Pictorial: Chicken Cashews in Bean/Hoisin Sauce

[hzrt8w]

... The cashews you bought, were they, as you bought them in the bag, already salted or not, roasted or raw?  If they were just raw whole unsalted shelled cashew nuts, then I will know what to look for.

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project: Thank you! Long time no see!

All good questions. This is great feedback. Now I know how I could have written the recipes better! Yes the cashews are raw, whole, unsalted, shelled cashew nuts. If one doesn't have the raw cashews, using roasted cashews is okay too. But not salted ones because it would make the dish too salty (all the sauces (except hoisin sauce) are salty, and so is the chicken broth).

The 10 ounces, was that the weight of the bag or the weight of the nuts you actually used?

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It is not very scientific. I usually just eye-ball everything. By gut feel I just suggest 10 oz of cashews to 2 lb of chicken meat. (The whole cashew package is labelled as 12 oz and I suggested to use only 3/4 of it. I know it's 9 oz mathematically but I just rounded it up to 10 oz.) For those who love cashew nuts, of course you may use as much cashews as you want. You may want to adjust and use more sauces and chicken broth though.

Is there a reason you used breast meat instead of thigh meat?

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I typically see white meat used in this dish. May be it's because I observed it mostly in the restaurants in the USA where white meat is used more often. You may certainly use thigh meat. But no bones, no skin. Bones and skin won't mix too well with cashew nuts.

[Dejah]

Come on, hzrt, you know you use white meat 'cos the wife eats only white meat!

[hzrt8w]

Your Chicken with cashews is better than the one I've used -- maybe because of the different blends of sauces.  Seems like a lot of depth in it. But I will have to have the cashews on the side. DH can't eat them, so I will serve him first and then mix them in.

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jo-mel: sorry to hear that. Can your DH eat other nuts like peanuts or almonds? This dish can be made with peanuts or almonds, may be even pistachios, pine nuts or chestnuts - all shelled of course - and the sauce would go well with those nuts. I use peanuts sometimes when I am out of cashews.

[Tepee]

What a coincidence! I've been using cashew nuts in a number of dishes recently (this was one of them) because somebody gave us a big bag of roasted indian ones and I also bought some organic ones too. My girls love cashew nuts. When I do this dish, I add a lot of bombay onions cut into wedges and bell peppers if I can get ahold of them.

Thanks to this series, I've discovered some stuff which I haven't used before...like the chili bean paste. Will go ISO.

Edited October 21, 2005 by Tepee (log)

[hzrt8w]

Ah Leung, I've noticed white pepper several times cropping up as an ingredient in the dishes you've presented in pictorials. Is the use of white as opposed to black pepper mainly for (lack of) color or because of a subtle difference in taste between white and black pepper, or is it just a personal preference?

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Michael: I think perhaps white pepper is favored by the Chinese. All the cookbooks I've read, TV shows I've see all call for white pepper. Very rarely is black pepper used in Chinese cooking. Examples of such exceptions are Cantonese style beef strips with black pepper sauce, bell peppers and onions, and crab stir-fried with black pepper and fermented black beans.

Perhaps the reason is we grow only white pepper in China?

It is also my personal preference too. Black pepper tastes "wilder", and white pepper is more tame I think. White pepper seems to go better with Chinese food, especially to a Cantonese who doesn't favor things being too "spicy".

[hzrt8w]

Steamed basa with fermented black beans and garlic sauce

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What is "basa"? Is this Spanish? Or did you mean "bass"?

Got back at ya!

I know my family and I love steamed meats with mui choi, etc, but I wonder if it is suitable for guests? I should mention that 2 other guests are Caucasian...one we are meeting for the first time.

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Oh... that may entirely change the equation. Do these 2 guests like authentic Chinese food? Or else better stay with the more popular ones... go do the Sweet and Sour Pork and Chicken Fried Rice and Egg Drop Soup just to be safe.

[Pan]

Ah Leung, I've noticed white pepper several times cropping up as an ingredient in the dishes you've presented in pictorials. Is the use of white as opposed to black pepper mainly for (lack of) color or because of a subtle difference in taste between white and black pepper, or is it just a personal preference?

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Michael: I think perhaps white pepper is favored by the Chinese. All the cookbooks I've read, TV shows I've see all call for white pepper. Very rarely is black pepper used in Chinese cooking. Examples of such exceptions are Cantonese style beef strips with black pepper sauce, bell peppers and onions, and crab stir-fried with black pepper and fermented black beans.

Perhaps the reason is we grow only white pepper in China?

It is also my personal preference too. Black pepper tastes "wilder", and white pepper is more tame I think. White pepper seems to go better with Chinese food, especially to a Cantonese who doesn't favor things being too "spicy".

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All that makes sense. But I didn't known that white and black pepper were from different varieties of plants, or that pepper was grown in China.

[hzrt8w]

...The WeiChuan books also have picture guide, but also lacking the fool proof pictures  here.

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Thanks again, jo-mel. When I first started, I read many cookbooks too. Unfortunately (20 some years ago) the illustrated Chinese cookbooks were very few and quite expensive. The ones that I could afford or borrow didn't have any picture. I had to use my imagination combined with my past experience to guide me to figure out how something is done.

But those times have passed. In this day and age, cookbooks without illustrations would hardly be picked up. And thanks to the Internet and digital imaging technologies, electronic publishing is so easy and costs so much less!

[hzrt8w]

...But I didn't known that white and black pepper were from different varieties of plants, or that pepper was grown in China.

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May be I was misled by the packaging labels? All the bottled ground white pepper that I have bought is in Chinese and looks like produced in Chinese. I assumed that such ground white pepper was produced in China. Unless they import the peppercorns from India and process them in China. I don't know.

[rjwong]

Thank you, hzrt8w!

I'm impressed with the Cashew Chicken dish. I don't see one water chestnut or one piece of celery mixed into that dish, unlike some Chinese restaurants (Americanized) I've encountered in the past.

[Tepee]

All that makes sense. But I didn't known that white and black pepper were from different varieties of plants, or that pepper was grown in China.

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White and black pepper come from the same plant. Source

A black peppercorn is picked when still green and dried in the sun until it turns black. A white peppercorn ripens fully on the vine before it is picked.

Pepper does grow in China too ------> see article

Edited October 21, 2005 by Tepee (log)

[hzrt8w]

.... I don't see one water chestnut or one piece of celery mixed into that dish, unlike some Chinese restaurants (Americanized) I've encountered in the past.

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Thank you Russell! It is my goal to cook Chinese food as "authentic" as possible. While that term may be debatable in many situations, I would say perhaps as close to "what I had grown up eating in Hong Kong" as possible.

[hzrt8w]

Pepper does grow in China too ------> see article

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Thanks for the links to the 2 educational articles, Tepee!

If I am tight on cash, you think I can pay my landlord with a few bottles of white peppercorns?

[wesza]

As the article about "Pepper" originated in Indonesia it wasn't entirely accurate in it's context.

The effect on the Spice trade is historically attributed to it's major cause. The Spanish inquisition had begun to infiltrate Portugal. Its immediate effect was that the "Navigators" emigrated to Holland and started to provide their services to the Dutch. When they left Spain initially followed by Portugal it started the growth of Holland, England and France into major players in the world economy and colonization.

Navigators had a unusual position on any vessel they served being considered "Neutral" they were generally released if the ship was commandeered or lost at sea during this period. They were all Jewish and use of the Sextant originating from the Spice Routes going from Europe to Asia was also thru their expertise.

The "Black Ship's" were the most famous Ships that prospered by trading exclusively with Japan and China for many years.

The Pepper overlooked that is considered the worlds most pungent and flavorful come from the island of Ponape in Micronesia where the climate is perfect for growing organic pepper but the crop is limited because of the size of the island

Even more interesting is that the "Chili Peppers" were only exported for many years dried and ground up into a powder as it was felt that it was best to not allow the seeds to be sold since it could grow so well everywhere in the world. Once the seeds became available it proliferated into the diets everywhere in Africa, Asia and India to the extent that most countries identify it as their own most important spice.

Some of the "Chinese varieties" may be older then more of the more well known Peppers. I don't doubt this after the discovery of the 4000 year old Noodles.

Irwin [HOT]

Edited October 21, 2005 by wesza (log)

[muichoi]

That sweet flour sauce has just become available here for the first time. It really has a very distinct taste! What's interesting from your pictures is how there's almost no crossover between the brands you get and the brands we get. I wonder why? The Cashews cook really well and evenly in the microwave if you rub them with a little water first. Completely agree about white pepper, it's an essential Cantonese taste(not that this is a Cantonese dish).

[Ben Hong]

As the article about "Pepper" originated in Indonesia it wasn't entirely accurate in it's context.

Some of the "Chinese varieties" may be older then more of the more well known Peppers. I don't doubt this after the discovery of the 4000 year old Noodles.

Irwin [HOT]

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There is documentary evidence that the Chinese had established very profitable trade with the immense region that includes Indonesia, the Moluccas, East India, etc. as far back as the late 14th century (1380s). By the early 1400s huge fleets of Chinese vessels would call regularly on the region's ports. You can imagine all the cultural and trade intercourse that resulted. Which means that the Chinese were at least 100 years ahead of the Portuguese and Dutch in "discovering" the spices of SE Asia. As a child I remember some pepper plants that some of my Aunties planted.

The chili and green peppers, etc. are NOT a pepper (piperis) as they are capsicum. Pepper originated int the east, capsicums came from the new world.

[anzu]

That sweet flour sauce has just become available here for the first time. It really has a very distinct taste! What's interesting from your pictures is how there's almost no crossover between the brands you get and the brands we get. I wonder why? The Cashews cook really well and evenly in the microwave if you rub them with a little water first. Completely agree about white pepper, it's an essential Cantonese taste(not that this is a Cantonese dish).

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What length of time would you recommend for cooking cashews in the microwave? Do you cook them on full power?

[jo-mel]

Deh-Ta Hsiung has a page on Black and White Pepper. He said the black (first green, then red then black and dried) altho aromatic, are less pungent than the white (ripe, soaked to remove the coating, dried).

[muichoi]

That sweet flour sauce has just become available here for the first time. It really has a very distinct taste! What's interesting from your pictures is how there's almost no crossover between the brands you get and the brands we get. I wonder why? The Cashews cook really well and evenly in the microwave if you rub them with a little water first. Completely agree about white pepper, it's an essential Cantonese taste(not that this is a Cantonese dish).

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What length of time would you recommend for cooking cashews in the microwave? Do you cook them on full power?

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a dinner plate full takes about 5 mins at full power, stirring a couple of times. Don't forget the water!

[wesza]

As the article about "Pepper" originated in Indonesia it wasn't entirely accurate in it's context.

Some of the "Chinese varieties" may be older then more of the more well known Peppers. I don't doubt this after the discovery of the 4000 year old Noodles.

Irwin [HOT]

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There is documentary evidence that the Chinese had established very profitable trade with the immense region that includes Indonesia, the Moluccas, East India, etc. as far back as the late 14th century (1380s). By the early 1400s huge fleets of Chinese vessels would call regularly on the region's ports. You can imagine all the cultural and trade intercourse that resulted. Which means that the Chinese were at least 100 years ahead of the Portuguese and Dutch in "discovering" the spices of SE Asia. As a child I remember some pepper plants that some of my Aunties planted.

The chili and green peppers, etc. are NOT a pepper (piperis) as they are capsicum. Pepper originated int the east, capsicums came from the new world.

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I thought that I separated in my posting the nuances of the "Asian Peppers" from the "Chili Peppers".

The east/west Spice Routes were in existence long before the 14th Century. In fact historically they was a substantial Western Community existing [tolerated] in Peking well over a 1200 years ago.

My insinuation regarding that "Pepper Varietals" existed in China was taking into consideration some of the types such as "Szechuan, Red's, Green's or Pink's" that may have been available longer then we are aware since some are still unique to China.

The Spice Trading always went both ways as it was easy to carry across the continents and had value to customers in both directions. It became much easier to load a Boat then a caravan of Camels, Horses or Donkeys plus Cargo could be exchanged anywhere in route.

There were very few Vessels that had the large capacity of the Chinese Junks to move Cargo via the ports of Asia but they were mostly concerned with servicing their own requirements while at the same time intriguing the Foreign Traders about the potential availability of new interesting Spices from the Islands and Straits.

The attitude of the Imperial Chinese was that they were superior to all their neighbors and that included everyone anywhere they came in contact with during that period. In many way's they were correct in their assumptions until comparatively modern times.

Irwin