I’m doing my best to focus on the positive during these days of pandemic uncertainty. Collectively, we seem to be doing a lot of panic shopping, hysteria cooking and doomsday prepping. The upshot is many of us are cooking, experimenting and trying new things in the kitchen. Hell, I’ve found more recipes for sourdough starter than I’ve seen in my lifetime.
I’ve been doing my bit to “fatten the curve” by creating the extra indulgent things I love. I figure we all need to nourish our collective spirit while we wait for the day we can come out of our hiding places. Continue reading Learning Chinese cooking from the best: Stir fried pork with celery and dried tofu →
A happy consequence of spending time with my mother-in-law is continuing to learn her recipes. During my last few visits to the Bay Area, I had zha jiang mian on my brain. It’s what I consider to be Chinese comfort food. My husband loves it, my brother-in-law makes it regularly for my nieces, who love it, we eat it at family gatherings, and everyone loves it. Zha jiang mian is universally loved in the family. Continue reading learning chinese cooking from the best: zha jiang mian →
My father-in-law lives in a ‘small village’ outside of Shanghai. He moved there from Taiwan to retire. The first time my husband and I went to visit him years ago, we were both expecting the quintessential village he made his new home of Kunshan out to be. I still tease my father-in-law about his misrepresentation of his village, because it’s in fact a mid-range (by China’s standards) city of 1.65 million people. I guess it’s all perspective. When you live in a country of 1.3 billion, a mere 1.65 million can take on more of a village feel. Continue reading father-in-law mapo tofu →
exploration in the kitchen, and restaurants near and far.
planks and sticks 