March 4th, 2008
Century Eggs / Preserved Eggs (’pi dan’ in Mandarin)
Legend has it that century eggs are made by soaking duck eggs in horse urine! The truth is that the eggs are preserved in a mixture of clay, ash, salt, lime and rice straw for several weeks to months. When cooked, the egg white has a gelatinous texture, looks dark brown and transparent, while the egg yolk is creamy and looks grayish-green. Century eggs have a pungent smell and are typically eaten with preserved ginger.
Salted Duck Eggs (’xian dan’ in Mandarin)
This is a Chinese preserved food. It is made by soaking whole raw ducks eggs in brine or wrapped in heavily salted clay for about a month. This results in a very liquid egg white and a bright orange-red, round and firm yolk. Typically eaten with congee, and also used as an ingredient in moon cakes and rice dumplings.
Half boiled egg
Room temperature eggs are placed into boiling hot water and left to cook for 4 minutes. The result? You get a soft and wet egg yolk and white, slippery enough to be slurped down in one breath! Usually served with a few drops of dark soy sauce and a dash of white pepper. A popular breakfast item in Singapore, eaten with toasted bread.
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March 3rd, 2008
I’m sure you’ve heard of Wu Long tea - the new weight-loss miracle. Well, the truth of the matter is that wu long tea is neither “new” nor “miraculous.” It’s been around for centuries and while it DOES have some weight loss properties wu long tea can be considered a dieting aid, but not the magic cure for obesity.
Wu Long tea is also known as “oolong” or “wulong.” The different spellings result from the various ways the Chinese Language can be written using the English (or more properly the “Roman”) alphabet. The Chinese pronunciation of this tea sounds like “oo long.”
Wu Long tea was first produced in the 15th century in China’s Fujian province. It is a semi-oxidized tea, meaning that the tea leaves are allowed to partially oxidize after they are picked. Black tea is a fully oxidized tea and green tea is un-oxidized, so wu long tea has characteristics of both green and black tea. Read the rest of this entry »
February 15th, 2008
Green tea offers catechins which have been identified today as the key element in fighting off toxins that would contribute towards leading to cancer. Some people have considered it as something that would simply be relying on fiction or here say but the truth is that herbal medicine will always have their adverse effects and green tea happens to possess them today.
Green Tea Extracts known as Catechins
Green Tea extracts trace their origins in China where most herbal and unorthodox means of medicinal attributes can be found. As it stands today, green tea has taken over a clear lead in trying to develop new means of being able to fight of known diseases such as cancer. Cancer feeds on toxins taken in by the human body and it is thus the duty of catechins to fight of and cleanse the body of such food intake.
Leading Manufacturers and Origins
China leads the race for the development of green tea, mainly because the herbal extracts are immediately available in this part of the world. Japan also has its share of green tea extracts today, making both countries a good source for educating and finding more about this medicinal herb that aims to provide the necessary assistance in the field of cancer and other related diseases harmful to the human anatomy. Read the rest of this entry »
February 14th, 2008
The phrase is a testament to the popularity of Chinese food around the world. Food is an important part of daily life for Chinese people. Chinese not only enjoy eating but believe eating good food can bring harmony and closeness to the family and relationships. 
Shopping daily for fresh food is essential for all Chinese cooking. Unlike the fast food society of the U.S., the Chinese select live seafood, fresh meats and seasonal fruits and vegetables from the local market to ensure freshness. This means swimming fish, snappy crabs, and squawking chickens. Even prepared foods such as dim sum or BBQ duck for to go orders must gleam, glisten, and steam as if just taken out of the oven.
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February 12th, 2008
History of Chopsticks
Chinese use chopsticks and Westerners use knives and fork- for main dishes. That is the difference between the two cultures when it comes to eating. This inevitably means that large piece of meat like steak, fish and poultry are not possible at the Chinese table since using chopsticks to pick up massive amounts of food is not feasible. Most dishes are therefore made up of mouth sized pieces which are taken up by chopsticks and transferred to the mouth. For example, rice shaped like an oval small piece is easy to pick up with chopsticks. Chinese people were taught to use chopsticks long before spoons and forks were invented in Europe. Chopsticks were strongly advocated by the great Chinese philosopher Confucius (551-479 BC). Chinese food require greater delicacy when eaten with chopsticks, because the diner is forced to eat smaller portions at a time and also more slowly, therefore savoring the food more completely.
Also, unlike the spoon, fork, and knife, chopsticks convey the hand a sense of tactile rapport with the food. Therefore, it’s very true to say that Chinese dining experience involves all the senses! There are different styles of chopsticks. The Chinese variety is blunt on the eating end, while the Japanese prefer those with pointed tips. There are even short lengths for children for use. The most common chopsticks are made of wood or bamboo but there are chopsticks made from ivory, silver, plastic and even jade as well. For daily use, wood, bamboo, or ivory is best.
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February 12th, 2008
Variations on Chinese Cuisine
Have you ever been curious about the difference between Mandarin and Cantonese cuisines? Where did orange chicken and Peking duck originate? How do Sichuan (Szechuan) dishes compare to against Hunanese or Shanghainese? After a while, these regional styles sound like a hodgepodge of chop suey ñ which, by the way, was invented in America, as was the revered fortune cookie. Many Chinese restaurants offer a number of regional cuisines on the same menu, so it is not that easy to distinguish the difference when all dishes are equally delicious. Here is a quick primer on the most prevalent Chinese cuisines found in America.
Canton Cuisine
Cantonese cuisine originated from the areas of Guangdong Province and Hong Kong in southern China. Canton is an old port city that today is referred to as Guangzhou. Dim sum meaning touch the heart, the Chinese meal of small tidbits of food presented on roving carts, began in this region. Freshness is supreme to the Cantonese. Live fish and seafood are held in tanks just before being dispatched immediately for cooking. Cantonese sauces are mild and subtle so as to not overpower the freshness of the ingredients. Popular Cantonese dishes include steamed whole fish, crispy-skinned chicken, shark’s fin soup, and roast suckling pig.
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January 16th, 2008
Chinese food. It’s certainly tasty enough, but is it healthy? In these modern days of looking good and feeling good this is a question that might often be on the lips of anyone who has just devoured an egg fu yung. Well the answer to the question is that, yes, authentic Chinese cooking is very healthy. In fact the Chinese diet might be one of the healthiest in the world.
Good, authentic - and healthy - Chinese food is prepared and cooked with poly-unsaturated oils and has no use for dairy ingredients such as cream, butter, or cheese. Meat is included in the recipes but is not of an abundant quantity. So lovers of authentic Chinese cooking are easily able to avoid the dangers associated with the intake of too much animal fat in their diet.
So in answer to the question: ‘Is Chinese food healthy?’ the answer is a very definite yes, but you must be sure that the Chinese meal that you are eating is an authentic Chinese meal prepared in the traditional manner and using only traditional and healthy ingredients. You can have your cake and eat it; just as long as you know that it is the right kind of cake you are eating.
January 16th, 2008
A “meat and potatoes” man. That’s what I had always been. In a restaurant, I had always ordered dishes familiar to me from my childhood. One day, however, I was coaxed into eating some food prepared the Chinese way and, to my surprise, found it enjoyable.
The dish I had selected was pepper steak. Since its main ingredients are beef, green peppers and onions-foods that are not particularly exotic-you may wonder what made this dish Chinese. I put the same question to the friendly cook who prepared the scores of Cantonese dishes listed on the menu.
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