Posts tagged Chinese cooking
Cooking Authentic Chinese Food in Maine: Part 3 – Stir-fried Broccolini/Broccoli
Apr 11th
This is the final post in a three-post series on cooking authentic Chinese food in the United States, inspired by my trip to Maine this past summer. This post is on how to make broccolini or broccoli in one of the two common ways vegetables are stir-fried in Beijing. You can read the first post on Cashew Shrimp here. You can read the second post on Egg Fried Rice here
Broccolini is more common than broccoli in Beijing, but you can substitute broccoli. I chose this as the vegetable to blog about because broccoli and eggplant are the two vegetables I didn’t really like eating until I went to China.
Note: I don’t include a wok in this because I’m better at stir-frying in frying pans than woks. If you have questions on how to adapt this recipe to a wok, then ask away in the comments section.
Broccolini I stir-fried in a wok.
Stir-fried broccolini or broccoli:
You’ll need:
broccolini or broccoli
roughly 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
fresh ginger, or chopped prepared ginger in water as opposed to olive oil
fresh garlic, or chopped prepared garlic in water as opposed to olive oil
table salt
water
deep-ish frying pan with lid (or wok)
1. Slice or separate the broccolini or broccoli into long, narrow pieces as shown in the above picture. If you use broccoli, keep much more of the stem attached per piece than you would for most American dishes.
2. If using fresh garlic and ginger, peel then mince by chopping with a knife. Use about 1/2-1 tablespoon per head of broccolini/broccoli depending on how strong you want these flavors. If using prepared garlic and ginger, use 1/4-1/2 teaspoon of each per head.
3. Pour oil into pan then turn on medium-high to heat the oil.
4. Add broccolini/broccoli, garlic and ginger; stir to coat in oil; lightly sprinkle salt over whole pan; add water to pan until ingredients are almost covered; then cover pan for approximately 2 minutes. (The heat will be high enough if the water is boiling before you cover it.)
5. Uncover pan to check to see if broccolini/broccoli is sufficiently cooked. It should not be mushy but soft enough to cut through the center of with a metal spatula. Add water as necessary to keep from burning.
6. If broccolini/broccoli is not yet cooked, repeat steps 4 and 5 in intervals of a minute or less until it is cooked.
7. Once broccolini/broccoli is sufficiently cooked, uncover pan and stir ingredients until most of the water evaporates.
8. Serve immediately on a plate or in a shallow, wide bowl with oil from pan as part of a family-style Chinese meal. Easiest to eat with chopsticks but possible to eat with a fork and knife.
Feel free to comment with questions, rave reviews, or suggestions for improvement.
Cooking Authentic Chinese Food in Maine: Part 2 – Egg Fried Rice (蛋炒饭)
Dec 28th
This is the second post in a three-post series on cooking authentic Chinese food in the United States, inspired by my trip to Maine this past summer. This post is on how to make the kind of fried rice I ate most frequently in Beijing. (Fried rice ingredients vary by geography within China.) You can read the first post on Cashew Shrimp here.
Note: I don’t include a wok in this because I’m better at stir-frying in frying pans than woks. If you have questions on how to adapt this recipe to a wok, then ask away in the comments section.
Egg fried rice (蛋炒饭):
1 cup uncooked rice per person; usually eaten with other dishes
You’ll need
2 or more cups uncooked white rice
1 egg per 2 cups rice
roughly a small handful of chopped green onions per 2 cups of rice
roughly 1.5 tablespoons vegetable oil per 2 cups rice (not olive oil)
table salt
water
deep-ish frying pan (or wok)
rice cooker or sauce pan with cover
optional: 1 teaspoon butter per cup of rice (to add to rice before cooking)
1. Cook the rice, either in a rice cooker or in the sauce pan. (Instructions on cooking rice in a sauce pan here.) Let sit for 2 hours to 24 hours either refrigerated or not, depending on convenience for you.
2. Heat enough oil to keep eggs from sticking on medium-high in the frying pan.
3. Break eggs over frying pan and scramble inside the pan with spatula or spoon until fully cooked.
4. Add rice then enough oil to keep the rice from sticking (usually about a tablespoon per two cups rice). Stir until oil is distributed evenly throughout the rice and the rice is evenly hot.
5. Add in green onions and stir until distributed evenly.
6. Add salt to taste and stir until distributed evenly.
7. Serve immediately as the starch of a Chinese meal. Also refrigerates and microwaves well.
Feel free to comment with questions, rave reviews, or suggestions for improvement.
Cooking Authentic Chinese Food in Maine: Part 1 – Cashew Shrimp (腰果虾仁)
Oct 18th
I know many of my readers are outside of China, and it can be hard to find groceries, let alone restaurant food, similar to what I ate in Beijing even in a relatively China-friendly place like Seattle. For this reason, I decided it would be worth a how-to series on cooking Chinese food in a place without much grocery variety. I’m no Chinese cooking expert, but I cooked stir-fried broccoli, egg fried rice, and cashew shrimp at my family’s vacation home in rural Maine, a place known for its natural beauty and lobster but not its Chinese food.
I was originally going to do videos for this how-to but it seemed too daunting so maybe I’ll eventually add in pictures after I make these dishes next. It’s easier to refer to text while you’re cooking, anyway, right?
Note: I don’t include a wok in this because I’m better at stir-frying in frying pans than woks. If you have questions on how to adapt this recipe to a wok, then ask away in the comments section.
Added February 6, 2011 after I cooked this at a dinner party.
Cashew shrimp (腰果虾仁):
1/2 cup of each main ingredient uncooked serves 2-3 people as part of a larger meal
You’ll need (roughly equal parts of top five):
medium or large shrimp, cooked, with tails removed
cucumber (English-style is best)
celery
carrot
roasted cashews, preferably unsalted
canola or corn oil (1.5-2 tablespoons)
table salt
water
deep-ish frying pan and cover
1. Completely thaw shrimp if frozen.
2. Peel cucumber and carrot. Remove leaves from celery.
3. Chop carrot and celery at an approximately 45-degree angle in pieces of approximately a 1/4-inch thick. If you have an especially thick carrot, you might want to cut it in half lengthwise before chopping.
4. Chop the cucumber into 1/4-inch thick discs. If your cucumber is English style cut each disc in half to form two half-discs. If your cucumber is American style (thicker) cut in half twice to form four quarter-discs.
5. Pour oil into pan then turn on medium-high to heat the oil.
6. Add celery and carrot, stir to coat in oil, lightly sprinkle salt over whole pan, add water to pan until carrots and celery are almost covered, then cover pan for approximately 2 minutes. (The heat will be high enough if the water is boiling before you cover it.)
7. Uncover pan to check to see if ingredients are sufficiently cooked. They should not be mushy but soft enough to easily cut through the center of with a metal spatula. Add water as necessary to keep from burning.
8. Repeat steps 6 and 7 with cashews and cucumber, in that order.
9. Turn heat to low or off. Add shrimp and stir until shrimp are the same temperature as the rest of the ingredients but not cooking enough to become tough or smaller in size.
10. Season with salt to taste.
11. Serve immediately on a plate or in a shallow, wide bowl with oil from pan. Serve with small bowls of plain white rice or as part of a family-style Chinese meal. Easiest to eat with chopsticks but possible to eat with a fork or spoon.
I know this dish is made in a lot of different ways. Feel free to comment with questions or suggestions for improvement.
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