eatingwitheddie

I do most of my cooking with Shaoshing rice wine and then with dry sherry. Shaoshing has a more pronounced taste and is good for a dish like Sliced Fish w Wine Sauce. Sherry is less discernable. I don't use other types of Chinese wine and would be interested in getting information from those who do

No real views here. Szechuan and Hunan cooking frequentlyh play off a sugar/acid balance, but there is not much of this in Shanghaiese recipes to my knowledge. Dipping sauces might use that delectable black Chengkon vinegar that has a Worchestershire flavor component going on. Of course there is always Sweet and Sour using regular rice vinegar.

All the brands cornstarch I've tried seem to work well and similarly. Mix cornstarch with any temperature except extremely hot water. If you let it sit it will settle and you should mix it from the bottom up to redistribute it evenly. I never measure when I make slurry but the proportion is a little bit more water than starch, perhap 1 1/2 to 1.

In French cooking frequently many ingredients are cooked together for a long time, often creating a new flavor, and often impregnating that flavor into the food. Chinese cooking just works differently. The fact that the French may frown upon cornstarch ( I don't take it for a given that they do), doesn't mean that their techniques are superior. They have a different take on things and that helps to provide diversity. I clearly don't see cornstarch as a negative, nor do I agree that using it is the 'cost' of stir frying. Stir frying has many benefits: 1) quick cooking of foods aids in maximizing their nutritional benefits. 2) things are cut in small pieces which means they are ready to be eaten without further work 3) stir frying takes place very quickly so it is highly fuel efficient. A roast takes hours of cooking vs. 1 minute for a stir fry 4) stir fry dishes are easily shared

ABOUT CORNSTARCH Cornstarch and its use is a misunderstood topic. Whether you use corn or tapioca starch, you are using an ingredient that is fundamental to making sitr fried foods and their flavoring agents adhere to one another. From a philosophical/cooking point of view I often describe stir frying as a process where we saute food until it is cooked and its textures are just right. It is then that we go about flavoring it with herbal ingredients such as garlic, ginger, scallion, pastes and chiles. Next we add a liquid seasoning sauce which thickens when heated enough and coats the food with flavor. Sometimes we put a little starch and maybe some egg white on the outside of our protein. When this food is cooked and then tossed in a sauce the surface starch on the meat or fish absorbs the sauce and it is then coated with flavor. If you weren't using starch the sauce would sit underneath the food and the dish would then have little or no taste. Cornstarch is the key to marrying the food and its flavoring sauce! In fact I often find that when a dish is bland, it is because the sauce hasn't been thickened enough. This is not a defense of gloppiness, it is merely pointing out that cornstarch has a correct use that is sometimes abused in the guise of too much sloppy sauce. It is in fact a critical item in the Chinese kitchen.

Responding to Jinmyo: Ed, I think your last point to be very true. And was wondering if you are seeing any change in this amongst younger Chinese cooks and chefs? I have seen a number of young Chinese whose attitude has changed completely, but typically they are cooking in western restaurants, not traditional Chinese ones. e.g. Alex Lee the chef de cuisine at Daniel. Mostly Chinese restaurants in this country still attract recent immigrants whno manage to maintain an entirely provincial lifestyle, often not even learning to speak English. I tell a story/joke (which is really poignant if you think about it) concerning a chef who I knew for 20 years: the only English he spoke was "$20 on horse number 12 in the 6th race".

Don't know - haven't had this experience. But if you want to set up a tasting I'm game.

And would you agree that some cooks and chefs use it also to bring out flavors in non-Chinese dishes? I have seen many chefs do that. In the US and elsewhere. IN fact even in India, some home chefs keep ajino moto (sp?) in their pantries and use it as a secret little pinch of a family "spice" that can make quite a huge difference in how a dish ends up tasting. Have you seen it used in other cuisines? Do you know home cooks and chefs that use MSG in other cuisines? MSG is used in more place than you think. It is used in other Asian cuisines and it is many prepared food products. I wouldn't associate with any particular ethnicity other than Chinese but they sell one hell of a lot of Accent (a brand of MSG) in this country. I sometimes use it in my own home cooking, but only when I feel an item needs a little pickmeup which I can't get from salt or spices. It's really good at giving vegetables a natural yet savory flavor, but be careful: too much on too many things and they will develop a sameness of taste.

I just recently visited Vancouver for the first time. My 3 visits there were all during lunch and unfortunately there were only 2 of us. My guess is that everything there is worth trying (I usually cringe when someone says everything is good). I had their famous squab, the one dish they promote, and it could not have better. I also had an ordinary pan-fried noodle and it was cooked with a slightly smokey superior stock which elevated to really special level. Live seafood would certainly be high on the list: especially local and/or live stuff: crab, lobster, clams. oysters, santa barbara prawns etc. Bring money! Next time I head in your direction, which may not me too long because I have a kid in college in Olympia, I'll contact you - maybe you want to take a little ride! Ed

TO JINMYO RE: FERMENTED BEANCURD Obviously I wasn't just kidding when I said, to put it more politely, I hadn't yet developed a taste for 'fu yi'. In Taiwan there is a type of fermented beancurd that they sell primarily as street food (not a condiment). It really smells horrible to me. Many of the streets there are partially covered over by the sides of buildings canterlevered over the sidewalk. This 'roof' can be rather low and as a result smells tend to saturate a particular area. While walking around town if I came across a fermented beancurd vendor I found myself walking in the other direction quite quickly. I am not normally such a squeemish guy. Thanks for your sweet note.

It tastes better. I would guess that the manufacturer is trying to please the taste buds of its audience and it's their perception that this is the flavor that people are looking for in Japan.

Pigs ears are one of those cuts that are high in natural gelatin. When you braise them for a long time a lot of the gelatin melts into the sauce. Most likely the ears are brasied and then layered on top of one another, the sauce reduced and then poured on top. When the dish is weighted and chilled, the ears can be cut, probably on an electric slicer, and they will have that 'layered' look. I have typically have seen this item on Szechuan and Hunan menus. We served them at Uncle Tai's. By the way, most of the time I have encountered something with 1000 layers it is a special type of steamed bun.

MSG is a part of the flavor profile of Chinese food. It enables you to bring out flavor that can't be harnessed other ways. I personally approve of it, in very small quantities, but of course wouldn't serve it to someone who is sensitive to it. Not that you can't cook perfectly tasty food without it, but you will end up with a slightly different product/flavor. Yes American Chinese restaurants use it. Chinese restaurants (and home cooks) use it all over the world!

This is a subject where my knowledge is extremely limited. Many years ago we had a wonderful Fukien restaurant on Division St. It was called Foo Joy. It is long gone unfortunately. There has been a large influx of Fukien immigrants in recent years. East Broadway is the center of this community in NY's Chinatown and there are a number of Fukien style restaurants there. They tend to be quite modest possibly because the elements of the Fukien community who've moved here are on the lower end of the economic scale. Being on the coast Fukien has been known for its seafood dishes. There are particular preparations that are indigenous. The most famous of these are made with 'red wine' sauce. In fact these are dishes made with rice wine lees - the leftover fermented sweet rice which is taken from the bottom of the fermentation barrel. Does anyone out there have any thoughts/suggestions/information? I'd be interested. ED

Bux I'm sorry about the frustrating experience at Ping's. You're right it can be really variable. In fact unless I order certain things which seem to be reliably good: Steamed Giant Oysters with XO Sauce, Crispy Spare Rib Tips, Lobster w Ginger/Scallion or Braised w. E-fu (long life) Noodles, I ususally only go for a banquet and when I know Ping is cooking himself. I literally call his wife Nancy on her cellphone and ask if he's there. Even then the only way to assure he's cooking is to have Ruth Reichl with me (a joke - but only kind of - I introduced her to Ping and she frequents the premises) or to order an expensive elaborate banquet ahead of time - the best strategy. But when he does cook, he's one of the best. No doubt. Life shouldn't be this problematic, but.......... In fact this leads to a whole other subject: the attitude that professional Chinese chefs have in the kitchen, compared let's say to a young American or French person who has chosen this career as an exciting and fulfilling life's work. The Chinese chef is likely to have chosen this work out of necessity and has a very different point of view which really does change things. Best, Ed

Bux My experience at Dim Sum GoGo is somewhat limited, and that is because when I went there (when they first opened perhaps 3 years ago) I had a mixed reaction. First of all you must understand my point of view: I am interested in invention, but basically I am a traditionalist. When someone gets inventive they better be damn good, or I'll find it a turn off. For example, in my experience Pierre Gagnaire in Paris really pulls it off with his 'crazy', brilliant, and highly personal cuisine. When I first tried 'GoGo' I sampled all their dumplings. I found that for my taste the skins weren't quite right, either a little light or heavy, or lacking a glutinous slightly chewy quality that I find in the best dim sum. Then I asked myself this question: how do these dumplings compare to a really well made and freshly steamed Har Kow (shrimp dumpling). Is it as exciting? For my money the items I tried were fresh, wholesome, interesting (we know what that's a euphemism for), and just slightly off. There wasn't one that I would prefer to one of Sweet & Tart's Shrimp & Watercress Dumplings. The main dishes I had on this occaision were good. I particularly recollect a 1/2 chicken: again the one topped with crispy shallots and garlic. From a culinary point of view I found the place good and interesting yet lacking a little something. For whatever reason I wasn't excited to return and explore some more. You should also know the Stephen Lo, one of the principals, and Colette Rossant, a partner and the consultant to the project are acquaintances and I wish them well. Then about 18 months ago I had a powerhouse lunch there where the owners pulled out all the stops. My dining companions, who were known to the house, were Alice & Calvin Trillin, and THE Alice, Alice Waters! I had exactly the same reaction as before: really interesting, pretty good, but somehow it didn't do it for me. Since I dine or market in Chinatown many times a week I have ample opportunity to revisit, but have chosen not to. Though if the truth were told, I was thinking of going there just the other day, wondering about the place and why it didn't do more for me. Since I love the industry I get much more pleasure in supporting rather than tearing apart places like this. Probably your post will get me back there soon. Thanks for the unintentional pin in the tush!

CANTONESE FOOD - RESPONDING TO BUX AND JASON Trends in the in Chinese food scene in the US have been chronicled in some of my earlier posts on eGullet. During the last five years Shanghai food has made inroads as the next 'in' regional Chinese cuisine. Not only in NY, but in London, Paris, LA and SF, Shanghai eateries have sprung up all over. Soup Dumplings, once unique and hard to find, are regularly available at many different venues. Since Shanghai is among the most important and fast growing/changing cities on the planet I think that we can expect this trend to become more of the status quo. Nevertheless, clearly the most exciting growth part of the industry has been authentic HK style Canonese cooking. Very different than the Americanized version that many of us took for 'Chinese food', large Cantonese restaurants featuring clean natural tasting dishes have been the tip of the iceberg for some time now. The cooking is typically light, and strives to bring out the natural flavors of whatever the main event is. A delicately steamed (recently) live fish is prototypical of this sensibility. The gloppy cornstarch laden 'chop suey' cooking in old-fashioned Americanized Chinese restaurants is a far cry from a beautifully pan-fried grey sole, or a crisp skinned fresh killed chicken topped with golden sands (crispy minced shallots and garlic). This is a delicate cuisine that is simultaneously elaborate and simple, and it is widely available where ever there is a substantial Chinese population. To my mind it represents the 'growth 'part of the industry and has been for years. Unfortunately, after we all got used to the spicy, salty, and sweet palate of Szechuan and Hunan, many of us don't recogniuze a good thing when we see it. As a result most of the restaurants featuring HK Cantonese dishes cater to the Asian community not the Caucasian one. In NYC they are in Flushing or one of our Chinatowns not in midtown.

Sounds like you mean steamed MINCED pork, not diced. Basically this dish is a homestyle Chinese version of meatloaf. Ground lean and fat pork is flavored and mixed like a dumpling filling and then topped with savory stuff: salted fish, dried mushrooms, dried scallops are typical toppings. I like the version where you break some eggs over the meat, sunnyside style. It takes about 20 minutes to steam. I don't go to or know of any particular place to eat this, but it is something you'd find in an smaller, homey authentic Cantonese restaurant. In NYC places to check out would include Tai Hung Lau ( 70? Mott St.), Congee Village (Allen St. just south of Delancey), and Sun Luk Kee (recently moved from 13 Mott to Main St just south of Northern Blvd. in Flushing). It is a type of dish that might not appear on the regular English menu but might be available if you inquired. Ed

Sorry but all my London Chinese food experience is from a different and unfortunately prehistoric era. Lee Ho Fook on Gerard St.? Still there? Any good? I don't really know. Waggamamma (spelling?)? I would need to ask my friend Ken Hom. Ed