[funniecow]

I know but you sir, are a dieing breed, most people now a days don't really step out of bounds. I wish there was a cultural passport that we can print out to prove to vendors your authentic appreciation for great food. I mean I've been given some stares at steak houses when I order rare, apparently asians don't eat rare steaks. ~_~

 

[Mr. Tadashi]

Quote:

Originally Posted by funniecow /img/forum/go_quote.gif snip I mean I've been given some stares at steak houses when I order rare, apparently asians don't eat rare steaks. ~_~

We just eat raw meat.(See Basashi for an example.)

 

[crazyface]

I've had raw lamb before, at a Lebanese restaurant. I loved it!

I bet other kinds of raw red meat would be great too. Of course it goes without saying that I love all kinds of sushi too.

 

[roastpuff]

Quote:

Originally Posted by crazyface /img/forum/go_quote.gif I've had raw lamb before, at a Lebanese restaurant. I loved it! I bet other kinds of raw red meat would be great too. Of course it goes without saying that I love all kinds of sushi too.

Mmm, beef tataki and Angus carpaccio.

Tataki = beef sashimi.

 

[funniecow]

Do you really want to start a competition on who ate the most exotic foods?

 

[Assorted]

I was under the impression that Asians tend to order rarer than Caucasians. Even our chicken is considered raw to... westerners.

 

[Barock]

The trouble with Chinese food is that half an hour later you want some more..

 

[funniecow]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Barock /img/forum/go_quote.gif The trouble with Chinese food is that half an hour later you want some more..

Most Chinese foods aren't fried, their light, and easily digested. So maybe your body is use to heavy foods that take longer to digest. Another reason could be that a lot of people lock up while ordering and don't order their fill.

 

[ianp]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Assorted /img/forum/go_quote.gif I was under the impression that Asians tend to order rarer than Caucasians. Even our chicken is considered raw to... westerners.

Haven't seem too many of my asian friends eating blue steak

Could it be a regional thing, related to the storage conditions for meat where folks grew up ?

 

[crazyface]

Hi everybody!

Thanks again!

I have more questions though!

I like the taste of stir-fried noodles, but whenever I cook them myself in my wok, they always get stuck to one-another and clump up into a big starchy ball.

This is even after boiling them in water for a bit and then rinsing them in cold water!

How should I make them differently to keep them from clumping up and sticking together?


Also, I'm reading a lot of "sweet and sour sauce" recipes that call for ketchup to be used, but that seemed kind of weird to me...just double-checking with you guys if that's correct! I didn't think that Chinese cuisine used tomatoes at all?

Ok, bye!

 

[chesebert]

extreme high heat with fast hands

so better let the pros do it.

'sweet and sour' is an American invention

Many Chinese dishes require tomatoes, just not used in the same way as most Western dishes

 

[crazyface]

Quote:

Originally Posted by chesebert /img/forum/go_quote.gif extreme high heat with fast hands so better let the pros do it.

If someone can tell me how, I can learn!

 

[roastpuff]

Quote:

Originally Posted by crazyface /img/forum/go_quote.gif If someone can tell me how, I can learn!

Stir-fried noodle (I'm assuming you're using ready-made pre-packed stuff that's already boiled and just needs to be cooked/heated up?) needs quite a bit of oil and high heat - and keep stirring often - never let them sit in one spot or they'll stick together.

 

[jellojoe]

Quote:

Originally Posted by milkpowder /img/forum/go_quote.gif 小笼包 is definitely one of my very favourite Chinese delicacies. Even in Hong Kong, I struggle to find restaurants which do it consistently well. One might have better luck in Beijing. What to look out for: Looks plump and full of liquid Pork is very tender, succulent and melts-in-your-mouth Plenty of tasty soup, but not so much that it dominates the meat in the dumpling Very thin, but not fragile pastry to the point where it looks semi translucent (this one really sets the men apart from the boys, so to speak) Crab roe for that added look, sophisticated aroma and taste (optional, but highly desirable) Another very common, but unfortunately often poorly made Chinese "dish"/food is barbequed pork. The quality of the meat is the key, just like it is for a steak. What to look out for: Dark reddish colour on the outside Generously, but evenly honey-glazed on the outside Succulent, juicy pork w/ even fat distribution (半肥瘦) Melt-in-your-mouth, fluffy (but not mushy) texture aided by an appropriate amount of fat Sweet on the outside, then salty on the inside I must agree with you! This is an incredible dish! Any semi-decent restaurant will be able to make it superbly. It must be generously flavoured with salted fish. I personally prefer to be able to actually taste the individual diced/minced chunks of salted fish, but others prefer to just be able to taste the flavour/smell the aroma. It's a very oily dish as the eggplant and minced pork really need to be fried in a very hot wok with lots of oil to bring out the flavours. I've never had this dish in Sze Chuan, but at least in Hong Kong it's only very mildy spicey. Sweet and sour pork is one of the most often ordered dishes. However, most Westernised Chinese restaurants cannot do it properly. Actually, I'll go so far as to say that there are many restaurants in Hong Kong which can't cook it properly either. Where most restaurants fail is getting the pork and batter ratio right and at the same time, make the batter sufficiently crispy but not too hard. Again, the quality of the pork is paramount. Lastly there's steamed fish. Quality of fish is number one priority as the actual cooking of it is relatively easy. In Hong Kong, you typically find steamed fish in oil/soy sauce garnished with spring onions and ginger. Other ingredients may include: preserved vegetables, blackbeans, dried orange peel, chilis, etc Just thinking about food is making my mouth water

You and I have very similar tastes in Chinese food. When ordering 小笼包, ask the restaurant if it's made fresh or not. Lots of places just have a big frozen package that they steam for you. I've had the best 小笼包 in Shanghai. As for barbeque pork, I actually prefer it a little drier because then more of the sauce sinks into the meat. I'm a big fan of steamed sea bass. It's easy enough to make that I do it at home sometimes. The other fish I like is pong-tou yu (literal translation: fat-headed fish, my pingying is quite rusty, not having used it in 20 years or so). I've generally had it lightly fried then cooked in soy sauce w/ flat clear rice noodles or just in a soup with the same kind of noodles. The tail of the pong-tou yu is a different dish whose name I can only pronounce in the Shanghai dialect. The tail is a very tender and flavorful meat although it's ridden with bone.
Another dish I would like to add is ma-la tofu, but it's a kind of spicy tofu dish. The spicyness is very different from a normal spicy. It's not really "hot", but it rather makes your mouth numb.

 

[jellojoe]

Quote:

Originally Posted by crazyface /img/forum/go_quote.gif I've also a question about etiquette. Everyone knows that an average Chinese meal is accompanied by a small bowl of white rice, but I'm curious whether it is considered rude to do anything other than to eat it plain as it is given. Is it also acceptable to put some onto one's personal dish to soak up sauce, or alternatively to put sauce into the rice bowl itself?

I'm not sure if there any etiquette rules along those lines. At home, I usually put some portion of the dishes into the rice bowl, but I use bigger bowls than the ones usually given at restaurants. I also find it more difficult to eat rice from plate so I don't transfer the rice from the bowl into a plate with other foods.

Quote:

Also, the rice that I usually buy is Jasmine Milagrosa. Is this the proper rice for serving with Chinese food? I've noticed that it comes out a little sticker than what I'm used to at Chinese restaurants, but I've chalked that up to my not having a rice cooker. Ok, thanks again, bye for now!!

That's a good rice. If you prefer drier rice, just use a little less water. I've recently switched to a Korean rice which is excellent if you like stickier rice. The rice is also a little sweeter than Jasmine rice and comes out of the pot shiny too.