Soups
Eggs & tofu
Seafood
Blanched prawns with garlic soy
Poultry
Crispy five-spiced chicken wings
Duck and beansprout stir-fry with cucumber pickle
Meat
Five-spiced pork belly with spring onions and sweet soy
Justin’s beef kebab sticks with satay sauce
Aromatic steamed beef meatballs
Lacquered honey hoisin pork spare ribs
Vegetables
Cantonese stir-fried Chinese broccoli
At home we have always eaten dinner in the traditional Chinese family style where chopsticks shimmy across the table as everyone dips into the sharing dishes.
In the Cantonese tradition we usually start with a steaming bowl of soup (tong). As kids we would try to finish our soup as quickly as possible because the sharing dishes, or sohng, would already be tempting us with their aromas. Sohng literally means ‘to accompany’, for the rice (fan) is considered to be the most important part of the meal. Requests to teem fan, or ‘add rice’ to our bowls, was the sign of a healthy appetite. For our family of five it was normal to have three or four sharing dishes each night, which might have been a meat, fish, egg and veg plate.
To help you along, we have grouped the recipes in this chapter by the type of main ingredient. This way you can design a sharing meal using the same principles of nutritional balance as you would for any other type of cuisine, although here the serving sizes reflect a meal made up of several dishes.
We love this way of eating and the experience of a collective meal – the friendly debate over the tastiest plate of food, the bright colours on the table, the backing track of softly clicking chopsticks – is something we encourage you to explore.
When Mum starts counting down the days till we’ll be home for the holidays, she always asks us what we’d like for dinner when we arrive. Without fail, at least one of us will enthusiastically request shurn laat choi tong: the Zhang family version of hot and sour soup is a cleansing broth chock-full with leiu (quality ingredients) including sriracha, a bright red and tangy chilli sauce that can be found in the international section at supermarkets.
Serves 6
50g dried bean thread vermicelli
1.5 litres chicken stock
2 small tomatoes (about 80g each)
200g Chinese leaf, shredded (if not using the exotics below)
70g button mushrooms, sliced
1 medium fresh red chilli, deseeded and sliced
50g cooked chicken, shredded
½ tsp salt
1½ tsp granulated sugar
1¼ tbsp white vinegar
1½ tbsp sriracha sauce
| add an exotic (see here) |
| 150g harm shurn choi, sliced (pickled mustard greens) | |
| 50g ja choi, sliced (preserved mustard stem) |
1 Using a pair of scissors, cut the vermicelli into 10cm long pieces, then soak in a bowl of cold water for 20 minutes.
2 Bring the chicken stock to the boil in a saucepan. Add the tomatoes and Chinese leaf or harm shurn choi and ja choi, if using, and return to the boil. Drain the vermicelli and add it, along with the mushrooms, chilli and chicken, to the saucepan and bring to a simmer. Stir in the salt and sugar.
3 Now work on creating a balance of hot and sour flavours by alternately adding white vinegar and sriracha sauce, tasting as you go until it’s sharp, but also fiery. Serve in big bowlfuls.
You will be hard pressed to find another recipe that is quite as quick, comforting, or foolproof as dan fa (literally, egg flower) soup. Perfect as a snack or as a light meal for one, the key is to pour the beaten egg in a thin stream at the very last minute to create silky strands that sit suspended in the soup. This soup is best eaten fresh because reheating will overcook the eggs.
Serves 2
2 eggs plus 1 egg white
2 tsp cornflour
500ml chicken stock
30g canned bamboo shoots, cut into slivers
1 tsp vegetable oil
½ spring onion, diagonally sliced
salt and ground white pepper
1 Beat the eggs and egg white together in a bowl until frothy. In another bowl, mix the cornflour and 1 tablespoon water into a slurry and set aside.
2 Bring the chicken stock to the boil in a large saucepan over a medium heat. Just before the stock boils, gradually stir in the cornflour slurry, then stir in the bamboo shoots, ½ teaspoon salt, a pinch of pepper and the oil.
3 Reduce the heat to a simmer then gradually pour the beaten eggs in a thin stream, stirring, to form delicate ribbons. Season with more salt and pepper to taste, stir in the spring onion and serve immediately.
Fans of coriander will love the fresh and cleansing flavour of this super-quick gwun-style (boiled) soup. It’s the perfect light broth to serve before a sharing meal and it makes a great base for a light lunch, too. The very first meal that our little brother Justin learned to cook was coriander soup with thin egg noodles thrown in. It’s still one of his favourite go-to meals today, so as long as Dad keeps a steady supply of coriander in the garden, Mum can rest assured that Justin will never go hungry.
Serves 4
230g white fish fillet, such as haddock or cod, thinly sliced
2 slices ginger, cut into matchsticks
2 tsp cornflour
1 tsp vegetable oil
1.2 litres chicken stock
140g fresh coriander
¼ tsp ground white pepper
½ tsp granulated sugar
1 tsp salt
240g egg noodles, see tip (optional)
| add an exotic (see here) |
| 60g ji jook (dried bean curd) |
1 Mix the fish, ginger, cornflour, oil and a pinch of salt together in a small bowl, then set aside. If you are adding an exotic, soak the ji jook in hot water for 20 minutes, then drain and finely slice.
2 Bring the chicken stock to a rolling boil in a saucepan. Add the coriander and ji jook, if using, and boil vigorously for 3 minutes. With the soup still boiling, stir in the fish and gwun (boil) for a further minute, stirring to loosen up the fish flakes.
3 Season the soup with the pepper, sugar and salt. Serve in bowls with cooked egg noodles if you wish.
DUMPLING SISTERS TIP
If you wish to add egg noodles, cook these separately in a pan of boiling water before adding them to the soup – this way the starch from the noodles won’t make the soup gloopy.
Our earliest memory of watercress soup involves the somewhat clandestine harvesting of the watercress itself. The details are hazy, but as a young family we used to drive all the way to a relatively rural area of Christchurch to pluck huge bunches of wild watercress from a shallow stream. You can just imagine Dad’s delight when he recently discovered there was watercress thriving near the stream where he and Mum go for their daily walks – now they can save the drive and have watercress soup whenever they like.
Serves 4
350g pork ribs
2 fat carrots, cut into large chunks
3 slices ginger
2 dried dates
1 tbsp vegetable oil
300g watercress (stalks and leaves)
salt
light soy sauce, to serve
1 Rinse the ribs thoroughly under cold running water, giving them a squeeze to coax the blood out of the bones.
2 Half-fill a large pan with hot water and bring to the boil. Add the ribs and boil rapidly for a few minutes. Discard the cloudy water, then pour in 2 litres hot water and bring to the boil. Add the carrots, ginger and dates. Return the stock to a rapid boil, then add the oil and watercress. Adding the oil with the watercress when the water is at its hottest will prevent the watercress from becoming hai (a rough mouthfeel) as it cooks.
3 Reduce the heat, cover and boh (cook on a rolling boil for a long period of time) the soup for at least 2½ hours.
4 When the soup is ready, season with salt to taste. We find that about ½ tablespoon salt works well for this volume. To serve, ladle the broth and a bit of everything else into each bowl. The meat should fall off the bones, and it is delicious dipped in light soy sauce.
This popular soup is a permanent fixture on Chinese restaurant menus, but also surprisingly easy to rustle up at home. Juicy sweetcorn kernels, tasty morsels of chicken and delicate ribbons of egg make it the ultimate in comfort – a cheap and cheerful recipe that feels like a cosy blanket for the tastebuds.
Serves 4
1 large skinless, boneless chicken breast, chopped into small pieces
¼ tsp light soy sauce
3 tbsp cornflour
640g canned sweetcorn (drained weight)
1 litre chicken stock
3 large eggs, lightly beaten
¼ tsp ground white pepper
salt
to serve
½ spring onion, sliced
1 tsp sesame oil
1 Mix the chicken, soy sauce and a pinch of salt together in a small bowl, then cover and set aside. In another bowl, mix the cornflour and 100ml water into a slurry and set aside.
2 Put half of the sweetcorn and 250ml of the stock into a large pan, then use a hand-held stick blender to blitz the corn until it is a rough paste. Pour the remaining stock into the pan, then add the whole sweetcorn kernels and bring to the boil over a medium-high heat. Stir in the marinated chicken and cook the soup on a rolling boil for a further 4–5 minutes. Remove from the heat.
3 Give the cornflour slurry a quick stir, then gradually add it to the soup. Return the soup to a rolling boil and continue stirring for 1–2 minutes until thickened. Reduce the heat to a simmer and gradually stir in the beaten eggs to form wispy egg ribbons.
4 Season with ¾ teaspoon salt, the white pepper, and serve sprinkled with the sliced spring onion and sesame oil drizzled on top.
Each of the main ingredients in this soup – chicken, parsnip and ginger – work hard during a long, slow simmer to a create a milky broth that is definitely more spectacular than the sum of its parts. We hope that the first sip will take you by surprise as you detect notes of honey, the second sip make you wonder why you have never had it before, and the third sip have you planning the next batch.
Serves 4
4 chicken drumsticks (about 450g)
1 tbsp vegetable oil
1 thumb-sized piece ginger, peeled, halved and smashed
1 large parsnip (about 200g), cut into large chunks
salt
1 Remove and discard the skin from the chicken drumsticks then rub them all over with salt. Put the drumsticks into a large pan and pour over boiling water, leave to sit for a few minutes to draw out the blood, then drain and discard the water.
2 Clean out the pan, add the oil and put over high heat. Add the ginger and fry for a minute, then brown the drumsticks in the fragrant oil for a few minutes. Pour in 120ml water then cover immediately and let it bubble furiously for 2 minutes.
3 Pour in 1.5 litres boiling water, add the parsnip, cover and simmer for a further 1½–2 hours. The soup is ready to season when the liquid has turned milky and the parsnips are starting to melt into the soup. Season with salt to taste and serve.
The West Lake in Zhejiang Province in eastern China is an UNESCO World Heritage Site famed for its natural beauty and historic relics. It is said to have served as the muse for many poets and painters and, in the form of this soup, has even influenced the culinary arts. West Lake soup is simple to make and despite not using a stock or a long simmering time, this silky, fragrant soup is as tasty and gratifying as any others in this book. For the ultimate waat (silky) mouthfeel replace the cornflour with arrowroot powder.
Serves 4
4 dried Chinese mushrooms
pinch granulated sugar
200g beef mince
1 tsp plus 6 tbsp cornflour or arrowroot powder
1 tbsp light soy sauce
½ tsp salt
¼ tsp ground white pepper
100g soft tofu, cut into cubes
3 egg whites, lightly beaten
large handful fresh coriander (about 30g), chopped
1 Soak the Chinese mushrooms in a bowl of hot water with the sugar for 30 minutes. Drain, remove and discard the stalks, thinly slice the caps, then set aside. In a small bowl, combine the beef and 1 teaspoon cornflour and set aside.
2 Bring 1.2 litres water to the boil in a large saucepan. Stir in the soy sauce, salt and pepper, then add the mushrooms and beef. Use a pair of tongs or chopstick to swizzle the water vigorously, breaking up any large lumps of meat. Partially cover, return to the boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for 10 minutes. Add the tofu and simmer for a few minutes until the tofu has heated through.
3 In a bowl, mix the 6 tablespoons cornflour and 100ml water into a slurry, then pour the slurry into the soup. Increase the heat to medium and stir continuously until the soup thickens.
4 Drizzle in the beaten egg whites, tracing a spiral path. Leave the eggs to set for about 15 seconds, then use a ladle to stir the egg through the soup until the egg is completely set.
5 Add the coriander, cook until it has just wilted, and serve.
These speedy ‘dumplings’ are as fun to make as they are to eat. On the outside they look like tiny omelettes, but take a bite and you will be greeted with an aromatic filling of pork and spring onion. These dumplings have a tendency to behave like a batch of pancakes in that the first one you make is likely to be misshapen, although we are sure you will love it just the same.
Serves 4
for the filling
150g pork mince
1 clove garlic, finely diced
1 spring onion, thinly sliced
1 tsp cornflour
large pinch bicarbonate of soda
1 tsp light soy sauce, plus extra to serve
large pinch ground white pepper
1 tsp sesame oil
large pinch salt
for the eggs
4 large eggs
½ tsp vegetable oil, plus extra for oiling
2 pinches salt
pinch ground white pepper
1 spring onion, very thinly sliced
1 Put all the filling ingredients in a bowl, add 1 teaspoon water and stir in one direction (e.g. clockwise) until everything binds together. Leave to marinate for 15 minutes, if you have time.
2 In another bowl, whisk together the eggs with the oil, salt, pepper and spring onion.
3 Lightly oil a non-stick frying pan and place over a medium heat. Working as quickly as you can, spoon about a tablespoon of the egg mixture into the pan and use the back of your spoon to spread the pool out into a circle. Now put a teaspoon of the filling onto one half of the circle, leaving about 5mm of egg around the edge. Quickly fold the other half over the filling before the egg sets and press to seal the edges, flattening the filling slightly as you do so. Move on and set up another dumpling once the edges are sealed.
4 Fry each dumpling on both sides for a minute or so until golden all over. It’s important to give the filling a chance to cook through; have a peek inside if you’re unsure, and reduce the heat if the egg colours before the filling is cooked. Serve the dumplings with a drizzle of soy sauce.
This Chinese version of an egg omelette is as smooth as velvet. The key is to nurse the oil into the eggs during cooking so some of it is absorbed while the rest is enveloped within the layers of ribbony egg. You can replace the prawns with garlic chives or simply make the eggs on their own.
Serves 4
5 large eggs
¼ tsp salt
large pinch ground white pepper
large pinch granulated sugar
90ml vegetable oil
100g raw king prawns, peeled
1 Whisk the eggs with the salt, pepper, sugar and 2 tablespoons oil in a bowl. Add the prawns, if using.
2 Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a wok or a frying pan with high sides over a medium heat. Pour in the eggs and immediately use a spatula to swirl the egg in a languid circular motion. When you can see the egg starting to set, drizzle 2 tablespoons oil around the edge and let it seep into the egg as you keep swirling. When the oil has been absorbed, add another tablespoon of oil and resume the swirling. You are aiming to build wide ribbons of egg that interweave with each other.
3 Once the egg is about 80 per cent set (you will still see pools of egg trapped in the ribbons), stop swirling and cook for a minute until the egg just starts to colour on the bottom. Divide in half and flip each half to colour the other sides, then serve.
The best part of this dish is its simplicity: a mixture of eggs and water that transforms into a tender and silky wonder via the magic of steam. An old rule of thumb is that every egg should have three half-eggshells worth of water added to it. You can replace the water with chicken stock for more flavour, and/or add spring onions, fish fillets, dried shrimp or dried scallops.
Serves 4
4 large eggs
¼ tsp salt
3 pinches granulated sugar
to serve
light soy sauce
sesame oil
ground white pepper
| add an exotic (see here) |
| 3 kong yu chu (dried scallops) | |
| ¼ tsp cornflour | |
| pinch salt |
1 If you are adding an exotic: rinse the kong yu chu then soak in a bowl of cold water for 30 minutes. Use your fingers to break up the natural fibres then put in a small microwave-safe bowl. Add 2 teaspoons of the soaking liquid and set the remaining liquid aside. Rub in the cornflour and salt. Microwave, covered, for 30 seconds. Set aside.
2 Put the eggs, salt and sugar in a large bowl. Using a halved eggshell as a measure, add 12 measures of cold water (about 200ml) and whisk everything well. Pour the eggs into a steam-proof dish: if you want a mirror-smooth surface, pour the eggs through a sieve first to catch the froth. If using kong yu chu, use the soaking liquid along with any additional cold water needed to make up the 12 measures, and after transferring to the steaming dish, scatter in half of the kong yu chu.
3 Bring some water to the boil in a wok or large saucepan that will fit your dish, with a steaming rack set inside. Use a glass lid if you have one as it will help you see when the egg is ready. Add the eggs then reduce the heat to the lowest setting and steam for 6–8 minutes until the eggs are set but still wobbly in the centre. If you see them puffing up, briefly lift the lid to release some steam. Scatter over the remaining kong yu chu, if using, at the 4 minute mark and steam until set. Serve with a drizzle of light soy sauce and sesame oil along with a sprinkling of pepper.
It speaks a lot to the fame of this Sichuanese dish when it is regularly cooked to feed a Cantonese family, as it was in our house. While tofu is the main component, its true role is to carry the incredible cast of ingredients that it mingles with, especially the fiery and savoury chilli bean sauce and the flotilla of Sichuan pepper.
Serves 4
500g soft tofu, cut into 2cm cubes
2 tsp cornflour
100g beef mince
vegetable oil, for cooking
1 clove garlic, finely diced
1cm piece ginger, finely diced
2 tbsp chilli bean sauce
1 tbsp fermented black beans, roughly chopped (optional)
½ tsp granulated sugar
1 spring onion, thinly sliced diagonally
salt and ground white pepper
½ tsp ground Sichuan pepper, to serve
1 Steep the cubed tofu in lightly salted boiling water (about ¼ teaspoon salt per 500ml).
2 Meanwhile, mix ½ teaspoon cornflour into the beef. Heat 1 teaspoon oil in a wok or large frying pan over a high heat and briefly fry half the garlic and ginger until fragrant. Add the beef and brown, breaking up any large pieces as you go. Remove and set aside.
3 In a bowl, mix the remaining cornflour and 2 tablespoons water into a slurry and set aside. Carefully drain and discard the water from the tofu. Heat 3 tablespoons oil in the same frying pan, over a medium heat, and stir-fry the chilli bean sauce for a few minutes until the oil turns a deep red colour and you feel like you’re standing inside a comforting cloud of spicy smells.
4 Stir in the remaining ginger and garlic, and beans, if using, then return the beef to the pan, slide in the tofu, and pour 125ml water on top. Gently slide your frying pan back and forth to encourage the tofu cubes to nestle together under the liquid. Bring to the boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for a few minutes as the tofu works on soaking up the flavours. Gently stir in a pinch of salt, pepper and the sugar.
5 Give the cornflour slurry a stir and drizzle it into the pan. Delicately stir the mixture as the sauce thickens and becomes glossy. Stir through the spring onion and serve sprinkled with ground Sichuan pepper.
DUMPLING SISTERS TIP
Make it vegetarian by omitting the beef or replace it with diced onions, mushrooms or aubergine. Just pre-cook as you would for the beef and follow the recipe as per above.
Growing up we often indulged in fresh New Zealand mussels sold at our local fish market. Most of the time, we would simply poach them and serve alongside a little soy sauce. Here is a special way to have them that sets the rich umami of douchi (fermented black beans) against the natural sweetness of the mussels.
Serves 4
500g fresh mussels
2 tbsp fermented black beans
1½ cloves garlic, very finely diced
pinch granulated sugar
½ tsp cornflour
1 tsp vegetable oil
1 Rinse the mussels under cold water and brush off any dirt, if needed. Tap any open mussels and discard if they don’t close. If you are right handed, hold each mussel with your left hand on its side with the flatter, more stable edge as the base. Slide the tip of a small knife in the slit where the shells meet and pry open. Use the knife to release the mussel meat from one half of the shell, slicing under the tough white tube of muscle stuck to the shell as you do so, then tear off and discard the meatless shell. Rinse the mussels under cold water and drain. Arrange each shell on a steam-proof plate so it forms a bowl for the cooking juices to collect in during steaming.
2 Rinse the fermented black beans under cold water. Chop them roughly, add the diced garlic, then use the side of a wide knife to crush the beans into a rough paste. Use the knife to fold in the sugar, cornflour and oil. You can do this in a small bowl with a spoon, if you prefer.
3 Pinch off black bean-sized nuggets of paste and place a few nuggets on top of each mussel. Steam the mussels for 3 minutes with the water at full boil. Eat the mussels straight from the shell, slurping up the fragrant juices as you do so.
In an excellent demonstration of ‘keeping it simple’, we think that one of the most perfect ways to preserve and savour the clean, sweet taste of prawns is by blanching them. On holiday in Venice we came across a seafood market that boasted giant piles of fresh prawns. That night we devoured the sweetest prawns that any of us had ever eaten. We simply blanched and ate them dipped into a slightly spicy, raw-garlic infused soy sauce. It was so sublime that our ye jay do yook mai (ears wiggled)!
Serves 4
400g raw king prawns, shell-on
salt
for the dipping sauce
4 tsp light soy sauce
2 cloves garlic, very finely chopped
¾ tsp sesame oil
1 Mix all the dipping sauce ingredients in a small bowl and set aside.
2 Pour 1.5 litres cold water into a medium saucepan, add 2 pinches of salt and put it over a high heat. Small bubbles will begin to appear on the base of the saucepan. The prawns are ready to go into the water when the bubbles have reached the har arn sui (literally, ‘prawn eye water’) stage. This is when the bubbles on the bottom of the saucepan have grown to the size of a prawn’s beady eye, but before the water has started to boil. Add the prawns and bring the water to the boil. The prawns are ready to devour when they float to the top and are vibrant pink in colour. Drain and serve immediately with the garlicky dipping sauce.
We understand why some people are wary of cooking squid: you have to find some, clean them and hope it doesn’t cook up as rubbery tubes. However, here in the UK, we have found that it is fairly easy to find bags of frozen cleaned squid tubes in fishmongers. To reduce the risk of rubberiness, simply use the bicarbonate of soda trick to relax the proteins in the squid meat before cooking.
Serves 4
3 large squid tubes (about 450g in total)
2 pinches bicarbonate of soda
2 spring onions
2½ tbsp vegetable oil
1 medium onion, sliced
½ tbsp diced ginger
½ fresh red chilli, deseeded and diagonally sliced
2 tbsp hoisin sauce
¼ tsp ground white pepper
pinch salt
large pinch granulated sugar
1 Thoroughly rinse the squid tubes under cold water. Open up the tube by sliding a knife inside and slicing along one of the folded edges. With the inside facing up, use a very sharp knife to score the entire surface with parallel cuts. For the most impressive curling action, try to angle the blade of your knife at a 45° angle to the surface of the squid, score as deep as you can without going through to the other side, and keep the scores only a few millimeters apart. Rotate the piece of squid by 180°, and score again so that you end up with a cross-hatch pattern. Cut the scored squid into 4 x 4cm sized pieces, drain in a colander and mix in the bicarbonate of soda.
2 Separate the white part of the spring onion from the green and finely slice. Slice the green parts on the diagonal into long shards. Set aside.
3 Heat ½ tablespoon oil in a wok or frying pan over a high heat and stir-fry the onion until softened. Remove and set aside.
4 Reheat the wok or frying pan until smoking hot. Add 2 tablespoons oil, rapidly followed by the spring onion whites and ginger and stir-fry until fragrant. Add the chilli and stir a few times to tease the heat out of the chilli and into the oil.
5 Add the squid and stir-fry until they have all curled up into tubes. Add the hoisin sauce, pepper, salt and sugar and toss to mix everything together. Add the spring onion greens and stir-fry until they have wilted slightly, then serve.
This way of preparing fish has the hallmarks of Cantonese cooking stamped all over it, where simple seasonings enhance the natural flavours of the freshest ingredients possible. Here, the fresh fish takes centre stage and is minimally adorned with ginger and spring onions and bathed in a pool of sweetened soy sauce. A final dramatic drizzle of smoking hot oil extracts flavour from the spring onion and ginger, which then mingles with the sauce.
Serves 4
½ tsp cornflour
¼ tsp salt
700g whole sea bass, scaled, gutted and cleaned, then patted dry
3 tbsp vegetable oil, plus extra for oiling
1 tsp granulated sugar
1 tsp dark soy sauce
2 tbsp light soy sauce
1 spring onion, thinly sliced diagonally
3cm piece ginger, cut into matchsticks
1 fresh red chilli, sliced (optional)
1 In a bowl, mix the cornflour and 1 teaspoon water into a slurry. Rub the salt all over the fish, followed by the cornflour slurry, then ½ teaspoon oil. Lightly oil a steam-proof plate and put the fish on top. Steam over a high heat for 10–12 minutes, periodically topping up the water if needed. You can check for doneness by inserting a chopstick into the fleshiest part of the fish along its backbone; the juices should run clear and the flesh should easily flake off the bone.
2 While the fish is steaming, dissolve the sugar in 3 tablespoons boiling water in a small bowl. Mix in both soy sauces and set aside.
3 When the fish is cooked, gently transfer it to a serving platter. Pour the soy sauce mixture on top and pile on the spring onion and ginger.
4 In a small saucepan, heat the remaining oil and the chilli, if using, until the oil just starts to smoke and pour evenly over the fish, and serve.
These wings delight all five senses. They taste incredibly moreish, entice you with their cooking aroma, encourage you to tuck in with your fingers, look crispy before your teeth confirm that is the case and treat you to a cacophony of bubbling sounds as they crisp up in the oven. If you fancy yourself a bit of a chopstick pro then see if you can work the meat off with just teeth and chopsticks – stabbing is cheating!
Serves 4
500g chicken wings, tips removed, separated into drumettes and flats (see tip)
½ tbsp vegetable oil
¼ tbsp salt
1 tsp five-spice powder
1 Preheat the oven to 200°C/400°F/Gas mark 6. Line a baking sheet with foil and set a wire rack on top. Toss the chicken in the oil and salt, making sure to evenly distribute the salt over the surface of the skin. Spread the chicken out onto the rack, making sure that they don’t touch.
2 Bake for 45–50 minutes until cooked through and crispy, turning halfway through.
3 Immediately transfer to a large bowl and sprinkle over the five-spice powder. Toss to coat evenly. The skins will crisp up further as the wings cool.
DUMPLING SISTERS TIP
The ‘drumette’ is the first section of the chicken wing between the shoulder and elbow while the ‘flat’ is the section between the elbow and the tip.
There’s nothing quite like the inviting, nutty aroma and crunch of toasted sesame seeds. In this recipe they co-star with a richly flavoured poached chicken to deliver a quick and satisfying dish. If you find yourself with leftovers, the chicken and sauce is excellent wedged into a crusty baguette with salad leaves.
Serves 4
½ tbsp vegetable oil
6 slices ginger, cut into fine matchsticks
3 spring onions, white parts only, thinly sliced diagonally
¼ tsp salt
1 tbsp light soy sauce
¼ tsp dark soy sauce
½ tbsp Shaoxing rice wine
¼ tsp ground white pepper
½ tbsp granulated sugar
1½ tsp sesame oil
600g skinless, boneless chicken thigh fillets
1½ tbsp sesame seeds
1 Heat the vegetable oil in a medium saucepan over a medium-high heat and fry the ginger and spring onions until the ginger starts to blister. Quickly stir in the salt, pour in 250ml hot water and immediately cover with a tight-fitting lid. Let the mixture boil vigorously for 2 minutes to extract flavour from the aromatics.
2 Add both soy sauces, rice wine, pepper, sugar, ½ teaspoon sesame oil and the chicken to the saucepan. Cover, bring to a gentle simmer and poach the chicken for 15 minutes, turning halfway through. Remove the chicken from the pan and set aside. With the lid off, bring the liquid in the saucepan to the boil and reduce the volume to half.
3 Meanwhile, toast the sesame seeds in a small frying pan over a low heat for 2–5 minutes, or until golden and fragrant, swirling occasionally to prevent burning.
4 To serve, roughly shred the chicken using your hands or two forks and arrange in a shallow dish. Pour the reduced sauce over the shredded chicken, drizzle over the remaining 1 teaspoon sesame oil and sprinkle with the sesame seeds, letting some of them float on the moat of sauce around the chicken.
This recipe is for a truly classic home-style dish that has survived the Chinese diaspora to reach all corners of the globe. Its enduring appeal is easy to understand: the chicken is beautifully tender, everything is mixed then steamed in the one dish, and it is self-saucing, making it the perfect partner for steamed rice.
Serves 4
4 dried Chinese mushrooms
pinch granulated sugar
300g skinless, boneless chicken thighs, cut into 3cm strips
2 slices ginger, cut into very fine matchsticks
1 tsp cornflour
¼ tsp salt
¼ tsp granulated sugar
large pinch ground white pepper
¾ tsp light soy sauce
1½ tsp vegetable oil
1 tsp sesame oil
| add an exotic (see here) |
| 10g gum choi (golden needle vegetable) | |
| 5g mook yee (wood ear mushrooms) |
1 Soak the Chinese mushrooms in a bowl of hot water with the sugar for 30 minutes, then drain. Remove and discard the stalks and cut each cap into three strips. If adding an exotic: pinch off and discard the hard end of the gum choi, soak in a bowl of hot water for 30 minutes then drain. Soak the mook yee in a separate bowl of hot water for 30 minutes, then drain.
2 Combine all the ingredients in a steam-proof dish, including the mushrooms and drained gum choi and mook yee, if using, along with 1 tablespoon water. Cover and chill for at least 20 minutes.
3 Steam for 10 minutes over a vigorous boil, then serve.
Curry doesn’t usually spring to mind when one thinks of Chinese food but we have happy memories of eating this. The potatoes are cooked until they are just falling apart and have guzzled up the coconut, curry and chicken flavours. The result is an incredible faa mouthfeel – crumbly and melty. Then there is the sauce. Perfect for paa fan, just hold the rim of the rice bowl against your lower lip and shuffle everything into your mouth with chopsticks.
Serves 4
300g boneless chicken thighs, skin-on and cut into 3cm strips
2 tbsp vegetable oil
2 slices ginger, cut into matchsticks
1½ tbsp curry powder
2 medium floury potatoes (about 400g), peeled and cut into 2cm cubes
200g coconut milk
300ml chicken stock or water
20g lump of rock sugar or 2 tsp granulated sugar
handful fresh coriander, roughly chopped
salt
1 Rub a few pinches of salt over the chicken pieces. Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a saucepan over a medium heat and stir-fry the ginger until fragrant. Add the chicken and brown well on both sides, being sure to render the fat out of the skin, then remove and set aside.
2 Heat the pan again and add the remaining tablespoon of oil. Fry the curry powder until it darkens and the air is perfumed with curry smells. Tip in the potatoes and stir-fry for about a minute until the curry powder latches onto the surface of each cube of potato. Pour in the coconut milk (reserving about a tablespoon), stock or water, sugar and ¼ teaspoon salt and gently mix to combine. Cover and simmer over a medium-low heat for 12 minutes, stirring occasionally until the potatoes have softened slightly.
3 Return the chicken to the pan, nudging each piece between the potatoes and making sure that they are covered in the sauce. Cover and simmer for a further 10 minutes until the chicken and potatoes are cooked through and the potato cubes have lost their sharp edges.
4 Turn off the heat and mix in three-quarters of the chopped coriander. Serve the curry with the remaining coriander sprinkled on top together with a drizzle of the reserved coconut milk.
Sha cha is an intensely savoury and slightly spicy sauce made from an aromatic combination of garlic, shallots, chilli and dried shrimp. Here it acts as a braising sauce but it can also be used as a punchy condiment (try it on noodles). At present you can only find sha cha sauce in the Chinese supermarket where it is often labelled ‘BBQ sauce’, so take the Chinese characters along with you to make sure you pick up the right jar (see here).
Serves 4
1½ tbsp vegetable oil
½ medium onion (about 120g), sliced
2 cloves garlic, finely diced
1 tsp finely diced ginger
400g skinless, boneless chicken thighs, cut into 2cm strips
5 tbsp sha cha sauce
½ tsp salt
150g canned bamboo shoots, sliced
2 spring onions, diagonally sliced
1 Heat ½ tablespoon oil in a saucepan over a medium heat and fry the onion for 2 minutes until slightly softened. Remove and set aside.
2 Heat the remaining 1 tablespoon oil over a high heat and briefly fry the garlic and ginger until fragrant. Add the chicken and brown on all sides. While the chicken is browning, stir the sha cha sauce to ensure that the sediment is evenly distributed, then add it to the pan. Stir-fry to coat the chicken until you can see the oil separating from the sauce.
3 Pour 200ml water into the pan, add the salt and bamboo shoots and bring to a simmer. Cover, leaving the lid slightly ajar, and cook for 10 minutes until the sauce has thickened. Turn off the heat and mix in the spring onions. Just before serving, stir vigorously to emulsify the sauce.
If you are a fan of Peking duck pancakes, you will love this easy and deconstructed recipe for re-creating those flavours at home. The velvety duck meat is marinated with five-spice and stir-fried with the rich sauce that’s usually spread on the pancakes, tem meen jeung (sweet bean sauce). Serve the duck with a light and spicy cucumber pickle – the perfect contrast in taste and texture to balance the intensity of the duck.
Serves 4
2 duck breast fillets (about 400g)
3 tsp vegetable oil
1 clove garlic, thinly sliced
150g beansprouts
1 tbsp sweet bean sauce or hoisin sauce
for the marinade
1 tsp five-spice powder
¼ tsp salt
½ tsp granulated sugar
1 tsp vegetable oil
½ tsp cornflour
2 large pinches bicarbonate of soda
for the pickle
200g cucumber, deseeded and finely julienned
¼ tsp dried chilli flakes
pinch salt
2 tsp granulated sugar
3½ tsp Chinkiang vinegar
½ tsp sesame oil
1 Start by removing the skin and fat from the duck breasts. Put the breast skin-side down on the board, hold the skin firmly on the left-hand side, then use a sharp knife angled at 45° to firmly scrape towards the right-hand side in the space between the fat and the meat. Slice the breast in half lengthways then slice on the diagonal into 1cm chunky pieces.
2 Put the duck in a bowl with all the marinade ingredients together with 2 teaspoons water. Cover and chill for 30 minutes.
3 Meanwhile, prepare the pickle. Combine the cucumber and remaining pickling ingredients in a bowl, cover and leave at room temperature.
4 Heat 1½ teaspoons vegetable oil in a wok over a medium-high heat. Add the duck and stir-fry for 3–4 minutes until cooked through and slightly singed at the edges. Transfer to a bowl and set aside.
5 Wipe the wok with kitchen paper, then put it over a medium heat. Add the remaining vegetable oil and stir-fry the garlic and beansprouts for 30 seconds. Sprinkle in 2 teaspoons water, cover and steam for 1 minute until the water has evaporated, then uncover, add the duck and sweet bean sauce and stir-fry for a further 2 minutes to warm through. To serve, drain the cucumber pickle and serve atop the duck and beansprouts.
As much as we obsess over Mum’s Cracking Five-spiced Roast Pork Belly (here) with its light and airy crackling, we have always looked forward to ‘the day after’ when the crackling has inevitably lost its crunch. It’s an unspoken practice in our family for any leftovers from roast day to be whipped up into this simple dish for the next evening’s supper. As the pork belly bathes in a sweet soy sauce, the once-crispy crackling becomes slightly tacky to the bite while the sauce becomes infused with five-spice.
Serves 4
400g cooked Mum’s Cracking Five-spiced Roast Pork (here), chopped into 2cm pieces
6 slices ginger, cut into matchsticks
10 spring onions, cut into 3cm lengths
steamed jasmine rice, to serve
for the sauce
2 tbsp light soy sauce
¼ tsp dark soy sauce
2 tbsp granulated sugar
1 Mix all the sauce ingredients with 150ml water in a bowl, then set aside.
2 Put a medium-sized pan over a medium-high heat and fry the pork pieces cut-side down in a single layer until they are golden and singed like bacon. You should be able to see that some of the fat has rendered out. Flip the pork and keep sizzling until the underside is singed.
3 Add the ginger and stir-fry until fragrant, then reduce the heat to low, add the sauce mixture and cover. Simmer for 4–5 minutes, then uncover. As the sauce reduces and the sugar caramelises, it will turn dark and syrupy. At this stage, add the spring onions and 1 teaspoon water. Stir to wilt the spring onions slightly, then serve with the steamed rice.
We fear that this recipe will be received with as much excitement as meatloaf – or even less, because at least meatloaf is baked. But please trust us: the combination of steam and simplicity definitely produces a winner here. You will get the best results by dhuk-ing (mincing) your own pork. All you need is a large sharp knife and a spare five minutes.
Serves 4
350g boneless pork shoulder
1 clove garlic, very finely diced
4 slices ginger, 1 very finely diced and 3 cut into fine matchsticks
¼ tsp salt
½ tsp granulated sugar
1 tsp light soy sauce
pinch ground white pepper
1 tbsp cornflour
½ tbsp vegetable oil, plus extra for oiling
| add an exotic (see here) |
| 15g harm yu (salted fish), cut into pea-sized pieces |
1 To dhuk the pork, cut it into small pieces and arrange in a single layer on the chopping board. Keeping the cleaver or knife edge parallel to the surface, work your way from one side of the layer of meat to the other with repeated chopping motions a few millimeters apart. Fold the pork over and keep dhuk-ing until it resembles a coarse mince.
2 Mix all the ingredients, except the ginger, with ½ tablespoon water in a bowl with a pair of chopsticks (or a fork) using a back and forth motion until just combined. Avoid stirring the pork as this will encourage the patty to become tough and springy.
3 Lightly oil a steam-proof dish and shape the pork into a rough patty. Leave dips and peaks on the surface so that cooking juices can pool in them. Scatter the ginger over the patty. If you are adding an exotic, dot the pieces of harm yu over the surface.
4 Steam for 10–15 minutes or until cooked through. You can test for this by poking a chopstick in the centre and having a peek inside: if no pink juices run out, it’s done. Resist the urge to do this until the 10 minutes is up because the uncooked juices will clot and leave pools of gelatinous grey puddles on the surface. Serve piping hot.
These are our take on the beef schnitzel that Mum used to make for us when we were growing up. We have chosen pork to go with the ginger-laced, oil-kissed crispy coating, together with a simple but punchy orange sauce to add a citrusy finish. If you don’t devour it all in one go; wedge some between thick slices of bread the next day for a scrummy lunch.
Serves 4
400g boneless pork shoulder
grated zest of ½ orange
3 tbsp vegetable oil, for shallow-frying
for the marinade
1 clove garlic, very finely diced
½ tbsp ground ginger
½ tsp salt
¼ tbsp granulated sugar
1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
2 tbsp cornflour
1 tbsp light soy sauce
½ tbsp Shaoxing rice wine
for the sauce
2 tbsp vegetable oil
4 slices ginger, cut into matchsticks
2 oranges
pinch salt
2 tbsp granulated sugar
1 tbsp cornflour
for the coating
1 large egg, beaten
70g cornflour
1 Cut the pork into 1cm thick slices. Pound each slice with a meat mallet or heavy rolling pin until it is about twice the size and 5mm thick. Transfer the pork to a bowl, add the marinade ingredients and 3 tablespoons water and mix thoroughly. Cover and chill for at least 1 hour.
2 Meanwhile, make the sauce. Heat the oil in a small saucepan over a medium heat. Gently fry the ginger for 2 minutes until slightly curled and lightly golden around the edges. Remove from the heat and leave to cool. Meanwhile, zest and peel the oranges. Blitz the flesh in a food processor to a paste. Add this along with the zest to the ginger with the remaining sauce ingredients and whisk over a low heat until thickened and almost translucent. Set aside.
3 Stir the beaten egg into the pork until the slices are coated. Put the cornflour into a large shallow dish or plate. Use one hand to lower a slice of pork onto the cornflour, and the other to firmly pat the cornflour over the entire surface of the pork slice. Repeat with the remaining slices.
4 Heat the oil for shallow-frying in a large frying pan over a medium heat and fry the pork for 3 minutes on each side until light golden. Remove and drain on kitchen paper. Serve the schnitzel sliced into strips, sprinkled with orange zest and the sauce in a bowl on the side.
At our family’s market stall in Christchurch, our amazing little brother Justin holds down the ‘buns and barbecue’ side all by himself. Stroll past his floral gazebo and you will be instantly hooked by his chattiness and the tantalising aromas emanating off the grill. This recipe comes from the man himself, with a legendary satay sauce to boot. For the best results, start the evening beforehand so that the meat can marinate overnight.
Serves 4
400g beef rump steak, cut into 2cm chunks
vegetable oil, for cooking
fresh coriander leaves, for sprinkling
for the marinade
1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
1 tbsp vegetable oil
¾ tbsp light soy sauce
¼ tsp dark soy sauce
¼ tsp salt
¼ tsp ground white pepper
2 tbsp granulated sugar
1 tbsp cornflour
for the satay sauce
400ml coconut cream
½ tbsp salt
2 tbsp soft dark brown sugar
1 tbsp chilli powder
3 tbsp curry powder
4 tbsp dried breadcrumbs
2 tbsp crunchy peanut butter
30g roasted peanuts, finely chopped
75g granulated sugar
1 tbsp vegetable oil
1 Mix the beef and all the marinade ingredients together in a large bowl. Stir in 90ml water, a little at a time. Cover and chill for at least 3 hours, ideally overnight.
2 For the satay sauce, heat all the ingredients in a saucepan over a medium-low heat, stirring continuously as the sauce comes to a gentle boil. Keep stirring until the sauce is thick and a dark orange colour. The sauce is ready when you can see a pool of red oil at the base of the saucepan. Cover and keep warm over the lowest heat while you get on with the kebabs.
3 Preheat the grill to its highest setting (240°C/475°F/Gas mark 9). If you are using bamboo or wooden skewers, soak them in water for 5 minutes (this will stop them burning on the grill). Thread 5–6 marinated cubes onto each skewer.
4 Heat a griddle pan on high heat and cook the beef for 3 minutes on one side before flipping over and cooking for a further 2 minutes. Transfer the kebabs to the grill for 1 minute on each side. To pan-fry: heat a little oil in a large frying pan over a high heat. Fry one side of the kebabs for 3 minutes, then flip over and fry the opposite side for 4 minutes. Give the satay sauce one last stir to distribute the oil throughout, then serve the kebabs with generous lashings of sauce and a sprinkling of coriander leaves.
Feeling tense and dreading the idea of having to cook dinner? If so, this is the dish for you. The best part of putting these meatballs together is that you literally get to throw them around, releasing any pent up frustrations in the process. It’s this very technique that gives Chinese meatballs such a special mouthfeel. In contrast to Italian-style meatballs, the hallmark of these ow yook yuen is a surprisingly daan (springy) and waat (smooth) texture.
Makes 16
400g lean beef mince
¾ tsp bicarbonate of soda
1 large egg
40g water chestnuts, drained and roughly diced
40g fresh coriander, roughly chopped
vegetable oil, for oiling
Worcestershire sauce, to serve
for the marinade
1 tbsp cornflour
pinch salt
¼ tsp ground white pepper
½ tsp granulated sugar
½ tbsp Shaoxing rice wine
¾ tsp sesame oil
½ tbsp vegetable oil, plus extra for oiling
1 tsp light soy sauce
½ tbsp finely diced ginger
1 Use one hand to fold together the beef, bicarbonate of soda and egg in a large bowl until well combined. Form the beef into a ball inside the bowl, then pick up the ball and hold it about 30cm away from the bowl. Daat the meat, which means to throw it with force into the bowl so that you hear a crisp slapping sound. Have some fun daat-ing the meat 30 times.
2 Add the water chestnuts, coriander, 2 tablespoons water and all the marinade ingredients to the meat. Use a pair of chopsticks to vigorously stir the contents of the bowl in one direction (e.g. clockwise). Notice how the mince starts to take on a smoother and paste-like consistency. At this point, daat the mixture 10 more times. Cover and leave to marinate in the fridge for at least 1 hour.
3 To prepare the meatballs, wet your hands and roll the mixture into 16 balls. Try to compact the balls as tightly as you can so that they will retain their shape while steaming.
4 Lightly oil a steam-proof plate. Steam the meatballs in three batches over vigorously boiling water for 8 minutes per batch. Devour each batch as soon as it comes out of the steamer with a generous splash of Worcestershire sauce on top.
It’s no exaggeration to say that these ribs are insanely mouthwatering. If you’re like us, your stomach will grumble longingly when the aroma wafts from the oven, before your heart rate quickens at the sight of deep red, sticky ribs that are so highly varnished they have the light-reflecting sheen of toffee apples. The secret is to lovingly and patiently paint on layers upon layers of extra hoisin and honey … before you take to devouring them rather animalistically that is!
Serves 4
800g rack of pork ribs
for the marinade
1½ tbsp hoisin sauce
2 cloves garlic, very finely diced
2 tsp Shaoxing rice wine
2 pinches salt
½ tsp bicarbonate of soda
2 tsp cornflour
for the basting
1½ tbsp hoisin sauce
½ tsp vegetable oil
1½ tbsp runny honey
1 Slice the rack into individual ribs then rinse them thoroughly under cold water. Drain, then pop the ribs into a large bowl together with the marinade ingredients. Use your hands to massage the marinade into the ribs. Cover and chill for at least 30 minutes.
2 Preheat the oven to 220°C/425°F/Gas mark 7. Line a baking tray with foil. Mix the hoisin sauce and oil in a small bowl so that it is ready for basting later on.
3 Arrange the marinated ribs on the tray in a single layer, sitting them up on their sides (cut sides facing up and down) and bake for 5 minutes on each side. Liberally brush the hoisin and oil mixture over the ribs and bake for a further 8–9 minutes on each side until the ribs have dried out and become slightly singed. Brush half of the honey over the ribs and bake for a further 2 minutes before removing the ribs from the oven and brushing the remaining honey on top. They should be glistening and very sticky by this point.
4 To serve, pile the ribs onto a plate and have wet wipes at the ready.
Water spinach, or tong choi, has little in common with ordinary spinach and in our opinion, is a much more exciting vegetable to eat. Tong choi is most adored for its stem: long tubes with thin walls (just like drinking straws) that remain crunchy when cooked. It can be a bit pricey at the Chinese supermarket, but if you spot some and have never had it before, we encourage you to give it a try.
Serves 4
370g water spinach
2 tbsp vegetable oil
3 cloves garlic, quartered and smashed
½ tsp granulated sugar
¼ tsp salt
| add an exotic (see here) |
| 3 cubes four yu (fermented bean curd), see also tip |
1 If you are adding an exotic: mash the four yu into a paste in a small bowl and set aside.
2 Rinse the water spinach thoroughly then cut into 8cm lengths. Leave to air-dry in a colander for up to 30 minutes if you have the time.
3 Heat the oil in a wok or in a large frying pan over a high heat and cook the garlic for about 20 seconds. Add the water spinach and stir-fry for 2 minutes until the leaves have just started to wilt.
4 Add the sugar and salt or four yu paste, if using, and stir-fry for 1 minute until the stalks are just cooked but still very crunchy. Serve immediately.
DUMPLING SISTERS TIP
Four yu (fermented beancurd) is salty on its own so if you are using it in the recipe, omit the salt. It also works well in stir-fries with other leafy green vegetables, such as choi sum or spinach, but not with vegetables that have a high water content, such as pak choi.
If you have never eaten cooked cucumber before, the idea of eating it hot might seem strange. Yet the extraordinary thing about stir-fried cucumber is that it readily absorbs flavours and retains a waat (silky and slippery) texture that provides a very satisfying bite.
Serves 4
2 cucumbers
½ tsp salt
2 tsp vegetable oil
2 tsp finely diced ginger
2 cloves garlic, finely diced
½ tsp granulated sugar
¼ tsp dried chilli flakes
¼ tsp sesame oil
1 Cut the cucumbers in half lengthways, then use a spoon to scrape out the seeds. Cut each half into four strips lengthways, then divide each of these strips into batons, about 4cm long.
2 Mix the cucumber and salt together in a large bowl, then set aside for 10 minutes. Rinse the cucumber batons thoroughly, shaking off any excess water and pat dry with kitchen paper.
3 Heat the vegetable oil in a wok over a high heat and stir-fry the ginger and garlic until fragrant, then add the cucumber. Stir-fry for 1 minute then stir in the sugar and chilli flakes. Spread the cucumber out in a single layer on the base of the wok, and leave them to singe for 30 seconds. Stir-fry for a few seconds then spread the cucumber out again and leave to singe again for 30 seconds. Sprinkle 1 teaspoon water over the cucumber then stir-fry for another minute. Remove from the heat, stir in the sesame oil, then serve.
Our Dad is quite the gardener and one of his proudest crops is his thriving mangetout. So thriving, in fact, that we have had to start selling them at the market. The best way to enjoy mangetout is by stir-frying them quickly over super-high heat. Here, seasonings are kept simple so that the cheow (refreshingly crisp) mouthfeel of the mangetout really stands out.
Serves 4
1½ tsp vegetable oil
250g mangetout
pinch salt
pinch ground white pepper
1 tsp finely diced ginger
| add an exotic (see here) |
| 60g larp cheong (Chinese sausage), diagonally sliced |
1 Heat the oil in a wok over a high heat. If you are adding an exotic: add the larp cheong and stir-fry until it is slightly blistered.
2 Add the mangetout, salt, pepper and ginger. Stir-fry for 1 minute then serve piping hot.
Growing up, this was one of the most frequent veg dishes that showed up on our family table. Mum knew that the vermicelli had a brilliant ability to soak up flavours while remaining delectably waat (slippery), so it was the perfect partner to the crunch of Chinese leaf. Simple and cleansing, this dish is truly ‘everyday’ – the Chinese equivalent of a trusty salad.
Serves 4
50g dried bean thread vermicelli
½ large Chinese leaf cabbage (about 330g)
1 tbsp vegetable oil
4 slices ginger, cut into matchsticks
2 spring onions, cut in half then divided into 5cm long sections
½ tsp salt
large pinch ground white pepper
¼ tsp granulated sugar
1 clove garlic, finely diced
1 tsp sesame oil
| add an exotic (see here) |
| 1 tbsp har mey (dried shrimp) |
1 Soak the vermicelli in cold water for 10 minutes, then drain. If adding an exotic: soak the har mey in hot water for 30 minutes, then drain.
2 Peel the leaves off the Chinese cabbage and wash them in several changes of water. Slice each in half lengthways, then into wide diagonal strips. Set aside.
3 Heat ½ tablespoon vegetable oil in a medium saucepan over a medium-high heat and fry the ginger and spring onions until they are fragrant and the spring onions wilted slightly. Add ¼ teaspoon salt and the har mey (if using) and stir briefly, then pour in 250ml hot water. Cover and let the mixture bubble furiously for 3 minutes. Reduce the heat to low and stir in the pepper and sugar.
4 Drain the vermicelli and add it to the saucepan, stirring to coat it in the liquid. Partially cover and leave to slowly come up to a simmer until the liquid is all absorbed.
5 Meanwhile, heat the remaining ½ tablespoon vegetable oil in a large frying pan and lightly fry the garlic for about 30 seconds. Add the cabbage and toss to coat in the garlicky oil and stir-fry until the white stems are almost translucent but still crunchy and the leaves have collapsed. Season with the remaining ¼ teaspoon salt.
6 Add the sesame oil and 2 tablespoons hot water to the vermicelli to loosen it, if needed, then add the cabbage, mix to combine and serve.
Back home in Christchurch, New Zealand, there’s a legendary Chinese farmer who is known city-wide for his ability to grow the X-Men of vegetables: produce so ridiculously sturdy and good looking that one has to wonder if they are mutants (in a good way). His Chinese broccoli (gai lan) is the most impressive offering of all. There’s no better way to enjoy this veg than by stir-frying it rapidly with a touch of rice wine. You can substitute the gai lan with broccolini, if you prefer.
Serves 4
300g Chinese broccoli (gai lan)
¼ tsp bicarbonate of soda
½ tsp cornflour
1 tbsp vegetable oil
2 tsp finely diced ginger
2 tsp Shaoxing rice wine
½ tsp salt
½ tsp granulated sugar
1 Bring about 1.4 litres water to the boil in a large saucepan. Rip the leaves from the central stalk of each gai lan plant. For larger leaves that have a longer stem, rip off the stem as well and tear the leaves in half. Cut the stalks at an angle into chopstickable pieces. Add the bicarbonate of soda to the boiling water, then blanch the gai lan for 1–2 minutes, or until just soft. Immediately drain in a colander.
2 In a bowl, mix the cornflour and 2 teaspoons water into a slurry then set aside.
3 Heat a wok or large frying pan over a high heat. Add the oil and stir-fry the ginger until fragrant. Add the gai lan and stir-fry quickly. Add the rice wine, salt and sugar and stir-fry for 2 minutes or until you can smell the rice wine. Stir the cornflour slurry briefly then add it to the wok and toss until each piece of gai lan is glossy, and serve.
The secret of cooking aubergine is to use methods that encourage the spongy white flesh to drink up strong flavours while cooking down to a succulent and waat (silky) texture. The ‘fish fragrant’ preparation hails from the Sichuanese tradition, named as such not to describe the use of fish, but because the seasoning (a harmonious balance of salty, sweet, spicy and sour) has long been used to cleverly undercut the overly fishy aroma when cooking with less than perfect fish.
Serves 4
2 large aubergines
1½ tsp cornflour
3 tbsp vegetable oil
1½ tsp Chinkiang vinegar
2 spring onions, sliced
for the sauce
1½ tbsp chilli bean sauce
5 cloves garlic, finely diced
2½ tsp finely diced ginger
1½ tsp cracked Sichuan peppercorns
1 tsp light soy sauce
2 pinches salt
2 tsp granulated sugar
1 Trim the aubergines, then cut them in half lengthways. Put one aubergine half horizontally on the chopping board with the cut side facing up and cut it into chunky shards by pivoting the knife by about 45° after each cut. Repeat with the remaining aubergine.
2 In a bowl, mix the cornflour and 1½ tablespoons water into a slurry and set aside. If the chilli bean sauce is chunky, roughly chop it so there are no large pieces then mix it with the remaining sauce ingredients in a small bowl and set aside.
3 Heat 2 tablespoons oil in a wok over a medium heat. Add the aubergine and stir-fry for 2 minutes. Add the remaining oil, then flip the aubergine only every few seconds for the next 3–4 minutes giving them a chance to cook through and blisters slightly. Add the sauce and stir–fry for 30 seconds, then reduce the heat slightly, pour in 60ml water and simmer for 2 minutes.
4 Reduce the heat to the lowest setting then stir in the cornflour slurry. Increase the heat to medium, then toss in the vinegar and the spring onions. Stir-fry for 1 minute, then serve.
You have not tasted the true potential of the humble green bean until you’ve tried this classic and wok hei-infused Sichuanese dish. The key is the ‘dry-frying’ technique: rapid tossing of the raw beans in hot oil until they begin to blister. We source traditional yard-long beans because they are more robust than other varieties, but French beans would do the trick too. Be sure to include the Chinese mushrooms – their fleshiness and daan (springy) mouthfeel adds a delightful extra layer of texture to the dish.
Serves 4
4 dried Chinese mushrooms
2 pinches granulated sugar
400g yard-long or French beans, trimmed
vegetable oil, for cooking
for the seasoning
2 cloves garlic, finely diced
1 tbsp very finely diced ginger
4 spring onions, white parts only, finely sliced
½ tsp cracked Sichuan peppercorns
¼ tsp dried chilli flakes or 1 whole dried chilli, sliced into rounds
for the sauce
3 tsp chilli bean sauce
2 tsp Shaoxing rice wine
½ tsp salt
1½ tsp granulated sugar
1 Soak the Chinese mushrooms in a bowl of hot water with the sugar for 20 minutes, then drain. Remove and discard the stalks and finely dice the caps. Mix the mushrooms and seasoning ingredients together in a small bowl and set aside.
2 If the chilli bean sauce is chunky, chop it roughly so there are no large pieces, then mix it with the remaining sauce ingredients and 2 tablespoons water and set aside.
3 Rinse the beans and use kitchen paper to pat them dry. If you are using yard-long beans, cut them into 8–10cm lengths.
4 Heat 2 tablespoons oil in the wok over a medium-high heat. Add the beans and stir-fry for 5–6 minutes or until they are slightly blistered and softened but not limp. Remove the beans and drain on a double layer of kitchen paper.
5 Add 2 teaspoons oil to the wok and stir-fry the mushrooms and seasoning mixture over a medium heat for 30 seconds, until the spices are fragrant. Turn off the heat and rest for 2 minutes before stirring in the sauce mixture.
6 Return the wok to a medium heat and when the sauce starts to sizzle, add the beans and stir-fry for 1 minute until the beans are warm and coated with the sauce. Serve immediately.
In Cantonese, larp jarp means miscellaneous. The best thing about this dish with six miscellaneous veg is that it is so much more than the sum of its parts: the core ingredients come together in a wonderful burst of colour, and it is propelled far beyond the ‘boring veg’ category by the addition of a little luxury in the form of fragrant pine nuts.
Serves 4
1 tbsp vegetable oil, plus extra for deep-frying
4 tbsp pine nuts
1 tsp finely diced ginger
1 clove garlic, finely diced
1 large carrot (70g), chopped into pea-sized dices
70g frozen peas
½ medium courgette (about 60g), chopped into pea-sized dices
110g canned sweetcorn (drained weight)
½ red pepper (about 80g), chopped into pea-sized dices
for the sauce
1½ tsp light soy sauce
2 pinches ground white pepper
¼ tbsp cornflour
salt
1 Fill a small saucepan with enough oil to a depth of 2cm and put over a medium heat. To test that the oil is ready, drop in a single pine nut. It should fizz up, but not turn brown instantly. Carefully lower the pine nuts into the hot oil and deep-fry for 1–2 minutes. Keep a really close eye on them, because they will change from pale to golden very quickly and can rapidly burn. As soon as they smell fragrant and have turned golden, remove and drain on kitchen paper.
2 In a small bowl, mix all the sauce ingredients with 100ml water and set aside.
3 Heat ½ tablespoon oil in a wok over a high heat and stir-fry the ginger, garlic and carrots until fragrant. Sprinkle 1½ tablespoons cold water on top and cover. Steam for 1–2 minutes, or until the water has evaporated and the carrots have softened.
4 Add the peas, courgette, drained sweetcorn and red pepper together with another ½ tablespoon oil and stir-fry for 1 minute. Add 1 table-spoon water and cover. Uncover after 1 minute and allow any remaining water to evaporate. Reduce the heat to the lowest setting and gradually stir in the sauce. Increase the heat to medium. When the sauce has thickened, stir in two-thirds of the fried pine nuts. Serve with the remaining pine nuts sprinkled on top.
