a common affair that nobody gives a second thought about it. My father used to have dim sum everyday after he retired for over 20 years as a matter of habit. Always ordered one or two items after a morning walk exercise and before the lunch crowd. Many elderlies do the same in Hong Kong. For most, new varieties may not be that well sought. Taste is what most people judge as most important on the familiar varieties, more than presentation. Yet they may not be willing to pay extra. So many eat average (good but not exceptional) dim sum regularly. I am not sure about eating dim sum 3-4 times a week, even in Hong Kong. Then of course there are many other choices for a meal over there. I think once a week is probably the average for many people.

Chinese parents usually play that trick to make children appreciate how much work they need to put in preparing the meals (or in general raising the family). I was lucky because my father showed me all the basics at the beginning (when I was 10). And the rest... I just watched him do it and also learned from other people.

It would be very similar to this pictorial recipe: Chicken with Lemon Grass and Black Bean Sauce (香茅豉汁鸡) In place of chicken, just boil the clams in a pot of water until they open. Discard those that don't open. Drain. You may skip the lemon grass if you like. Or keep it on. Or replace lemon grass with the Thai basil (use the leaves only).

I think it may be okay with chicken thighs/legs. It would be hard to do with wings or breasts. Just try it.

Interesting. This perspective is on listing the distinct methods while the Kenneth Lo's list is on the actual Chinese word that describe the kind of cooking. It would be really interesting to learn. I am not an eG authority on the subject. I think if you are quoting sentences from a particular publication, and have given all references to the original publication, to illustrate a point, that's allowed. Check with the forum manager to be sure.

I think this may be uniquely a "Hong Kong" creation. I don't remember seeing these, which are called "Zha Leung" in Cantonese (Zha means Deep-Fried, Leung means Two), in the 60's. They became popular in the 70's. It took me a while to get used to this "strange" combination of crispy-chewy (fried dough) and soft (steamed rice noodle) texture in one. But later I grew to love it. Very popular for breakfast, along with a bowl of Jook (congee). I had the pleasure of watching the masters deep-fried the Youtiao, separated them, then passed it on to another master who did the steamed rice noodles to roll it up in front of my eyes. Chop, chop... a pair of scissors cut the long roll into smaller pieces, then a spoon of sweeten soy sauce was poured on top. There are many dim sum restaurants in Hong Kong that are good, and only a few are exceptional. It used to be (not sure if it still is) Maxim for great dim sum. The pig ears in your pictures look really good. BTW: This is my 2000th post! From 1000th to 2000th seems to be such a breeze. Before too long I can catch up with Pan!

I don't think I have ever seen these. Are they already cooked? Canned or no?

I am sorry, Dragon Boat Festival this year is May 31, 2006. I was reading a website that got this date wrong. June 11 was 2005's DBF. Phewwwww... only 4 more weeks to prepare. How long would it take to make my own salted eggs?

jo-mel: I was reading the reviews on Ms Dunlop's Land of the Plenty today and found the following statement: I have not read her book yet. Do you have a copy? (Knowing that you have all kinds of Chinese cookbooks...) I am wondering about her list of the 56 cooking methods... I thought Kenneth Lo's 40 words/methods of Chinese cooking is already a lot! What are the additional 16 that we haven't learned about?

sheetz: Did you find salted chicken eggs very similar to duck eggs in taste? I am tempted to make my own salte eggs but may not have a good source for duck eggs.

June is just around the corner... you know what that means! Dragon Boat Festival is June 11 this year. Last year I was really busy and I missed this cook-off. May I time-shift this by 12 months and do the Joong entry this year? I am just wondering where to get the salty egg yolks. I have very bad experiences buying salted eggs from local Asian markets as well as from 99 Ranch. Everytime I bought 1/2 doz home, broke the eggs open, then found the eggs were bad. Foul! These were supposed to be preserved! I have lost all confidence in them.

One dim sum dish that I really like at Asian Pearl is (and I posted some pictures in the China forum): Soup Dumpling. 魚翅灌湯餃 (Guan Tong Gow [Cantonese]) This is not Shanghainese Xiaolongbao. It is a Cantonese version of soup wrapped inside a dumpling. But in modern days, the dumpling skin is long bursted before the dim sum is served. The meat filling is pork I think. The dumpling is served in superior chicken broth. This one is served with a small piece of shark fin. I don't get to see this offered in many dim sum restaurants in California. Regular price US$5.50. That Friday I dropped by, it was the special-of-the-day for US$2.95. I walked right in to their restaurant without hesitation!

Ah... interesting. I think it's a "new wave" type. The traditional type I grew up eating uses shrimp and Chinese chive. Sorry... Carry on...

Some tell tale signs to look out for: In the heart of Monterey Park, any restaurant that worths any salt (or MSG) would typically be packed around noon - 2:00 pm especially on a Sunday. Saturday is a little better. If the restaurant serves dim sum, there would be long lines. If the restaurant has its own parking lot, see how full the parking lot is. But sometimes this is misleading because people park their car in one lot and go to the neighboring restaurants! If the parking lot is full of Hondas (Civics and Accords especially) and Toyotas (Camrys especially), that's a good sign. Call the restaurant ahead of time (if you have the phone number). If they answer the phone speaking Cantonese only, that's a good sign! Kiddings aside... If you don't hold me responsible... (it's been a LONG time that I haven't visited some of these places in Monterey Park area)... There is one Chinese vegetarian restaurant on the border of Monterey Park and Montebello. It is at the intersection of N. Garfield Ave and Via Campo (south side of Freeway 60). There is a Chinese shopping mall. The restaurant is at the North-East corner. But my last visit was 8 years ago, maybe. They did really well so I think it might still be around. No name to give you, sorry. Need to order from a menu. Their mock meat entrees are very nice, both in presentation and taste.

I am slightly bummed to report that, while up in LA this past weekend, I sought out Happy Family and did not have a totally happy experience. ← How crowded was it yesterday? What was the Asian/Round-eye ratio? Any tell tale sign?

Because it makes the soup taste good.

Put a little beans in your soup I learned from my MIL, who makes really good Chinese tonic soups. Her secret: put some beans in the soup. Typically red beans, but it could be black-eye peas, black beans, etc.. e.g. Lotus root soup with pork - red beans winter melon soup with chicken/pork - black-eye peas Don't need too much, just 1/4 to 1/3 cup would do. Soak the beans for a couple of hours before cooking to achive the best result.

Not too much leftovers in the fridge usually... My wife refuses to buy food from the cafeteria at work (I am more easy-going on that). She usually consumes all the leftovers while it forces me to make fresh entrees almost every night.

Thank you Dai Ga Jeah. That's brilliant! Experience shows!

I was wondering about the same thing. Typically the term "See Jup Pai Gwat" [Cantonese] is used for this Steamed Spareribs With Black Beans dish, which could be offered as a dim sum dish or a dinner entree. But... there are many things in Chinese food that I still don't know about...

The receipe looks about right. For 2.5 lb of spareribs, I will go heavier on the garlic (maybe 7-8 cloves, pressed), fermented black beans (maybe 4-5 tsp, smashed), ShaoHsing wine (maybe 2-3 tsp). I don't want baking soda, but that's just a personal preference. The red bell pepper maybe a misprint. Adding 2 tsp of bell pepper would not add taste to this dish. I suspect they did mean red chili pepper (e.g. heaven-pointing pepper). Also, if you take 2.5 lb marinated sparerib from the refrigerator straight to the steamer, you may need to steam for more than 30 minutes.

Note that those reconstituted sea cucumbers are almost ready to eat. That's why the dried scallops are braised first for 30-40 minutes before adding the sea cucumbers in the clay pot.

Thanks muichoi and pan. I think that makes a lot of sense. Wrong presumption on my part. I have edited the original post so I don't mislead. I am lucky. I bought 3 packs of sea cucumbers in 99 Ranch and they totalled to about US $15.00. 9 pieces.

This step is typical for cooking some seafood to remove the fishy taste/smell. Adding ginger in boiling is important. Other seafood that I perform this step is: mussels, reconstituted squids, fresh squids, clams.