A Beginners Guide to Chinese cuisine
Introduction
First time I ate Chinese food in Britain in 1970, it was really very boring. Everything was in gloopy sauce and seemed to taste the same, as a result of excessive use of monosodium glutamate, supposedly a flavor enhancer, but in reality nothing of the sort. So in 1980, is a new breed of Chinese restaurant is right (at least it has taken so long to reach the provinces) which provided lighter, tastier Chinese cooking shows regional differences. There wasThe disadvantage, however, is that this new type of restaurant was much more expensive than the original cheap 'n its bad taste. So I think how great it would be Chinese food to cook at home, but I had no idea where to start until BBC TV came to my rescue in the shape of Ken Hom, chef US-born parents Cantonese.
Ken presented Chinese cuisine in an easily understood manner, demonstrating techniques and suggesting alternative ingredients should not be the originalavailable in your local supermarket. The book that accompanies the series, Ken Hom, the Chinese food, my Bible and I was still me, the pages are stained with oil drops and stains of sauce.
To help you find ways to cook Chinese food at home, I will explain the basic equipment, ingredients and techniques you need to know, then you have some simple and clean to produce. I hope you enjoy this article inspired to achievecook!
Equipment
Although there are many tools and equipment you can buy to get started on your way to cook your Chinese food, is really just need a good knife or two and a wok. Wok is available in all shapes and sizes, can be non-stick, flat-bottomed, they can also be electric these days, but I still prefer my old carbon steel wok with round bottom and the wooden handle. This is a Pau wok. It is easily available in Chinese supermarkets and are muchless than other varieties. There is an important task, even before you are ready for cooking with a wok, and this is the season. You'll need to scrub with a cream cleaner to remove any traces of machine oil and dry them thoroughly. Wok on the stove to low heat. Wipe the inside of the wok with two tablespoons of cooking oil with kitchen towel. Let wok heat slowly for 10 to 15 minutes, then the inside with more kitchen paper to dry. The paper willblack. Enter the coating, heating and cleaning off the kitchen comes out clean. Your wok is now ready for use. After use, was alone in the water without soap and dry thoroughly over low heat. You can also use a little 'oil, if desired. This would prevent the wok to rust, but if it does not develop rust, just scrub and season again.
Like the wok, use a wok stand, particularly if you have an electric stove. This keeps the wok stable iffor brazing or frying.
You'll also need some 'attention with – a spatula, a slice or skimmer will – a metal to metal wok and plastic or wooden for a non-stick wok.
Ingredients
Before you can quickly and buy all the Chinese department at the supermarket, remember that some ingredients that may not keep well if left unused. Just select something simple from your cookbook and decided to sell the things you need, what you can grow in your choiceas we proceed through the different dishes.
A few store ingredients, the general belief that will almost certainly need a light and dark soy sauce, a kind of cooking oil and sesame oil, corn flour and rice wine or sherry. For more information, see my article Chinese Cooking – Ingredients and equipment.
Techniques
Fry
The technique most popular Chinese cooking and frying. This is where your wok comes into its own because it is the shape and size (minimum 14inches in diameter with deep sides) is ideal for quick cooking. The secret of success of frying is to have all the ingredients ready in advance.
The meat must be in accordance with the recipe, but usually cut into thin strips. Vegetables, but in all cases of similar shapes and sizes to ensure even cooking. Long slender vegetables such as onions, carrots and asparagus are often cut diagonally, so that the surface is more exposed to cook faster. MeasureIngredients for the sauce – the recipe is – that all additions to the plate at the same time, you can put them all in a small bowl. When the meal is included, do not forget to give a good shake before eating another.
When everything is ready, heat your wok until very hot then add the oil and use your choice stirring implement ensure that the oil is distributed evenly over the surface of the wok. Before ingredients. The wok should be so hotalmost non-smokers – to ensure that food is greasy. The exception is if your perfume oil with garlic, chilli, spring onions, ginger or salt – it will burn if the oil is hot.
Add your other ingredients in order as in the recipe and throw them over the surface of the wok to ensure that there is no rest in one place for too long, and the food passes from the middle of the wok to the sides. I suggest that you have an apron or other protective clothingclothes for that operation, as the food often spits out because of high temperature, it is cooked.
Drawing
You can use the wok for frying, but be very careful that it is firmly balanced on his stand. Under no circumstances leave it unattended. Fry in a wok uses less oil from the fryer or frying pan, but you can find more secure and easier to use.
When frying, make sure the oil is hot enough before adding ingredients or the food that is ultimately veryfat. Test it by dropping a small piece of food preparation or a cube of bread. If the oil bubbles in everything that dropped in, so it's quite hot.
Sure that the food is fried completely dry with a paper towel and drain the marinade before cooking, or spit.
Shallow Cake
It 'the same as the Western technique. Fry food on one side then the other and drain excess oil before adding sauce ingredients. A normal frying pan is goodfor.
Steam
Steam is widely used in Chinese cooking. You can use a bamboo steamer in a wok, a heat-proof plate on a rack in a wok or large skillet over another, you can become a normal use of the European boat.
If you have a boat of bamboo or a dish in a wok to about 2 cm of water to a simmer. Put the car in the wok (if the bamboo steamer is large enough and sit on the sides of the wok, without being in water, you do not need a rack, not included)and balance the plate with the food or the boat on them. Put the lid on your boat or wok and from time to time to see if the water needs topping (the use of water is already hot) up.
Whichever method you use, make sure the food is above the water surface, and are not wet.
Braising
As with Western cooking, braising is used for tougher cuts of meat, and includes sweet cooking of meat or vegetable stock hot. Red-brazing is a technique in whichThe food was stewed in a dark liquid such as soy sauce, which gives the food a red / brown. This type of soldering sauce can be frozen and reused.