Will

I do a vegetarian wild mushroom risotto for about half that number of people (as part of a larger meal; there is usually some left over) about once a year at Christmas time, and while it may not be as good as if I made it in smaller batches, my family insists that I make it year after year. I make the stock earlier in the day. I use a stainless dutch oven or a very tall sauté pan, probably with 3 or 4 cups of rice, if memory serves. It does get a little challenging to stir as time goes on, and with that number of people, it's also hard to serve it as it should be (right off the stove). As far as doing it for 15-19, I think the only way to do it is if tthe portions are fairly small. Once you get beyond the amount of rice I'm using, I think it will become pretty unwieldy. Anyway, you're welcome to try, but keep in mind that: 1) You're going to be very busy stirring, so don't plan on doing anything else for the last 40 minutes to an hour before dinner 2) Try and recruit an assistant to help stir 3) Timing is going to be the hardest part - especially if you're serving a course before the risotto and don't want to be stuck in the kitchen the whole time.

I think Bull Nose (English name) is one pretty common brand. They also make a vegetarian version. There's another brand I used to buy the vegetarian version of, but I haven't seen it around lately (brown jar; swastika logo on the veggie one).

http://houdeasianart.com/ or http://houdefinetea.com/ should be the right links. Overall, he has very good stuff.

When going to restaurants, at least high-end ones, I find it helpful to call in advance. Some places are better than others. You will find it rare, though, to get much other than sorbet and / or fresh fruit for dessert.

I believe red (in Chinese terms) tea has certainly been consumed locally, but I don't have any historical specifics for you proving this conclusively. I do tend to think the idea that Chinese don't consume hong cha locally is false, though. Certainly, Yixing red tea, which is barely available even as close to Yixing as Shanghai, is consumed by many of the Yixing potters. I believe it's made from the same plants as the locally produced green tea. And of course, Chinese have their own idea of dark / "black" tea -- not only ripe puer, but lesser known teas from Anhua (in Hunan), Guangxi, etc. But this is totally different from the fully oxidized (but not post-fermented) tea that we call "black tea".

Ener-g Egg Replacer (basically, potato starch, tapioca flour, and a couple other things), or flax seed goop are the two egg replacements I'd recommend. I think Bob's Red Mill has a different egg replacer that should work Ok also (I think it's soy flour based). These will help things stick together, but I don't think they'll act as an emulsifier. I find it helpful to add a little extra baking powder (just make a teaspoon heaping instead of level, maybe 1/8 tsp extra) to quick-breads made with Ener-g. Strays a little more into creepy ingredients land, but you can also add some soy lecithin dissolved in warm water if you need an emulsifier. I have made non-dairy custards before, but eggs will be harder to replace. If you really can eat egg yolks, it should be do-able, though. Soy or almond milk will work as a milk substitute in most things. I was big on almond milk for a while, but I do think soy works better texture / taste wise in a lot of baking stuff. Coconut milk will work for some things if you want that richness and if the flavor will work. When you want a richer dairy substitute (replacing cream), you can try making cashew cream -- soak raw cashews overnight, drain and rinse, cover with water, and blend. Supposedly you need a really high-power blender like a vita-mix... when I do it in a food processor, it seems a bit too gritty (I was told to strain, but didn't work right, at least with the strainer I had on hand). There are some commercial non-dairy "cream" substitutes. Some of them have weird stuff in them, but one or two are relatively simple. Not the most elegant or tasty solution, but butter can usually be replaced by Earth Balance non-hydrogenated shortening or Earth Balance margarine or palm oil. This is not really ideal in terms of ratio of omega-3 to omega-6, so I would try to eat this kind of stuff sparingly. I've been baking without eggs and dairy for years, though now I do use eggs once in a while at home. You can pull off more than you think with these simple substitutions. However, keep in mind that things which rely heavily on butter for the flavor (e.g., sugar cookies) or eggs for texture and / or flavor (e.g., sponge cake).

So you just want to watch other people eat?

Well if you don't want butane or other gas burners, and don't want induction, you may be SOL. We've used both the Waring electric and a cheap butane burner for huo guo and both work fine, but we're also not using huge pots for either. The cheap butane ones from the Asian market are the way to go. Seriously.

I would think egg roll wrappers would be way too small, and way too thin / not hearty enough. I have never had a problem using dried pasta for lasagne, and in fact, I think many people prefer the texture of dried pasta for it - what exactly is your objection to simply using that. If I were making lasagne to feed 120 people, fresh pasta would probably not even enter into my thought process.

Puer is usually only boiled when brewing it for Tibetan style brick tea, and from what I understand, this is usually a fairly low quality ripe puer which has a higher than usual amount of compression. I would guess this is done this way partially because it's tradition; also, I think both types of tea you mention are traditionally consumed with other substances added, rather than just as straight tea, which might have something to do with why the tea is boiled. Most folks who drink puer (whether sheng or shu) brew it the normal way. Sometimes, if drinking really old and rare puer, I will boil the tea leaves after they no longer produce much tea when brewed normally.

Nthing adding some sugar, though the amount will depend on the tomatoes. The time or two I've made it, I used salt, a little sugar, and very little other seasoning. The tomato itself seems to add plenty of liquid (and enough of a savory element) for me, even when the tomatoes themselves aren't that great. My gf likes her eggs really soft, and so also does the method mentioned above with removing the eggs after scrambling briefly / gently, and then adding them back at the very end. She also avoids adding salt to the eggs until near the end (something about texture).

I really enjoy cooking for others, and while I don't always take compliments gracefully, I do really enjoy them. That said, I think food tastes better to me when I didn't have a hand in making it. I think I tend to be less hyper-critical of something that I didn't make, but also, participating in making something takes a little of the "magic" away for me.

The coating on the aluminized steel pans (vs. non-stick) should be relatively safe, correct? It's just aluminum with a coating of a steel / silicone mixture? Also, the manufacturer of the new convection range we're getting (Capital) recommends using sheets with only one lip for convection baking - do folks think that matters for baking cookies etc. whether the pan has a (short) lip / rim all the way around? Wondering if anyone knows a source for three-quarter sheet sized aluminized steel sheets, or anything smaller than a full sheet, that will fit in the oven of this 30" range (24"W x 21"D). Something like the Chicago Metallic ones, however they only seem to make the aluminzed steel ones in full sheet and maybe half sheet.

Will put in a quick plug for the gear that Cocktail Kingdom sells... especially the Japanese mixing glasses and barspoons (for stirred drinks), but also the basic Japanese (Naranja brand) shaker tins. You can get some of the stuff directly from Naranja, but I think if you factor in shipping and hassle, easier to just buy it from Cocktail Kingdom.

I don't think you're missing anything interesting. The term is just a generic term used by vendors to indicate the tea's grade, but there's nothing really to "learn" about it. It says nothing really about the style of tea or how it stacks up vs. a similarly named tea from another vendor. Good luck, but I wouldn't hold your breath. The higher-fire stuff (especially with tieguanyin) is not that popular right now in mainland China. A lot of HK, Malaysia, and Singapore merchants have heavier-fire stuff, probably because of the high number of Chaozhou people there. Most of the shops buy their raw maocha from the tea grower, and then roast it according to their own "recipes"... it seems like the number of people who have this skill in mainland China is definitely declining, since the market for the modern, air-conditioning processed greener teas is so high. In Beijing (or Shanghai, for that matter), you will probably have more luck if you go to a store that specializes in Wuyi Yancha. If you have the time, head to Maliandao (马连道茶叶街), though know that this is a huge, huge, huge tea shopping area. Closer to you, there are two similar, but smaller, tea malls in Shanghai, including Tianshan (天山). The high-fire stuff is even less popular there, because green tea (and very lightly processed oolongs) are really much more popular in that area. There are one or two decent Wuyi Yancha stores in Tianshan - the one I've been to is Qi Ming Cha Ye on the second floor - not sure if their shop is still there (I think their company site is http://wysqmcy.com/, and believe they have a shop in Beijing also). I have gotten roasted and / or aged Tieguanyin at Tianshan also, but I believe it's just the stale stuff from last season with a heavy (and not that well balanced) roast.

I don't think you'd notice much of a difference in the taste of tea brewed in a Yixing or Chaozhou pot after a few months (even with daily use) compared to the same pot when it was brand new. I have had pots dedicated to the same tea for several years with frequent use, but you'd still be hard-pressed to find much aroma or taste of that specific tea in the pot. This is not to say that one shouldn't dedicate pots to a particular type of tea (or that one shouldn't avoid brewing flavored / scented teas in earthenware / stoneware pots). Keep in mind also that, in my experience (and also based on what I've heard), Chaozhou pots season a little more slowly than Yixing. This is odd since IIRC, they're supposed to be more porous by quite a bit. And, while Chaozhou pots are not a bad choice for some teas, especially dancong or high-fire tieguanyin, I don't think there's any special reason to choose them over Yixing pots, other than that they're from the same region. You might see a difference between a particular pot and another pot, or a particular pot vs. a thin-walled porcelain gaiwan. I personally find that for me, most dancong will have a little more fragrance and less astringency when brewed in a thin-walled (eggshell) porcelain gaiwan or pot. Using a pot is pleasant, because it builds up a patina over time, but I do find that with a lot of teas, using thin porcelain provides the results that taste better to me. This may simply be because of heat, so you might be able to use slightly cooler water with the pot and get similar results, but I don't think it's quite as simple as that. Anyway, my point is just that if you prefer the way a particular tea tastes when using porcelain, no reason not to simply use that for brewing.

We use the rice cooker too. I have a Sanyo, and use the porridge mode / timer (using the normal setting usually results in some boiling over). I have found that if I use one (Japanese) cup of steel cut oats (the measure included with the cooker), that doing 3:1 or 4:1 or whatever we usually do lines up perfectly with the "porridge" 1 cup marker on the rice cooker. BTW, do folks add the salt early in the process when using this method? I'd always been told not to use salt in the rice cooker, but seems like the results would be better if I added the salt before cooking.

Resurrecting this thread, since I'm somewhat interested in the culinary use of this oil. The one I have (it is quite expensive, about the price of a decent olive oil) is the darker colored kind (it's kind of a golden color). The flavor and smell of the one I have isn't that neutral - there's a kind of pleasant aroma that I'd almost call "chocolatey" and maybe a little bit nutty. Mine's imported from Taiwan, and says (I believe) 茗茶油 on the front. It is made from a type of camellia plant, but not actually c. sinensis - it's c. oleifera I have used it for stir-frying a few times, and didn't seem to react badly to high-heat, though given the price, and the fact that the bottle is designed to dispense oil slowly, I'm guessing it's intended to use mostly for flavoring. I haven't been able to find (locally, here in LA) a cheaper, more neutral one. The article mentioned here: http://www.fuchsiadunlop.com/chinas-artisanal-foods/ (note - once you click on the FT link once, I believe it will lock you out for quite a while) is mostly about camellia oil - definitely makes you wonder how much of the stuff on the market is genuine and expressed via mechanical means. Curious about a couple things: 1) Am I right in thinking it will probably go rancid quickly? 2) Let's just assume that it doesn't bother me to waste money - is it bad to use this oil for high-heat applications as opposed to peanut oil? Could / should I blend it with other oils?

From what I've been told, Chinese olives are different from Western / Mediterranean olives, but I don't think they are the same as jujubes. Jujube is 枣 (zǎo) and Chinese olive is 橄榄 (gǎn lǎn). The pits are hard, harder than I believe jujube pits are - they're used to make charcoal which is traditionally used, among other things, as fuel for the small stoves used for Chaozhou gongfu cha (i.e., kung fu tea). Also found this when doing a quick search, which may be interesting to some http://www.flavorandfortune.com/dataaccess/article.php?ID=70 I've only eaten the sweet preserved olive once or twice, and I have to say I wasn't the hugest fan, though I'd try it again. I think it's an acquired taste....

Maybe you mai cai (油麦菜)? I think this is the same thing as what's called A菜 in Taiwan (A being a rough transliteration of the sound of the Hokkien / Taiwanese word used for that plant). I've never eaten it raw, but it's great stir-fried.

I usually just use Hennessy for general purpose stuff - even stuff where I could probably get away with something a little cheaper, like brandied cherries. For drinking by itself, I've been liking Hine VSOP recently. I've been wanting to try some Cognac that has no added sugar, coloring, etc... any suggestions?

I'm not sure if I've ever made them that way at home, but pretty sure I've had them cooked that way somewhere, maybe at a Sichuan place.

Vegetable fillings - a common filling for dumplings or baozi would be something like this, all chopped together (food processor is easiest): * some sort of green - in Shanghai, jìcài (荠菜), or "Shepherd's Purse" is very common (this is not the same thing as jie cai (type of mustard green) or jie lan (Chinese broccoli)). Generally can't find it fresh here, but should be available frozen. You should not get rid of the bottom part, even if it looks a little dirty - this part has the best flavor. You could also use napa cabbage or baby bai cai. If you're using fresh greens, boil them first. * wood ear and / or shiitake mushroom * doufu gan (lit 'dry tofu'; essentially baked / pressed tofu) * bean thread noodles [optional] * grated ginger * zha cai or other pickled vegetable. * toasted sesame oil [and maybe some salt to taste if the zha cai doesn't make it salty enough] Usually there's no garlic, chive, onion, or scallion in these because it's a common vegetarian filling, and Buddhist vegetarians generally don't eat these pungent foods, but you could add some scallion greens too. My gf threw up the rough method she used for dumpling filling here: http://www.runawaysquirrels.com/2010/02/bok-choy-and-baked-tofu-potstickers/ You can use roughly the same method for bao. And to be honest, I think pretty much any normal wheat bread dough will give Ok results.

In addition to the stir-fried preparations, they are a common dried snack, usually seasoned with salt and occasionally garlic or other seasonings. The dried ones are usually large in appearance. I believe they're also a common ingredient in doubanjiang (豆瓣醬), and maybe some other pastes / sauces. Asian markets will often carry frozen shelled favas (outer shell taken off, but inner shell still on), which certainly saves one step when preparing them at home. When I've had them at restaurants, they are usually large and have the outer shell on, so the texture is tougher and drier than many European / Mediterranean preparations I've had. I don't eat meat, so I usually have them prepared just by themselves, along with some simple seasoning and a lot of wok qi.

Variations of this dish (the crunchy potatoes) seem popular in a number of Chinese regional cuisines. I see it at quite a number of restaurants around here, though I think the dish may be more common as a home-cooked dish than in restaurants. I've had variations with jalapenos, celery, or with dried chilies and huajiao (Sichuan peppercorn), and I've had it both with and without vinegar. One of my favorite simple, comforting, homestyle Chinese dishes. My girlfriend's dad makes it at home sometimes. Because the starch is rinsed off, and the potatoes aren't cooked that long, you get a very fresh, crisp texture. Not to everyone's liking maybe, but I really enjoy it.