Chinese Super Bowl Wings

It’s Super Bowl weekend, so of course – it’s time for wings, right? Here is a faux Chinese (meaning I created it) recipe for chicken wings – sweet and spicy and baked or grilled instead of fried, so much better for you than the traditional hot wings. You can get whole wings and twist them [...]

Scallion Loaf

Getting tired of rice with Chinese food? This savory loaf makes an excellent accompaniment for Chinese dishes, it contains less fat than scallion pancakes, it’s baked instead of fried (so you have time to do other things while it cooks), and it makes a great savory breakfast as well!
ingredients:

1 recipe yeast dough
1 T sesame oil [...]

Split Pea “Cake”

The term “cake” is a bit misleading here – this sweet is really more like a jelly or stiff pudding, but as it is served in slices it seems appropriate to call it a cake. The ingredients may be a bit off-putting – who puts split peas into dessert?! – but you’ll be surprised at [...]

Happy New Year – Gongxi facai!

The lunar New Year, still the biggest festival in China, will be celebrated on January 26 this year. All over China the trains, buses, and planes are packed as anyone who is able rushes to their ancestral home to be with family for this time. I remember the sound and smell of firecrackers lingering for days [...]

Properly scaled change

Coming as it did after the “Day of Service,” President Obama’s inaugural speech continued this train of thought (and action) by invoking duty, humility, restraint, and responsibility along with hope, virtue, and truth. (I was amused by the coverage of the speech because much of the media was scrambling to identify the line that would be [...]

Chicken with Mushrooms (Moogoo gaipan)

Pronounced mogu jipian in Mandarin, but probably best known as “moogoo gaipan,” this is a basic stirfry that appears on many restaurant menus but is, as most dishes are, infinitely more healthful and tasty when made at home. In the interest of taking out processed/dried ingredients and using fresh, local ones, I replace the dried woodear [...]

Twice-Cooked Pork

This dish often shows up on restaurant menus in America, and it seems there are a million different variations. Because the pork is cooked twice, you cannot make this with a very lean cut, and pork belly really is the way to go if you can find it – just be sure to serve it [...]

And finally, the White House Chef is revealed…

The DC restaurant scene is buzzing, trying to figure out which restaurants will rise and fall with the arrival of the Obama administration next week – apparently the President-Elect loves to eat out, according to “Rearranging the Tables in Washington”. But what interests me far more, as a foodlover and a mother of young children, [...]

Seaweed & Sparerib Soup

This is a wonderful winter comfort food that is a snap to put together, although it does need some time to cook. For this dish you should look for kelp (scientifically called laminaria, known as haidai in Mandarin) that has been dried in strips. If you don’t have an Asian market nearby, you can alternatively [...]

Chinese Red Beans & Rice

Perfect protein for vegetarians, especially if you use brown rice! Most cultures have a version of beans and rice – I’m not sure this recipe is really Chinese, but it works and it’s popular with kids. Try to find the tiny red adzuki beans, or substitute mung beans or another small colorful variety – black beans [...]