Mapo Tofu... Hmm Hmm Spicy!

On a cold and rainy day, which is what we've been experience as of late, a nice hot and spicy dish on top of white rice or noodles is a great way to end the day.  I loved the fact that I used soft tofu in this dish (you can choose between soft or medium-firm) because the tofu melted in my mouth much like M&Ms.  I cooked egg noodles to pair with the dish and the thick salty and spicy sauce mixed quite well with the egg noodles.  Gosh, I am drooling as I talk about it!

Mapo Tofu
from Appetite for China

A few tips (and variations)...
...I used soft tofu for this dish... it was perfect!  When cutting the tofu, slice it horizontally across first to yield two layers of tofu, and then cut into cubes.
...I substituted pork with ground turkey.  Equally delicious (and healthier too!).
...I used the black bean garlic sauce instead of fermented black beans, pictured here:

...the chili bean paste (make sure to get the spicy kind) is the same as the ones you would use for Za Zang Mien, pictured here:


...I didn't have any leeks so I used green onions instead.
...I left out the sherry/rice wine and ground Sichuan pepper since I didn't have any... the peppers may have made for a spicier dish.
...I added cremini mushrooms since I had to get rid of them soon.

Barbeque Pork, Chinese Style

Char Siu, which literally means "fork roast", is a staple item throughout the world of Asian food.  This bad boy chunk of meat can be placed on top of anything, from white rice to noodle soups and porridge, and in buns such as "char siu bao", a popular dimsum item, or sandwiched in between bread.  When Bubba from Forest Gump started naming out all the different types of shrimp, "There's shrimp kabobs, shrimp creole, shrimp gumbo, pan fried, deep fried, stir fried.  There's pineapple shrimp and lemon shrimp, coconut shrimp...", this is exactly what char siu is like for Chinese cuisine.  You can put char siu on everything and pair it with anything!  It is also quite delicious all by itself.

Char Siu (Chinese Barbeque Pork)

Ingredients
- 1 lb pork shoulder (aka pork butt)
- 4 Tbsp Char Siu sauce
I use this brand:

- 3 cloves of garlic, finely minced
- 2 tsp black pepper
- 1 tsp sugar

Steps
1. Marinate the pork shoulder with char siu sauce, garlic, and black pepper overnight.  At first the sauce is very sticky and hard to manage, but check on the pork a few hours later and the sauce becomes more watery.  At this point, ensure all of the pork gets covered in the garlic char siu marinade.

2. Preheat the oven at 375 degrees.  Take out the marinated pork and let it sit at room temperature while the oven heats.  Place pork in oven for 20-25 minutes.  In the last 5 minutes, spread 1 tsp of sugar on top of pork pieces and place it back in the oven until done.

3. Once the pork is done, let it sit on the counter for 15 minutes.  Thinly slice pork and serve.

Serves 3-4.

A few tips...
...if you desire the "barbeque-crisp-burning" type of barbeque pork, then about 10 minutes before the pork is finished, take out the pork and place it on a hot grill (medium heat) until done.
...pork shoulder is the best piece of meat for this, so don't substitute!  The shoulder contains fat sections that gives the barbeque meat its flavor while cooking.
...this barbeque pork will go well with a previous post of mine: Vietnamese BBQ Pork Vermicelli.  It also went well with a lunch meal I made for my nephew recently, BBQ Pork and Dry Tossed Egg Noodles (adapted from 3 Hungry Tummies.  To note: I only used the noodles dressing recipe and substituted caramel sauce with Hoisin sauce).

sweet and savory pork, tangy eggy noodles, and refreshing stir-fry cabbage with shiitake mushrooms

Sesame Oil Chicken

Chicken has been widely available in our household for awhile.  After making many baked chicken dishes, which is really my lazy way of making a home-cooked meal after a long day at work, it was getting pretty old. I started to browse cooking blogs again to find inspiration, and I found it at Rasa Malaysia. After making this simple yet tasty dish, I am excited to try many more from this website.

Sesame Oil Chicken
from Rasa Malaysia

I paired the dish with noodles and sauteed vegetables.

Battle of the Brrrr... Cold Noodles (Lian Mien)

Disclamer: this is solely my own opinion, and may differ from yours. Really, I recommend to try it out for yourself!

Liang's Village Cruisine // Cupertino, CA

mixture sauce that makes you go "OMG!", perfect noodles, coldness to the right temperature

noodles in sesame paste sauce and special soy sauce mixture, with sliced cucumbers and crushed peanuts

Mama Chen // Santa Clara, CA

refreshing, huge portion, cool addition of ham

noodles in special sauce mixture, with sliced cucumbers, ham, carrots, topped with cilantro

Winner: Liang's Village Cuisine

Wontons, I Want A Ton!

On a rainy and cold day like this, I crave anything soup!  The past few days I have been consuming a lot of warm liquidy type of food, starting the past weekend with cheese fondue, to Mongolian hot pot, and then Japanese ramen.  This wonton recipe is a perfect "gloomy weather" comfort food when you just want to stay in on a lazy Sunday.  It's easy to make and quick to cook.  The only part you have to be patient with is the wonton-wrapping process.  If you can trick someone into helping you along during the wrapping process, if it's a loved one, friends, or capable kids, it can be turn into a fun activity!

Wontons (餛飩)

Ingredients
Wonton:
- 1 pound ground pork (or ground turkey for a healthier option, or a mix of both)
- ~10 medium sized shrimp, peel and ground
- 2 stalks scallion, finely minced
- 3 Tbsp soy sauce
- 2 tsp salt
- 2 tsp rice vinegar
- 1 Tbsp sesame oil
- 1 tsp sugar
- 2 tsp cornstarch
- 1/2 pound wonton wrappers, medium thickness (1 packet from Asian supermaket)
- 1/2 cup cold water

Soup:
- 3 cups of meat broth (pork, chicken, or beef - it's up to you!)
- 2 stalks of celery, sliced (Chinese celery is the best for this soup, so if you can get them, use about 2-3 stalks)
- salt to taste
- dash of white pepper (optional)

Tools
- food processor
- large pot for boiling
- large plates/trays for holding wrapped wontons

Steps
1. In a big bowl, mix together ground pork, ground shrimp (best to use a food processor), scalion, soy sauce, rice vinegar, cornstarch, sugar, and sesame oil.

2. Bring the bowl of mixed wonton filling, wonton wrappers, and 1/2 cup of cold water, large plates, and a couple of small spoons to a large area (eg. dining table or large counter) for the wrapping process.  Follow the pictures and instructions below on how to wrap a wonton:

(a) Using the small spoon, scoop filling on the wonton wrapper.  Note - don't scoop too much, or else it will be difficult to close the wonton and it may break open during the cooking process.




(b) Using your finger, dip in the cold water and line all 4 sides of the wonton wrapper with water.  Fold the wonton in half to form a triangle.





(c) Roate the triangle so that the top corner is facing down.  Dab water on both corners of the wonton (left corner and right corner only).






(d) Push down the middle of the wonton with your finger and form a small crease.






(e) Stick the two corners together (that's why we dabbed water on those corners) to form a wonton!  Make sure to press hard to ensure the corners are sticking to each other.

3. Bring a large pot of water to boil.  Once the water is boiling, drop in desired number of wontons to cook (per person, ranges around 6-8 wontons).  When the water comes to a boil again, add 1/2 cup of water to the pot.  Once the water comes to a boil again and the wontons are plump and floating on top of the boiling water, it is ready.

4. Bring the broth to a boil in another pot.  Once boiling, add in celery and cook for about 3-4 minutes.  Add salt to taste.

5. Place broth in a bowl and add the cooked wontons.  Add white pepper (optional).

Serves many.

A few tips...
...this recipe will make lots of wontons and it may not be possible to eat them all in one sitting, so you can freeze these for next time.  To freeze fresh wontons, stick them in the freezer individually (meaning that each wonton should have their own space and no wontons are touching each other).  I typically stick the plate I placed the wontons on in the freezer.  After the wontons are frozen, you can move them into a ziplock bag or container.
...when cooking frozen wontons, make sure you place wontons in boiling water.  When the water comes to a boil again, add 1/2 cup of water to the pot.  Do this for 2 more times to ensure the filling is thoroughly cooked.  When the wontons are plump and float to the top of boiling water, this means they are ready!

Slow Roasted Pork with Carrots and Winter Melon

As I mentioned a couple of posts ago, I felt adventurous during the Thanksgiving weekend and whipped up a couple of items I never tried cooking before.  This is a typical Chinese slow roasted meat dish that I love, from it's tender "melt in your mouth" meat to the combination of spices that makes the drippings a "must-spread" on a pile of hot white rice.  I was inspired to make this dish while doing some winter cleaning of my kitchen cabinets when I found packets of spices received from my dad awhile back on his trip from Taiwan.  At the time, I just took whatever he tossed my way, not knowing what it was or what to do with it.  I gave a call to my mom to ask what I can do with these packets, and she informed me that I can use it to slow cook any kind of meat!  "Well, why not!" I said, since I have a whole Sunday to myself.  And thanks to my green-thumbed friend EH, I was able to add winter melon freshly picked from her garden just the day before.  The melon made the dish that much more delicious. 

Slow Roasted Pork with Carrots and Winter Melon

Ingredients
- 1/2 lb. of pork shoulder pieces, cut into 1-2 inch cubes
- 1 Tbsp olive oil
- 1 Tbsp soy sauce
- 1 Tbsp dark soy sauce
- 2 tsp salt
- 1 Tbsp rice wine (can use sake)
- 1 tsp sugar
- 2 cups of water
- 1 packet of "spice pouch" (contains cinnamon, star anise, fennel, clove, and zanthoxylum. Although this packet was brought back from Taiwan, I am pretty sure you can find it at a Chinese supermarket here in the States.)

- 2 carrots, peeled, roughly cut into cubes
- Half of a winter melon, peeled, roughly cut into cubes

Tools
- iron cast pot

Steps
1. Heat olive oil in the crock pot and toss in pork shoulder pieces.  Saute for 5 minutes until meat is lightly browned on the outside.  Add both soy sauces, rice wine, salt, and sugar and saute for a couple of more minutes.

2. Add in water and the spice pouch.  Bring the pot to boil and then simmer for an hour.  Stir meat once in awhile during this time.

3. Turn the heat up to medium-high and add in carrots and winter melon.  Stir meat and vegetables until all vegetables are covered in sauce.  Cook for another 15 minutes, or until the carrots and winter melon are semi-soft.  If needed, salt to taste.

Sweet Red Bean Soup (紅豆湯)

A favorite of mine during the winter time, this warm sweet red bean (aka 紅豆 or azuki bean) soup with homemade glutinous rice balls (小湯圓, made pink and white just like ones you can buy at the store!) reminds me of the cold winters when I was young, and brings a smile to my face... probably due to the side effect of a slight sugar high!

Sweet Red Bean Soup (紅豆湯)

Ingredients
Soup:
- 1/2 cup dried red beans, rinsed
- 3 cups of water for boiling the beans; 2 cups for the soup
- 2 blocks of Chinese brown sugar

Glutinous Rice Balls:
- Two 3/4 cup of glutinous rice flour (糯米), separated into 2 bowls

- 1 tsp red food coloring
- warm water

Steps
1.  Rinse the red beans and place beans and 3 cups of water in a pot to boil.  Once it boils, bring the heat down to low and let it simmer for about 2 to 2.5 hours (yes, these darn beans are super hard and takes a long time to cook!).  Stir beans occassionally.  Note: ensure water is not being boiled off too quickly!

2.  Meanwhile, make the glutinous rice balls by placing 3/4 cup of glutinous flour in a bowl.  Do this again for the second bowl. 

3. Make the white rice balls first by placing about 1 Tbsp of warm water in the bowl and mix with a spoon.  Mix well until a dough forms.  Add flour or water, as needed.  Pinch a small piece from the dough and rub softly against the palms of your hand to roll into a small ball.  Place the ball on a floured plate, separated out and not touching each other.  Repeat until all dough is used to make small rice balls.

4.  Make the red glutinous rice balls by adding 1 tsp of red food coloring to the second bowl of glutinous flour.  Repeat Step 3 above.

5. Immediately place the rice balls in the freezer to freeze (still ensure each rice ball is on the floured plate and not touching each other).

(Pile of rice balls after they are frozen)

6. Once the red beans have been thoroughly cooked and is soft, add about 2 or more cups of water (a lot of the water have been cooked off, so you want to replace them).  Place 2 blocks of Chinese brown sugar (if this is too sweet for you, add some more water).  Cook until brown sugar dissolves.

7. In a separate pot, bring water to boil and toss in the frozen glutinous rice balls.  Cook until all rice balls float to the surface of the water.  Scoop about 2-3 spoonfuls of red bean soup into a bowl.  Using a slotted spoon, scoop desired amount of rice balls and place in the soup bowl.  Now enjoy!

*For the remaining rice balls, use the slotted spoon and place them in the pot of red bean soup.  The next time you enjoy the dessert, the soup and rice balls can be heated up together.

I'm A Rebel For Dim Sum

It's going to be exciting from now on as I've just purchased a new camera, the Canon EOS Rebel XSi DSLR.

Beautiful isn't it?

I took this camera out for the first food-taking trial on a dim sum outting with the hubby's family for the 7th day of Chinese New Year, which I've just learned that it is the Common Man's Birthday, the day where everyone gains another year to their age.  Such a great thing to celebrate eh... (do you sense my heavy sarcasm?!!  I don't want to be closer to 30 just yet!!)  Regardless, I will consume dim sum for any reason, any time.  Dim sum to me is the equivalent of what comfort food is, delicious hot food that everyone loves and gathers around for any occassion at any time.  If you want to go out for lunch on a weekend with your family, friends, or generally a big group, dim sum is the first thing, and usually an unanimous vote, for the lunch place to go.  Each dish typically gives you about 3-4 bites to share, so coming with a big group and ordering a variety of items is the way to go.  The other important thing is the tea, as dim sum is to be enjoyed with hot brewed tea and long conversations.  There is no rapid eating and then leaving the table!  People use this time to enjoy company, enjoy tea, and enjoy sharing all the different dishes.

This day, we went to one of our favorite dim sum places in Daly City called Dim Sum King.  Two reasons: it's cheap and good quality!

Hmmmm... looking at these pictures... I am think this Saturday will be a dim sum lunch!

By Request: Za Zang Mien (炸醬麵)

A friend requested the recipe of the Za Zang Mien I make (which I really stole from my mom), so thought I'd make a post out of it with pictures.  For you HL.

Za Zang Mien (炸醬麵), IKE Style

Za Zang Mien contains three different "sauces" all mixed together in noodles - a meat sauce, a tomato sauce, and refreshing sliced cucumbers (I know, not really a sauce but something that stands on its own).  This mix of meat, hot veggies, and cold veggies in hot boiling Chinese noodles is great any time of the day, and any season!  The hubby can kill a big bowl of Za Zang Mien in minutes.

Ingredients
Meat sauce -
- 1 TBSP olive oil
- 3/4 lb. ground pork (can use turkey too)
- 1/2 can Bean Sauce, comes in plain or spicy (豆瓣酱, I get the Szechuan brand, blue can in picture below)
- 1/3 jar Sweet Flour Sauce (甜麵醬, I get the Lian How brand, the white cap jar in picture below)
- Water, if needed
Tomato sauce -
- 1 TBSP olive oil
- 4 roma tomatoes (or 2 large heirlooms), roughly diced
- 1 stalk scallion, chopped
- 1 tsp salt
- Water, if needed
- 2 Cucumbers, thinly sliced (Japanese cucumbers are highly recommended, or Persian cucumbers.  Not recommended are regular big American cucumbers as it gets too watery when thinly sliced)
- 1 pack of fresh Shanghai noodles (I like this noodle especially for Za Zang Mien because it's thick and hearty, which is a good type of noodle to mix the thick sauces with)

Steps
1. Boil a pot of water for the noodles.  Once the water is boiling, put in the noodles and cook until ready, about 10-15 minutes.

2. Slice the Japanese cucumbers with the slicer.  Put in a bowl for serving.

3. Cook the meat sauce first - heat 1 TBSP of olive oil.

4. Fry the Bean Sauce and Sweet Flour Sauce (fry sauces?  I know... sounds strange, but this is what my mom told me by mixing the two sauces together with hot frying oil) for about 2 minutes.

5. Once the two sauces are mixed well together, put in the ground meat of your choice and cook for 5 minutes, or until the ground meat is cooked.  It may be hard to see if the meat is cooked due to the dark sauces, so I would recommend cooking this for 5+ minutes to make sure.  If the sauce is becoming dry, add a bit of water.

6. Once cooked, remove meat sauce to a bowl for serving.

The two sauces mixing together... noodles cooking in the background.

7. Cook the tomato sauce next - heat 1 TBSP of olive oil.

8. Put in the diced tomatoes, chopped scallions, and salt until the tomatoes have been cooked throughly. The tomatoes should be smushed (liking my technical cooking term?), soft, and juicy. Again, if the sauce seems dry, add a bit of water.

9. Remove the tomato sauce to a bowl for serving.

10. Put the cooked noodles into a noodle bowl for serving.  Add about 2 spoonfuls of the meat and tomato sauce to the noodles.  Add as much cucumber slices as you desire.

11. Now mix mix mix! Enjoy!

Long-Promised Chinese Cold Noodles

In my first entry I had stated that one of these days I will attempt to make Lian-Mien aka Cold Noodles with my mom's simple recipe. Although I did this many many weeks ago, today is the day I will post the recipe (::crowd cheering::).

Lian Mien (Cold Noodles)

Ingredients (not all pictured)
- 1/4 cup of soy sauce
- 1-2 large cloves of garlic
- 1-2 TBSP of rice vinegar (adjust to taste)
- 1/4 cup of water + 1 TBSP of sugar
- 4 TBSP sesame sauce + water + pinch of salt (amount of water adjusted to thickness of sauce)
- 1 shredded chicken breast
- 2-3 shredded japanese cucumbers
- chili oil (adjust to taste)
- 1 TBSP of sesame oil
- Noodles (enough for 2 servings) - I use Quon Yick (very common) but use any medium-sized noodles for this dish. Thin noodles, such as egg noodles, would not taste very well.

Serves two.

Steps

1. Noodles - boil the noodles to "al dente" and immediately dump the noodles into a colander to let cool. Rinse the noodles with cold water for ~ 30 seconds. After most of the water have been shaken off, move the noodles to a bowl and add 1 TBSP of sesame oil. Mix well. Let it sit to cool off some more.























2. Chicken - cook the chicken breast in hot boiling water for ~20 minutes. Check to make sure the chicken is cooked through before taking it off the stove. Let the chicken breast sit for a few minutes and start the shredding by hand. Yes, one by one is the way to go! I usually will assign this task to someone else (my husband is the lucky one in this case!).

3. Japanese cucumbers - I highly recommond using Japanese cucumbers because they're so crisp and delicious. You can find this in Japanese or Chinese supermarkets. Shred them using your food slicer/shredder.

4. Soy sauce + garlic - place the specified amount of soy sauce and diced garlic into a small bowl. Depending on if you're a garlic lover or not, you can add more garlic and make the portion 1 to 1. You will just have really garlicky breath after the meal.

5. Sugar water - Melt the sugar in semi-hot water in a small bowl (I do the microwave way - it's so much easier!) The sugar water should not be syrup-y or too sweet. The sugar water will help balance out the vinegar and soy sauce.

6. Vinegar - there is no preperation for this ingredient. Just bring the tablespoon to the table and add about 1 - 2 tablespoons to your noodles... adjust to taste!

7. Sesame sauce - last but not least, the most important ingredient of this meal is the sesame sauce. This is pure sesame paste that can be found at the Chinese supermarket. Place the sesame sauce in a small bowl and add about 1 TBSP of water to the sauce, stir, and add more water until the paste turns into a thick sauce-like consistency. Don't worry - if you add too much water, you can always add a bit more paste to get the thick consistency back. Add a pinch of salt for flavor.













To eat:
You prepare the cold noodles for eating by mixing EVERYTHING together! First scoop the amount of noodles you want to eat. Start off with adding 2 TBSP of sesame sauce, 1 TBSP of sugar water, 1 TBSP vinegar, 1 TBSP of soy sauce/garlic combo, some chicken and japanese cucumbers. Add a few drops of chili oil if you like your noodles with a kick. The noodles should have a light coat of sesame sauce to every inch, it should be salty enough for you, and overall have a flavorful and garlicky taste! Add more of any of the ingredients to accomodate your taste buds. I hope this turns out good for you - enjoy!