IN ADDITION TO REGULAR PORTIONS, WE DECIDED TO GIVE YOU OUR ILLEGAL+UNDERGROUND MEASUREMENTS TOO. IF YOU WANT TO HOST A BIG PARTY, START YOUR OWN UNDERGROUND CLUB, SEE WHAT ALL THE FUSS IS ABOUT, HAVE AT IT! HERE’S A QUICK NOTE ABOUT THOSE MEASUREMENTS:
“FUN SIZE” (AKA “NORMAL” PORTIONS): these singular dishes will feed about 2 to 4 people. But, because most of the dishes should be served family style, even these Fun Size portions will most likely satisfy more people. To keep it simple, make 1 dish less than the total number of guests. If you’re cooking for 4 people, for instance, make at least 3 dishes and you should be good to go!
“BALLS OUT” (AKA ILLEGAL+UNDERGROUND PORTIONS): if you want to start your own illegal+underground restaurant, why guess how much to make when we’ve already done it. Most recipes have been multiplied to make 15x to 20x more dishes, which can accommodate about 40 to 80 guests, depending on the dishes. Happy serving illegally+underground (and please invite us!).
BASIC INGREDIENTS AND STARRY KITCHEN RECOMMENDATIONS
ASIAN LIGHT BEER: Sapporo Light Beer, Kirin Ichiban, or Koshihikari Echigo, an awesome Japanese craft beer. Play around, get drunk, have fun!
CHICKEN BOUILLON: Lee Kum Kee brand, my wife swears by them.
CHINESE COOKING WINE: shao shing aka xiao xing aka hua dao.
COCO RICO BRAND SODA: a Puerto Rican brand coconut-flavored soda commonly carried in Asian grocery stores. It is kind of our secret ingredient to flavor things with just a hint of coconut but not that full coconut taste. I didn’t even know it wasn’t Asian until I wrote this book!
COCONUT CREAM: The Indonesian Kara brand is amazing; it will make any dish better.
COOKING OIL: Cottonseed oil, most commonly used to fry beignets, is pretty flavorless and not too oily. Because it isn’t always readily available for purchase, use whatever brand you can find.
DISTILLED WHITE VINEGAR: All white vinegar from here on out is referring to 5 percent aka 50 grain. Be careful of this one characteristic. 10 percent aka 100 grain is very common, and has exactly twice the acidity and does change the flavor and outcome of what you’re making . . . I mean, if you care 
FISH SAUCE: Super tasty Red Boat Fish Sauce is honestly the best-tasting fish sauce on the market. For economic reasons, though, we use Three Crabs Fish Sauce for volume.
LIGHT SOY SAUCE: Kikkoman or Lee Kum Kee brand.
LIME JUICE AND LEMON JUICE: Juice from fresh limes and lemons is SOOOO much better! If you don’t have them, for the best flavor profile, use juices “not from concentrate.”
MUSHROOM BOUILLON: Totole is our brand of choice. The bottle has a cute harmless anime mushroom on the front.
PERSIAN CUCUMBERS: not all cucumbers are created equal. Persian cucumbers, which are smaller than their pickling, hot-house cousins, are also less watery. They have a great crunch and are not overwhelmingly cucumber-y. SO DAMN GOOD!
RICE VINEGAR: Marukan brand.
SAKE: Any cheap sake or cooking sake will do, but honestly, the more expensive it is, the better it will taste . . . and the drunker you’ll probably get, too, since it’s so good on its own.
SALT: Starry Kitchen don’t fuck with table salt. All recipes call for kosher salt.
YOUNG CHINESE MUSTARD GREENS: aka young gai choi, these greens are best when they’re young. Slightly more bitter than normal mustard greens.
