Tag Archives: food

Chinese, Quick recipe, Uncategorized, Vegetables

Sweet & Sour Lotus Root

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Lotus root is a very healthy vegetable. And there are many ways to cook it. Sweet & sour lotus root is an easy dish and it can bring you good appetite.

1. Chop lotus root into pieces. And put them into boiling water for around 3 minutes. Then drain them.

2. Heat a little oil in the pan. Put the drained lotus root pieces in the pan. Stir fry a little.

3. Add in 1 tsp dark soy sauce, 2 tsp vinegar, 3 tsp sugar, 1 tsp salt, 2 or 3 tsp water. Stir fry evenly for 2 minutes or so.

4. After each lotus piece coated with sauce, add in a little starchy water. Quick stir fry a little. You can sprinkle some chopped green onion if you like. 

Some people like the sweet and sour taste, but some don’t. I think it’s also a good appetizer. 

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Chinese, egg, Quick recipe, tomato, Uncategorized

Scrambled Egg With Tomatoes

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If one dish should be chosen to represent China, I think it probably be this dish. It’s also the very first dish for most Chinese to learn how  to cook. And it also shows up very often on Chinese’s table. It’s a quick, easy and delicious dish as well.

Ingredients:

3 medium tomatoes ( peeled off, cut into even sized pieces. One tomato can be cut into 8 small pieces)

3 eggs

Oil, salt, sugar, chopped spring onion, starch, water.

1. Make omelet. Take omelet out once it solidify.

2. Heat a little oil in the pan. Put the tomato pieces in. Stir fry a little.

3. Add in salt and sugar. Keep stir frying. Juice will come out from tomato.

4. Put the omelet in and mix well with tomatoes. Omelet will be coated with tomato sauce.

5. Add in a little starchy water. Quick stir fry a little.

6. Sprinkle chopped spring onion before taking out into the plate.



In many Chinese small restaurant, they have rice topped by scrambled egg with tomatoes or noodles topped by scrambled egg with tomatoes in their menu. And it’s true that the sauce of this dish is a very good match for rice.

Pancake, Uncategorized

Zucchini Pancake

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I used a half zucchini and made it into shreds.


In a large bowl, put in zucchini shreds, an egg, a small bowl of flour, a small bowl of water, a tsp baking soda, some salt and some black pepper powder. Then stir evenly.


Heat oil in the pan. Put a spoonful batter in the pan. When the downside turns golden brown, flip it over.


It’s very soft, so it’s ideal for kids. Zucchini can also be replaced by carrot, potato or white radish. It’s very popular in China. And it’s a good choice for breakfast. Very quick and easy.

Chinese, Pork, Uncategorized, Vegetables

Moo Shu Pork (Fried Pork With Scrambled Eggs And Fungus)

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I think many people are very familiar with this Chinese dish. The first time I saw this dish’s name on the menu, I was surprised. Because its Chinese name is “木须肉”( mu Xu Rou), while “mu” means wood, ” Xu”means beard. I was like what kind of dish is that! 🙂

But it turned out to be a delicious dish with pork, egg, carrot, black fungus and cucumber. 

It’s not a difficult dish to cook.

Ingredients:

Pork ( cut into pieces, marinate with a little salt, light soy sauce, and starch for 10 or 15 minutes)

Eggs (2 or 3)

Black fungus ( if you use dry ones, please soak them in water for several minutes. Please note that black fungus soaked in water for a long time could be poisonous, so just several minutes is fine. Romove their bottoms, and tear them into small pieces with hands)

Carrot ( chopped into pieces)

Chopped Celery ( because I didnt have cucumber, so I use celery instead. Cucumber would be better. )

Oil, salt, starch, water, sugar, chopped garlic (optional)

1. Make omelet. Take the omelet out once they solidify.


2. Heat a little more oil in the pan. Put the marinated pork slices in. Stir fry till they get brown and take out.

3. If there is no oil in the pan, add in a little. Put in the garlic, then carrot. Stir fry for around 2 minutes, then add in celery (or cucumber ). Stir fry for another minute or two. 

4. Put in pork and black fungus. Stir fry for 1-2 minutes.

5. Add in salt, light soy sauce and sugar. Stir fry evenly.

6. Put into the omelet. Stir evenly with the other ingredients.

7. At last pour in a little starchy water and quick stir fry for a minute.


Ready to serve.

Chinese, Dumplings, Uncategorized

Quick Fried Dumplings

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I love dumplings. Maybe because I come from northern part of China, I have an affection for dumplings. Every time I miss my hometown, I feel like having some dumplings.

Except commonly seen dumplings cooked in boiling water, another way is to fry them. 

It’s not complicted. And it’s also a quick and convenient dish, since I always buy some frozen dumplings in the fridge in case that I miss them or I feel tired and not like cooking.

1. Pour a little oil in the pan. ( non-stick pan) Swirl the pan a little to make the oil cover the whole pan.

2. Put the frozen dumplings ( freshly-made ones are also ok) in the pan. Better place them in order. 


In a square shape or circle.

3. Let dumplings stay in the pan and fry for a while. When their bottoms get golden brown, add in water to the height as tall as 1/3 height of the dumplings. Then cover the pan with lid.

4. After several minutes, water in the pan will become less. Before it’s almost dry, pour in some flour water. ( ratio should be flour: water=1:10) Sprinkle some black sesame and chopped spring onion as well.


Just wait till the water is dry with low heat.



Dumplings’ bottoms taste crunchy.

Chicken, Chinese, Uncategorized

Braised Chicken in Brown Sauce

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This dish is perfect for rice. 

1. Prepare a boneless chicken leg. 

2. Heat the pan. ( no oil is needed here, because chicken leg contains fat. )

3. Put the chicken leg into the pan with the skin side down. The fat will come out. When the down side is a little burnt, flip it over and fry the other side.

4. After both sides turn golden color. Add in dark soy sauce, some sugar and water. Cover with the lid.

5. When the sauce becomes much less, remove the lid. Spread some black sesame. 

6. Turn up the heat. Keep stirring to avoid being burnt. The sauce will become less and more condensed. Make sure the chicken coated with sauce evenly.

7. When the sauce is almost dry, turn off the heat.

8. Cut chicken into slices and put them on rice.


Brown sauce also makes rice yummy.

Story, Uncategorized

Chinese Food Treatment

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There is a concept of “食补” (shi bu) in China, which means food treatment approach or using food as medicine. 

Some of them are really interesting. Like if you hurt your ankle, then you need to have trotter. As the saying goes, what part of animal you have will do well to the same part of your body. Another saying is some food look like our human bodies, and they are good for the part they look like. For example, black soy beans look like kidneys, so they are good for kidneys. Walnuts look like human brain, they are indeed good for human brain.

Many people in China know the saying ” medicine is always 30% poisonous”. It’s an exaggerating way to express that medicine always has potential side effect. So many Chinese people prefer to have natural food and get nutrient substance they need instead of taking medicine when they are not seriously sick. They will certainly seek for doctors’ help when they really need. 

Over centuries, Chinese people have got methods of food treatment for many common illness. Each ingredient is considered to have its own property. Mutton belongs to “hot”, that’s why it’s a good choice in autumn and winter. Bitter gourd belongs to “cold”, so when you feel very hot inside your body or have oral ulcer, bitter gourd will be helpful.

Chinese food treatment is kind of like philosophy of yin and yang.

Beef, Chinese, Uncategorized

Stir Fry Beef With Onion

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I always think beef and onion are a good match. And it’s easy to cook.

1. Cut beef into evenly thin slices. Chop onion and bell pepper into medium pieces.

2. Marinate beef with some salt, light soy sauce, cooking wine and starch. Make sure each slice is coated with starch.

3. Heat the oil in the pan. ( a little more oil than usual)

4. Put beef slices in the pan. Keep stir frying till the beef’s color turn light and a little burnt.

5. Add in the chopped onion and bell pepper. Stir fry till they get cooked.

6. Add 1 tsp oyster sauce. Stir fry a little.

7. If it’s a little plain, add in some salt.

This dish is very common in China’s restaurants. And it’s not that hard to cook at home.

Story, Uncategorized

My Cooking Story

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In Chinese we have a saying that “早餐要吃好，午餐要吃饱，晚餐要吃少”，which means we must have a good breakfast, a full lunch and eat less at dinner. Clearly breakfast is the most important meal in a day. 

Actually, there are quite a lot of differences between eastern and western food culture. When I was in China, most of my breakfast were soybean milk, fried dough stick, porridge, steamed stuff bun, or noodles, etc. After I lived with my husband, my eating habit started changing. Now most of my breakfast are bread, cookies, and toast. My husband has a sweet tooth, but I don’t. So I have to figure out a solution between us.

My mom’s cooking has a great influence on me. Stir frying is a very common in Chinese cuisine.  My mom is a typical Chinese housewife. She can stir fry almost everything. That’s her cooking theory. She’s also good at making new match between meat and vegetable. After so many years of being a housewife, she’s kind of tired of creating new dishes. I understand her after married. Sometimes, I get home exhausted and really don’t want to try a new recipe.

At first, I copied my mom’s theory. Stir fry pork with vegetables. That’s very simple and quick for me, cos I don’t even need to think. I just know it goes that way. Gradually, I find it interesting when I try new recipes which are not just stir frying. No matter it is Chinese cuisine, Japanese, or Western. I can always find new things to try. I think that’s the charm of cooking.

Another reason for I love cooking, I think is that it makes me very concentrated. I don’t know why but when I cook something, I stay very focused, like I’m the only person in the world. I can forget everything outside the kitchen. Cooking to me is not just a magic combination of different kinds of ingredients. It’s also a way to convey my concern and feelings. I want whoever eats the food I cook to feel the concern and love from me. I would be like a student in a test and ask my husband after his first bite “does it taste ok?” Or “do you like it?”. He will put on a big smile with thumps up and say ” very good” in an exaggerating way even when the food tastes not  that good. I know I will never fail his test and that makes me want to improve to higher level and to cook better.