Starter dish ideas

[Daznz]

Ive got two dinner guests coming for dinner on the weekend im making

Mu shu pork and Anise Chicken for the mains has anyone got some ideas

on two reasonably quick starters to go with these dishes

Thanks Dale

[hzrt8w]

There can be lots of ideas. But how available are Chinese ingredients to your region? That may limit your choices.

For example, can you buy packaged pressed tofu marinated in soy and five spice flavor? If so, you can cut them into shreds - either eat as is or to cook them with a bit of garlic, chili pepper and dark soy sauce. Let them cool and serve at room temperature.

Similar to this pictorial: (You can have the dried fish too if you can find them)

Dry Fish Stir-fried with Pressed Tofu (小魚干辣椒)

[Daznz]

There can be lots of ideas.  But how available are Chinese ingredients to your region?  That may limit your choices.

For example, can you buy packaged pressed tofu marinated in soy and five spice flavor?  If so, you can cut them into shreds - either eat as is or to cook them with a bit of garlic, chili pepper and dark soy sauce.  Let them cool and serve at room temperature.

Similar to this pictorial:  (You can have the dried fish too if you can find them)

Dry Fish Stir-fried with Pressed Tofu (小魚干辣椒)

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Yes Chinese ingredients are abit limited but we can order most stuff

one guest is not a big fan of fish... So will have to pass on the dried fish

Dale

[XiaoLing]

You could do a simple pickeled cucumber and cabbage. Also a quick seaweed (not japanese but thick Hai Dai strips) salad.

You can look up recipes by typing in "Chinese Cucumber salad."

And as for the seaweed salad, once you have rehydrated the seaweed. Blanche it and then rinse cold water and drain.

In a bowl, mix: light soy, vinegar (preferably rice wine or changking), sugar, chillies (optional), minced garlic, minced ginger, sesame oil and some scallions.

Oh and another thing, you can make Ah Leung's stired fried pressed tofu dish without the fish. Replace it with some black beans and dice up the tofu rather than leaving it in slivers. You can also add some ground chicken, pork, or beef but since you're already serving a lot of meat dishes for dinner you might want to leave it as a veggie apps.

Edited April 1, 2007 by XiaoLing (log)

[jo-mel]

Are you looking for something cold? Or hot? Hot could be lettuce packages. For cold, I like making a salad of blanched vegetable slices and dressed with a soy, vinegar, sesame dressing. Par cooked carrots, broccoli stem slices, snow peas, celery cut on a diagonal and arranged on a plate with the dressing on top is tasty and pretty to look at. If interested, I can give you more complete directions.

Candied walnuts are nice too.

[Daznz]

Are you looking for something cold?  Or hot?  Hot could be lettuce packages.  For cold, I like making a salad of blanched vegetable slices and dressed with a soy, vinegar, sesame dressing. Par cooked carrots, broccoli stem slices, snow peas, celery cut on a diagonal and arranged on a plate with the dressing on top is tasty and pretty to look at. If interested, I can give you more complete directions.

Candied walnuts are nice too.

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Thankyou so much for your help people im doing a trial of Eileen yin-Fei Lo Char siu pork before the weekend i think this could be a nice starter what do you think?

Now the pickled vegetables sound nice. Hmmmmm Char Siu pork and pickled vegetables could be good ?..... Ok whats in the lettuce package i can see tasty meat with sesame seeds on the top ... I love meat.

Oh one more thing in the Char sin recipe it called for 1 1/2 cake of preserved bean curd i found a jar in the asian shop the curd is in salt, sesame oil,cooking wine will this be ok? it tastes abit like salty cheese not to bad its the first time ive tryed it

Thanks Dale

[XiaoLing]

A lettuce package or lettuce wrap is usually made with ground meat (chicken or pork) with veggies cooked seperately and then wrapped with lettuce at the table.

There are two basic types of bean curd. There is the red variety and then the white. They have slightly different taste and texture. Make sure you're using the right one. The one you described sounds like your typical white preserved bean curd.