Stewed Tofu with Tomatoes (蕃茄豆腐)

Learning how to cook was driven by a very practical, and somewhat urgent, need to cook for my aging mom, in February, 2014.  As a beginner, this was one of the first dishes I tried.  Even though it's been made countless times in the past months, it's never written up as a recipe.  Now we've come to an end of 2015, a year not quite like other years in my ordinary life, it seems only right to close this year with an ordinary dish.  Have a Healthy and Happy 2016!

1. Tomato (2, or 4 Roma Tomatoes) rinsed and cut into bite size.
2. Tofu (1 box of Silken Tofu, 16-24 oz) sliced and diced into larger bite size.
3. Optionally, marinate ~1/4 lb of ground pork (with 1 Tbsp of soy sauce, 1 Tbsp of rice cooking wine, and 1 Tbsp of corn starch).  Let sit for 20-30 minutes..
4. Heat 2-3 Tbsp of vegetable oil in a flat bottom cooking pan (at high heat).  (Optionally) Place the ground pork in the pan, flatten with a spatula (to break up the pork), then stir.  Continue to flatten and stir for 2-3 minutes.  
5. Add tomato pieces into the pan.  Add 2 Tbsp of soy sauce and stir for another minute.
6. Add the tofu pieces in.  Season with 1/4 tsp of salt and 2-3 Tbsp of Oyster Sauce (蠔油).  Stir the content in the pot gently until evenly mixed.  Season to taste with salt.
7. Cover and bring the pot to boil, then let simmer for 10 minutes. Garnish with minced stallions and serve.  Here is a picture of the finished product.
   

Diced Chicken Wrapped in Lotus Leaf (荷葉糯米雞)

This is a Cantonese dish served in almost all dim-sum places, a seemingly plain dish, with its unique Cantonese flavor, that is created by combining Soy Sauce, Oyster Sauce (蚝油), and Fish Sauce (魚露).  The lotus leaf imparts an intoxicatingly fragrant smell to the wrapped content.

1. [Prepare the Wrap] Buy a pack of dried lotus leaf from a Chinese market.  Soak 4 pieces of the large-sized dried leaf in a kitchen sink, till soft (for ~30 minutes), rinse the leaves and brush the surface lightly, then cut into 4 quarters.  In the meantime, heat enough water in a stock pot till boiling, and drop the 4 quarters from each lotus leaf into the pot.  When all the leaves are in the stock pot, bring to boil and steam for 2-3 minutes.  Note- Each lotus leaf is a full circle (in 6" - 8" diameter), when softened and expanded, which can be cut into 4 segments.  Each segment is a quarter circle, in fan shape.
2. [Prepare the Sweet Rice- Cook] Soak 2 cups of round sweet rice (圓糯米) in water for 8 hours or overnight.  Strain out water and rinse the rice a couple of times. Place the sweet rice in a rice cooker, add water into the rice cooker based on the cooking instructions of the rice cooker, and cook the rice.  Note- (1) 1 measuring cup =1 & 1/3 rice-cooker-cups (in my kitchen).  The 2 measuring cups of sweet rice used here amounts to 2 & 2/3 rice-cooker-cups, which requires adding water into the rice cooker to the marker 3 (2&2/3 to be exact).  I let the rice cooker do its job, steaming for ~15 minutes and leaving the cover closed for ~15 minutes.  The result was quite good, except that the rice seems a bit too sticky, as opposed to being soft and not-too-sticky. (2) We experimented with placing a small amount of sweet rice in the microwave oven (rice soaked overnight and covered in water in a bowl), and heating 1 minute a time, stirring to make sure it's not boiling over, and repeating this process 5 times.  After 3 minutes, the sweet rice is fully cooked, soft, but not sticky at all.  The stickiness increases significantly as we progress from 3, to 4, to 5 minutes.  On next try, will use half rice and half sweet rice (or, 3 parts rice and 1 part sweet rice) to reduce stickiness.  (3) We also experimented with using uncooked sweet rice, which turned out to be hard to season and took longer to cook (not fully soft after 1.5 hours of steaming, mainly because there was not enough water for the rice to absorb and turn soft in a steamer).
3. [Prepare the Sweet Rice- Season] Add the following into a measuring cup and mix evenly: 4 Tbsp of Soy Sauce (1/4 cup), 2 Tbsp of Vegetable Oil, 1/2 tsp of salt, 1 tsp of sugar, 2 Tbsp of Oyster Sauce (蚝油) and 2 tsp of Fish Sauce (魚露).  While the sweet rice is still in the rice cooker (on warmer), use a tea spoon to gradually add the seasoning mix into the rice, stir and mix thoroughly with the spatula that came with the rice cooker until the flavor of the rice is to your liking (please take care NOT to make the rice too salty).
4. [Prepare the Filling] Get ~ 1/2 lb of boneless, skinless chicken thigh (or lean pork), trim excess fat, and cut into smaller chunks (1/4" - 1/2" square).  Soak 15-20 dried shrimps in water for 10-15 minutes, and mince.  Soak 8-10 dried mushrooms in water for 25-30 minutes, remove stems, and cut into smaller chunks (1/4" - 1/2" square).  Heat 1-2 Chinese Sausages (香腸) in the microwave oven for 1 minute (to soften), and cut into smaller bite size.   Now, add 1-2 Tbsp of vegetable oil into a flat bottom cooking pan, and turn on high heat.  Place the mushroom chunks, minced dry shrimp, and Chinese sausage chunks in the pan, and stir for 2-3 minutes.  Add the chicken chunks, season with 1 Tbsp of soy sauce, 1 Tbsp of oyster sauce, and 1/2 tsp of salt, and stir for another 2-3 minutes.  Optionally, cut 1-2 salted egg yolks (鹹蛋黃) into smaller chunks and set aside.
   
5. Now spread sweet rice on a quarter-circle of lotus leaf (to form a 3" x 3" square or 3" x 4" rectangle).  Start spreading the rice about 2" from the bottom and 2" from the right edge.  Add the filling (and some salted egg yolk chunks, optional) on top of the sweet rice rectangle, and add a small chunk of sweet rice on top (not too much on top).  Fold the bottom edge up, then the left and right edge, to form a square packet.  See picture to the right for a few wrapped rectangle packets.
6. Steam the wrapped packets with a steaming pot for 60 minutes.  Here is a picture of the finished product.
   

Pearl Balls (珍珠丸子) & Braised Lion Head (紅燒獅子頭)

These are two ground pork based dishes, both genuinely authentic, easy to make, and delicious to taste.  The first recipe below, Pearl Balls (珍珠丸子), i.e., Small Chinese Meatballs rolled in Sweet Rice, originated from Hubei Province (湖北, Shanghai's upstream sister along the Yangtze River), and became popular in Shanghai region, esp. as a Chinese New Year dish. The second recipe, Braised Lion Head (紅燒獅子頭), i.e., Large Chinese Meatballs braised in Soy Sauce, is a well-liked Shanghai region dish, esp. when it is served in a cold winter night.

I. Pearl Balls (珍珠丸子, Small Chinese Meatballs rolled in Sweet Rice)  Note- remember to soak 1 cup of sweet rice overnight before doing anything (see Step 3 below).

1. [Prepare the Pork Paste] Place ~2 lbs of ground pork (or, grind a pork butt and use 2 lbs) in a large mixing bowl.  Gradually stir in ~1 cup of water (1/2 cup for firmer meatballs) in circular motion in single direction (either clockwise or counterclockwise, but one direction only), till the pork turns into paste form (5-6 minutes).  Add 1 medium-sized onion (minced), 1 8-oz can of water chestnut (minced), 1 egg, 1/4 - 1/2 box of Tofu, 1 tsp of salt, 4 Tbsp of soy sauce, and 1/2 tsp of white pepper, into the mixing bowl.  Stir vigorously in the same single direction again, for 3-4 minutes.  Note- Cut the salt and soy sauce to half if you like mild-tasted meatballs.
2. [Make the Meatballs] Use one large spoon to scoop up enough pork paste to make a meatball that is ~3/4" - 1" in diameter.  Pass the paste between one spoon and the other, to form a ball.  Set aside the meatball.  Repeat this process 12 -16 times (enough for a full plate).  
3. [Make the Pearl Balls] Soak 1 cup of sweet rice in water overnight (or 6-8 hours).  Strain out the water, and spread the sweet rice in a large pate.  Roll each meatball in the sweet rice until the meatball is fully covered with the rice (now, that is a Pearl Ball).  Place the pearl ball in a glass or ceramic container that is suitable for steaming later (I used a 8" x 8" glass baking pan that could fit 16 pearl balls).  Repeat this process until all pearl balls are placed in the container. Spread the remaining sweet rice evenly into the cracks of the pearl balls.  
4. Steam the pearl balls for 60 minutes in a steaming pot (no need to cover the container with plastic wrap), and serve.  Here is a picture of the finished product.　
   

II. Braised Lion Head (紅燒獅子頭, Large Chinese Meatballs braised in Soy Sauce)

1. [Prepare the Pork Paste] Same as above, and use the remainder of the pork paste after making 12-16 pearl balls.
2. [Make the Lion Heads] Add 1/4" deep of vegetable oil into a deep non-stick flat bottom cooking pan. Turn on high heat.  Use a small-to-medium sized soup ladle to scoop up enough pork paste to make a large meatball (~3" in diameter).  Place the paste in one palm, and pass the paste between one palm and the other plam, back and forth, to make the paste form a ball.  Place the meatball back in the soup ladle and slide the meatball into the pan (now with the oil near smoke point, ~400-degF).  Sear both sides of the meatball till brown (check the bottom of the meatball regularly).  Repeat this process until you have enough to fill the cooking pan.  A seared large meatball is known as a Lion Head (獅子頭).  After searing, set aside the lion heads.
3. Rinse and chop half a Napa Cabbage into larger bite size (~2" x 2", or larger).  In a fresh flat bottom cooking pan, place the Napa Cabbage pieces at the bottom until fully covered.  Add into the pan: 6-8 dried mushrooms and a cup of dried black fungus (both reconstituted and cut into bite size).  Turn on high heat, add 1/4 cup of soy sauce (i.e., 4 Tbsp), 1/4 cup of water, 1/2 tsp of salt, 1 tsp of sugar.  Place 4-5 Lion Heads on top of the Napa Cabbage pieces.  Bring to pot to boil, and let simmer for 30 minutes with lid on.  Optionally, during the last 30 minutes of simmering, soak some mung bean noodle (bean vermicelli, 粉絲) in water till soft (~5 minutes), then drop it into the simmering pot at the very end (~3 minutes, add water if the mung bean noodle absorbs all the fluid).  Here is a picture of the finished product.
   

Holiday Main Dishes- Kalua Pork and Stuffed Pork Loin Roll (夏威夷烤豬肉，厘肌肉卷)

It's the Thanksgiving in 2015, the beginning of the Holiday Season. We were trying to come up with a main dish or two for our family get-together in Northern California.  Here they are, delicious, authentic, and easy to make!  

The Kalua Pork is usually the main dish in a Hawaiian Luau, which takes 6-8 hours or longer to cook, when wrapped in banana leaves and roasted in a fire pit known as an Imu.  The recipe below is adapted from America's Test Kitchen's Pressure Cooker Cookbook and combined with a couple of online recipes.  The cooking time is 1.5 hours, and the result satisfying!  The stuffed pork loin roll was also adapted from half a dozen online recipes.

I. Kalua Pork (夏威夷烤豬肉)

1. Get a 4-6 pound piece of pork shoulder, or pork butt.  I used half of a Costco pork shoulder pack (boneless and skinless, with fat trimmed).
2. Make crisis-cross deep cut into the pork surface on both sides.  Sprinkle liberally sea salt (or kosher salt), black pepper, and brown sugar, and rub them into the meat (one side of the meat at a time).
3. Place the meat into a 6-Quart (or bigger) pressure cooker.  Sprinkle green tea leaves liberally (2-3 Tbsp), and Liquid Smoke sparingly (2-3 tsp, drizzled all over the top surface). Let sit for 2-3 hours. 
4. Dissolve 1 tsp of salt and 1/2 tsp liquid smoke into 2 cups of water.  Pour the water into pressure cooker (lift meat to allow water to flow under the meat).  Close the pressure cooker lid and place the cooker top on properly.
5. Turn on high heat to allow the pressure cooker to reach High Pressure.  Maintain High Pressure at medium heat for 1.5 hours (high pressure is maintained as long as a steady, but slow, stream of steam comes out of the pressure cooker).  Allow to cooker to naturally release its pressure (15-20 minutes).  Open the lid, let the meat rest under the loosely covered lid for 15 minutes. 
6. Scoop the meat out into a large plate.  Carve and serve with rice, and Hawaiian Coleslaw, i.e., a mixture of cabbage and carrots (sliced, or Julienne-sliced), small chunks of pineapple (diced from fresh or canned pineapple), seasoned with Mayo, Dijon Mustard, salt, sugar, and Vinegar (or lemon juice) to taste.  Here is a picture of the finished product (garnished with cherry tomatoes).
   

II. Stuffed Pork Loin Roll (厘肌肉卷)

1. Get a 3-4 pound piece of pork loin.  I used a Costco pork poin pack.
2. Cut the pork loin into 8-10" chunks (6" long chunks seem a bit too short to wrap stuffing in), 
3. Butterfly the pork loin (see this video for the technique).  A picture of pork loin butterflied into 3 folds is shown to the right here.  Note- Butterflying the pork loin into 3 folds seems to produce a thick sheet of meat, even after some vigorous pounding under plastic wrap.  Will butterfly into 4 folds next time, and report back.
4. Trim the fat from pork loin with a pair of kitchen scissors (keep some fat for flavor).
5. Marinate pork loin with salt and pepper (liberally sprinkle sea salt, or kosher salt, and black pepper on both sides and rub), and set aside for 2-3 hours.
6. Prepare the Stuffing:  Place 4-6 pieces of bacon into a dry frying pan.  Turn on low heat and fry the bacon till browned, but not crispy.  Take out the bacon strips, chop into smaller chunks, and set aside. Turn on medium-to-high heat.  Place minced garlic (4-6 cloves) and sliced mushroom (a box, 8-oz) into the pan and cook for 3-4 minutes.  Add baby spinach (leaves only, 1 bag, 8 oz) into the pan, stir and mix for 1-2 minutes.  Add 1- 1.5 cups of bread crumb into the pan, and mix all the ingredients thoroughly together.  Turn off heat.
7. Lay butterflied pork loin flatly on a cutting board (covered with wax paper).  Spoon stuffing on top of the pork loin sheet (leaving 1" of one edge without stuffing).  
8. Roll the sheet up from stuffing filled edge to the edge without stuffing.  Tie the stuffed pork loin roll tightly with cotton strings about 2" apart. 
9. Sear the pork loin roll in a frying pan at medium-to-high heat till browned (3-4 minutes each side)   A picture of 4 rolls placed in a skillet before searing is shown to the right here.
10. Preheat the oven to 350-deg-F.  Place the rolls in a baking pan, and bake for 45 mins. Let the rolls rest under tented aluminum foil for 15 mins.  Cut off the strings with kitchen scissors, and cut the rolls into 1/2"-thick slices and serve (or 1/4"-thick slices, once the rolls are refrigerated). 

Traditional Shanghai Soup with Fresh and Salted Pork (醃篤鮮)

This is a very traditional Shanghai soup, with a lively Shanghai-style Chinese name.  The first word, 醃 (curing meat), points to Salted Pork, the second word, 篤 (stewing), talks about the cooking process (stew slowly in covered pot), and the third word, 鮮 (fresh ingredients), refers to the fresh pork.  The soup is supposed to be white, and the flavor rich (湯白味濃).

1. [Make Salted Pork] Get a piece of pork leg meat, with skin (usually in ~3"x3"x 6" size).  Cut into 3 long slices each in ~1" thick, ~3" tall, ~6" long (with skin).  Rub salt and sprinkle Sichuan Peppercorns (花椒) on both sides of each slice. Let air dry (uncovered) in fridge for 5 - 7'days. Store in a plastic bag in the freezer if not used immediately.  For this soup, rinse and blanch half of a slice of the salted pork.  Cut it into bite size (~1/2" x 1/2" x 1.5", keep the skin) and set aside.
2. Cut 4-6 oz of fresh pork (pork butt, pork shoulder, or pork belly, with skin) into similar bite size as the Salted Pork.
3. Get a pack of Soy Sheet Knots (百頁結, see product package to the right).  Use half a pack for this soup.
   
4. Cut 2-3 pieces of Winter Bamboo Shoots (冬筍) into triangular bite size and Spring Bamboo Shoots (春筍) into 1/2" segments.
5. Get 4-6 stalks of Bok Choy ready (pick apart, and rinse)
6. [Make the Stock] Get a bag of beef bone, rinse, blanch for 2-3 minutes.  Place the bones in a fresh soup pot.  Fill the pot with water to 70-80% capacity.  Bring to boil at high heat.  Skim off foams and stuff.  Keep the pot in vigorous boiling state at medium-to-high heat for 30 minutes (cover the lid, make sure the soup does not boil over and spill).  The soup should be turning almost milk white at this point, as the fat content dissolves into water at high heat.  Skim off oil.  Continue to let the soup simmer in covered pot for 2 - 2.5 hours.  
7. [Make the Soup] Add about 3 - 4 cups of the stock (prepared in Step 6) into a fresh soup pot.  Add the salted pork, fresh pork, soy sheet knots, and bamboo shoots prepared in Step 1-4 above into the pot.  Fill the pot with water to cover the ingredients.  Add 2-3 stalks of scallions (cut into 2" segments), 6-8 slices of ginger, 10-12 pieces of dried shrimp (蝦米), 1 tsp of salt, 2 Tbsp of Rice Cooking Wine, 3 Tbsp of Shao-hsing Rice Wine (紹興酒). Bring the pot to boil, and let simmer for 1.5 - 2 hours.  
8. Season to taste with salt.  Place the Bok Choy (prepared in Step 5) in the pot to steam for 1-2 minutes.  Now the soup is ready to serve.  See picture below for finished product (with half of the stock and half of this dish's own clear soup). Note- The flavor of the meat pieces is all in the soup now.  There is almost no need to consume the meat.
   

Hong-Kong-style Turnip Cake (港式蘿蔔糕)

This item has been on the honey-do list for quite a while.  We always order this dish when we go to a dim-sum restaurant.  We can buy it in Phoenix (鳳城) bakery in Southern California a week or two before the Chinese New Year every year, or in Chinese markets in frozen form.  As a result, there are at least 2-3 quality benchmarks for any home-made product to live up to.  Objectively speaking, even though it's not a fancy food item, it's hard to do right, because the texture must be soft, but not mushy, and the taste must be flavorful, but not too rich.  I finally gathered enough courage to try it, based on several online sources, notably a YouTube video in Cantonese soundtrack (for its cooking method) and several online recipes in Chinese (for ingredients and seasoning).  The result seems promising.  Here it is.

1. Get ~3 lbs of Turnip (aka Daikon, 3 larger ones), peel, and rinse.  Cut along it's length into ~3" chunks, then slice into half (careful!), place the flat side facing down, and further cut into long slices of ~1/4" x 1/4" x 2"-3".  Note- Please cut with care.  Form a tightly-held claw in your non-cutting hand to hold the turnip, as shown in the picture in this post.
2. Place the slices of turnip into a large pot (10-12" in diameter).  Add 8 cups of water into the pot,  Set the pot aside on cooktop or stove (don't turn on heat until Step 6 below).  
   
3. In a large mixing bowl, add 4 & 3/4 cups of rice flour (再來米粉, aka 粘米粉, see the left-hand-side image for product package), 1 & 3/4 cups of wheat starch (澄粉, i.e., all purpose flour with gluten removed, see the right-hand-side image for product package), and 3/4 cup of corn starch (粟粉).  Add 3 tsp of salt, 2 tsp of sugar, and 1 tsp of white pepper into the bowl.  Mix evenly.  Gradually add 4 cups of water into the bowl, while stirring the mix constantly with a strong egg whisk until there are no clumps in the mix. 
4. Soften 10-12 pieces of dry mushrooms (soak in water for ~ 1 hr, remove stems, squeeze out water, and dice into 1/4"-square of chunks), and ~20 pcs of dry shrimps (soak in water for 15 - 20 minutes, chop into smaller chunks)  
5. Heat 3 pieces of Taiwanese Sausages (香腸) and a piece of 2" x 3" of Chinese Cured Pork (臘肉) in Microwave (or in boiling water) for 1 minute, such that the pieces are easier to slice and dice.  Cut both types of meat into 1/4"-square of chunks.  
6. Bring the pot with turnip slices to boil, and let simmer in covered pot till the turnip slices are soft (~10 minutes).
7. Place the meat chunks prepared in Step 5 into a dry frying pan, turn on medium heat, and stir for 2-3 minutes.  Add dried shrimps and dried mushrooms.  Now, season with 1 Tbsp of Sesame Oil, 2 Tbsp of Oyster Sauce, 3 Tbsp of Fried Shallot (油蔥酥), and stir for another 2-3 minutes.  Pour all these ingredients into the dry mix (in Step 3), and whisk till thoroughly mixed.  Pour this combined mix into a large stock pot.
8. Pour the burning-hot turnip slices and water slowly into the large stock pot (be very careful!).  Immediately stir and mix the content in the stock pot together thoroughly, by whisking vigorously, until the content in the stock pot is turned into thick paste, with discernible turnip slices, meat chunks, and mushroom bits.
9. Use a heat-resistant spatula to get the still-hot mixed-paste into 2-3 oiled baking containers that are suitable for steaming later. Alternatively, line the bottom of the baking containers with plastic wrap, instead of oiling them. Note- I used two 8"-square and one 4"x 8" containers, all made of glass.  Costco’s Plastic Food Wrap is food-safe, and also safe in a steamer (vs in an oven), where the steam keeps the temperature inside the steamer between 212-degF and 240-degF. 
10. Cover the baking containers with plastic wrap.  Place the covered baking containers into a steamer.  After full steam is built up at high heat, steam at medium-to-high heat for 75 minutes.  Check to see if the steam coming out of the top of the steamer has subsided, if the water in the bottom pot runs low (For a 12"-diameter steaming pot, 75 minutes of steaming consumes less than 1" deep of water.).  Note- The 4"x 8" container was covered in plastic wrap and cooked in the Microwave Oven for 3 minutes x 5 sessions.  Take a look to make sure the content is not boiling over in between sessions.  The result of 15-minute Microwave cooking seems to be the same as steaming.
11. Let the now-fully-cooked turnip cakes cool overnight.  Fry pieces of the cake in a pan with vegetable oil at medium heat till brown and slightly crispy, and serve with a dipping sauce of a mixture of Soy Paste and Sweet and Spicy Sauce.  Here is a picture of the finished product (the pieces seem to be broken down a bit at cutting time).
    
12. Here is a stir-fried turnip cake dish that's worth doing (for dinner).  Cut a chunk of turnip cake into 1/2"-thick slices, and fry them as suggested in Step 11.  Take the slices out, let cool, cut into 1/2" x 1/2" x 1&1/2" chunks, and set aside.  Stir-fry some vegetables, such as carrots and onion (sliced, and saute'd till soft first), add the turnip cake chunks, season with Oyster Sauce and XO Sauce (add a small amount of water), stir for 1-2 minutes, and turn off heat.  Then mix in some thinly sliced scallions, and serve (as shown in the picture below, as to the veggies, adding sliced green peppers and mum bean spouts won't be a bad idea!).
    

Hakka Stir-Fry (客家小炒)

Unlike the Hakka Steam Pot (客家三封) that seems to be a hidden treasure, this traditional Hakka dish is widely known in Taiwan, especially as a dish to accompany alcoholic beverages (下酒菜).  It's delicious and a delight to prepare for the whole family!

1. Prepare the ingredients: (1) Dry squid (cut into thicker slices first, soak in water to soften for 2 hours or more, cut with care); (2) Lean pork (1/4 lb, slice, and marinate with 1 Tbsp corn starch, 1 Tbsp soy sauce, and 1 Tbsp rice cooking wine); (3) bean curds (2 pieces, sliced horizontally 2-3 times, then vertically once); (4) Celery (2-3 stems, cut into 1.5" segments, then slice); (4) garlic (3-4 cloves, sliced); (5) hot peppers (1 green and 1 dry red, sliced); (5) scallion (4-5 stalks, smash and slice into 1.5" segments); (6) [optional] Leek (蒜苗, do 30-degree slanted cut along its length into 1" - 1.5" pieces).
2. Add 2-3 Tbsp of vegetable oil into a flat bottom cooking pan.  Add sliced lean pork into the pan.  Turn on high heat.  Stir-fry till pork is half-cooked (meat beginning to turn white, 1-2 minutes), and set aside.  Strain oil back into the pot.
3. Add 2-3 Tbsp of vegetable oil into the pot (high heat).  Add sliced bean curds into the pot.  Stir and fry the bean curds till lightly golden and slightly crispy (3-4 minutes), and set aside.  Strain oil back into the pot.
4. Add 1-2 Tbsp of vegetable oil into the pot (medium heat). Add hot peppers and garlic, and stir for a minute. Add squid and bean curds (high heat). Add 1/4 cup of water, season with 3 Tbsp of rice wine, 2 Tbsp of soy sauce, 1 Tbsp of oyster sauce, 1/4 tsp of salt, and let cook for 3-4 minutes in covered pot.
5. Add celery and leek (optional). Add pork. Stir for 2-3 minutes. Finally, add scallions and stir for 20-30 seconds. Turn off heat.
6. Sprinkle sesame oil and 1/4 tsp of white pepper on top.  Mix thoroughly, and serve. Here is a picture of the finished product.
   

Cantonese-style Congee (廣東粥- 皮蛋瘦肉粥、生滾魚片粥)

Cantonese-style Congee (廣東粥) is quite a treat!  It is thick and silky smooth to the point that the rice grains are no longer distinguishable.  We always thought this would be hard to make at home.  As it turns out, it's pretty straightforward！

I.  The Congee Base (粥底）

1. Method 1- Add 1/2 cup of uncooked white rice, 5-6 cups of water, 2 tsp veggie oil, 1/2 tsp salt into a medium sized pot.  Let sit for at least 2 hours.  Bring the pot to boil, and open the lid partially to let the steam out for the first hour.  Then let simmer till the rice-water-mix is thick and silky and the rice grain indistinguishable  (2-3 hours).   Stir regularly to avoid burn at bottom, or use a non-stick pot.  Let simmer, and continue on to Part II or III.
2. Method 2- Freeze 2 cups of cooked rice overnight.  Add the frozen rice and 6 cups of water into a medium sized pot.  Add 2 tsp of veggie oil, 1/2 tsp of salt into the pot.  Bring to boil, and open the lid partially to let the steam out.  Then let simmer till the rice-water-mix is thick and silky and the rice grain indistinguishable (~30 minutes).  Stir regularly to avoid burn at bottom, or use a non-stick pot.  Let simmer, and continue on to Part II or III.  This method was demonstrated in a YouTube video presented by Taiwan's celebrity chef, 阿基師.  Note- The container used to freeze cooked rice can be used as the base for measurement, calling its capacity or volume V1. Add 3 x V1 of water into the pot, and adjust the quantity for salt and veggie oil accordingly. 

II. Congee with Century Egg and Pork (皮蛋瘦肉粥）

1. Add the following into the pot with simmering congee base (from Part I above):  1-2 thousand-year eggs (皮蛋, cut with scissors or chopsticks into smaller bite size), and 1/4 - 1/2 cup of raw pork (cut into smaller slices, and marinate for 30 minutes with 1 tsp of rice cooking wine and 1/4 tsp of salt).  Stir and cook at low heat for 4-5 minutes.
2. Season to taste with salt.  Garnish with minced scallions, and serve in a bowl.  Here is a picture of the finished product, using Method 2 above.
   

III. Congee with Fish Fillet (生滾魚片粥)

1. Add the following into the pot with simmering congee base (from Part I above):  1-2 pieces of filet of fish (defrost, cut into larger bite size, and marinate for 30 minutes with 1 tsp of rice cooking wine and 1/4 tsp of salt), 10-12 ginger slices (thin matchstick size).  Stir and cook at low heat for 4-5 minutes.
2. Season to taste with salt.  Garnish with minced scallions, and serve in a bowl.

Mung Bean Soup with Chinese Pearl Barley and Mushroom Chicken Soup (綠豆薏仁湯, 香菇雞湯)

By pure coincidence, these two soups were made on one fine autumn day. The Mung Bean Soup was made because the temperature was close to 100 degrees in Southern California on that day. This dessert soup has its supposedly "medicinal" cooling effect on a warm day, which makes it quite popular in summer.  The chicken soup was made for a neighbor who fell ill suddenly.  This is an everyday routine entry.  We made it many times before, never thought about writing it down as a recipe.  This entry is more for keeping a record than anything else, even though this is still a very Chinese soup, with its unique mushroom flavor.

I. Mung Bean Soup with Chinese Pearl Barley (綠豆薏仁湯)

1. Prepare Chinese Pearl Barley (薏仁): Soak 1/2 cup of Chinese Pearl Barley in water in a small pot for 2 hrs. Bring the pot to boil and let simmer for 20 minutes (in covered pot).  Keep the pot covered with full steam inside for another 20-30 minutes.  Note- Chinese Pearl Barley can be used to make multiple desserts, hence a separate step for its preparation.
2. Prepare Mung Beans: Get 1 cup of mung beans (綠豆) rinsed and placed in a pot, add 4 - 6 cups of water into a medium sized pot. Bring to boil and let simmer for 45 minutes (till the mung beans open up like flowers blooming).  Note- Soaking mung beans for 2 hours first can reduce cooking time down to 15 - 20 minutes.  Using the soaking method, Step 1 & 2 can be combined (soak 2 hrs -> cook 20 mins -> let sit in full steam 20 - 30 mins).
3. Add 1/4 cup of sugar (4 Tbsp) into the pot. Pour the cooked Chinese Pearl Barley into the pot. Mix thoroughly.  Add more water to dilute the mixture if you like.  Bring to boil and turn off heat.  Season to taste with sugar. Let cool in fridge and serve. Here is a picture of the finished product.
   

II. Mushroom Chicken Soup (香菇雞湯)

1. Immerse a Cornish Hen (frozen, no need to defrost) in water in a medium-sized pot. Add the following into the pot: scallions (1-2 stalk, cut into 2" segments), ginger (6-8 slices), garlic (2-3 cloves, sliced or smashed), salt (1/4 tsp), rice cooking wine (3-4 Tbsp), 6-8 pieces of Dry Mushrooms (rinse, no need to soften or reconstitute).  Add water to fill 80% of the pot. 
2. Bring the pot to boil. Let simmer in covered pot for 2.5 hrs.  Check once an hour (on water level).
3. Scrape off chicken oil from the surface of the soup (with a spoon). Season to taste (by adding 1/4 tsp salt a time), and serve.
4. Alternatively, one can cook 10-12 frozen Wontons (buy from market) in a separate pot. Take the cooked Wontons out into a bowl.  Ladle the chicken soup on top, and serve.

Hakka Steam Pot (客家三封)

Here is a traditional Hakka dish (客家菜), that seems to be a hidden treasure for people outside the Hakka community.  The method used here is not unlike that used to make New England Clambake, especially when it is done indoor, like this Kitchen Clambake.  The Chinese name for this dish means three ingredients steamed in covered pot, hence the word 三封 (three in covered pot).  It's easy to make.  The result is a pot of delicious pulled pork and flavorful vegetables, a full meal for the whole family in one pot.

1. Blanch a hunk of pork butt (夾心肉, ~3 lbs) for 2-3 minutes.   Rinse and set aside.  Note- We elect to use the leaner pork here (leaner than the commonly used pork belly, 五花肉).  With 2.5 - 3 hours of stewing in a covered pot, any pork would be turned into pulled pork.  So, choose your favorite pork, knowing that pork with more fat content, such as the pork butt, yields tender and juicier meat after cooking, hence the choice here.
2. Take a large-sized stew pot (10-12" in diameter).  Add 1 cup of soy sauce, 1 cup of rice cooking wine, 1/2 tsp of salt, 1 Tbsp of brown sugar, 8-10 cloves of garlic, 6-8 slices of ginger, into the pot.  Add the blanched pork butt into the pot, and chunks of turnip/Daikon to fill up the side of the pork.  Add water to cover 60- 80% of the depth of the pork.  
3. Bring the pot to boil, and let simmer at the lowest possible heat setting in covered pot, for an hour.  Flip the pork butt in the pot (Use a spatula in one hand and a pair of chopsticks in the other.  Please handle with care because the pork butt is balky and the pot is filled with hot fluid).  Let simmer for another hour.
   
4. Add large chunks of winter melon (peeled with seeds removed), into the pot, as a layer on top of the pork. See left-hand-side image for the winter melon chunks. 
5. Add the crown of a large cabbage into the pot, on top of the winter melon. See right-hand-side image for a full cabbage (cut enough of the top of the cabbage to fit into the pot).  Let the pot simmer for 30 minutes (1 hour if you like your vegetables very soft, almost turning into paste form).  
6. Serve in any way you like.  Cabbage in one dish, winter melon in a second dish, and pork in a third dish.  Or, as we do in the picture below, with cabbage at the bottom, winter melon in the middle layer, then, pork and turnip on top.   Or, after taking the veggies out, cook some noodle/pasta separately (or soak some mung bean noodle in water for 10-15 minutes), then bring the noodle into the stew pot and cook for 2-3 minutes, and serve with pork.
   

Braised Longevity Noodle (干燒伊麵)

Longevity Noodle, aka Yi Mien (伊麵), is "a variety of Cantonese egg noodles made from wheat flour". It's often used to make a traditional and popular Cantonese vegetarian noodle dish, known as the Braised Longevity Noodle (干燒伊麵), which is very easy to make, tremendously pleasing to taste, and the subject of this post.

1. Get a pack of Longevity Noodle from a Chinese market (each pack has 2 batches in it; see product image on the right; buy tightly vacuum-sealed packages if you plan to keep for longer than 2 weeks).  Blanch each batch till soft, in a large pot with boiling water (2 - 3 minutes for each batch, 1-2 mins for slightly chewy noodle). Take out the noodle and set aside.  
   
2. Place 2-3 Tbsp of veggie oil in a large flat bottom cooking pan. Turn on high heat. Add 1 cup of sliced fresh mushroom (aka Shiitake Mushroom), or 8-10 softened (reconstituted) and sliced dry mushrooms (dry mushrooms need to be soaked in water for at least 30 minutes, stems removed and sliced). Stir-fry for 2-3 minutes, add 1 Tbsp of soy sauce, and stir for a minute.
3. Add both batches of Longevity Noodle into the pot. Add 3-4 Tbsp of oyster sauce (蠔油) and 1 cup of chicken broth (or vegetable broth for the vegetarian version) into the pot. Stir-fry the noodle mix for a minute, then add 1-2 Tbsp of soy sauce to add color to the noodle mix (make sure the noodle mix is lightly brown or slightly darker). Stir till the noodle mix is close to dry (with no fluid sloshing around in the noodle mix).
4. Now add 1/4 cup of Yellow Chive (韮黃).  Stir the Yellow Chive into the noodle mix for 10-15 secs. Turn off heat.  Note- Try NOT to overcook the Yellow Chive.
5. Sprinkle 2-3 Tbsp of sesame oil on top of the noodle mix. Stir and mix all ingredients thoroughly for a minute, and serve. Attached is a picture of the finished product.
   
   
   

Two simple ways to cook chicken legs with skin (台式照燒雞, 廣式鼓油雞）

Previously, we wrote a recipe for Taiwan-style Three-Cup Chicken (台式三杯雞), when we used boneless, skinless chicken leg meat.  That turned out to be the only chicken main dish I dared to try in my first 18 months of learning to cook, mainly because cooked chicken (or turkey) meat often started to emanate this funny (almost stinky) smell the next day (after being refrigerated).  Here we venture into cooking chicken legs with skin and bone (making this a realistic challenge), using two simple traditional cooking methods, braise (i.e., fry lightly and stew slowly in covered pot, a method we used on pork hock and pork ribs) and stew.

I.  Taiwan-style Braised Chicken, aka Teriyaki Chicken (台式照燒雞) and Traditional Braised Chicken (紅燒雞) 

1. Get ~1 pounds of boneless chicken legs (with skin), or Costco chicken thigh in vacuum pack (with bone and skin, already cut into 3 pieces; non-frozen; remove bone with kitchen scissors, like this pair from Amazon).  Make some parallel cuts in the middle of the skin.   (Optionally) Marinate with salt and rice cooking wine for 30 minutes (no need to marinate if in a hurry, the sauce below is rich with flavors already). 
2. Prepare Teriyaki Sauce by mixing 2 Tbsp of soy sauce, 2 Tbsp of rice cooking wine, and 1 Tbsp of honey or brown sugar.
3. Place the chicken with skin-side down on a dry frying pan (without oil).  Turn on medium-to-high heat for 1-2 minutes, change to medium-to-low heat for 5-6 minutes (till skin is golden brown; move and check frequently to make sure the skin is not burnt).  Flip the chicken to meat side (to fry lightly in the oil produced from frying the skin side, 2-3 minutes).  Strain out excess oil from the pan.  
4. Pour the Teriyaki Sauce into the pan.  Cover the lid, and cook at medium heat for 4-5 minutes.  Flip chicken back to skin-side down.  Cook with lid off for 2-3 minutes, to reduce the sauce to half or less.  
5. Cut the chicken into your favorite bite size, and place the pieces in a plate.  Spoon some sauce on top of chicken.  Sprinkle some roasted sesame seeds on top.  Garnish with cilantro leaves or minced scallions, and serve.  Here is a picture of the finished product.  Note- Simply remove the skin (a cinch after this method of cooking), if it is too fatty.  Alternatively, use an oven-safe pan, such as a cast-iron skillet, in Step 3 and 4 above, place the skillet with chicken skin side up in the top rack of an oven at the end of Step 4, turn on broiler for a minute or two (3-4 minutes for thick-skinned chicken, such as the Costco chicken), to crisp and brown the skin (Broiler Alert- Be extra careful with the 500-deg-F broiler!!  Pull the top rack out, instead of reaching in, to get hold of the cast-iron skillet!)
   
6. Traditional Braised Chicken (紅燒雞)- In Step 2 above, prepare Traditional Sauce: 2 Tbsp of soy sauce, 2 Tbsp of rice cooking wine, 1-2 stalks of scallion (cut into 1-2" segments), 4-6 slices of ginger.  In Step 4 above, pour in Traditional Sauce.  In Step 5 above, no sesame seeds. Here is a picture of the final product (after 3-4 minutes of broiling). 
   

II.  Cantonese-style Chicken in Seafood Soy Sauce (廣式鼓油雞)

1. Get two pieces of chicken leg-and-thigh (with skin and bone), rinse thoroughly, trim excess fat with a pair of kitchen scissors.  Making some parallel cuts in the middle of the skin.  No need to marinate. 
2. Place 2-3 stalks of scallions (2-3" segments), 4-6 slices of ginger, 4-6 Tbsp of Soy Sauce (or, 2-3 Tbsp of soy sauce and 2-3 Tbsp of Oyster Sauce), 2 Tbsp of Fish Sauce (魚露), and 1/2 tsp of salt, in a large covered pot.  Place  both chicken legs flat in the pot side by side.  Add water to at least half the depth of the legs.  Note- For lighter taste, there is no need to add salt, because both soy sauce and fish sauce are salty.
3. Bring to boil and let simmer in covered pot for 10 minutes on each side (add 5 minutes if the chicken is still in frozen form, i.e., not defrosted).  Turn off heat.  Keep the lid on for another 10-15 mins.
4. Cut the meat layer of the leg with knife.  Use kitchen scissors to cut the bone (see this pair of kitchen scissors from Amazon).  Ladle sauce on top of the chicken.  Garnish with cilantro leaves or minced scallions, and serve.  Here is a picture of the finished product.
   

Moon Cake with Date Paste Filling (廣式棗泥月餅)

Mid-Autumn Festival (中秋節) is upon us again in 2015.  This is the time when boxes and boxes of moon cakes (月餅) pile up in the Chinese Markets.  Last year, we thought we'd learn to make moon cakes, just for fun.  It was indeed fun and rewarding, with some minor technical difficulties :-). This recipe makes Cantonese-style Moon Cakes, the type with soft flour skin, as opposed to Shanghai-style Moon Cakes (蘇式月餅, those with fluffy flour skin), and Ice-skin Moon Cakes (冰皮月餅, the contemporary ones with soft skin made of rice powder).

Before trying this recipe, you'd want to buy a moon cake mold from Amazon (like the one shown above), that is designed to make 60-gram moon cakes (the smaller ones), with 20 grams allocated to the flour skin and 40 grams to the filling.  It is also essential to get a digital scale, to measure out the weight of the filling and the dough for each moon cake.

I. Making dough for the moon cake skin

1. Mix wet ingredients evenly in a small mixing bowl: 4 Tbsp (i.e., 1/4 cup) of Golden Syrup thoroughly mixed with 2 Tbsp of warm water (150-180-deg-F, by heating 1/4 cup of water in microwave for 15-20 seconds), 2 Tbsp of Vegetable Oil, 1 tsp of Lye Water.   Note- Lye water can be found in any Chinese Market (see the right-hand-side image for product package).  Golden Syrup (see the left-hand-side image for product package) can be found in World Market, or from Amazon.  Golden Syrup is known to be an Inverted Syrup that won't crystallize in the long run. The diluted Golden Syrup needs to be as thin and fluid as everyday Corn Syrup. Too thick a syrup mix makes the moon cake skin harder, and longer to turn soft after baking (see Step 8 below).  
2. In a medium mixing bowl, add 1 cup of all purpose flour, form a well in the center, and pour the wet ingredients into the well.  Stir the mix evenly, and roll the mix into a dough.  Continue to knead for 4-5 minutes.  Leave the dough in the mixing bowl, cover the bowl with a plastic wrap, and let sit for 30 minutes.
3. Roll the dough into a long roll, and cut the roll into ~13 pieces (each piece weighed 20 grams on the digital scale, a baker's dozen). Cover the pieces with plastic wrap.  

II. Making the Filling of Date Paste with Pine Nuts (棗泥松子)

1. Get a pack of 500-gram date paste from an Armenian Market (see the picture to the right for the product image of 1-kg pack).
2. Place the date paste in a microwave-safe ceramic bowl, cover the bowl with plastic wrap and heat for 2 minutes.  
3. Mix 1/3 cup of roasted pine nuts or 1/2 cup of walnuts with the date paste (raw pine nuts or walnuts need to be tossed in a dry pan on stovetop till golden, but not brown, at low heat; stir constantly; walnuts need to be cut to ~1/4"-square size).
4. Scoop out 38-40 grams of the date paste mix (measure with digital scale), and roll the mix into a ball (use plastic wrap or a plastic bag to wrap around the date paste mix while rolling, because the mix is very sticky). Note- For multi-nuts filling (五仁月餅), please reference this very nice YouTube video.

III. Making the moon cakes

1. With a rolling pin, roll each 20-gram piece of dough into a flat round that is slightly bigger in diameter than the 40-gram ball of date paste (see picture to the right).  
2. Pickup the ball and cover the top of the ball with the flat round on its top, like a cap.  Use the thumb and forefinger of left hand to form an open circle, and put this circle of two fingers on top of the flat round. Massage the flat round gently down the ball of filling with the circle of fingers, while pushing the filling up gently with two fingers of right hand. Continue this motion of downward-massage and upward-push until the flat round covers the filling ball completely and evenly, with an opening at the bottom of the ball.  Close the opening by massaging and squeezing the dough edges gently together (try to keep the closed edges as thin as the rest of the ball surface, i.e., not to have the dough bunched together at the bottom). Please see the YouTube video referenced at the end of Part II for a similar method.
3. Place the ball that is now covered with flour skin on a kneading board (with the closed edges at the bottom).  Place the mold on top of the ball (make sure the edges of the ball do not touch the mold, lightly brush a small amount of water or flour on top of the ball before fitting it into the mold, which is not necessary if the dough is not too sticky, i.e., if it is not stuck to your rolling pin).  Push the handle of the mold firmly downward onto the ball with one hand while holding the mold in place with the other hand (to imprint the pattern of the mold on the ball).  Release the handle, lift the mold, and push the now imprinted moon cake out of the mold.  Take the moon cake down and place it on the kneading board (if the moon cake is hard to remove from the bottom of the mold, clean up the mold and brush on water or flour before imprinting next time).  Cover the moon cakes with plastic wrap.
4. Repeat Step 1-3 for all 13 moon cakes.  Place a piece of aluminum foil on top of a cookie sheet (i.e., a flat bottom baking pan), and place all 13 moon cakes on top of the aluminum foil. Note- the aluminum foil is used to reduce heat at the bottom (to prevent the bottom from being burnt).  
5. Preheat oven to 325 deg-F.  Place the baking pan in the oven and bake for 10 minutes.
6. Take the baking pan out and spray the top of the moon cakes with a thin layer of water mist (to cool the surface of the moon cake).  Brush on a very thin layer of diluted egg fluid (1 beaten egg with equal amount of water, stir and mix evenly).  Let the moon cakes cool for 10-12 minutes. Note- Make sure the egg fluid is not too thick to clog the mold pattern.  
7. Set the oven to 275 deg-F, and bake the moon cakes till golden brown (12-15 minutes).
8. Take out the moon cakes, let cool.  Place them in a gallon-bag and let them sit in the fridge for 2-3 days for the skin to soften.  Serve at room temperature afterwards.  Here is a picture of the finished product.
   

Sautéd Crystal Shrimp (水晶蝦仁)

At some point in the recent history, this dish was known to be the Best Shanghai Dish (上海第一名菜).  With only one ingredient, Shrimp, and the simplest cooking method, Sauté, this dish is the perfect example of simplicity. Even though the shrimps we get from the market are in frozen  (or frozen then defrost) form, they must look as clear as crystal when served in this dish (hence the name Crystal Shrimp), and they must taste as if they are freshly caught from the sea, with shrimp meat tight, and texture slightly crunchy.  On top of that, the shrimps should not shrink after being cooked or reheated later.

1. Defrost ~1 lb of medium-sized frozen shrimps (shelled and deveined), by immersing the shrimps in water in a bowl for 20-30 minutes (change water 2 -3 times to rinse the shrimps along the way). Note- It's typical to use medium- or small-sized shrimps for this dish, not the large-sized ones.
2. Marinate the shrimps in a small mixing bowl, with 1 Tbsp of rice cooking wine, 1 Tbsp of corn starch, and most importantly, 1/4 tsp of baking soda (for 1 lb of shrimp). Stir in one direction (one direction only, clockwise, or counterclockwise), for 1-2 mins, drain any extra fluid at the end. Now, set aside in fridge for at least 30 minutes. Afterwards (optionally), add 1/4 tsp vinegar and stir, to neutralize the baking soda taste.  Note- Baking soda helps preserve the liquid inside the shrimps, and make the shrimp meat taste slightly crunchy.
3. Add 4-6 Tbsp of veggie oil in a flat bottom cooking pan, and turn on high heat for 1-2 minutes.  Place shrimps in the pan and stir-fry till the shrimps are white turning pink (half-cooked), ~1 minute.  Turn off heat and set aside the shrimps.  Note- With baking soda in the marinade, no need to worry too much about overcooking the shrimps.
4. Use the same flat bottom cooking pan, turn on high heat. Add 1-2 Tbsp of the veggie oil (consider draining oil from the previous step), heat the oil for 60 seconds, add 1-2 stalks of scallions (cut into 1/2" segments), stir-fry till fragrant (30-60 seconds).  Now, add the shrimps and stir-fry till truly pink (another 90-120 seconds, no need to worry about overcooking the shrimps).  Turn off heat, garnish with minced scallions, and serve.  Here is a picture of the finished product.  Note- If you like more vegetables in this dish, add some Snow Peas, or asparagus (cut into 1/2" - 1" segments), or Brocolli right after stir-frying the scallion segments into fragrance, stir-fry the vegetable till almost soft, then add the half-cooked shrimps and stir-fry till the shrimps are truly pink.  
   

Smashed Cucumber Salad (涼拌黃瓜）

This cold cucumber dish is very popular in Taiwan.  You can find it in almost all the deli, cafeterias or restaurants as a cold dish appetizer.  It is really simple to make and is a very good dish for a BBQ party.

Ingredient:

8 Persian cucumbers
2 cloves of garlic
1.5 tsp salt
2 tsp sesame oil
2 tsp light soy sauce
1 tsp sugar

Steps:

Cut off the stem, then cut cucumbers into one inch long segments (about 3 or 4 segments per cucumber).  Use  the side of a heavy knife to smash it.  If they are connected, cut each segment into 4 pieces.  No need to peel the skin or de-seed it.  Smash the garlic and cut them into small pieces.  Put the cucumbers and garlic into a plastic container and add 1.5 tsp salt, shake it, then seal it and put it in  refridgator for 2-3 hours.  30 minutes before serving,  take the cucumber out, drain most the juice out (in case it is too salty). Add sesame oil, soy sauce and sugar, mix and serve.  It you like it sweet and sour, don't add soy sauce, add rice vinegar and sugar instead.

American Southern Dishes- Jambalaya and Shrimp Gumbo (美國南方 蝦仁燴飯, 蝦仁濃湯)

To commemorate the ten years anniversary of 2005 Katrina disaster in New Orleans, CBS News published Chef John Besh's Seafood Gumbo recipe, which reminded us of the days in 2014 when we tried our hands on this class of dishes, like Spanish Paella, American Jambalaya, Taiwanese Pork-Stew Rice (滷肉飯), and Cantonese Baked Rice (堡仔飯).  We never got around to writing up the recipes for Paella and Jambalaya.  It seems a good time now, to remedy at least part of the mistakes.

The two American Southern Dishes below are full of flavors, easy to make, and each a meal in itself.  Both dishes use the same basic process of Southern Cooking, i.e., to cook some meat and seafood with the holy trinity of vegetables, onion, bell peppers, and celery, in a pot of strong flavored broth. In the recipes below, we use a method of Chinese Cooking to prepare the vegetables on the side, to avoid over-cooking the veggies.  We also use a rather small subset of spices and ingredients, when compared with a lot of the recipes online.  In the end, the cooking method is simplified, cooking time shortened, without sacrificing the taste and texture, we hope!

I. Jambalaya

1. Pour one 14-oz can of chicken broth into a flat bottom cooking pan (~1 1/2 cups).  Add 1 can of water (~1 1/2 cups).  Add 1 cup of tomato sauce. Turn on high heat, bring to boil, and let simmer (at lowest possible heat level).  Season with 3-4 cloves of garlic (minced), 1 tsp of cayenne pepper, 1 tsp of paprika, 1/2 tsp of salt, 1/2 tsp of black pepper, 1/2 tsp of thyme, 2-3 tsp of hot sauce (Tobasco or any other brand), 2-3 tsp of Worcestershire sauce.
2. Add 1-lb of Sausage (cut into 1/4" thick slices, or smaller bite size chunks), and (optionally) 1-lb of chicken (cut into bite size).  Bring to boil and cook at medium heat for 8-10 minutes (3-4 minutes if both sausage and chicken are fully cooked).
3. Add 1 cup of raw rice into the pot, bring to boil at high heat (watch closely as the sauce will boil over with rice in the pot). Reduce the heat to low and cook with lid covered till the rice is tender (8-10 minutes).  
4. Now stir-fry the vegetables in a fresh pan: (1) stir-fry 1 onion (sliced) for 3-4 minutes; (2) add 2 bell peppers and 4-6 stalks of celery (both cut into coarse chunks) and stir-fry for 1-2 minutes. Pour the veggies over into the pan with sausage and chicken. 
5. Add 1/2 - 1 lb of large shrimps (shelled, deveined, defrosted, and marinated-see Note below) into the pan. Bring the pot to boil, and cook with lid on for 1 - 2 minutes (Try not to overcook the shrimps). Turn off heat, season to taste with salt (1/4 tsp), pepper (1/4 tsp), and hot sauce (1/2 tsp). Here is a picture of the finished product.  Note- Marinate 1 lb of shrimps for 2-3 hours with 1 Tbsp of rice cooking wine, 1 Tbsp of corn starch, 1/4 tsp of baking soda, and 1 Tbsp of veggie oil, as we did in Sautéd Crystal Shrimps.
   

II. Shrimp Gumbo

1. [Make roux]  In a flat bottom cooking pan (preferably a non-stick pan), add 1/2 cup of vegetable oil. Turn on high heat for 1 minute, then reduce the heat to medium. Stir in 1/2 cup of flour with a wooden spatula. Stir constantly until the mix (known as roux, a thickening agent for the gumbo) turns golden brown.  Turn the heat down to low.  Note- Chef Besh's recipe calls for dark brown roux, which might add nice toasty flavor to the gumbo, in addition to its visual appearance.  
2. Pour one 14-oz can of chicken broth into a flat bottom cooking pan (~1 1/2 cups).  Add 1 can of water (~1 1/2 cups).  Add 1 cup of tomato sauce. Turn the heat to high again, bring to boil, and let simmer (at the lowest possible heat level). Season with 3-4 cloves of garlic (minced), 1 tsp of cayenne pepper, 1 tsp of paprika, 1/2 tsp of salt, 1/2 tsp of black pepper, 1/2 tsp of thyme, 2-3 tsp of hot sauce (Tobasco or any other brand),  2-3 tsp of Worcestershire sauce. Note- This is the same as Step 1 of Jambalaya above.
3. Add 1-lb of Sausage (cut into 1/4-thick slices, or smaller bite size chunks), and (optionally) 1-lb of chicken (cut into bite size).  Bring to boil and cook at medium heat for 8-10 minutes (3-4 minutes if both sausage and chicken are fully cooked).  Note- This is the same as Step 2 of Jambalaya above.
4. [Optional] Add 10-12 pieces of fresh or defrosted Okra (cut into 1/3"-thick segments along its length) into the roux. Note- This is another thickening agent commonly used in the traditional Gumbo.  The third thickening agent is gumbo filé (pronounced as 'fillet'), which is not used here.
5. Now stir-fry the vegetables in a fresh pan: (1) stir-fry 1 onion (sliced) for 3-4 minutes; (2) add 2 bell peppers and 4-6 stalks of celery (both cut into coarse chunks) and stir-fry for 1-2 minutes. Pour the veggies over into the pan with sausage and chicken. Note- Try not to overcook the veggies. This step can be repeated to add more veggies as we reheat the sauce in the next day or two. This is the same as Step 4 of Jambalaya above.
6. Add 1/2 - 1 lb of large shrimps (shelled, deveined, defrosted, and marinated-see note below) into the pan. Bring the pot to boil, and cook with lid on for 1 - 2 minutes (Try not to overcook the shrimps). Turn off heat, season to taste with salt (1/4 tsp), pepper (1/4 tsp), and hot sauce (1/2 tsp). Note- This is the same as Step 5 of Jambalaya above. Marinate 1 lb of shrimps for 2-3 hours with 1 Tbsp of rice cooking wine, 1 Tbsp of corn starch, 1/4 tsp of baking soda, and 1 Tbsp of veggie oil, as we did in Sautéd Crystal Shrimps.
7. Ladle the gumbo over rice or pasta (separately cooked), and serve.  Here is a picture of the finished product (with no okra in this version).  
   

Sacha Beef (沙茶牛肉)

This is a traditional Cantonese dish using a special sauce, the Sacha Sauce (沙茶醬).  The sauce that works perfectly with beef makes this dish quite a treat.

1. Slice ~1 lb of flank beef into ~1/8"-thick slices (not too thin).  Marinate with 1 Tbsp of Sacha Sauce (沙茶醬, mix the sauce evenly before use, see product image to the right), 1 Tbsp of Soy sauce,  1 Tbsp of rice cooking wine, and 1 Tbsp of corn starch, for at least 30 minutes.  
2. (High Heat) Heat 2 - 3 Tbsp of veggie oil in a flat bottom cooking pan.  Add beef slices in the pan.  Stir-fry till almost-cooked (take out when pink and turning white in veggie oil).  Take out and set aside.
3. Rinse and cut 2 onions into half-moon-shaped slices.  Rinse and cut 12 - 15 stalks of water spinach (aka swamp morning glory, 空心菜）into 1" segments.  Separate out stems from leaves.  
4. (High Heat) Heat 3-4 Tbsp of veggie oil in cooking pan.  Stir-fry onion for 3-4 minutes, season with 1/2 tsp of salt, 2-3 Tbsp of soy sauce, 1 Tbsp of Sacha Sauce (沙茶醬).  Now add the stem parts of the water spinach, stir-fry for 1-2 minutes.  Add the leaves parts of the water spinach, stir-fry for a minute.
5. (High Heat) Add the half-cooked beef slices into the pa, and stir-fry for a minute.  Turn off heat.  Note- It is important NOT to over-cook the beef.
6. Ladle the Sacha Beef generously on top of a plate of rice or a bowl of noodle, and serve as a meal (沙茶牛肉燴飯，沙茶牛肉麵), or serve as a regular dish.  See below for the finished product.
   

Szechwan Boiled Fillet of Fish (四川水煮魚, 水煮肉片, 水煮牛）

This is another traditional Szechwan dish.  The basic cooking method for spices is similar to the Szechwan Diced Chicken, even though the result looks quite different.

1. Cut 2 - 3 pieces of fillet of fish into 3/4"-square size chunks, and marinate for at least 30 minutes, with 1/2 tsp of salt and 2 Tbsp of rice cooking wine.  See Step 6 below for preparing pork or beef in place of fish fillet.
2. Rinse 8 - 12 oz of soybean sprouts (黃豆芽）thoroughly, blanch for 3 - 4 minutes, then spread evenly at the bottom of a medium-to-large serving bowl.
3. [Medium Heat] Add 2 - 3  Tbsp of vegetable oil into a flat bottom cooking pan, turn on medium heat, add  1/4 tsp of salt, 1/2 tsp of sugar, 2-3 stalks of green onion (cut into 1" segments),  6-8 slices of ginger,  6 cloves of garlic (pressed flat, coarsely sliced),  1 Tbsp of Hot Chili Pepper Oil (see this post), and optionally, 1 Tbsp of chili powder (to make it more spicy hot).  Note- The basic seasonings of Chinese Cooking are all in use here: salt, sugar, green onion, garlic, and ginger (鹽、糖、蔥、薑、蒜).  The common use of Sichuan Pepper (花椒) for this dish is folded into the Chili Pepper Oil, so we don't have to deal with the hassle of chewing on those peppercorns, since they are hard to separate out in this step.
4. [High Heat]  Turn up the heat, add 1 can of 14-oz chicken broth and 1 can of water into the cooking pan.  Bring to boil, add the marinated fish fillet into the pan, stir gently, let simmer for 2 - 3 minutes.  Pour all content from the cooking pan into the serving bowl, on top of the soybean sprouts.
5. [Medium Heat] Add 2 - 3 Tbsp of vegetable oil into a fresh flat bottom cooking pan, turn on medium heat.  Add 1/2 - 1 cup of dried chili pepper (hand-torn open into halves) into the pan,  stir till fragrant (2 - 3 minutes).  Add 2-3 stalks of green onion (cut into 1" segments) and 1-2 tsp of Sichuan Pepper powder (花椒粉), mix evenly with the chili peppers.  Now pour the pan-fried dried chili peppers and green onions into the serving bowl, gently stir and mix with the fish fillet, and serve.  Here is a picture of the finished product.  Note- If the dried chili pepper is spicy hot, this dish would turn out to be too spicy for most (reduce or eliminate the Hot Chili Pepper Oil and chili powder in Step 3).  Otherwise, the degree of spicy-hotness will depend on the Chili Pepper Oil and Chili Powder when the dried chili pepper is used primarily to decorate the dish.  
   
6. We can substitute Napa Cabbage for soybean sprouts (rinse and cut into bite size).  We can also substitute pork or beef for fish fillet.  Lean pork or flank beef needs to be sliced and marinated with soy sauce, rice cooking wine, and corn starch first, and then stir-fried at high heat till almost-cooked (not fully cooked, take out when pink, turning white in veggie oil).  The almost cooked meat can go into the boiling broth in Step 4 above.
   
   

Szechwan Diced Chicken (四川辣子雞）

This is a traditional Szechwan dish that can be very spicy, or merely spicy looking.  But the chicken itself is always tasty.

1. Cut 2 boneless, skinless chicken legs into 3/4"-square size chunks.  Marinate the diced chicken for at least 30 minutes, with 1/2 tsp of salt and 2 Tbsp of rice cooking wine. Strain out the fluid and pat dry with paper towel.
2. [High Heat] Add 1/2 cup (i.e., 8 Tbsp) of veggie oil into a flat bottom cooking pan.  Heat the oil till it's hot (for 1-2 minutes, or more reliably, till a wet chopstick that is dipped into the oil produces fast rising bubbles).  Note- If you see smoke coming from the oil, it's too hot.  Take the cooking pan off the heat first before doing anything else, then turn down the heat. The chopstick used for testing oil temperature is wet but not dripping wet (by dipping it into water and swinging vigorously downward to get rid of the dripping water).      
3. Place the diced chicken into the hot oil gently, and fry till golden but not brown (6-8 mins; stir frequently- this is more a stir-fry than deep-fry).  Turn heat to low, fish out the diced chicken using a spatula with holes (to drain out the oil).   Note- High oil temperature is meant to make the meat surface crispy but the inside tender.
4. [Medium Heat] Use the oil left in the cooking pan, add  1/4 tsp of salt, 1/2 tsp of sugar, 2-3 stalks of green onion (cut into 1" segments),  6-8 slices of ginger,  6 cloves of garlic (pressed flat, coarsely sliced),  1 Tbsp of Hot Chili Pepper Oil (see this post), and optionally, 1 Tbsp of chili powder (to make it more spicy hot), and 1/2 - 1 cup of dried chili pepper (hand-torn open into halves).  Stir the mix frequently till fragrant.  Note- If the dried chili pepper is spicy hot, this dish would turn out to be too spicy for most (reduce or eliminate the Hot Chili Pepper Oil and chili powder).   Otherwise, the degree of spicy-hotness will depend on the Chili Pepper Oil and Chili Powder when the dried chili pepper is used primarily to decorate the dish. Also note the basic seasonings of Chinese Cooking- salt, sugar, green onion, garlic, and ginger (鹽、糖、蔥、薑、蒜).  The common use of Sichuan Pepper (花椒) for this dish is folded into the Chili Pepper Oil, so we don't have to deal with the hassle of chewing on those peppercorns, since they are hard to separate out in this step.　　
5. [High Heat]  Turn up the heat, add the diced chicken，2-3 stalks of green onion (cut into 1" segments) and 1-2 tsp of Sichuan Pepper powder (花椒粉), stir and mix all the ingredients evenly for 1 -2 minutes, and serve.   Here is a picture of the finished product.