Chinese Cooking Basics: The Wok

The wok is the one most important kitchen equipment when it comes to Chinese cooking. It is used for stir frying, steaming, braising, you name it. They key to making most Chinese dishes in a wok is high heat. There's a term we use in Chinese called "鍋氣" - it literally translates into "wok air," and roughly translates to the fragrant aroma or flavor made from cooking in a wok. You can taste it when something has been cooked correctly in a hot wok.

To achieve "鍋氣," start with a hot wok then add oil. If that is done correctly, whatever you are cooking will not stick to the wok and will be flavorful.

Hope Pizza (CT)

My husband and I made a pact that we'd try out our neighborhood restaurants in CT at least once a month. We haven't really followed it, but I must say that we've tried a good handful of pizza joints so far: Remo's Brick Oven Pizza, Coalhouse Pizzaria, Colony Grill and now, Hope Pizza.

In our research, my husband stumbled upon this blog where the authors sample the pizza joints in Stamford and around the tri-state area. They ranked these establishments on a scale of 1 to 30, 1 being the worst, 30 being the best. I found it most interesting that the authors described their mission was to benchmark all pizzas against those from Stamford. Why? Stamford is not a culinary capital, as far as I can understand, that it can serve as a benchmark. I had my doubts, but was curious to check out exactly what was behind Hope Pizza's packed parking lot on most nights and what was worthy of its high 24 rating, way above Coalhouse, which I thought was quite good for Stamford.


Hope Pizza had the appearance and the menu of a diner, except with the name that implies a pizza joint. It is mostly a Greek diner that serves diner food and pizza of course, with one of the pizza toppings being gyro. My husband and I ordered a large pie, split between mushroom on one half and sausage & pepperoncini on the other half. When our server brought our pie to the table, my first impression from the buttery, fresh out of the oven aroma and the appearance of the pie was reminiscent of Pizza Hut.


On the plus side, the pie came piping hot and had a crunchy (not soggy) bottom. On the huge minus side, the pizza was topped with canned mushroom, a generous amount of cheese, and an even more generous amount of pepperoncini.


My husband felt adventurous and had ordered buffalo wings that he later regretted. All in all, I can see why families go to Hope Pizza. It's a place where you can bring your screaming kids, make a mess, and have a night off from the kitchen. Its mediocre food serves as a somewhat passable substitute to ordinary week night dinners, canned ingredients and all. I understand that there are different kinds of pizza out there that people prefer, but after having the good fortune of having pizza from many of NYC's finest, the Pizza Hut style simply isn't my cup of tea.

Light & Easy Eggplant Milanese

I wanted to make crunchy chicken without frying one day. I'm not a fan of deep frying anything in my kitchen and make a mess of it. If I want fry food, I'd rather go out to a restaurant. So I went on a hunt for an oven fried chicken recipe and found the most delicious, flavorful and crunchy Oven-Fried Chicken Milanese. I liked it so much that I used the same method for making eggplant milanese.


The recipe calls for making a coating of parmesan and egg, and panko (Japanese bread crumbs), parsley and lemon zest. Instead of dipping chicken in it, I dipped half inch rounds of sliced eggplant (like an eggplant steak).

It worked just as well. The panko made the eggplant so crunchy. The parmesan added a salty bite, while the fresh parsley and lemon zest added a much needed brightness. I topped the finished product with some home-made tomato sauce I had ready in the freezer, and it was so satisfying. If I had mozzarella cheese, I'd take it further by sprinkling some on the eggplant and putting it under the broiler before adding the sauce. Yum!

Chinese Cooking Basics: Vegetables, Part II

It's Monday again, and that means another Chinese Cooking Basics! The third post in the series is a continuation to the introduction last week to the Chinese leafy greens. There is one method of cooking that can be applied to practically all types of Chinese greens, whether they be Choy Sum (菜心), Gai Lan (蓋蘭), Bok Choy (白菜) or Pea Shoots (豆苗), and that is a basically a cross between sautéing and braising.


The following are the steps to the cooking method I use for Chinese leafy greens for two. What you'll need ahead of time are 1 tbs oil, 2 smashed garlic gloves, thoroughly washed and drained greens, salt and 1 tbs water.

• Heat up oil in a wok over medium-high heat, then add in garlic gloves. Let them sit until fragrant. This step basically makes an aromatic garlic oil.
• Add the greens to the wok. Make sure to stand back as the oil will splatter when in contact with the wet greens. Add salt and toss the greens around to ensure that they have been coated by the oil.
• Add water, and immediately put a cover over the wok. The steam and liquid will braise the greens.
• The greens should be cooked within 5 minutes, depending on your desired texture. I like my greens with a bit of snap to the tooth.
  

Chicken with Thai Sweet Chili Sauce

Thai sweet chili sauce is one of my husband's favorite sauces. It's sweet, slightly sour, garlicky and has just a tiny hint of heat. He liked it so much that he made a dish with it - Chicken with Thai Sweet Chili Sauce. This was his dish until I took over and made it my own. I make it at least a couple of times a month - it's that easy. Pretty much all the time is spent on prepping, as the cooking happens very fast. Dinner can be on the table in way less an hour.


I used to make this dish with chicken cubes like my husband did, but I found the texture to be too tough when met by the high heat of the wok, so I switched to using chicken slices. If you slice the chicken on the bias and against the grain, it's easier to chew. It also takes less time to cook. Another thing I did differently than my husband was to thicken the sauce using the classic Chinese combination of water and a little bit of corn starch. The last thing I did differently was to add scallions for a bit of bite.

Chicken with Thai Sweet Chili Sauce
Serves 2

1 large chicken breast, sliced thin on the bias
1 large red bell pepper, cut into strips
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 scallion, cut into 2 inch pieces
2 1/2 to 3 tbs Thai sweet chili sauce (we have the brand with the chicken on the packaging)
big handful of basil (Thai, preferably, but sweet basil will also do)
1/4 tsp cornstarch, mixed with 2 tsp water
2 tsp water
vegetable oil
salt & pepper to taste

Season the chicken slices with salt and pepper. In a hot wok with oil over medium-high heat, saute the chicken in batches until it's no longer pink but not completely cooked through. Set the chicken aside in a bowl. Add peppers to the wok and saute until slightly soft, about 5 minutes. Add garlic and saute for 1 minute.

Add the chicken back to the wok, followed by the Thai sweet chili sauce. Add the scallions and saute until soft. Add about 2 teaspoons water and toss. Make a well in the bottom of the wok and add the cornstarch mixture. Mix the cornstarch mixture with any liquid in the bottom of the wok. Toss until the liquid is evenly distributed with the chicken and peppers. Finish by adding the basil leaves. Turn off heat. Viola! Dinner is served.

Stuffed Peppers

My husband and I have been eating a lot of quinoa, so much that we don't even eat couscous anymore. I had even used quinoa as a substitute for couscous in a Stuffed Peppers recipe from Martha Stewart.

It turned out just as well. The recipe was good, but I may try another homemade sausage recipe I found on Food Network next time...the oregano was too strong for our taste.

Chinese Cooking Basics: Vegetables, Part I

It's Monday again, and that means another Chinese Cooking Basics! For the second post in the series, let's go over the second most consumed item next to rice: green leafy vegetables. The preparation of these are simple and fast. There are many types out there, and here are some of the more common ones.

• Choy Sum (菜心) - This is by far the most basic and probably the most widely consumed Chinese leafy greens. They come in all sizes. Usually, the smaller they are, the more tender. I gravitate towards the smaller ones. They are great sauteed or chopped up in fried rice. Below is the medium variety.
  

• Gai Lan (蓋蘭) - These are also known as Chinese broccoli. They have thicker stems and a stronger, slightly bitter taste that makes them distinctly different than Choy Sum (菜心). They come in all sizes. Usually, the smaller they are, the more tender. They are also great sauteed or chopped up in fried rice. Below is the small variety.

• Bok Choy (白菜) - These are by far the most well known Chinese greens in the States. They have wider stems than other leafy greens, and are very tender and moist when cooked. Their stems are white, but the newer varieties have pale green stems. They come in all sizes. Below is the small variety.

• Pea Shoots (豆苗) - These are one of the most expensive varieties of Chinese leafy greens. They are delicate in taste, with a tad of nuttiness. I love it sauteed with lots of garlic.
  

Now that we went over the basics, we can go over the cooking methods next week!