into a smooth paste. It should not be confused with sweet sesame paste made from black sesame seeds used in some snacks and desserts. If you can’t find it, use Middle Eastern tahini mixed with sesame oil to give it a more pronounced flavour.
Dried tangerine peel can be bought from Chinese medicinal shops or the dried food stalls in Asian markets. However, it is something that anyone can make during the citrus season—the peels of oranges, mandarins, or tangerines can be dried out in a very slow oven or in a dehydrator, or left to dry naturally, then stored airtight. Do not remove the white pith, as it contains bio-flavonoids and is good for you.
Vinegar is used to balance flavours in sauces and to bring out the natural tastes of foods, almost always in conjunction with a bit of sugar; unless the recipe calls for a specific variety of Chinese vinegar, the best choices are rice vinegar or apple cider vinegar; red wine vinegars do not go well with Chinese flavours.
White fungus, also known as white wood ears, has a crunchy texture and a slightly sweet flavour.
Wine is used frequently in Chinese cooking as a tenderizer, to eliminate the rank taste in meat and fish, to blend flavours and to enhance taste. The best wine for Chinese cooking is rice wine. A possible alternative is dry sherry.
Water chestnut is a crunchy brown tuber. Although its skin is difficult to peel, it is well worth using the fresh variety rather than canned water chestnuts. Fresh yam bean is a better substitute for fresh water chestnuts than the canned variety.
Soy sauce is indispensable to Chinese cuisine. It is fermented from soya beans and salt; used in marinades, stir-fry cooking, sauces and dips; low-salt varieties are now available. It is well worth spending a little extra to purchase high-quality soy sauce, because its distinctive flavour permeates Chinese cuisine, and a poor quality soy sauce can ruin the taste of even the best cooked food. Both light and dark soy sauces are used in the recipes in this book.
Chinese Savoury Pancakes
300 g (10 oz) plain flour
¼ teaspoon soda bicarbonate
1 teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon chicken powder
½ teaspoon sugar
600 ml (2½ cups) stock
90 g (¼ cup) ham, diced
60 g (½ cup) carrot, quartered lengthwise, thinly sliced
30 g (¼ cup) dried shrimps, diced
90 g (⅔ cup) green leeks, diced
¼ teaspoon pepper
1 teaspoon sesame oil
Oil for frying
1 Sift the flour and soda bicarbonate into a mixing bowl. Make a well in the centre and stir in the salt, chicken powder and sugar. Gradually pour in the stock and make a thick batter.
2 Add the ham, carrot, dried shrimps and leeks to the batter, stir in the pepper and sesame oil and set aside for 30 minutes.
3 Heat a griddle or pan with a little oil. Pour in 2 tablespoons batter to shallow fry on medium high heat till both sides are golden. Remove the pancakes on to a platter and keep warm. Continue the process until the batter is finished. Serve hot.
Serves 4–6
Preparation time: 45 mins
Cooking time: 30 mins
Turnip Pudding
Turnip pudding is made from Chinese turnip, or large daikon radish, which is grated, simmered with dried shrimp, mushrooms and preserved sausage, then steamed to make a cake. It is sliced and fried before serving.
2 kg (4 lb) Chinese turnip (daikon radish), washed, peeled and coarsely grated (reserve all the juices)
60 g (½ cup) dried shrimps, cleaned and soaked for 1 hour until soft, diced
60 g (½ cup) Chinese mushrooms, soaked for 1 hour until soft
3–4 preserved lap cheong (Chinese sausages), washed
2 tablespoons olive oil
¾ tablespoon salt
2 tablespoons sugar
1 tablespoon chicken powder
½ teaspoon pepper
300 g (3 cups) plus 3 tablespoons rice flour
3 spring onions, diced
1 Place the grated turnip (and juices) into a large saucepan. Arrange the dried shrimps, mushrooms and lap cheong on top of the shredded turnip, cover and simmer over very low heat for 30 minutes. Stir occasionally to prevent sticking and burning.
2 Turn off heat. Remove the mushrooms and sausages and, when cool enough to handle, dice. Return to the pan and mix thoroughly. Turn heat on again to low.
3 Add the oil, salt, sugar, chicken powder and pepper to the turnip, then sift in the rice flour. Stir vigorously until well blended.
4 Ladle the mixture into a greased, round metal tin measuring 20 to 24 cm (8 to 9½ in) in diameter. Transfer to a large steamer to cook over high heat for 1 hour, checking after 30 minutes that the water in the steamer has not dried up. Add more boiling water if required.
5 Remove the pudding from the steamer and smooth the top with a greased spatula before sprinkling the diced spring onion on top.
6 Chill in the refrigerator for 2 hours, then cut into thick slices and shallow fry until both sides are golden brown. Serve hot.
If you do not obtain enough juice from the grated turnip, add a little water when needed to prevent the turnip from sticking to the pan and burning.
Serves 6–8
Preparation time: 1 hour
Cooking time: 2 hours
Sweet Corn and Tofu Chowder
1 tablespoon oil
1 teaspoon rice wine
1 litre (4 cups) vegetable or chicken stock (from fresh stock or stock cubes)
½ small carrot, diced
6 straw mushrooms, diced
6 fresh shiitake or Chinese mushrooms, diced
300 g (10 oz) soft tofu, diced
200 g (1 cup) fresh or frozen sweet corn
2 tablespoons green peas
1 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons cornflour dissolved in 2 tablespoons stock or water
¼ teaspoon pepper
1 teaspoon sesame oil
1 Heat the oil in a wok or saucepan, then add the rice wine and let it sizzle before pouring in the chicken or vegetable stock. Bring to the boil.
2 Add the carrot and mushrooms and simmer for 5 minutes. Add the diced tofu and sweet corn, simmer another 5 minutes, then add the green peas and salt.
3 Add the cornflour mixture and stir until the soup thickens to the consistency of chowder. Add the pepper and sesame oil and serve hot.
Serves 2–4
Preparation time: 20 mins
Cooking time: 20 mins