I love owning a bamboo steamer, if for no other reason that to display around the kitchen. It’s not only a conversation starter whenever new guests visit but also a handy tool for food photography. (Gotta play up the Asian theme sometimes.) Plus, a set of basket and lid usually costs less than $10 in [...]
Tag Archives | Cantonese
Ginger and Scallion Steamed Crab
Pity the other dishes at the dinner table when crab is served. Everyone is so focused on getting to every last bit of scrumptious crab meat, and slurping with pleasure, that by the time they’re done, all the other food has become cold. And anti-climatic. Like whole lobster and monster sushi rolls, crab is not [...]
Chinese Steamed Fish with Black Bean and Ginger Sauce
As much as I’d like to remain objective on Chinese food, it’s hard to hide my favoritism towards Cantonese fish. In Beijing, Shanghai, or Sichuan province, fish is most likely pan-fried, heavily sauced, or buried in a broth of chilies. That’s all nice, but nothing beats the clear flavor of steamed fish, with nothing to [...]
Stir-Fried Vermicelli with Garlic and Scallions
It’s hard for me to choose a favorite noodle, but in terms of cooking convenience, vermicelli rice noodles are hard to beat. You can throw them in a noodle soup, stir-fry them, or dip them in a hot pot. (And I will sooner give up lamb than rice noodles when I hot pot, which is [...]
Clay Pot Rice with Cantonese Sausage
One of the reasons I love visiting my parents in Zhongshan in Guangdong province is indulging in all the Cantonese food I miss living up north. And rarely do we eat out, although not for lack of good restaurants. Mostly we cook at home, sometimes experimenting, other times cooking old favorites. Clay pot rice with [...]
Taro and Pumpkin Tofu Puffs
Before my parents retired, they spent at least 15 years each in the food industry, working for hotel restaurants and Chinese bakeries. Every 12- to 14-hour shift would leave them exhausted, and understandably, my father had little desire to step foot in our own kitchen. My mother, on the other hand, sought refuge in front [...]
Making Hong Kong-Style Wonton Noodle Soup
Wonton noodle soup is one of the few dishes I set very high standards for, almost to the point of obsession. Because of cravings for an ideal bowl of wonton noodle soup (and seeing my relatives), I have paid way too much for same day plane tickets to Hong Kong. When I get wontons that [...]
Winter Melon Soup with Shiitakes and Speck Ham
Rice may be a pivitol part of Cantonese food, but every Cantonese mother worth her hoisin sauce knows that no meal is complete without soup. I got this drilled into me from an early age: a home-cooked lunch or dinner must must must start with a tang, or else you might as well be eating [...]
Appetite for China is all about fresh and simple Asian cooking. Welcome and bon appetit!
