Sichuan-style Asparagus Stir-fry | Vegan Chinese Recipes

Asparagus is in season now and I am making full use of it. We always love the simple oven roasted asparagus with salt, pepper and olive oil. But this time I made a PF Changs replica, Sichuan style Asparagus. Spicy, Salty and with a little zing from the ginger, it is a perfect side for your Chinese themed party. I made this as a side for my Tofu and Bell pepper Fried rice.

Ingredients:
Serves - 2
Asparagus - 1 bunch
Onion - 1/2 of a big one
Ginger paste - 1/2 tsp
Soy Sauce, Low sodium - 2 tbsp
Rice wine vinegar - 1 tbsp
Corn starch - 1 tsp
Brown Sugar - 1/2 tsp
Water - 1/4 cup
Red chilli sauce - 1 tsp (I used Sriracha)
Sesame oil - 3 tsp

Method:
Wash and trim the ends of the asparagus. Slice on a bias. Whisk together soy sauce, vinegar, brown sugar, corn starch and red chilli sauce. Heat 1/2 tsp of oil in a skillet or wok in high heat and fry the onions until brown, about 3-4 minutes. The onions need not be fully cooked. Remove to a plate. Heat another 1/2 tsp of oil and fry the asparagus for about 5-7 minutes in high heat. Transfer to the plate of onions. Heat 2 tsp of oil and add the ginger paste. After a couple of seconds add the sauce mix and let it cook for 2 minutes. Add water now. When it starts to bubble, add the asparagus and onions. Mix well. Remove from heat and serve.
Notes: I did not add salt to this dish because the salt in the soy sauce is enough. You may add salt if needed.

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Buddha's Delight | Vegan Chinese Recipes

Whenever we have tofu at home, Sunday's lunch is normally chinese or thai. It would be a simple Garlic basil tofu fried rice, Thai Green Curry or Tofu Szechwan. Last week I tried this simple Buddha's Delight, a true vegetarian Chinese dish with ample fresh vegetables and tofu on a soy based sauce. Ever since I got this Cooking Light - way to Cook Vegetarian cookbook, I have been wanting to try all the recipes in it. This recipe is my third attempt from the book. I have already tried and posted the Tofu Szechwan. I also made Vegetarian Chili for dinner one day, which was truly scrumptious, but couldn't get decent pictures since it is winter, it starts getting dark here by 4 PM.

Ingredients:
Carrots - 3 - peeled and sliced on the bias
Broccoli - 1 - cut into florets
Snow peas - a handful
Green onions / Spring onion greens - 1-1/2 cups
Ginger - grated - 1 tbsp
Garlic - 2 cloves - minced
Salt - 1/2 tsp or to taste
Oil - 2 tsp
Extra Firm Tofu - 1 block
Sauce:
Vegatable broth - 1 cup
Corn Starch - 1 tbsp
Marinade:
Soy Sauce (Low sodium) - 3 tbsp
Sesame oil - 1 tbsp
Rice wine vinegar - 1 tbsp
Sugar - 1 tsp

Method:
Press the tofu to remove excess liquid. Cut into small cubes or triangles. Mix the ingredients for the marinade the toss the tofu in it. Keep it covered in the refrigerator for 1 hour, mixing once in between. Mix the broth and corn starch in another small bowl with a whisk. Drop the broccoli florets and the carrot slices into boiling water for about 90 seconds and drain and plunge immediately into an ice bath. Let it rest for a few minutes and then drain again. Heat oil in a wide non-stick skillet. Drain the tofu and reserve the marinade. Add the tofu to the skillet and fry for about 7-10 minutes in medium-high heat until all the sides are light brown. Now add the green onions, garlic, ginger and fry for a couple of minutes. Add the snowpeas and fry for a minute followed by the broccoli and carrots. After about 5 minutes, add the sauce mixture, reserved marinade and salt. Cook in medium flame until the sauce thickens a bit. Serve hot over steamed rice.
Notes: Any vegetable can be added to this dish. Baby corns, bamboo shoots, cauliflower, water chestnuts are best additions.

Linking this up to Vegan Thursdays.

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Szechuan-Style Tofu and Mushroom with Peanuts | Vegan Chinese Recipes

For all the Tofu lovers out there, this recipe is for you. And for all the Tofu non-lovers you should really try this recipe once. Some think the taste of tofu is just bleh.. But honestly that attribute of tofu is what is really good in it. How? you may ask. Tofu absorbs flavors really beautifully no matter what dish it is used in. Bake it, Saute or Fry, it is always a winner. Make it spicy or make it tangy, it tastes awesome either way. I have a long list of dishes I use tofu in and love it in each form.

Ingredients:
Adapted from Cooking Light - way to cook Vegetarian cookbook
Serves - 2-3
Tofu - extra Firm - 1 block - pressed and cut into 1" pieces
Mushroom - 12 oz - 300 g - sliced
Carrots - julienned - 1/2 cup
Bell peppers (I used yellow and orange) - julienned - 1/2 cup
Roasted peanuts - 1/4 cup - coarsely chopped
Oil - 1 tbsp
Ginger paste - 1 tbsp
Spring onion whites - 1/4 cup
Spring onion greens - 1/4 cup
For the Sauce:
Water - 1 cup (Can substitute vegetable or chicken stock)
Corn Starch - 1 tsp
Chilli paste - 1 tbsp
Soy sauce - 1 tbsp (Low sodium)
Garlic - minced - 1 tbsp

Method:
Preheat the broiler and place the oven rack in the middle of the oven. Line a baking sheet with aluminium foil and grease with oil. Place the cut tofu pieces and broil for 10-12 minutes, turning once or twice in the middle. Mix the ingredients for the sauce and set aside. Heat oil in a large non-stick pan and saute the mushrooms. When the mushrooms start to release liquid add the carrots, green onion whites and ginger. After about a minute add the bell peppers, salt and fry for another minute. Add the sauce and allow to heat for about 2-3 minutes or until it begins to thicken. Add the tofu and spring onion greens, mix and remove from heat. Garnish with peanuts before serving. Serve hot with steamed rice.
Notes: Instead of broiling, the tofu can be pan-fried until golden.

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Broccoli flan Eid Recipe

Ingredients for 4 people:
- 2 heads of broccoli
- 20g of thin strips of almonds
- Flan mixture: 250ml of milk, 250ml of cream, 3 eggs, 4 egg yolks, 1 pinch of nutmeg
Preparation:
1. Separate the broccoli into small florets, cook them for 5 to 6mins in salted boiling water, drain carefully and pat dry with a tea towel to remove as much water as possible.
2. Prepare the flan mixture by combining all the ingredients together.
3. In a large bowl, incorporate the broccoli, the flan mixture, the almonds, the salt and pepper.
4. Pour into individual ramekins and place on a deep sided oven dish, add hot water to half way up the ramekins and cook in a 'bain marie' at 160°c (gas mark 5) for 30 to 35mins.
5. Turn out on to plates or serve in the ramekins.

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Buttered Mango

Ingredients:
2 tablespoons butter
2 mangoes, sliced
3 tablespoons sugar
Directions:
1.Melt butter in a frypan until it turns brown.
2.Add slices of mango and saute for several minutes on each side.
3.Remove the mango from the pan and arrange it on 2 plates.
4.Add sugar to the butter in the pan and cook quickly until it goes syrupy.
5.Pour the mixture over the mango slices.

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Pad Thai Tofu Lettuce Wraps / Vegetarian Lettuce Wraps

Being an Indian, I love the other Asian cuisines very much since the complexity and levels of flavours are so similar in all of them. Grazing through my menu one could see that I love Thai food and tried quite a number of varieties. One of my favorite go-to dish in thai restaurants is Pad Thai (meaning "Fried, thai style"). While the authenticity of the origin of the dish is still in question, I do not mind where it originated given it being tasty. Another cuisine I love is the Chinese and the PF Chang's Tofu lettuce wraps is an inspiration for making this dish. This recipe is vegetarian and Vegan too.

Ingredients:
Serves - 2 as a meal; 4 as an appetizer
Firm Tofu - 1/2 block
Lettuce wraps - as needed (I used iceberg lettuce)
Peanuts - 3 tbsp
Scallions / Spring onion - cut on a bias - for garnish
Lemon juice - for garnish
Oil - 2 tbsp
For Tofu Marinade:
Low sodium Soy sauce - 3 tbsp
Agave syrup - 2 tbsp (see notes below)
Red pepper flakes - 1 tbsp
Grated ginger - 1 tbsp
Salt - to taste
For Sauce:
Tamarind extract -  3 tbsp (see notes below)
Agave syrup - 1 tbsp (see notes below)
Low Sodium Soy sauce - 2 tbsp
Red pepper flakes - 1 tbsp
Salt - as needed

Method:
Press the tofu and remove excess water. Cut into tiny pieces or into desired size. Mix the ingredients for marinade in a ziploc bag and put the cut tofu in the bag. Close the bag and mix well for the marinade to coat the tofu pieces. Store in the fridge until ready to use. Anywhere from 4 to 24 hours is good. 
Dry roast the peanuts until toasted. When done, allow to cool, remove skin and crush into little pieces. Mix the ingredients for sauce and do a taste check. Balance out the flavours according to your palate.
When ready, heat oil in a wide pan and add the marinated tofu. Let it sear for a couple of minutes in med-high heat and then toss. Allow it to sear for couple more minutes and then transfer to a plate. Add the sauce to the same pan and allow it to boil. Reduce the heat and add the tofu and mix. Remove from heat after about 3-5 minutes and garnish with crushed peanuts, lemon juice and spring onions. Serve over lettuce cups.
Notes:
1. I used big gooseberry sized tamarind to make the extract. If using ready to use tamarind paste, mix about 1 tsp of the extract with water to make 3 tbsp.
2. I have used salt very sparingly since the soy sauce already has salt.
3. I used agave nectar for a mellow sweetness. Feel free to substitute with brown sugar or honey. Increase the amount though, since agave is sweeter than sugar or honey.

Sending these beauties to PJ's Celebrate Women's day; Susan's MLLA#57; Taste of the Tropics - Ginger; Flavours of Cuisines - Chinese;

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Sweet & Spicy Baked Tofu - Asian Style

Tofu has been our favorite ingredient when it comes to quick snack. There are certain foods which DH is not very fond of. One of them is Tofu. At least I thought so until he actually liked something with tofu. It was when we went to a Thai place near our house before sometime. He did enjoy the vegetables with tofu served with rice. Then I "discovered" why he liked them. It was because it was crispy. And there started my quest for making tofu appealing to him. Fry or bake. Mission accomplished. This time I made a simple marinade and baked the tofu. It tasted almost close to the Organic Tofu which we tasted in Noodles and Company. Also check out my Tofu Golden triangles.

Ingredients:
Extra firm tofu - 1 block
Brown sugar - 1/4 cup
Low sodium Soy sauce - 1/4 cup
Garlic - chopped fine - 3 tbsp
Ginger - chopped fine - 2 tbsp
Cilantro / Coriander leaves - chopped fine - 2 tbsp
Crushed Red pepper flakes OR Finely chopped dry red chillies - 1/2 tsp to 1 tsp (based on your spice level)
Sesame oil - 1 tsp
Salt - a tad bit

Method:
Press the tofu and remove excess water. Cut into little cubes or fingers. Mix the ingredients for the marinade in a ziploc bag. Add the tofu and mix well. Place it in the refrigerator for 4 hours to 24 hours turning over every couple of hours. When you are ready to bake, preheat the oven to 350 F. Place the tofu cubes in a foil lined cookie sheet which is sprayed with oil. Bake for 40-50 mins until crispy on the outside. Brush the remaining marinade over the tofu pieces midway through the baking. Crispy sweet and spicy tofu is done! 
Serve over fried rice, noodles, stir fries or just dig in with a fork like I did.

Linking these up to..
Know your Sweetness - Brown Sugar
Quick and Easy Recipes
Bake Fest #14
SYF & HWS - Ginger event by Anu
Spotlight - Healthy Baking

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Szechwan Vegetable Noodles - Quick and Easy Recipe

Szechwan (Szechuan/Sichuan) is a province in South Western China. The Sichuan cuisine is known for its bold and spicy taste and hence the name of the dish. This is a simple and easy to make one-pot meal but very elegant for a great meal. I used left-over refrigerated spaghetti to make this. To revive leftover pasta, drop them in a pot of boiling water with a pinch of salt and drain after 2 mins. Be aware of the heat going into this dish because it is super-spicy.

Ingredients:
Serves: 2-3
Thin Spaghetti or any noodles - 1/2 lb
Vegetables - 2 or 3 cups - I used julienned Carrots, Red Bell pepper, Green Bell pepper - You could use Broccoli, Cabbage, Cauliflower and String beans
Soy Sauce - 2 tbsp (I used low-sodium variety)
Lemon Juice - 1 tbsp
White/Brown Sugar - 1 tsp (to counter the spice)
Salt - to taste
Fresh Ground Pepper - 1/4 tsp (If you dare)
Scallions/Spring Onion Greens - For garnish
Sesame oil - 2 tbsp
Spice Mix:
Dry Red Chillies - 3 or 4 (depending on spice level)
Ginger - 1" piece
Garlic - 3 cloves

Method:
Cook the noodles/pasta according to the package directions. Coarsely grind the ingredients under spice mix in a mortar and pestle or a mixer grinder. In a wide skillet, heat the sesame oil in high heat. Add the carrots and bell peppers (and any vegetables) and saute in high heat for 2 to 3 mins. The vegetables would be half cooked but still maintain their crunch when cooked this way. Add the ground spices and mix for about a minute. Add soy sauce and the cooked noodles. Mix well and add salt and lemon juice to taste. Serve hot garnished with spring onions.
Note: I did not have any spring onions at hand so I did not add. You could add 2 eggs to the noodles if desired. Adding black sesame seeds to finish would also give a beautiful touch. The traditional szechuan sauce calls for using vinegar which I substituted with lemon juice.

Sending this to CC-What's for Friday Dinner; Kid's Delight - Party and 100 day Global Food Festival.



And also to Presto Pasta Nights - #234.

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Idly Fry - Chinese Inspired | Indo-Chinese Appetizers

Idli is a popular South-Indian breakfast item and is our all time favorite and comfort food. I had been struggling to get the idli batter fermented well during winter. I used to place the batter in the conventional oven (turned off of course) but it still takes long. Come summer, I am very happy about the batter getting fermented well and even happier about softer idlies. These days I am making an extra batch of idlis. I use that batch for making Idli upma or Podi Idli for our next day meal. This time though I wanted to make something interesting for our weekend breakfast. So quickly came up with this chinese inspired Idli fry.

Ingredients:

Idli - 10 - Each cut into 6 or 8 pieces
Onion - sliced thin - 1/2 cup
Ginger paste - 1/4 tsp
Garlic paste - 1/4 tsp
Green bell pepper - julienned - 3/4 cup
Tomato paste or Tomato ketchup - 1/3 cup (I used Diluted Tomato chilli sauce, and left out the chilli)
Green chilli - 2 - sliced thin - optional
Soy Sauce - 2 tbsp (I used low sodium variety)
Green Onions/Scallions - chopped - 2 tbsp - For garnish
Oil
Salt to taste
Chilli powder - 1/4 tsp

Method:
Preheat oven to 350 F. Mix the idli pieces with 1 tbsp of oil, salt and chilli powder. Make sure the idli pieces are evenly coated with salt and chilli powder. Transfer it to a foil lined cookie sheet and bake for 30 mins, turning the pieces once in between. Heat 1 tbsp of oil in a wide bottomed pan and add the the chillis if using. Now saute the onions until golden brown. Add the ginger-garlic paste and saute for 2 mins. Turn the heat to medium high and add the bell peppers and saute for about 3-4 mins. It should be crunchy. Add the tomato paste and soya sauce. Turn off the heat, add salt to taste and the idli pieces and mix it gently to coat the sauce. Do not tend to overmix, as it may break the idli pieces. Garnish with green onions and serve for breakfast or a quick snack. 

Note: You could alternatively deep fry or shallow fry the idli pieces, but I preferred this method.
Sending this to CBB - #4 Chinese Cuisine event by Radhika of Tickling Palates. Check out her space, she has a very interesting theme every month.

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Salt and Pepper Shrimps Recipe

Ingredients :

• 450 g jumbo shrimps, shelled
• 8 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 3 scallions, cut into 2.5 cm sections
• 3 cloves garlic, slice thinly
• 3 dried chilies, shredded
• 1 1/2 teaspoon Szechwan peppercorns
• 1 1/2 teaspoon salt

Method :

Sprinkle 1.5 teaspoons of oil on the shrimps. Lightly pound the peppercorns before mixing in the salt. Heat a wok with the remaining oil. When hot, stri-fry the shrimps over high heat for a minute. Remove the shrimps and pour away the oil to use for other purposes, except for 1 tablespoon.

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Fiery Chilli Baby Corn | Indo-Chinese Appetizers

I had bought a box of Baby corn planning to make stir fry. It was hiding in my fridge until I found it on the other day and was pleading to be used. I was no mood to make a stir fry that evening and so decided to make this as a quick and a super-spicy snack. My sis gave me the recipe for Chilli paneer with the same method. I decided to substitute Baby corn for Paneer. But yes, Paneer is still my favorite..

Ingredients:
Baby corn - 8 oz ~ 1/4 kg
Onion - cubed into 1" pieces - 1 cup
Green bell pepper - cubed - 1 cup (Can use any variety)
Garlic - 3 cloves - minced
Soy sauce - 1 tbsp (I use low-sodium variety)
Tomato Chilli sauce - 2 tbsp (If using tomato sauce and chilli sauce seperately use 1 tbsp of each)
Green Chilli - 1 (optional - This makes the dish super-spicy)
Corn flour - 2 1/2 tbsp
Chilli powder - 1/4 tsp
Salt - 1/4 tsp
Water - 1 tbsp
Oil

Method:
Clean and cut the baby corn to the size of about 2" each. In a wide bowl, add the corn flour, chilli powder salt and the baby corn and mix. Sprinkle water to get everything together. It should not be very batter-like or watery. Just lightly sticky to coat all of the baby corn with the flour and chilli powder. Let it marinate for 30 mins. Meanwhile you can cube the onions and bell peppers.
Heat 2 tbsp oil in a wide non-stick skillet and shallow fry the baby corn, just for 2 mins or until the coating turns light brown. Drain in a paper towel.
Heat 1 tbsp of oil (you may use left over from frying) and in medium-high heat saute the green chilli, cubed onions and minced garlic for 3 mins. The onions should be still crunchy. Add cubed bell peppers and fry for 3 mins. The bell peppers should be slightly cooked, but still crunchy. Add a pinch of salt, the sauces and the baby corn and mix in low flame for a min and turn off the heat. Serve hot.
Disclaimer: This is a dish for brave people who have a super spicy palate.

I am sending this to 'Dish Name Starts With : F ' event by Akila.

Baby Corn

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Gobi Manchurian / Cauliflower Manchurian | Indo-Chinese Appetizers

Gobi Manchurian is our favorite appetizers back in India. Our gang of friends would order this regularly whenever we went for an eat-out and we all love this. Still could cherish those memories when we were doing our final year engineering project in Bangalore when we used to go to our regular eat-out for dinner. We used to eat heartily not worrying about the calories or the ambiance of the place. 

Ingredients:
Cauliflower - 1 medium head - cut into florets

For the batter:
All-purpose flour - 1/2 cup
Corn flour - 1/4 cup
Chilli powder - 3/4 tsp
Salt - 1/2 tsp
Ginger-garlic paste - 1 tbsp
Orange food color - a small pinch (optional)
Oil - for deep frying

For the sauce:
Oil - 2 tsp
Onion - chopped fine - 3 tbsp
Spring onion whites - chopped fine - 3 tbsp
Green bell pepper - chopped - 3/4 cup
Tomato sauce - 2 tbsp
Chilli sauce - 1 tbsp
Soy sauce - 1 tsp
Ginger - chopped fine - 1 tbsp
Garlic - chopped fine -  2 tbsp
Spring onion greens - 3 tbsp


Method:
Cut the cauliflower into small florets and blanch it in salted hot water for 2-3 mins. Drain and transfer the cauliflower immediately to a bowl of cold water. This would stop it from cooking further and maintain the crunch. Drain completely and set aside.
Mix the ingredients under 'For the batter' with water without any lumps. The batter should be of thin consistency. Heat oil for deep frying. Dip the cauliflower florets into the batter and drop in the oil for frying. The heat should be medium-high to ensure that the inside cooks and the outside becomes crunchy. Do not crowd the pan while deep frying. Drain in a paper towel and repeat for all the florets.

Now for the sauce, add 2 tsp of oil in a wide pan. When it is hot add the onion and the spring onion whites, ginger and garlic. Saute for 5 mins or until the onions turn light brown. Now add the chopped bell pepper and fry in high heat for 2 to 3 mins. Now add the tomato sauce, chilli sauce, soy sauce and salt.
Mix the fried florets in the sauce when serving. Garnish with spring onion greens/scallions. Enjoy your snack!

Sending this to 'Deep Fried Snacks' event by Tickling Palates.

Cauliflower

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Salt and Pepper spareribs (Saalt and Peppar Spariribs)

Ingredients:

3/4 lb. (350g) spareribs
4 cups (1 litre) vegetable oil for deep-frying
1 tbsp rice wine
5 tsp. spiced pepper-salt
1 tbsp
2 tbsp cornstarch (corn flour)
1/4 tsp.MSG (optional)
Method:

1. Wash the spareribs and chop into pieces, 2 inches long and 3/4 inch wide (5 cm by 2cm ). Mix the rice wine, soy sauce, MSG (optional), cornstarch, and 2 tsp. water into a paste. Add the spareribs and stir to coat well.

2. Heat the oil the work over high heat to 350oF (180oc), or until a piece of scallion or ginger sizzles and moves around quickly when tossed into the oil. Add the spareribs and deep-fry for 1 minute. Remove, drain, and set aside. Reheat the oil to 400oF (205oc), or until a piece of scallion or ginger browns quickly and a haze appears above the oil. Add the spareribs and deep-fry until they are browned and rise to the surface. Remove, drain well, and place in a serving dish. Place two piles of pepper-salt on the edges of the dish as a dip, serve.

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Sauted Dumplings (Goutie)

Ingredients:

4 1/2 cups (500 g) flour
9 oz (250 g) lean boneless pork, minced
1 tbsp soya sauce
5 tsp rice wine
1 tsp fresh ginger, chopped
1 tsp salt, or to taste
3 1/2 oz (100 g) hotbed leeks
3 1/2 oz (100 g) sesame oil
1 tsp flour mixed with 2 tbsp water
1 tsp MSG (optional)

Method:

1. Mix the pork with the soya sauce,rice wine,ginger.,MSG and salt. Stir in one direction, adding 5 oz (150 ml) of water, a little at a time until the pork becomes sticky. Add the leeks and sesame oil and blend well, and divide into 60 portions. Set aside.

2. Stir 7 oz (200 ml) of water into the flour. Knead until the dough is smooth and elastic. Let rest for 30 minutes. Roll into a long cylinder and cut into 60 portions. Flatten each piece and roll into a circle about 3 inches (8 cm) in diameter. Place 1 portion of the filling on each circle and fold over. Pinch tightly to seal the edges and form a squat bonnet-shaped pouch. Repeat until all the dough and filling are used.

3. Arrange the pouches in a large pan. Heat to moderately hot, then add water to cover the pouches one-third of the way up. Cover the pan and cook over high heat until the water is almost absorbed. Trickle the flour-water mixture around the pouches. Cover the pan and saute over low heat until the flour forms a crisp film that link the dumplings together. Sprinkle the dumplings with a little sesame oil, cover again, and saute until the pouches are browned on the bottom. Remove with a spatula and serve. Saute and serve the dumplings in batches.

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Stir _Fried Egg Floss (Stire _Frid Eg Flos)

Ingredients:

7 egg yolks 2 cup (500 ml ) ;vegetable oil  uses about 1/2 cup or 125ml
3 egg whites
1/8 tsp.MSG(optional)
3/4 tsp. salt, or to taste
1/8 tsp. rice wine
Method:

1. Beat the egg yolks and whites in a bowl and stir in the salt, rice wine, and MSG (optional)

2. Heat the oil in a wok over low heat, to very hot about 350oF(180oC), or until smoke rises. Pour the eggs through a perforated spoon into the oil and deep-fry until yellow. The egg will cook into threads as thin as hair. Remove the egg threads from the oil and drain well. Loosen the egg threads into a light, airy floss, place in a dish, and serve.

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Juicy Steamed Dumplings (Jucy Steemd Dampling)

Ingredients:

4 1/2 (500 g) cups flour, sifted
1 lb (500 g) lean boneless pork, minced
4 tsp soy sauce
1/2 tsp rice wine
1/2 tsp fresh ,ginger chopped
2 tsp salt, or to taste
1/2 tsp sugar
4 oz (125 ml) sesame oil
1/2 tsp MSG (optional)

Method:

1. Mix the pork with the soy sauce, rice wine, ginger, MSG, salt, and sugar. Stir in one direction until it becomes a paste. Stir in the sesame oil and mix well.

2. Add 9 oz (250 ml) of cold water gradually to the flour and mix into a dough. Let rest. Turn out onto a flour board and knead until firm and elastic.

3. Knead the dough again and cut into 1/2 oz (15 g) balls. Flatten each ball lightly with your hand, then roll out each piece into a 3 inch (7 to 8 cm) circle, rotating the dough counter-clockwise while rolling so the centre is slightly thicker than the edges. Place about 1 to 1 1/2 tbsp (20 g) of filling on each circle and pinch the edges together into 18 pleats. Place the dumpling in a steamer and steam for 5 minutes over high heat.

Note: These dumplings are delicate in appearance and taste. the wrappers are thin and the filling deliciously juicy

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Stir Fried Milk (Stire Frid Milkk)

Ingredients:

3 1/2 oz(100g) shrimps, shelled
2 tsp. (10g) Chinese ham, steamed and diced
3 1/2 oz (100g) chicken livers, diced
1 oz (25g) olive nuts, deep-fried
11 egg whites marinade:
1/4 tsp. salt, or to taste
1/2 egg white
2 tbsp water chestnut flour (substitute cornstarch)
1/4 tsp. salt, or to taste
10 tbsp (150ml) vegetable oil for deep-frying
1/4 tsp.cornstarch (Corn flour )
14oz (400ml) milk
1/4 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp, MSG

Method:

1. Beat 11 egg whites. Add salt and water chestnut flour into milk. Stir in egg white and mix well.

2. Mix the shrimps with the marinade and let stand . Cook the chicken liver in boiling water until barely cooked, remove and drain.

3. Heat 4 tbsp of the vegetable oil in a wok over medium heat to210oF (100oC), or until small bubbles appear around a piece of green scallion or ginger tossed into the oil. Add the shrimps and chicken liver, and fry just long enough to seal in the juices. Remove and drain well.

4. Heat 6 tbsp oil in the wok over low heat to just warm. Gradually add the milk, stirring in only one direction until the milk thickens. Add the shrimps, chicken livers, and ham. Cook , stirring until the milk is cooked. Remove in a dish. Sprinkle with the deep-fried olive nuts, and serve.

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White _Boield Pork with Mashed Garlic (Wite _Boild Porkk with Mashd Garlik)

Ingredients:

9 oz (250g) boneless pork or uncured ham
1/4 tsp. sesame oil
2 cups (500 ml) pork stock
3 tbsp plus 1 tsp.Soya sauce
2 oz (50g) garlic, peeled and pounded to a paste
1/4 tsp. chili(chilli) oil

Method:

1. Wash the ham and boil in water to cover until done.

2. Drain and cut into three strips. Soak them in the stock for 5 minutes to absorb the flavour, then cut the strips into thin slices.

3. Mix the garlic with the sesame oil, adding enough water to make a paste. Blend the paste, with the Soya sauce and chili oil. Pour it over the pork, blend well, and serve.

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