I'd Like to Order Kung Pao Chicken Smothered with Melted Cheese! (Yuk!)

A few years back, I was having a spirited discussion with co-workers at one of my temp jobs and the discussion turned to food preferences. Mexican versus Chinese. 

I said: “I love Chinese food!”

My co-worker's response was:

“No way! Chinese food doesn't have near enough cheese for me!!”

I laughed and thought to myself: 'Yep! She's right about that!'

But why? ⍰
Why is there hardly any cheese in Chinese cuisine?

Did some research. Here is the quick answer, according to Corinne Trang, affectionately referred to by her many admirers as the “Asian Julia Child”. She says: “In Asian food culture, you have thousands, countless amounts of herbs and spices that we use at any given time. So few of these spices go well with cheese.” *

Nevertheless, there is a food trend going in the “fusion” direction and chefs are experimenting with incorporating cheese into Asian recipes.

I seriously doubt that you can order a plate of kung pao chicken smothered with melted cheese.  I didn't say the chefs had taken leave of their senses.  😋

But what do you think of this "adaptation"?

Do you like Chinese food with or without cheese?

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*Quote Source:

Kuo, Stephanie. "The Real Reason There's No Cheese In Asian Cuisine." CheeseRank : Your Go To Guide for All Things Cheese. N.p., 28 July 2014. Web. 15 June 2017. (NOTE: Links to an archived copy.)

It Turns Out, There is Such a Thing as Chinese Cheese

The Blog: Cookbook author and teacher Diana Kuan writes about traditional and modern takes on Asian home cooking on her blog, Appetite for China. She has also recently launched an online shop called Plate and Pencil, with cute gifts like a "Dumplings Around the World" tote bag.

Discovering Cheese in One of the Most Unsuspecting Places

It's nearly impossible for any Westerners to remember the first time they tried cheese. From pizza to pasta to hunks eaten on their own, cheese's ubiquity in our diets means that we've been enjoying it since before we could eat most other solid foods. For Liu Yang, a cheesemaker in Beijing, the ...

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Food Blurb: For Newbie Cooks Who Want to Cook Chinese Food

Once upon a time when I was a newbie cook, I wanted so badly to cook Chinese food.  But no matter what I did my food just did not have that authentic Chinese flavor.  This was before TV cooking shows had become so pervasive. 

Hormel Foods Corporation is an American food business that has been around since 1891. Me personally? I have been enjoying Hormel food products for over 50 years; mainly, its canned chili. I stumbled upon a product at my local grocery store and it changed everything!

• House of Tsang^® sauces are stir-fry sauces for Asian cooking created by chef David Tsang.  It's a Hormel Foods brand.

There are 4 distinct flavors:

1. Classic Sauce
2. Szechuan Spicy
3. Bangkok Peanut Sauce
4. General Tsao

They are all delicious! But my favorite is the Classic Sauce. If these products are not on the shelf of your local grocery store, you might be able to find them at an Asian market in your area. If not they are sold via Amazon and are reasonably priced.

There are plenty more House of Tsang^® products.  These are the ones I'm familiar with.  I promise you! Use any of these sauces in your recipes and it will taste just like you went out to eat at an Asian restaurant.  

House of Tsang Sauce 11.5 Oz Variety 4-Pack : #Grocery & #Gourmet #Food
~ https://t.co/dlGswDQzhT
My favorite is the Classic Sauce but they are all delicious! #cooking #Asianfood #stirfry #sauces #kitchen #dining @EverydaySpices @goshoppingbees pic.twitter.com/QjtHPastEn

— Treathyl Fox (aka cmoneyspinner) ~ #Freelancer (@cmoneyspinner) May 26, 2023

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(Food blurb? - a short post, not saying much, but saying enough!)

Check out some of the other food blurbs:

Za-atar Spice Blend on Flatbread

The Key Ingredient in Nigerian Food

What is  Angelica keiskei?

WARNING: Delicacies Can Be Dangerous!

Sharing a Soup Recipe That Soup Lovers Will Love

Five (5) healthy and holistic ways to get more energy

Health and Wellness : Where to Find Advice on Healthy Eating and More!

Many Americans, particularly African-Americans, and Americans who live in "the South" (like TV Chef Paula Deen), suffer from hypertension and diabetes; ailments that they need not suffer from if they would just change their diet! Understanding this, I am sharing a helpful link to this article: The 6 Best Websites to Learn About Healthy Eating; and some other useful links below. 

Healthy Chinese Food Options  (So glad steamed dumplings are number 1 on the list.)

7 Nutrient-Packed Foods to Keep on Hand  (This list contains staples that are plant-based and inexpensive.)

Cutting Calories, Fat, and Salt:

• Cutting Calories: 5 Ways to Cut Calories to Lose Weight
• 6 Ways to Reduce Salt and Fat in Your Diet | ACTIVE

Eating Gluten Free

  

• Healthy Meal Prep Made Easy

• Lower-Sodium Fast-Food Option

Free e-Cookbook from Joyful Healthy Eats

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Ryu Mei Yuzen Red Chopstick [w/Box] Japan

Recipe Sharing: Chinese Pork Pies (Guest Post)

The Chinese do such wonderful things with pork.  Like Chinese Pork Pies.  Here's the recipe.  

INGREDIENTS

400g pork sausages, casings removed

4 spring onions (shallots), thinly sliced

2 teaspoons Chang‘s Pure Sesame Oil

1 1/2 teaspoons ground star anise

125ml (1/2 cup) warm water

50g lard or butter

300g (2 cups) cake, biscuit & pastry plain flour (see note)

1 tablespoon warm water, extra (optional)

1 egg, lightly whisked

1 teaspoon sesame seeds

Tomato chutney, to serve

Watercress sprigs, to serve

METHOD

Step 1

Place the sausage meat, spring onion, sesame oil and star anise in a bowl. Use your hands to knead until well combined. Cover with plastic wrap. Place in the fridge for 1 hour to rest.

Step 2

Stir the water and lard or butter in a saucepan over medium-high heat for 2 minutes or until the lard or butter melts. Place the flour in a food processor. Season with salt. Add the water mixture and process until the mixture comes together, adding the extra water if necessary. Transfer to a clean surface and quickly knead until smooth.

Step 3

Preheat oven to 180oC. Divide the pastry into 2 portions, one slightly larger than the other. Roll out the larger portion until 2-3mm thick. Use an 11.5cm round pastry cutter to cut 6 discs from the pastry. Line six 80ml (1/3 cup) muffin pans with the discs. Divide the sausage mixture among the lined pans, pushing the mixture into the side of each pan. Roll out the remaining pastry until 2-3mm thick, re-rolling the excess pastry if necessary. Use a 9.5cm cutter to cut six discs from the pastry. Place the discs on top of the pork mixture and crimp the edges to seal.

Step 4

Bake the pies for 30 minutes or until they start to brown. Transfer to a baking tray. Brush the tops with egg and sprinkle with sesame seeds. Bake for a further 10 minutes or until golden. Set aside to cool. Serve with the chutney and watercress sprigs.

* * * If You Liked This Recipe, You Might Also Like:

Chinese pork meatballs in broth

Chinese pork skewers

Chinese pork sliders 

Happy Chinese New Year: My Picks for Top Four (4) Chinese TV Chefs

As my way of celebrating Chinese New Year, I am sharing a quick profile of my 4 favorite Chinese TV chefs and couple of fun facts related to Chinese New Year.  How do you know you love Chinese food? When everywhere you go, you ask for directions to the best Chinese restaurant. Not me. My late husband. But I wholly supported him in his quest. No matter which city we visited or wherever we lived, we looked for a Chinese restaurant. Once we found a good one, we were loyal customers. Sometimes we would leave the kids, sneak out of the house and go have lunch. Other times we would order take-out, go pick up the food, and then enjoy dinner at home. On rare occasions we actually got to sit down in a nice restaurant and enjoy a meal together.  In addition to dining out or enjoying take-out, we loved watching cooking shows on television. Below are four (4) of our favorite Chinese chefs.

- Martin Yan

- Ming Tsai

- Ching He Huang

- Kylie Kwong

Martin Yan ~ We loved his show because he would always teach you one Chinese word and we liked to hear him say “If Yan can cook, you can too!” He was very encouraging and got us to try some Asian recipes at home.  TV SHOWS:  Yan Can Cook; Martin Yan's Hong Kong; Martin Yan – Quick & Easy

Ming Tsai ~ Ming Tsai's parents sent him to a cooking school in France. His television show combined the cuisines from both the East and the West. I especially liked the episodes where his parents were on the show cooking with him in the kitchen. Even though he is a professional chef and owns restaurants and has received awards, he still asks his mom for directions and cooking tips.  TV SHOWS:  East Meets West; Simply Ming

Ching He Huang ~ She said that as a child, she was taught how to cook by her grandmother. When she grew up, she went to a school and received training to cook professionally. One of her teachers praised her as being the best in the class and said he knew when she left school, whatever she decided to do, she was going to be successful. She had one TV show that aired from the UK, She was so good that she was invited to have her own cooking show in the US as well, in San Francisco, California.  TV SHOWS:  Chinese Food Made Easy; Easy Chinese San Francisco

Kylie Kwong ~ This lady chef is also a food caterer. Sometimes she shows how she prepares food to serve large crowds. Other times she prepares a meal for a small group of guests in her home. No matter what she cooks, it looks fabulous and your mouth waters.  TV SHOW:  Kylie Kwong: Heart and Soul

All of these chefs have published cookbooks. As this is a global community I am not sure if these shows are available worldwide. But if you get a chance, watch either or all of these TV cooking shows listed above. If you love Chinese food, you'll be delighted!

FUN FACTS:

Chinese New Year for 2021 will be February 12th. It is the Year of the Ox. (Source)

Seven (7) Typical foods eaten on Chinese New Year are:  1. Fish — an Increase in Prosperity;  2. Chinese Dumplings — Wealth;  3. Spring Rolls — Wealth;  4. Glutinous Rice Cake — a Higher Income or Position;  5. Sweet Rice Balls — Family Togetherness; 6. Longevity Noodles — Happiness and Longevity;  7. Good Fortune Fruit — Fullness and Wealth (usually tangerines, oranges, and pomeloes).   Source)

(Image credits - ClipArtKey and Pixabay)

Original Source

Foodie Friday : Chinese New Year Recipes and Dishes

The food-related topic of choice for this week's foodie Friday should be obvious.

Chinese New Year!

At our partner blog, My Blog Stop!, two posts were published discussing this wonderful holiday celebration with its traditions.

• MBS Post 1:  " ... Flowers are an important part of the decorations for the Chinese New Year celebration. ..." read more.

• MBS Post 2:  "... symbols of prosperity ... Tangerines and oranges to be specific.

"The bright orange color of the fruits also symbolizes 'gold'; hence it has an auspicious meaning to bring in good luck and wealth." ..." read more.

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People all around the world are celebrating. One of my favorite Asian TV chefs, Ching-He Huang, was a guest on the TODAY show and she briefly shared her good luck recipes to begin the new year. Her recipe for the main dish was Golden Chinese Five Spice Orange Roast Chicken. So many others are sharing their recipes and favorite dishes all around the web. There are so many to choose from. Clearly can't share them all, but hope to do like my selections. 

Happy New Year!!

10 Dishes To Celebrate Chinese New Year 2017: Year Of The Rooster

10 Dishes To Celebrate Chinese New Year 2017: Year Of The Rooster

Happy Spring Festival! Whether or not you have Chinese roots, more and more people the world over are celebrating Chinese Lunar New Year. Falling on Jan. 28 this year, traditionally, it is a time for families to get together and have an annual dinner, as well as sweep the house to make way for good [...]

TV chef Ching-He Huang's top tips for authentic cooking for Chinese New Year

TV chef Ching-He Huang's top tips for authentic cooking for Chinese New Year

It's Chinese New Year and millions of people around the world are getting ready to welcome in the Year of the Rooster. If you're one of them make and you're planning on celebrating, there's no doubt your favourite Chinese dishes will be making an appearance.

Chinese New Year Recipes | BBC The GoodFood

Planning your Chinese New Year feast? We've got some recipe suggestions - 42 to be exact... https://t.co/9h7mqLbfdt pic.twitter.com/EbW5G8TmWz

— BBC Good Food (@bbcgoodfood) January 27, 2017

Ginger Orange Pound Cake Recipe

Ginger Orange Pound Cake Recipe

There is one classic dessert my husband and I can't resist - nothing fancy or over the top, just the simple, sweet and soft yumminess of pound cake with a good cup of tea! Over the years I've experimented with many flavours in this simple recipe, from the good old plain vanilla to cardamom spiced and, of course, the chocolate version.

Nian Gao - Chinese Coconut Sticky Rice Cake - The Schizo Chef

Nian Gao - Chinese Coconut Sticky Rice Cake - The Schizo Chef

This week I am presenting some foods that are traditional for different global festivals. Chinese New Year is a holiday that is celebrated in many countries around the world, due to global Chinese migration. Almost every country in the world has a Chinese population and this is the most celebrated holiday that is always acknowledged ...

Traditional Chinese New Year recipes to cook at home

Traditional Chinese New Year recipes to cook at home

Shiitake chive dumplings by Jeremy Pang Want to have a go at making your own Chinese dim sum? Jeremy's recipe includes a useful guide to making these wonderfully crispy shiitake and chive dumplings, with tips on how to perfectly wrap and shape them.

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Yee Sang (Prosperity Toss Salad) | Malaysian Chinese Kitchen

Yee Sang (Prosperity Toss Salad) | Malaysian Chinese Kitchen

“... for the Chinese people, noodles are a “symbol of longevity”.

Happy New Year!!

Previous #FoodieFriday posts? Pesto Around the World  Experiencing the Joy of Salsa   Spice Spotlight: Cinnamon  It's Flipping Foodie Friday!  Raw Coconut Fig Slice (Reblog)  Winter Salad Binging  Banana Brownies - Back for Seconds  Cool Foodies and Food Lovers Celebrating Their “Firsts” on Twitter