Food bliss in Beijing and Cambodia

[kangarool]

How good can a holiday be? Pretty bloody good, even if it was, as always, much too short. My wife and I have a little bun cooking away in the oven (bao in the steamer?), so I took off for One Last Adventure for myself to China and Cambodia, two places I'd always hoped to see.

I opted for Beijing in China, and Phnom Penh/Siem Reap (Angkor temples) in Cambodia. I also had a bit of transit in Singapore and Bangkok, enough time for about one meal each.

There was so much that was wonderful about it, not least of all the food. I thought you might enjoy seeing some pictures.

BEIJING

(I’ll save my Li Family Restaurant experience for another board, I have some photos to supplement Pan’s previous posting, and some opinions and questions)

NEARLY EVERY BREKKY: Phenomenal baozi. Gobbled them up by the dozen, at shopfront after shopfront. Usually went the standard Pork filled ones:

But nearly as often went with the "Greens" version. I think the filling is primarily spring onion (scallions) and chinese spinach? I’m not sure, here’s a look.

Also wonderful at breakfast were the soups. There were so many different kinds, but a few examples I found interesting include:

Zhou. I didn’t enjoy the zhou nearly as much as I like (what I’m guessing to be) Cantonese style conjee… my preference is for all the rice to basically be obliterated, and the porridge to be rather thick and starchy, but it seems the northern style is to serve it thinner, and with grains of rice still somewhat separate. It also had a somewhat sour taste, which I think may have had to do with the addition of a kind of red bean? Maybe someone can help inform.

SWEET PORRIDGE. I thought initially this may have been a maize-based porridge, but perhaps it was millet (I don’t know that I’ve had millet, so couldn’t identify it if it was). It was very good, very filling, and was topped with a sesame or hazelnut (?) sauce that added a great dimension. The closest taste I can compare it to would be if you made Nutella into a sauce! Not that sweet, though. Seemed extremely common, I saw it everywhere.

The breads on the side were filled with various things, the ones you see here are filled with Roast Duck, Red Bean Paste, and unfilled.

TOFU SOUP. My name for it, I’m sure there’s a more "official" name… but have a look at the pic and I think you’ll agree! It was delicious: so fresh, warm and filling, earthy and almost smoky somehow.

Because too many dumplings are never enough, I munched on some Tang Bao at First Floor Restaurant, washed down with some cold Yanjing beer. Regardless, they were so good I had two steamers full every time I went, one pork, one prawn.

Spicy Tofu and Minced Pork. This dish, the breakfast soup, and several other dishes has changed my mind about the value that tofu has to offer the world. I also appreciated that when restaurants promised ‘spicy’ they delivered it by the truckload. This dish is red from both ground chilis and chili oil it was cooked in.

STEWED PORK. After walking all around the Lakes area one day, I was ravenous and popped into a little street corner "café." I was looking over the menu when two businessmen at the next table were served something that looked both unfamiliar and really yummy, so I asked for it too, whatever it was. It turned out to be "Stewed Shredded Pork" (only name given to me), and it was served with a stack of fresh, thick boiled wonton wrappers, in which you wrapped the pork and some shredded cabbage. So simple but stupendously good. I wonder if anyone can tell me what the pork would have been stewed in, it tasted salty and sweet, somewhere between a garlic sauce and a hoisin. Another appeal of the dish were the perfect worm-shaped morsels of pork, how do they get them cut/shaped like this?

BEEF NOODLE SOUP. A ‘simple’ noodle soup that was wonderfully rich and filling, but light at the same time. The broth/stock was studded with cloves, the cubes of beef fell apart from my chopsticks, and the noodles as fresh as they look, almost certainly just made.

SNACKS

LAO SHE TEAHOUSE SNACKS. Thanks to Bleaudavergne for her suggestion to visit the performance at the Teahouse … though the atmosphere was a tad "dinner theatre"-ish, it was still very enjoyable, and I saw some new things I’d not have experienced otherwise. (How, exactly, does the ‘face-changing dance’ work!?). The snacks and tea served were pretty good, esp. the roasted melon seeds.

SILK WORMS. The Night Market was full of tempting challenges; I opted for the silk worms, skewered, grilled then sauced. As you’d expect (or not), I ate the first one for the ‘challenge’, but the rest of them because I liked them! Impossible to describe, but they weren’t very worm-y … more nutty than anything else, or another way to think of them is as a crunchy mushroom. Actually what was really good was the sauce that was painted over them after they’d been grilled. Laden with cumin in a dark, salty glaze.

WONTON NOODLE. This one in Singapore, on the return flight. Had to try it if for no other reason than to have a benchmark by which to compare my local.

CAMBODIA

Cambodia made for a great holiday, if not quite the culinary calibre of Beijing. Having said that, I’d have their noodle soups quite happily everyday for the rest of my life without a single complaint.

For example, this one:

Beef Loc Lac (sp?) was very tender, flavourful and reasonably hearty – at least, as hearty as you’d want in 38 degree heat (100F). The dish is sort of a lite oyster sauce meets lime marinade… the crunchy tomatoes and bite of onions was a nice contrast to the tender and savoury beef.

That’s it. Thanks once again to chengb02, Pan, Bleaudavergne, estufarian and others for the tips and recommendations. I, and my gullet, had a blast.

[Yuki]

Thanks for sharing your trip on here, seems like you ate lots of "unknown" food.

Even though I am Cantonese, have to say I perfer the style where the rice grain is visible. It is kind of hard to get a good Cantonese congee....... takes too much time and patience.

About the worm shapped pork, it is not uncommon to have that kind of knife skill in China.

The wonton noodles you had in Singapore is probably more suited the local noodles because traditional Cantonese wonton noodles doesn't use thick egg noodles and have hot pepper. Speaking of which, it is hard to get the traditional wonton noodle's soup anymore, even in Hong Kong where wonton noodles are everywhere. The traditional soup uses many dried fish and shrimp shells but most places now don't make it anymore.

[jo-mel]

Wonderful pictures! I'll have a little of each, please!

About the Shredded Pork dish what you wrap in the wonton ---- Maybe Sweetened Soy Bean Paste? The jar I have has both salt and sugar in it and has both flavors well pronounced when tasting it. Or, how about a combo of Hoisin and Bean Sauce as you would find in a Zha Jiang Mian sauce?

Would the zhou have a dash of vinegar to give a hint or sourness? Or sour pickle of fish as one of the ingredients?

Even the silkworms look interesting!! What's the stuff hanging out of the tray in fromt of the silkworms? Octopi?

I envy you your trip. Thanks for letting us in on it.

[Dejah]

Wonderful pictures, kangarool!

I remember enjoying street food like the ones in the Night Market., especially the octopus on the sticks. I am trying to remember the flavour...it's on the tip of my tongue but I can't quite describe it!

I don't remember the silk worms, but I do remember the big black beetles that cover the ground just before the rain. . . They were fried until crispy, a favourite movie snack, like popcorn.

The tofu soup, was it hot and sour?

[kangarool]

Wonderful pictures!  I'll have a little of each, please!

About the Shredded Pork dish what you wrap in the wonton ---- Maybe Sweetened Soy Bean Paste?  The jar I have has both salt and sugar in it and has both flavors well pronounced when tasting it.  Or, how about a combo of Hoisin and Bean Sauce as you would find in a Zha Jiang Mian sauce?

Would the zhou have a dash of vinegar to give a hint or sourness? Or sour pickle of fish as one of the ingredients?

Even the silkworms look interesting!! What's the stuff hanging out of the tray in fromt of the silkworms?  Octopi?

I envy you your trip. Thanks for letting us in on it.

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Thanks jo-mel... with the shredded pork, either suggestion you mention is completely plausible. I'll see if I can find a jar of both, and see if one is closer to the taste I remember. And I also think you're right on the addition of vinegar in the zhou, as well as the octopus/squid hanging over the cart. There were so many items to choose from - several kinds of squid, seahorse, various insects, scorpion, you name it - but I didn't get to try them all.

I meant to say that I was actually thinking of you while in Beijing, as I remember from other posts you often recommend finding Jian Bing from street vendors. It's one regret I have, as I missed finding it... I actually did see a vendor one night, and that was definitely what he was making/selling, but I'd just had an enormous dinner, and couldn't fit any more in, thinking I'd come across many others. But I just didn't see them again, so will have to try again next time!

I did find some good pancakes from street vendors, stuffed with flavourful meat and cabbage - is this shao bing?

[Pan]

Kangarool, thanks for that great post! I'll look forward to your post on the Li Family Restaurant.

[kangarool]

Wonderful pictures, kangarool!

I remember enjoying street food like the ones in the Night Market., especially the octopus on the sticks. I am trying to remember the flavour...it's on the tip of my tongue   but I can't quite describe it!

I don't remember the silk worms, but I do remember the big black beetles that cover the ground just before the rain. . . They were fried until crispy, a favourite movie snack, like popcorn.

The tofu soup, was it hot and sour?

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The night market was good fun... I think I remember seeing the beetles, but didn't get to sample!

The tofu soup was very similar to Hot & Sour soups I've had in the U.S., but more subtle in flavour (less hot and less sour!), much more tofu, and with fewer ingredients. I would guess that these kinds of soups were "the original" and over the years has been translated into what we now get in Chinese takeaways?

As a side note on Hot/Sour Soup, I've noticed that it's a staple on menus throughout the US, but is infrequently available from chinese takeaways here in Oz, although most other items are mirrored. I've never been able to guess why that might be...

[spaghetttti]

Fascinating posting with fabulous photos, which have me practically licking my screen.

Thanks so much, kangarool - looking forward to the next installments.

[chengb02]

I can offer my "expertise" on these dishes, the pork dish is called "Jing Jiang Rou Si" (it could translate as "beijing sauced shredded pork"). The other dish is not shao bing, but appears to be a "dongbei rou bing" (Northeastern Meat Pancake).

[Pan]

Isn't the Hot and Sour soup served in the U.S. originally derived from a Sichuan source? If so, that could explain why versions of it in other provinces of China might be less hot and sour.

[hzrt8w]

Thanks for sharing your stories and pictures.

But nearly as often went with the "Greens" version. I think the filling is primarily spring onion (scallions) and chinese spinach? I’m not sure, here’s a look.

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More likely cabbage. Beijing Rens are very fond of leeks. So I suspect what you thought was spring onions (green onions in the USA) are actually leeks (a Chinese variety, which is smaller than the leeks we see in the USA). Leeks are sharper than spring onions, but not as sharp as raw garlic. They are somewhere in between.

Zhou. I didn’t enjoy the zhou nearly as much as I like (what I’m guessing to be) Cantonese style conjee… my preference is for all the rice to basically be obliterated, and the porridge to be rather thick and starchy, but it seems the northern style is to serve it thinner, and with grains of rice still somewhat separate.  It also had a somewhat sour taste, which I think may have had to do with the addition of a kind of red bean? Maybe someone can help inform.

←

I think they don't cook it as long as the Cantonese style conjee.

TOFU SOUP.  My name for it, I’m sure there’s a more "official" name… but have a look at the pic and I think you’ll agree! It was delicious: so fresh, warm and filling, earthy and almost smoky somehow.

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The name is actually Hot and Sour Soup (酸辣汤), a very common soup exported to the US and other countries.

Spicy Tofu and Minced Pork. ...... This dish is red from both ground chilis and chili oil it was cooked in.

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This is the world famous Mapo Doufu (麻婆豆腐).

STEWED PORK. ...It turned out to be "Stewed Shredded Pork" (only name given to me), and it was served with a stack of fresh, thick boiled wonton wrappers, in which you wrapped the pork and some shredded cabbage. So simple but stupendously good. I wonder if anyone can tell me what the pork would have been stewed in, it tasted salty and sweet, somewhere between a garlic sauce and a hoisin.  Another appeal of the dish were the perfect worm-shaped morsels of pork, how do they get them cut/shaped like this?

←

In Mandarin, it's called JingJiangRouSi (京酱肉丝) (Literal translation is: Shredded Pork with Capital Sauce). The shredded pork is prepared by skillful use of a cleaver. As for the sauce: a little bit of brown bean paste, some hoisin, some soy sauce, some vinegar, some sugar, (some use a bit of catsup or tomato sauce). Cooked in garlic, of course.

BEEF NOODLE SOUP. A ‘simple’ noodle soup that was wonderfully rich and filling, but light at the same time. The broth/stock was studded with cloves, the cubes of beef fell apart from my chopsticks, and the noodles as fresh as they look, almost certainly just made.

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Beef Noodle Soup (牛肉面). Yeah, star anise, clove and leek I'll bet. Let me know if you are interested in a recipe of this.

WONTON NOODLE. This one in Singapore, on the return flight.  Had to try it if for no other reason than to have a benchmark by which to compare my local.

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That's gotta be a Singaporean touch. Just look at how many slices of red chilis!

[kangarool]

I can offer my "expertise" on these dishes, the pork dish is called "Jing Jiang Rou Si" (it could translate as "beijing sauced shredded pork"). The other dish is not shao bing, but appears to be a "dongbei rou bing" (Northeastern Meat Pancake).

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Thanks mate. I made it to the Duck restaurant in Sanlitun that you suggested (have forgotten the name)... beautiful. The duck was superb, juicy without being fatty, really fresh. Unfortunately didn't get to South Beauty as you often recommend.

In Mandarin, it's called JingJiangRouSi (????)  (Literal translation is: Shredded Pork with Capital Sauce).  The shredded pork is prepared by skillful use of a cleaver.  As for the sauce:  a little bit of brown bean paste, some hoisin, some soy sauce, some vinegar, some sugar, (some use a bit of catsup or tomato sauce).  Cooked in garlic, of course.

Hooray! now I can attempt it at home for friends. That combination does indeed sound as if I'd get a very similar result to what I had. My cleaver skills are, however, embryonic, so I don't hold out too much hope for replicating the "worms".

Beef Noodle Soup (???). Yeah, star anise, clove and leek I'll bet.  Let me know if you are interested in a recipe of this.

Thanks again, would definitely be interested in a recipe, please feel free to email if it's easy.

[hzrt8w]

About the Shredded Pork dish what you wrap in the wonton ---- Maybe Sweetened Soy Bean Paste?  The jar I have has both salt and sugar in it and has both flavors well pronounced when tasting it.  Or, how about a combo of Hoisin and Bean Sauce as you would find in a Zha Jiang Mian sauce?

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Zha Jiang Mian is a bit on the salty and hot side, more heavy on the chili bean sauce. Jing Jiang Rou Si is more on the sweet and sour side, more heavy on the hoisin, vinegar and sugar.

[hzrt8w]

There were so many items to choose from - several kinds of squid, seahorse, various insects, scorpion, you name it - but I didn't get to try them all.

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kangarool: are you sure those that you saw were seahorses?

1. I have never heard of seahorses used as a snack food.

2. Chinese use seahorses as medicine and they are a bit expensive. (They are difficult to catch perhaps) Seems odd that they can sell them as snack food on the street.

Edited September 29, 2004 by hzrt8w (log)

[bleudauvergne]

Wow - after seeing your pictures I want to go back to Beijing, if just for the beef noodle soup that I miss dearly. Oh please hzrt8w, please do post the recipe.

Looks like you had a wonderful trip, kangarool.

[jo-mel]

HZRT - Yes, Capital sauce is sweeter, than that for Zha Jiang Mian, but doesn't it come down to the chef for the noodle dish? I've rarely seen two recipes alike. Sometimes it is ultra salty, sometimes sweet. I usually stick to a recipe with a combo of both.

One time in China, I was with some travel agents. We were served Bejing Ya (duck) and the spreading sauce was brown bean sauce -- not hoisin. I'd since read, in a couple of places, the brown bean sauce was the traditional base for the sauce --- that hoisin came later and is usually the choice. Any truth to this that you know?

[Gary Soup]

One time in China, I was with some travel agents. We were served Bejing Ya (duck) and the spreading sauce was brown bean sauce -- not hoisin. I'd since read, in a couple of places, the brown bean sauce was the traditional base for the sauce  --- that hoisin came later and is usually the choice. Any truth to this that you know?

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I always thought that plum sauce was traditional for Beijing Duck.

Edited September 29, 2004 by Gary Soup (log)

[chengb02]

I seem to remember this discussion from before (was this on the Li Family Restaurant discussion?). The typical peking duck sauce is plum sauce, unfortunately there is a lot of confusion between the differences between plum sauce and hoisin sauce...

[kangarool]

kangarool:  are you sure those that you saw were seahorses?

Pretty certain that's what I saw, though didn't snap a pic unfortunately. I did a quick google and there are several travellers's tales of snacking on little seahorses at that Wangfujing Night Market as well. I was considering trying a stick's worth, but something kept me from doing so. I wasn't worried about how they'd taste, there was just something about the Cuteness Factor that seemed to risk some serious karmic retribution! But of course now I regret not popping a few of the critters in my mouth.

We were served Bejing Ya (duck) and the spreading sauce was brown bean sauce -- not hoisin. I'd since read, in a couple of places, the brown bean sauce was the traditional base for the sauce  --- that hoisin came later and is usually the choice. Any truth to this that you know?

I always thought that plum sauce was traditional for Beijing Duck.

The typical peking duck sauce is plum sauce, unfortunately there is a lot of confusion between the differences between plum sauce and hoisin sauce...]

I had the duck at Xiao Wang Fu at chengb02's reco, and it was a treat. Great duck, good value, pleasant atmosphere. The picture here shows the duck and the sauce, but I don't recall if it was more or less any of those mentioned: brown bean, hoisin or plum. I don't know that I could have distinguished amongst one or the other even if I had been paying attention. It didn't stop me from polishing off the entire meal. (BTW, the sauce that accompanied the duck at Li Family Rest. looked/tasted identical.)

The duck was served only as you see it there, there were no "extra" dishes (i think that 2 more dishes with some of the duck stir fried and then in/as a soup or broth is sometimes common?). I certainly had no complaints, and wasn't told that I would or wouldn't be served any more than I was. But it just made me question, does the phrase "Beijing Duck", when ordering, typically mean just the sliced duck w/pancakes ... or the duck served in a few different ways/courses?

[jo-mel]

I seem to remember this discussion from before (was this on the Li Family Restaurant discussion?).  The typical peking duck sauce is plum sauce, unfortunately there is a lot of confusion between the differences between plum sauce and hoisin sauce...

←

The first place I saw the reference to brown bean sauce as the traditional choice for Peking Duck was in Bruce Cost's "Asian Ingredient's".

Craig Claiborne/Virginia Lee "The Chinese Cookbook" has two sauces for their roast duck. Both use bean or ground bean sauce.

Calvin Lee's "Chinese Regional" has 2 sauces, the first using brown bean sauce -- the second uses hoisin.

Thumbing thru other recipes, some call for hoisin, some plum, one had a combo of the two. Others have tianmianjiang -- sweet soybean paste/jam, one online recipe had ground bean sauce with hoisin as an alternative.

So I guess the traditional one is open to guess. I couldn't find anything on it in my 'food in Chinese culture' books.

When I had the brown bean sauce with the duck when I was with the group of travel agents, it was in Beijing at the Wu Fang Zhao (or Zhai) restaurant. I made a notation in my food log, and wondered if they were pulling something over on us -- not using hoisin. So i guess I was wrong.

I like the sweet sauce rather than salty.

[chengb02]

The duck was served only as you see it there, there were no "extra" dishes (i think that 2 more dishes with some of the duck stir fried and then in/as a soup or broth is sometimes common?).  I certainly had no complaints, and wasn't told that I would or wouldn't be served any more than I was.  But it just made me question, does the phrase "Beijing Duck", when ordering, typically mean just the sliced duck w/pancakes ... or the duck served in a few different ways/courses?

←

At a restaurant that is mainly (or only) a peking duck restaurant, there maybe some extras like the soup, but typically it depends on what you order (as they may have different portions and accompianments) or how much you order (as they might throw in the soup). At other places, like Xiao Wang Fu (where they serve a pretty good duck), duck is one of the dishes they offer (as any self respecting Beijing style restaurant would), but have many other dishes, so it is a more a la carte approach to the duck, I am sure they had the duck soup on the menu, but just have to order it.

[hzrt8w]

Beef Noodle Soup (???). Yeah, star anise, clove and leek I'll bet.  Let me know if you are interested in a recipe of this.

Thanks again, would definitely be interested in a recipe, please feel free to email if it's easy.

←

Here is the recipe for the Beef Noodle Soup. Sorry it took so long and thanks for your patience.

Recipe of Beef Noodle Soup (Hong Shao Niu Rou Mian) 红烧牛肉面

There are different versions of this recipe. The following is my approach. This recipe uses “Chinese Marinade”. Refer to earlier postings if you don't know what it is.

Serving 5 to 6

Ingredients:

2 lb of beef stew, cut in 1 inch by 1 inch cubes

2 lb of wheat noodles or rice noodles

1 ½ cup of “Chinese Marinade”

1 ½ cup of dark soy sauce

7 – 8 cups of water

4 cloves of garlic, finely chopped

3 small size shallot, finely chopped

1 inch of ginger, thinly sliced

1 medium size leek, cut in 1 inch stalks (save some green leaves and thinly slice them – use for garnishing)

2 tsp of white or red vinegar

2 tbsp cooking oil

3 tsp of sugar

5 whole star anise (or powder)

1 stick of cinnamon (or powder)

2 tsp of cumin (or powder)

2 tsp of clove (or powder)

Some sesame oil

Method:

- Use a medium size pot. Apply high heat. Add 2 tbsp of cooking oil. Add finely chopped garlic, shallot and sliced ginger. Dash in 2 tsp of white or red vinegar. Sautee until fragrant, about 1-2 minutes.

- Turn down heat to a simmer. Add 1 ½ cup of “Chinese Marinade”, 1 ½ cup of dark soy sauce, and 7 to 8 cups of water. Stir the mixture. Immediately (while the mixture is still cold), add the beef stew. Add leeks. Add 3 tsp of sugar (or better yet use rock sugar). Note: both “Chinese Marinade” and dark soy sauce are very salty. You need to dilute them with plenty of water to simmer the beef stew. Adjust the ratio to your taste.

- Add 5 whole star anise, 1 stick of cinnamon, 2 tsp of cumin, 2 tsp of clove

- Put cover on. Simmer the beef stew in the mixture for about 2 hours. The beef stew should become very tender. (Note: you must start simmering the beef in the mixture while it is cold. Do not put beef stew in a boiling mixture. Doing so will toughen the beef stew.)

- Use another pot, boil enough water to cook the noodles. Cook noodles until el dante, drain and put in a bowl.

- Scoop in the beef stew with the broth. Garnish by sprinkling some thinly sliced leeks on top. Drip in some sesame oil and (optional) ground white pepper on top.

- Note: you may use pork shoulder instead of beef stew in this recipe. Also, you may cook some Chinese greens (such as Bok Choy) to serve with the noodles.

Edited October 26, 2004 by hzrt8w (log)