aprilmei
-
Posts
535 -
Joined
-
Last visited
Content Type
Profiles
Forums
Store
Help Articles
Posts posted by aprilmei
-
-
Yes, this is a great site. I've double checked their weights for many ingredients and they've been accurate so far.
-
Re: Chinesesoup.com
Frozen Chinese herbal soup! What a concept!
I wonder if they can eliminate or greatly reduce the freezer burn.I haven't tried the frozen soups; no point because I can get the fresh ones delivered to my office.
-
I use a Chinese soup delivery service called chinesesoup.com. If you look on the website, you can see the combinations - in traditional Chinese and English - they make. It doesn't give recipes, just the ingredients and the properties each particular soup is supposed to have.
-
The pork skin is necessary because it adds gelatin, causing the cooked meat mixture to solidify when cool. It's then scooped up, wrapped in the dumpling skins and when they're steamed, the gelatin melts, creating the soup.
I've never made xiao long bao, but I have made a similar type of dumpling. You can try to substitute powdered or leaf gelatin but you'd have to experiment.
Do they have pork belly where you live? Or is there a Chinese market?
-
That Art Deco one is beautiful... Do you use it, or just admire it (not that there's anything wrong with just admiring it).
-
My grandmother - an excellent Chinese cook - had a repertoire of about four non-Chinese dishes and they were the only ones she and my grandfather liked. Prime rib - which would be difficult to do because you probably will have a hard time getting the meat, and she probably doesn't have an oven; roast turkey (ditto); pot roast (ditto) and fried chicken, which we always ate with spaghetti with tomato sauce (until I moved away from home, I thought this was a traditional fried chicken accomaniment, until my Western friends told me otherwise).
Fried chicken is do-able (and most people like it), unless you can't get chickens due to bird flu.
When we were in Italy, they ate (for the first time) fried seafood (dipped in egg and then breadcrumbs). They liked that a lot too.
-
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.
Whether the skin is pierced seems more to the luck of the draw. The times I've had this the skin is usually not broken. Sometimes it's pretty fragile though.
These are very special and one of my favourites. The skins should be unbroken, and when you pierce them the extra-rich broth flows into the bowl.
Here in Hong Kong, they charge about HK$45 each, so about US$6. How much are they in the States and elsewhere?
-
God, this is confusing...
-
I never knew this cut of meat had a name but when I buy rib eyes, I look for a large deckle. It's my favourite piece of beef. It's tender and juicy, even when it looks overcooked. My sister-in-law doesn't like it so when my mother makes her annual rib-roast for Christmas, my father - the carver - cuts it off my SIL's slab of meat and he and I eat it.
If they start removing it from rib eyes, I'm going to be very unhappy.
-
I am sampling different Chinese restaurants in San Francisco this week. Today's lunch was at "Shanghai Dumpling King" (changed name from "Shanghai Dumpling Shop"). I ordered a dish of "Stir-fried Eel" ("Chow Sin Woo" [Cantonese]). They put about 2 tsp of minced raw garlic in the center of the dish. It tastes pretty good, but a little bit too "garlicky" because the garlic is raw. I haven't had Shanghai food too often. Is this typical of Shanghai style eel? I had this dish in a Shanghai style restaurant in San Diego many times but never had seen it served with raw garlic. Perhaps this is just one restaurant's rendition?
I also ordered a bowl of "Spicy Dumpling" (Hung Yao Chow Shao [Half Cantonese half Mandarin :-) ] ). They put sesame paste in this dish. Also a first for me. It tastes good... but with sesame paste, after the 4th dumpling you would feel like you already have enough... (There are 10 in a bowl...) Again, is this typical of Shanghainese' interpretation?
I've been served the eel this way. I think what you're supposed to do is mix the garlic into the other ingredients and their residual heat will warm the garlic and make it less raw-tasting. It's still pretty powerful though; Shanghainese cuisine can be quite strong, although there are many subtle dishes.
-
Consuming too much rambutan will result in Damp-Heat, of which a common symptom is purging. Counter that with Durian....which gives Real Heat (wink wink).
so what happens when u get rid of the damp heat....now you're left with too much heat from the durian......do u eat watermelon to bring back the yin in balance?
hmm this is an interesting subject by itself....should we start a new topic ? yin yang food items, medicinal properties and side effects. and how to restore balance?
I heard that mangosteens are supposed to balance durians. My Malaysian friends also swear by drinking salted water out of the durian shell to balance its heat. I haven't tried it.
-
Eating large quantities of lychees has never been a problem for me. I'd like to know if there's anyone who would not have been in a position to have heard about their quantity of yang that's found eating large quantities of lychees to be a problem. I ate half a kilo of lychees for lunch for several days in Hong Kong and am capable of eating at least the better part of a pound in any given day when they're in season (as imports) in New York. No problem whatsoever.
Eating them is not the problem - they're the most luscious fruit in the world (that I've tasted, anyway). The problem is how they affect some of us. But it's sometimes worth it. And the season is so short...
-
THey make this marvellous stuff called fudge. It's very different from other versions I've tasted - it doesn't contain chocolate. I've never made it but when we were travelling in the Highlands a couple years ago, a woman in a shop very kindly wrote out the recipe for me. It's hellishly rich - it contains (if I remember correctly) condensed milk, butter and sugar. It's served in small squares.
Oops, just remembered that they DID have a chocolate version of fudge but I didn't taste it.
-
Next time they're back in season -- when is that anyway? -- I'm going to try eating two pounds and see what happens.
I'm not sure if this is a good idea. A friend of mine ate a kilo in one sitting - yes, a kilo. She couldn't uh... use the toilet for about a week.
They're in season - here, anyway - around June to mid-August. The best ones come at the end of the season.
-
It's not superstition; I also feel its effects - I cough and have a hard time sleeping. I've tried to counter the effects by drinking watermelon juice (supposed to be cooling) but it doesn't seem to work.
Unfortunately, the season is so short that I always over-indulge anyway - have to eat as many as possible while they're available.
-
Is this one just a variation on the spring onion dipping sauce served with poached chicken (bak chik gai)? If so, it's just grated ginger with salt and oil - it's not cooked. It's served at Chiu Chow and Hakka restaurants (with the salt baked chicken) and as one of the three dipping sauces with Hainan chicken rice.
-
Snakes are also considered to be tastier in winter because they're fatter (or is it fattier?) since they hibernate. They're better at the beginning of winter because they have more fat reserves.
-
Isn't Shabu Shabu the Japanese' equivalent of the Chinese "hot pot" ("Da Been Lo" in Cantonese)? Or are they very different?
With Chinese (Cantonese) hot pot, we put raw meats/seafood (e.g. sliced beef, chicken, lamb, shrimp, crab, squid, oyster, clam, beef/shrimp/octopus/fish-balls) and vegetables (e.g. lettuce, napa cabbage, Chinese broccoli, yau choy, bak choy, or whatever is in season), along with tofu and soaked mung bean thread in the boiling broth. Is this very different from Shabu Shabu?
I've never had Chinese "hot pot", but as far as I know, the two are similar but not really the same. With Japanese shabu shabu, you usually just briefly dip the food item into the broth--just long enough to cook it (some vegetables get left in a bit longer, though). Then you dip it in some sort of sauce, and that's where the flavouring comes in. The broth, itself, isn't supposed to be the main flavouring component. The most common sauces are goma (my personal favourite) and maybe ponzu?
I think in theory, Japanese nabe might be more similar to the Chinese "hot pot" in that everything is cooked in the pot, so they add more flavour to the broth.
Oh, this is interesting. I wondered why the shabu shabu broth was so... subtle.
In Chinese hotpot, some of the ingredients are dipped briefly into the broth (they're sliced very thin so take only seconds to cook); other ingredients (such as innards and dumplings) are cooked for longer. After they're taken from the broth, you can put them in a dipping sauce. The most basic sauce is just soy sauce and chillies and sesame oil. Some restaurants pride themselves on the number of ingredients available to create your own sauce. A Sichuanese restaurant, Man Jiang Hong, has at least 20 ingredients including raw garlic, fried garlic, vinegar, raw sesame seeds, toasted sesame seeds, sesame seed paste, sesame oil, soy sauce, raw chilli, chilli paste, chilli oil... Making your own concoction is part of the fun although there are other restaurants I prefer (for hotpot anyway) to Man Jiang Hong.
At the end of the meal the soup - which has all the flavours of everything cooked in it - is eaten with rice or noodles, at least if it's a clear broth (wouldn't recommend this with Taiwanese/Sichuanese soup bases; the heat would be overwhelming).
-
[...I have a sudden and very very strong craving for Shabu Shabu - does anyone on this forum have any recommendations for this in Hong Kong.
Isn't Shabu Shabu the Japanese' equivalent of the Chinese "hot pot" ("Da Been Lo" in Cantonese)? Or are they very different?
With Chinese (Cantonese) hot pot, we put raw meats/seafood (e.g. sliced beef, chicken, lamb, shrimp, crab, squid, oyster, clam, beef/shrimp/octopus/fish-balls) and vegetables (e.g. lettuce, napa cabbage, Chinese broccoli, yau choy, bak choy, or whatever is in season), along with tofu and soaked mung bean thread in the boiling broth. Is this very different from Shabu Shabu?
If you like Cantonese hot pot, then they are everywhere in Hong Kong. You can probably find plenty of hot pot restaurants in Kowloon, Wan Chai and Causeway Bay and no need to go to Shatin.
Yeah, they are similar. I've never eaten shabu shabu in Japan but the ones I've tasted in Hong Kong made me think I'd rather have Chinese hotpot - the Japanese version is not as flavourful and it's much more expensive.
There are plenty of places to try here in all areas of Hong Kong; even "regular" restaraurants add it to their menus during the winter months (except that it doesn't really feel like winter - it's 23 degrees Celsius/74 degrees Farenheit right now). There are many styles to choose from, and all places offer several types of broths. If you want something closest to shabu shabu, try a clear Cantonese broth, rather than satay style or Taiwanese/Sichuanese.
-
The 10 per cent USUALLY goes to the house but not always. At some of the restaurants I worked at here (as a pastry chef) the 10 per cent was divided between non-management FOH staff. Unfortunately, though, that's an exception.
-
I agree with you about the Peninsula tea - I also prefer the Mandarin. The Mandarin is closed for renovations for eight months but the one in the Landmark is another hotel entirely - it's not a temporary location. The Landmark Mandarin is much more expensive than the first - it's being marketed as a boutique hotel. A friend of mine went to the bar and ordered a coke - it cost HK$85! insane...
-
There used to be a Japanese department store in Hong Kong side where there's a good restaurant in its second floor at the very back of the store.
And, what is the huge toy store in Hong Kong side?
cfusion: Welcome to eGullet to you too! Many new participants. Fabulous!
If your last visit to HK was in the 60's, things might have turned over 3 times around already. The business changes in HK are frequent and rapid. Although there are a few brand news that can stand the test of time. I go back every 3 years or so and I found big changes every time.
There used to be only one prominent Japanese department store in Hong Kong, and that's Daimaru in Causeway Bay. That might be what you were referring to. It is still around. In the past 10-20 years, many new Japanese department stores have opened branches in Hong Kong. (Sogo for example)
The US based Toys R Us opened their branch at the Ocean Terminal, and became the largest toy store in town at the time. Not sure if they are still.
Actually, Daimaru closed a few years ago. There are two more Japanese department stores in CWB, Mitsukoshi (which I heard will be closing) and Sogo. Sogo has a really good food department in the basement and great kitchen equipment upstairs.
I think if you try Maxim's strawberry shortcake (if they still make it), you will be disappointed. It's not known for its good pastries, although they have bakery shops in many locations. Fake cream, thick layers of jelly - it's pretty dreadful. But some of their Chinese restaurants are suprisingly good. They also have a Western division of restaurants and they're also good.
-
I agree with HKDave about Veda - it's excellent. Expensive but worth it; the food is very different from most of the regular Indian restaurants in Hong Kong.
I've also been to Branto's and I like it a lot. It's a pure vegetarian Indian place. It's across the street from the Kowloon Shangri-La.
-
Sometimes some of the butter separates out of the toffee and concentrates on the surface. If it does, the chocolate isn't going to adhere to the toffee. Try blotting up the butter with paper towels - the surface should be matte, rather than shiny. Then you can spread the layer of chocolate on top.
Laotian vs Thai food -- differences?
in Elsewhere in Asia/Pacific: Cooking & Baking
Posted · Edited by aprilmei (log)
Yeah, we ate a lot of water buffalo when we were in Luang Prabang. Including some dark red water buffalo sausages. I asked the owner/cook if they were blood sausages - he hesitated until I assured him that I was fine with that, then he said yes, they did contain blood.
We also ate some delicious, beautiful river weed that had been sun-dried in sheets with sesame seeds and sliced garlic. It kind of resembled Japanese hand-made paper.