Scallions, tomato, and bread goodness
All 1$ a piece!
Sweet kind of date filling
Typical chinese men lifting up their shirts in the heat
Thursday, March 8, 2012
Wednesday, March 7, 2012
The Hot Pot
This was my first and only hot pot experience in Asia.
It was in Beijing, after spending the entire day working up a crazy appetite, by walking up and about the Great Wall of China. I don't think you understand, just about how many side plates we ordered...
We ordered a pot of 2 broths: one spicy, and one regular. Then you have a crazy selection of raw vegetables, sliced meats, dumplings, seafood, and more, which you cook yourself in the broth. Underneath the pot is a burner to keep those things cooking!
We ordered a side of rice, and sesame sauce, and whole pickled garlic cloves to accompany it.
My rice, sauce, and you can see a slice of lotus root on my plate
Pheobe! Happy camper
The gang! all nice and red from a day in the sun
And the cost?
1 hot pot + 6 lrg beers + rice + about 20 side plates
5.50$ a person, including beer!
Cost in Yuan, about 6 yuan to 1$
Beijing
China
Tuesday, March 6, 2012
Egg wrapped dumplings recipe
Egg wrapped dumplings
Filling
100g minced pork
small handful of mint leaves chopped
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped (or chives if desired)
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
1 tsp oyster sauce
Also needed
2 eggs + pinch salt
1 TBSP peanut oil (or veg oil)
1/4c water
Beat eggs + salt, and set aside. Mix filling ingredients and set aside.
Heat oil in wok, then pour 1 tbsp of egg mixture into oil, and let it cook a bit to prepare it for the filling (making like a mini omelet). After about 30 seconds, add one tbsp of pork mixture onto one half of the omelet (not the centre). Fold over the egg to make a half mood and press the edges to seal it down. Move it to the side of the wok and repeat process. If you do not have a wok, remove it from the pan. When you finish, place all the dumplings back into the work, pour water (add more if you are using a very wide pan), cover and cook on lower heat for 3 minutes so pork filling cooks. If the filling feels firm when poked at, your dumplings are ready. Voila! Serve with hoisin or a nice rich chinese sauce.
The filling and egg mixture
Pressing down the sides after being flipped over
Adding water before covering it to steam
Yangshuo
China
Monday, March 5, 2012
Adzuki beans the right way
This was a dense, not too sweet, and filling dessert that I came across in Beijing's tourist market.
It is a thin waffle-like shell with a adzuki bean paste and creamy custard.
Adzuki beans are great for your health, so I suggest adding them to your diet!
Eat the beans with grains to produce a complete protein, which can replace any meat. They also promote bowel movements, lower cholesterol, rich in zinc, magnesium, and iron, and more!
Beijing
China
Saturday, March 3, 2012
Chinese fried eggplant
Ignore that orange thing, I do not know what it is!
**1 any eggplant (sliced like in the photo below)
2 cloves garlic
1 big TBSP minced ginger
2 spring onions sliced
2 TBSP cooking oil (we used peanut)
1 tsp black bean and chilli paste (or regular black bean paste + any chilli you want)
2 tsp oyster sauce
1/4 cup water
Heat up oil in wok. Add eggplant and fry until browned (press on the slices as you cook to speed up the process). Reduce heat and add garlic, ginger, chilli paste until you smell it. Turn up heat, add water, then oyster sauce. Turn off the heat and toss with spring onions. Note: water is added before oyster sauce so it doesn't burn the pan.
**Tips for cooking: Yes, eggplant does absorb oil, but it does not mean you need to add tons of it. Eventually the water will come out when it is cooked. If you are having trouble with browning at the bottom of the pan, add some water and scrap it off as you cook it.
Yangshuo
China
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