The Steaming Wok

Chinese

Stir Fried Celtuce

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One of my favorite Chinese vegetables is celtuce, sometimes referred to as asparagus lettuce or Chinese lettuce.  Though it is not very common in the United States, it really should be.  It is packed with vitamins and niacin, has a mild nutty asparagus like flavor, and a wonderfully crunchy texture.  It is also remarkably versatile and can be used in all kinds of preparations.  The feathery leaves at the top can be used in salads, the stem can be grated for salad, stir fried, or even used in soups.  It is also super easy to prepare.  Though you won’t find it in a regular grocery store, most large Asian supermarkets like H-mart carry it when it is in season.  I especially like to stir fry it with garlic, ginger, and sichuan pepper corns.  This preparation only takes a few minutes and it is a perfect weeknight dinner when paired with a bowl of rice.  Who can resist fluffy white rice covered with jade batons of crunchy, garlicky goodness?

 

Stir Fried Celtuce 

Ingredients:

2 stalks of Chinese lettuce

2 cloves of garlic, minced

1 inch piece of ginger, cut into small slivers

1 tsp Sichuan peppercorns

1 TB cooking oil

  1. Trim stalks of Chinese lettuce.  You need to trim the skin and fibers outer layer.  I like to use a vegetable peeler, though you can also use a paring knife.  Just make sure that you get all the woody layers off. Once you reach smooth green flesh, you know you have gone far enough.
  2. Cut Chinese lettuce into 1-2 inch pieces.  You want them small enough to easily be picked up by chop sticks.
  3. Heat some water until it boils and briefly parboil the Chinese lettuce.  This should only take a minute.  Remove the lettuce and refresh with cold water and drain.
  4. Heat the oil until it starts to shimmer and briefly fry the garlic and ginger and toast the peppercorns.  Be careful not to burn the garlic.  You just want to heat the garlic enough to release it’s aroma.  Don’t let it brown.
  5. Toss in the lettuce and briefly stir fry for 1-2 minutes and serve.  It couldn’t be easier!

 

 

 

Stir Fried Chinese Broccoli (gai lan)

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Chinese broccoli or gai lan is one of my favorite vegetables. Not only is it super versatile and easy to cook, but it is also filled with folic acid, lots of vitamins and dietary fiber.  I often pair it with meat dishes or dishes that are a bit fatty since the slight bitterness helps cut the richness of other dishes. These also go really with steamed fish. When making them, make sure to make a heaping pile since they also reheat well.  The key is to cook them quickly over high heat and then remove them to keep them crunchy.  Also look for smaller stems on your gai lan.  If it is too woody,  you may want to trim the stems a bit so that they will cook faster.  I like to cut each stem at a bias, cutting bigger slivers from the stem and then larger pieces from the green leafy parts.  Also try to keep these two piles separate since the leaves take much less time to cook than the stems.

In China I would often seen Chinese broccoli doused in oyster sauce, but I think garlic and chilis are my favorite preparation. I will sometimes throw in some minced ginger or even a dash of soy, but I think this dish is best kept simple to allow for the sweetness of the greens to shine.  The red chilis also help offset the bitterness.

 

Stir Fried Chinese Broccoli (gai lan)

Ingredients:

1 lb Chinese broccoli

2 Tbsp neutral cooking oil like grape seed oil

3-4 cloves garlic, smashed

1-2 red chilis sliced (I like finger hot, sometimes I will substitute chili flakes)

salt or a drizzle of soy to taste

Recipe:

1.Wash and dry the Chinese broccoli.  Be careful as there will sometimes be sand.  Slice the stems at an angle into small bite size pieces.  Once you reach the leafy section of the stalk, cut bigger pieces as the leaves tend to cook much faster than the stems that can sometimes be a little woody.  I will often make two different piles so that I can allow the stems to cook a bit longer without the leafy sections getting overcooked.

2. Heat a wok or skillet that has a lid over high heat.  Drizzle your oil in to the pan.  The pan is hot enough when the oil starts to smoke a little.  Quickly throw in your smashed garlic cloves and saute for about 30 seconds until you start smelling them release their flavor.  Add your chili flakes or sliced fresh red chilis.

3. Quickly throw in your washed greens.  Don’t worry if there is some moisture on them, this will actually help them cook and steam a bit.  Keep tossing the wok or stirring the contents of your skillet to make sure that the garlic does not burn.

4. Cover the contents of the pan loosely to allow the steam to help cook the greens.  Once they are fork tender, but still a bit crunchy (3-5 minutes), remove the greens and season with salt or if you prefer, drizzle with some soy sauce.

 

Dali Grilled Eggplant with Chili bean sauce

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One of the first impressions I had of Dali in Yunnan Province was the freshness and variety of vegetables and produce.  Local restaurants competed for customers with colorful displays of all of the seasonal produce on offer.  Some establishments would have up to 20 varieties of mushrooms, others would focus on green vegetables and herbs, and so on.  This variety extended into the street food.  Perhaps the best meal I had was at a small sidewalk cafe that cooked everything over a charcoal grill.  This dish is my own interpretation.  I was trying to capture the smoky silkiness of the grilled eggplant they had to offer.

 

Recipe for Dali Grilled Eggplant with Chili Bean Sauce

3-4 small eggplants or Japanese eggplants ( You can also use large Italian eggplant, though they tend to be a bit more bitter)

1 cup raw peanuts

1-2 Tbsp cooking oil

2-3 Tbsp Sichuan Chili Bean paste

1 bunch cilantro, chopped

1 bunch green onions, chopped

soy sauce

1. Prick the eggplants with a fork or skewer to allow steam to escape as they cook. Grill whole  eggplant on medium heat.  I like to use a charcoal grill with the lid closed.  Grill until the skins turn a mahogany brown.  The skin should start wrinkling.  The aim here is for the inside of the eggplant to be fully cooked and soft.

2. While eggplant is grilling, heat the oil in a wok or frying pan over medium high heat.  Once hot, add the raw peanuts and lightly toast.   Be sure to keep a close eye on the nuts as they easily burn, adjusting the heat as necessary.  I usually agitate the pan to insure the nuts move and are evenly browned. Once they start emitting a toasted aroma, remove them from heat.  At this point, I usually remove them from the pan to stop them from browning further.

3. Remove the eggplant from the grill and split them down the center.  Smear each half with chili bean paste to taste.  Check to see how salty your paste is.  If necessary, drizzle a little bit of soy over the top.

4.  Top the eggplants with cilantro, green onions, and peanuts and serve while still hot.

It couldn’t be simpler!

Xinjiang-style Lamb Skewers

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While studying chemical engineering as an exchange student at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, I would often look to the music collection at the campus library as a respite to the heat and frenetic pace of Hong Kong.  It was through this collection that I discovered Kitaro’s Silk Road recordings and became enamored with China’s Xinjiang Uighur Autonomous Region.  This region which borders Afghanistan, India, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Mongolia Pakistan, and Tajikistan is home to a large population of Muslim Uighurs whose cuisine reflects a mix of Central Asian influences that make it want of my favorite cuisines.  Uighur food is gaining in popularity and small street stalls are popping up all over China’s largest cities serving lamb skewers or chuar. During summer evenings in Beijing, smoke from the charcoal grill of my local street stall would filter up to my apartment and at less than $.50 per skewer, they were always an irresistible treat. Luckily, they are super easy to prepare.  I have shared my own version for lamb skewers, but this works equally well with chicken or beef.  I like to toss the meat in all the seasonings ahead of time to allow the spices to really adhere to the meat, but if you are running short on time, it’s not absolutely necessary.

Xinjiang-style Lamb Skewers

2 lbs. boneless lamb (I like to use leg of lamb)

2 -3 Tbs whole cumin

1 Tbs sea-salt

1-2 Tbs whole coriander

1-2 Tbs minced garlic

1 Tbs chili flakes

1. Slice the lamb into small bite-size cubes.  I prefer cubes on the smaller side since I feel this allows for more of the surface to char while being grilled. Be sure not to trim off all of the fat.  You want some of the fat on the skewers to keep the meat from drying out.  In fact, when I asked my local street stall owner, he insisted that 1/4 of the meat should be fat.  Much of the fat melts away during cooking and when the liquid fat drips on to hot charcoal it smokes and adds a lot of flavor to the meat.  So please, don’t trim all of the fat off.  If using chicken, I prefer to use boneless chicken thighs which also have a higher fat content and stay moist on the grill.

2. Lightly pound the cumin, salt, and coriander in a mortar and pestle to break down the spices a bit.  This will release some of the flavors, however, you don’t want to completely pulverize the spices.  You want to insure that you have some whole pieces of spices.  They will form a delicious crust on the meat.  Mix the remaining spices with the lamb and toss to coat.  I sometimes add a little bit of olive oil if the meat looks dry or is really lean.

3. Threat the meat on to bamboo skewers.  Be sure not to leave gaps and try to make the skewers even so that the meat all cooks at the same rate.  It helps if you soak the skewers for an hour beforehand so that they don’t burn on the grill.

4.  Grill over medium to high heat.  Depending on the size of the skewers and the heat of the grill, this can take anywhere from 5 to 10 minutes.

Enjoy!  I like to serve these with some steamed rice, yogurt, and salted tomato slices.

Yunnan Pineapple Salad

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Although Yunnan, a Southwestern province of China that borders Burma, Laos, and Vietnam, does not have a cuisine that is very well known outside of China, it is becoming increasingly popular in Beijing and Shanghai, and it is only a matter of time before the West catches on to the unique flavors that Yunnan has to offer.  Yunnan is largely tropical and subtropical and borrows many of the same ingredients used in neighboring Southeast Asia.  In addition, Yunnan is home to many of China’s ethnic minorities insuring that a diversity of influences has helped shape its cuisine.  This refreshing salad exemplifies this diversity and mixes salty, sour, spicy and sweet flavors tthat will literally set your tongue on fire.  This recipe is my own attempt to replicate one of my favorite dishes at Yunnan restaurant In & Out in Beijing.  There is nothing better than this simple salad that takes less than 15 minutes to prepare on hot summer day.  The acidity of the salad also pairs really well with grilled meat skewers.

 

Recipe for Yunnan Pineapple Salad

Ingredients:

1/4 cup fresh lime juice (about 2 limes)

3 Tablespoons good quality fish sauce

1 Tablespoon sugart

3-4 red chilies, seeded and minced

1 pineapple – trimmed and cut into bite size wedges

3 Tablespoons fresh mint leaves, finely shredded.

1. In a medium bowl, mix the lime juice, fish sauce, sugar, and chilies, making sure that sugar completely dissolves.

2. Toss in the pineapple and fold in the mint.  If you arre going to make this in advance, mix the dressing and the pineapple and refrigerate.  Just before serving, toss in your mint so that it doesn’t discolor.

Fish Fragrant Eggplant (Yu Xiang Qiezi) 鱼香茄子

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Yu Xiang Qiezi or fish fragrant eggplant is perhaps my favorite Sichuan recipe for preparing eggplant and epitomizes what I find most intrguing about Sichuan cusine.  Heat from the chilis and ginger is balanced by the tartness of vinegar and a touch of sugar and garlic.   Although this dish contains no fish, it is prepared in a manner that is supposed to be similar to preparations for fish.  This same preparation method appears in other Sichuan dishes such as yu xiang zhou rou si (fish fragrant pork shreds), but I think eggplant is especially well suited.

Sichuan Fish-Fragrant Eggplant

Serves 4 as part of multi-course meal

1 1/2 pounds Asian eggplant
2 tablespoons water or chicken stock
2 tablespoons chili bean paste (look for broadbean paste)
2 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons Chinese black vinegar
2 tablespoons Chinese rice wine (Shaoxing) or dry sherry
2 teaspoons sugar
2 tablespoons peanut oil
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoon minced ginger
1/2 teaspoon ground Sichuan pepper
1 teaspoon cornstarch, dissolved in 1 tablespoon water
1 bunch green onions sliced

  1. Slice eggplant into bite size pieces (about 1 1/4-inch to 1 1/2-inch cubes).
  2. Prepare the sauce: In a small bowl, mix together the water, chili bean paste, soy sauce, black vinegar, rice wine, and sugar. Set aside.
  3. Heat oil in wok or fry pan and swirl to coat.  Once the oil is hot or starts to smoke, add the eggplant and stir-fry until the skin begins to blister and the outsides become golden brown, about 2 to 3 minutes.
  4. Add the garlic, ginger, and Sichuan peppercorn and stir-fry until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Pour in the sauce mixture and mix well. Simmer for 3 to 4 minutes to allow the eggplant to fully cook.
  5. Add corn starch slurry and continu to stir over medium high heat until the sauce thickens.
  6. Remove from heat, plate, and garnish with green onions.