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anyone have any recipes for those tiny clams marinated in soy sauce and chiles? i'd like to review some recipe options before making a big batch.

A friend has recommended a Peruvian-Chinese restaurant to me for an upcoming trip. I've never heard of that cuisine! Any Gulletteers familiar with it?

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.

Okay, the inquisitive Caucasian girl was loose in the Asian grocery store again. I saw these substantial fish steaks on sale for $1.99/pound, labeled as "Big Head." I had no idea what kind of fish that was, but they looked purty, so I got one, figuring it would make an interesting experiment if nothing else. Turned out to weigh about 1.5 pounds; at a guess, it's a good 2 inches thick, dimensions probably more appropriate for braising or roasting (or cutting up into smaller pieces) than grilling. A bit of Googling turned up that this is probably bighead carp, but was a little low on inspiring recipes. I did get the drift that this is a fish originally native to and popular in China, and so I'm interested in hearing about Chinese-technique recipes. My first thought is to do it as a hotpot. Am I getting warm here? I'm also aware that carp is popular in several areas of Europe--in fact, it's a traditional fish for making gefilte fish (essentially, fishballs). Which leads me to wonder if there are Chinese or other Asian cuisines that also make this fish into fishballs. Though that's more an academic question as I don't have either the time or the tools available to start grinding fish.

Hey everyone, I'm getting married in July, and I want to do a tea ceremony on the day of the wedding with my family, but I'm not exactly sure of the procedure or the type of tea used. My parents just kind of brush me off when I ask. Can someone detail this out for me? Thanks!

My sister brought a huge supply of Asian herbs from Vancouver: shiso, curry, lime, panadan leaves, galangal, Vietnamese mint, Thai basil. I just started summer vacation, so it's experiment time! I am really excited about all these herbs. The first dish I made was dow see chili clams with shiso. I liked the touch of flavour from the shiso. Next time, I will add more as the clams cook, as well, I would add more fresh just before serving. Maybe it's just me. I like excess when it comes to herbs. Manila clams, shredded shiso, chopped ginger, garlic, chili peppers, dow see with light soy and cooking wine and pig skin choi. I also made my first Malaysian curry. The fragrance and flavour of the lemongrass and lime leaves was incredible. I loved this! Ayam Limau Purut ( Chicken with lime leaves) The spice paste called for chilis, chopped red onions, garlic, galangal, lemongrass and tumeric. This was stir-fried, then chicken pieces were added with some water. The chicken was simmered until half done, then coconut milk and fresh lime juice and leaves were added. The whole thing was simmered until the chicken was tender. OMG, I was licking the pot even when I was washing up! That stuff was great on rice. The bathroom scales will be put away for the next while! I am so happy!

I was given a bag of this vegtable last night. There are 2 ways of cooking this: as a soup which is good for someone trying to quit smoking, or to stir-fry with blackbean garlic/ginger sauce. I did the latter as I was also doing clams with dow see, garlic, chili, ginger, and shiso. I'm not fond of this veg. as it is kinda slimy and has a hint of "dirt" taste. Would appreciate more information on this choi. Would hate to miss out on something good just because I didn't like what I did last night.

Pictorial Recipe Fried Rice Noodles with Beef (Dry Style) (乾炒牛河) Frying noodles, rice noodles, and rice are Cantonese specialties. This pictorial illustrates one of the bests Cantonese style has to offer: frying rice noodles with beef and soy sauce. This dish is called "Dry style" because it doesn't offer gravy. It is quite easy to make at home. Note: This dish is also known as "Beef Chow Fun" in many Chinese restaurants. Picture of the finished dish: Serving Suggestion: 2-3 Preparations: Main ingredients (middle right, clockwise): - Beef (chuck), about 3/4 lb - 1 small onion - 1 pack of fresh rich noodles, 2 lb - 5 stalks of green onions (Optional, use either) - 1/4 lb bean sprouts (mung bean sprouts) - 1/8 lb yellow chive This is the feature of this dish: one pack of freshly made rich noodles. The rice noodle sheets are already perforated into 1/2 inch wide, length-wise. Cut the beef into 1/8 inch slices. To marinate the beef: Add beef slices in a small mixing bowl. Add 1 tsp sesame oil, 1 tsp of ShaoHsing wine, 1 tsp of corn starch, 1 tsp of light soy sauce, 1 tsp of dark soy sauce, and 1 tsp of ground white pepper. Mix well. Set aside for about 30 minutes before cooking. Peel, trim and cut the onion into small wedges. Trim and cut the green onions into 1 to 2 inch pieces. Use a small bowl, add 3 tsp of light soy sauce and 3 tsp of dark soy sauce. Mix well. Take the rice noodles out of the plastic package. Use your fingers to separate the noodle shreds and fluff them up the best you can. Cooking Instructions: Use a pan/wok, set stove to high. Add 3 tblsp of cooking oil. Wait until oil is hot. Add marinated beef slices to velvet for a few minutes. Remove and drain the excess oil. Clean and dry pan. Heat it over stove. Set stove to high. Add 4-5 tblsp of cooking oil. Wait until oil start fuming. (Note: this is an important point. Must wait until oil temperature is high.) The following steps must be completed very quickly: Add the wedged onions and 1/2 portion of the green onions. Dash in 2 tsp of ShaoHsing wine. This may induce a flame especially if you cook with a high power wok burner. Immediately add the small bowl of light/dark soy sauce mix. Like this. The soy sauce will boil immediately. Immediately add the rice noodles. (Note: When cooking at home, it is easier to use a microwave oven to pre-heat the rice noodles for about 3-5 minutes. This will reduce the cooking time over the pan/wok.) Mix well and add the rest portion of the green onions. Mix well until the soy sauce spreads evenly over the rice noodles. Return the velveted beef slices. Continue to mix well. Stir-fry for another minute or so, completed. Transfer the rice noodles to a serving plate. Picture of the finished dish. (Note: The quantity of food made in this recipe is about twice to three times the portion shown in this picture.) Variations It is also popular to use BBQ pork slices or chicken to make this rice noodle dish.

New here and loving it. I'm Brazilian and totally in love with Chinese cuisine. Chinese restaurants and take outs are quite common in here, particularlly in the city where I live. We have awesome Chinese restaurants and the usually starch laded take outs. However, Chinese ingredients are only found in one supplier in the Asiatic neighborhood, but this shop carries just about everything necessary to make Chinese meals at home, include my fave lop cheong. My visits to that store are the apex of my week! This week I decided to try again a Joong/Jongzi after some disappointments in the past. I had a great surprise. Those were just made like in Leungs pictorial found in this forum. The same ingredients, very rich and very tasty. Just perfect! I thought I should share how much I enjoy to make my own Chinese meals as well as my findings around here.

I got the following message from a friend. Can anyone help out here with a recipe for luobo? "hey there........could you do me a favor? when you are on egullet, could you possibly ask for a recipe for Luobo......it is a chinese daikon pastry........they serve it in dum sum restaurants.........my friend was in chegdu and had it......she sent me a picture and it looks very interesting." Any information/recipes greatly appreciated! Thanks.

I recieved some seeds from a Chinese chef through a friend. The closest description I got was "gourd" - but I'm hoping these are edible too. You can read all about my mystery squash/gourd here as well as see a picture of it. Can anyone help me identify this plant? Thanks!

Pictorial Recipe Steamed Pork Spareribs with Black Bean Sauce (豉汁蒸排骨) This dish is very popular in Cantonese home cooking. It is very easy to make and most families know how to make it. Picture of the finished dish: Serving Suggestion: 2-3 Preparations: Main ingredients (upper left, clockwise): - about 1 1/2 lb of pork spareribs - 3-4 tsp of fermented black beans - 1 small chili pepper - 3-4 cloves of garlic - ginger, use about 1-2 inch in length Trim extra fat and cut the pork spareribs into easy-to-eat, bite-size pieces. Slightly rinse the 3-4 tsp of fermented black beans. Smash the black beans with the back of a spoon. Trim end and peel 3-4 cloves of garlic. Press the garlic on top of the smashed black beans. Use a small spoon to mix the smashed black beans and pressed garlic into a paste. Cut the chili pepper into small slices. Use about 1-2 inch in length of ginger. Cut into small shreds. To marinate the pork spareribs, add them in a mixing bowl. Add: - 1-2 tsp of sesame oil - 2 tsp of light soy sauce - 2 tsp of ShaoHsing cooking wine - 1-2 tsp of corn starch - 2 tsp of dark soy sauce - 1/4 tsp of salt (or to taste) - 1 tsp of ground white pepper Add the shredded ginger and smashed garlic/black bean paste into the mixture. Mix well. Set aside for 30 minutes before cooking. Cooking Instructions: Transfer the mixture on to a steaming dish. Add the chili pepper slices on top. Set on a steamer and steam for about 20-25 minutes. Picture of the finished dish.

I'm the mother of an almost-six-month-old, and I'm thinking a lot about how to raise a daughter with a good palette. Rice cereal (the traditional first food in America) doesn't seem like a good start-- I certainly wouldn't eat it very happily. So I'm wondering about other countries and other traditions-- What's the traditional first food for babies in China? (I'm also going to post this in the following forums: Italy, Spain, Japan, India, France, Middle East, and Mexico. Apologies to those who run across this question in other places!)

All the Peking duck I've had in China has been served with mushi (flour pancake) but there are several restaurants in America that serve it with mantou. I'm told that this is common in parts of China as well, though I don't know which regions. Is mushi more authentic? I prefer mushi as it's less filling -- which translates into more duck!

I was introduced to this dish when I was a teenager by a friend's mom. It's simply a regular Chinese spring roll with the filling fully cooked, rolled into the skins and served without frying. It is similar in concept to the spring rolls they have in Southeast Asia except the skins and filling are quite different. Has anyone tried this or seen spring rolls served this way in China?

I've been inspired by my recent trip to China. Eating my way through that amazing culture and country has prompted me to get cookin' Chinese. To get started, I went to the Asian market to gather somethings. I encountered a mystery herb - or greenleaf. What is this? At first glance, it looked like cilantro - but then the leaves weren't lobed and they were way too big and thick. Then, I thought it was small watercress - but that doesn't seem quite right either. The leaves are fanned out, like a gingko leaf. I didn't know how to cook it, so I stir-fried it in a wok with some oil and garlic and salt. It was BITTER. VERY BITTER. Can anyone name this green-leaf? P.S. The beef tendons and tripe are braising in the oven with Saoxing wine, soy, garlic and ginger as we speak!

I find this question fascinating, not least because I have a large multi-cultural family whose taste buds and food atitudes seem to run the whole gamut!! I had the experience this summer of organizing a banquet at Fangshan restaurant(the Imperial cuisine restaurant in Beihai park in Beijing) for a relative's 85th birthday. The 30+ crowd consisted of people ranging from some 'backwoodsy-types' from Dongbei who'd never been to Beijing before, through some real 'Lao Beijingren' (Beijing Old-timers), to Laowai (i.e. non-Chinese) who'd never been to China before and who were 'steak 'n' potato' sorts. ACK! We had a meeting with one of the managers to discuss it - and some really interesting points emerged during our (very frank) discussion. Since Fangshan is quite the tourist place and also the place for Beijingers to show off to out of towners, the manager had seen all sorts. The one firm conclusion was that non-Chinese customers were far cheaper to feed because of the differences in taste-values and restaurant-culture. Because of texture issues, a lot of high-end food appears not to be palatable to certain NA or European palates. The manager told us of banquets where over half the sea-cucumber came back uneaten or abalone was untouched (which seemed to hurt his soul!). On the other hand, lots of Chinese would distain such food as 'gu lao rou' (s+s pork) which were of appeal to non-Chinese. The manager solved the problem by serving different menus to different tables. The menu for the 'NA/Europe table' came out 1/3 the price of the 'Chinese' tables!!! (150rmb each as opposed to 450rmb!!). But each group was happy in the end with their selection (I'm sorry to say I didn't keep the menus ) on the whole - even the non-foodies! But the whole process took about 1 1/2 hours of discussion to keep everyone's taste buds happy!! Which I thought was a bit ridiculous really.... it would have been nice to have people there who, like eGulleteers, would have appreciated the really 'Chinese-style' delicacies which were coming out!! So I can really understand and admire your patience, jokhm!! I was exhausted by the process!! But to prove it was all happy: here's a picture of my 'yilao' (i.e. older generation female relative) opening the HUGE peach baozi holder:

Hi All, I'm in Taiwan at the moment and yesterday my husband and I were invited to a nice banquet at a Dim Sum restaurant. The food was fantastic and at the end, among many other desserts, they served ramekins with a snow-white pudding with pureed mango sauce on top. If I'm not mistaken, there was a hint of coconut in the pudding and the texture was really silky, creamy and light. I asked what was that made of but the local girls beside me could only say that it was "mango pudding" although I'm pretty sure there wasn't mango in the pudding itself, only in the sauce. I love it and I'd appreciate if anyone could share the recipe of that simple yet beautiful and delicate dessert. Thanks! Marcia

Pictorial Recipe Dry Fish Stir-fried with Pressed Tofu (小魚干辣椒) This is a very popular Taiwanese snack (or appetizer). It is very easy to make at home. Picture of the finished dish: Serving Suggestion: 3-4 (appetizer) Preparations: Main ingredients (upper left, clockwise): - 1 pack of small dry fish, about 5 oz - 2 chili peppers (e.g. jalapeno peppers) - Garlic, use 5-6 cloves - Ginger, use 2-3 inch - 1 pack of flavored (with five spice) pressed tofu - (Not shown in picture) 4 stalks of green onions Use a mixing bowl, soak the small dry fish in water for about 1 hour before cooking. Cut the pressed tofu into small and thin shreds. Peel and mince 5-6 cloves of garlic. Grate about 2-3 inch of ginger. Trim and shred 4 green onions (diagonally). Trim ends and cut 2 chili peppers into thin shreds. Cooking Instructions: Use a pan/wok, set stove to high. Add 3 tblsp of cooking oil. Wait until oil is hot. Add minced garlic, shredded chili pepper, grated ginger, 1/2 tsp of salt (or to taste), 2 tsp of chili bean paste and 1 tsp of brown bean sauce. Dash in 2 tsp of ShaoHsing cooking wine. Optionally, add 2 to 3 tsp of sambal hot sauce or any other favorite hot sauce. Make sure to stir the ingredients well. Add the soaked dry fish (drain well first). Add the shredded green onions and pressed tofu. Stir-fry for a few minutes. At last, dash in 2 tsp of dark soy sauce (or to taste) and 1 tsp of sugar. Mix well to spread the dark soy color evenly. Ready. Transfer to a serving dish. Drip in 2 tsp of sesame oil on top. Picture of the finished dish. (Note: The quantity of food made in this recipe is about twice the portion shown in this picture.)

i was wondering if you guys know what chick pea is in chinese cantonese or mandarin? thanks.

My s-i-l wants to make a seven grain congee. The recipe included kaoliang rice. We don't know what this is. Is there a common name for this grain? I imagine only Asian grocers would carry this? Any information would be appreciated.

Inspired by my recent trip to China, I'm starting this thread to keep the food comin'. Now, I know I won't find anything like I had in China here in the Midwest, but I'll bet I can come pretty close. Would love to hear from all you adventurous eaters out there! I'll get the party started with China Tom's. The following is cut-and-pasted from my latest blog entry. The Tengs, friends of mine, own a small private farm in Richmond, Missouri. Tom's entire 25 acres is dedicated to Asian pears. He has about four or five different varieties. Tonight, we went to his restaurant, China Tom's, and got to try some of them. His wife brought out a platter with two different kinds - an Asian pear (a.k.a "Korean pears" or "Yali pears") which grows all throughout Eastern Asia and an American varietal, with a darker and thicker skin. The Asian varietal is crisper and more juicy. The skin color ranges from a pale yellow to a butter yellow. The flavor starts off with a little tartness but is quickly chased away by intense sweetness. The American variatal, not surprisingly is pure sweetness from start to finish - geared toward our saccharine-cravin' palates. The American varietal is more dense, less crisp, and a tougher chew - in part because of the slightly thicker and more brownish skin. Of course, though tempted, man does not live on pears alone. We ordered food - a very simple meal, but satisfying nonetheless. A successful farmer, Mr. Teng is also a worthy chef. Tonight he prepared one of my favorite dishes at his restaurant - huang gua tsao la pi (or huang gua tsao liang fun) - cucumber with mung bean noodle salad. The dressing is very spicy and garlicky - basically a mix of vinegar, garlick, a bit of salt and sugar, a few drops of rice wine, red chile flakes and chopped cilantro. Wow, is it good. The mung bean noodles (liang fun, or la pi - which literally translates to "pulled skin) are transluscent, broad and thin sheets of pasta - somewhat like spring roll wrappers or a large sheet of thick gelatin. Mr. Teng prefers using Korean mung bean broad noodles because they are sturdier and have a nice chew. To make this dish, Mr. Teng first immerses the noodle sheets in boiling water. As soon as they are softened, he immediately cuts them into pieces. If you wait until the noodles go cold, they'll curl up and become difficut to cut. Working quickly, he tosses in sliced cucumbers (English or Asian) and mixes it with the dressing. What results is a garlicky and spicy noodle salad. Yum. We also had a plate of stir-fried flounder slices ($10.95). The silver dollar-sized pieces of fish had been cooked with fermented soybeans (do ce), snow peas, cucumbers, and carrots. I dare any American chef to produce a plate of sliced fish as exquisitely tender and soft as Mr. Teng's. A plate of chopped and stir-fried you tsai (a Chinese mustard green) ($7.50) and a big bowl of rice vermicelli (mi fun) and pickled greens (shien tsai) soup rounded out the meal. If you're ever in the area, check out China Tom's. Order from the "Special Authentic Chinese Menu" for some more traditional food. Of course, if you want my favorite dish, huang gua tsao la pi, you might want to call ahead to make sure they can prepare it for you. To see all of the dishes from my meal, visit my flickr account. China Tom's Chef-Owner Tom Teng 2816 West 47th Avenue Kansas City, Kansas 66103 913.432.1597 If you're interested in what other Chinese restaurants I'd recommend, check out this posting on my blog. Cheers. u.e.

Pictorial Recipe Dace Fish Cake with Lettuce in Soup (生菜鯪魚球) In the streets of Hong Kong, there are two popular street eats: Fried Dace fishball, and Dace fishballs with lettuce boiled in soup. I am presenting both dishes here as they are quite similar. You may also add tofu and Chinese mustard greens to make the soup. They are very simple to make. Picture of the finished dish: Serving Suggestion: 2-3 Preparations: Main ingredients (lower left, clockwise): - 1 container of fresh fish cake, about 1 lb (you may also use other kind of fish cakes) - cilantro, about 10-12 - 3-4 stalks of green onions - 1/4 head of lettuce Chop the lettuce into fine shreds. Finely chop the cilantro and green onions. Cooking Instructions: To make the fried version, heat up a small pot over high setting on the stove. Add 1/2 cup of frying oil. Note: To add more fragrance, use a mix of 2/3 frying oil with 1/3 of sesame oil. Scoop up the fish cake with a large spoon and spoon off into the hot oil. Fry the Dace fish cake for a few minutes until the outside turns golden brown. Meanwhile, use another pot to boil 2 cans of chicken broth. (Sorry about the blurry picture.) To make the boil version (maybe half and half), simply boil the Dace fish cake in small pieces in the broth. To assemble the dish, use a medium size soup bowl. Lay the shredded lettuce on the bowl. Lay the fried or boiled Dace fish on top of the lettuce. The heat from the boiling soup will cook the lettuce. Quickly pour the boiling soup in the bowl. Before serving, add the chopped cilantro and green onions on top. Add some (go heavy) ground white pepper and drizzle a few drops of sesame oil on top. Picture of the finished dish.

Over in the Charcuterie topic, I've been fiddling with curing my own lop yuk, which I did in earnest earlier this spring. But I've been lead to understand that fall is truly lop yuk season, and the pork bellies are starting to appear in my local Chinese grocery. It's time to get some more hanging! I've done a few batches and wrote up this recipe in Recipe Gullet, but I think that it's a recipe that's worth more work and tweaking. I also think it's a very rewarding item for folks getting started with curing meat. Finally, if you have lop yuk on hand, you can start making Naw Mai Fon, or Chinese sticky rice, to your heart's content. Which, if you're like me, is weekly. Dave the Cook also tells me that thinly sliced lop yuk is a great appetizer. So: who's game?

Pictorial Recipe Fried Noodles with Garlic and Beef Sauce (牛肉醬抄麺) I bought a can of "beef paste" made from the famous Taiwanese food manufacturer "Hsin Tung Yang". The sauce/paste is quite tasty, albeit a little bit salty. I don't really know what dishes one can use it to make. I came up with my recipe of mixing this in to make Fried Noodles with Minced Beef and Garlic. The result was very good. Try it if you can find this canned "Beef Paste". The label in English read: Hsin Tung Yang Beef Paste (Chili Pepper Flavored). Product of U.S.A. Picture of the finished dish: Serving Suggestion: 3-4 Preparations: Main ingredients (lower left, clockwise): - about 3/4 to 1 lb of noodles - 1 can of the featured "Hsin Tung Yang Beef Paste" - 4-5 stalks of green onions - 7-8 cloves of garlic - 1 to 1 1/2 lb of ground beef - (Not shown) 1/2 a medium size onion Note: I like to use broad noodles for this dish. You may use any of your favorite noodles, or even spaghetti, fettucini or other kinds of pasta. This is a close-up shot of the main feature: Hsin Tung Yang Beef Paste (Chili Pepper Flavored). Another close-up shot. Peel and dice 1/2 onion. Peel and mince 7-8 cloves of garlic. Trim ends and finely chop 4-5 stalks of green onions. To marinate the ground beef: use a mixing bowl. Add the ground beef. Then add: - 2 tsp of sesame oil - 2 tsp of ShaoHsing cooking wine - 1-2 tsp of corn starch - 2 tsp of light soy sauce - 1 tsp of dark soy sauce - 1 tsp of ground white pepper Mix well. Set aside for at least 30 minutes before cooking. Cooking Instructions: First cook the noodles. Use a medium pot and boil 1/2 pot of water. Add the noodles. Add a little bit of cooking oil and salt to the boiling water. This would make the noodles easier to separate and not stick together. Cook the noodles until Al Dente. It takes about 10 minutes or so, depending on the noodle type. Drain the noodles onto a colander. Run some cold water over them. Drain well and separate them the best you can. Next: Brown the ground beef. Place a pan/wok over high heat. Add 3 tblsp of cooking oil. Add the marinated ground beef. Stir well. Remove when the beef is browned. Start with a clean pan/wok. Place over high heat. Add 3 tblsp of cooking oil. Wait until oil starts fuming. Add chopped onions and minced garlic. Sautee for a minute or so. Add 1/2 tsp of salt (or to taste) Add a full can of the featured "Beef Paste". Add 4 tsp of Sa Cha Sauce. Stir well. Mix the sauces and cook for another minute or 2. Add the well-drained noodles. Stir well. Cook for 3 to 4 minutes until the noodles heat up. Finally, return the browned ground beef and add the finely chopped green onions. Mix well and continue to cook for 3 to 4 minutes. Ready. Transfer the noodles to serving plates. Picture of the finished dish.