Mesquite Grilled Two Pepper Chicken Wings (燒烤豆科灌木兩椒鷄翼, Siu1 Haau1 Dau6 Fo1 Gun3 Muk6 Loeng5 Ziu1 Gai1 Jik6)

This is a very simple grilled chicken wing dish that can be made after marinating chicken wings overnight. After marinating, all you need to do is to grind whole black and white peppercorns (or use already ground) and coat the wings (adding salt to the mixture is optional). Mesquite wood is added to the grill, but you can use oak, hickory, pecan, or whatever your favorite wood is, to further enhances the flavor. You can choose to remove the wing tips before marinating, but I leave them on since I don’t mind eating them. The wings are smoked covered over indirect heat.

Enjoy!

Yellow Curry Paste Cauliflower Chicken Drumettes (黃咖哩醬椰菜花鷄翼, Wong4 Gaa3 Lei1 Zoeng3 Je4 Coi3 Faa1 Gai1 Jik6)

This is a simple to make cauliflower curry dish. Aside from cutting up the vegetables, there’s no other work involved in preparing this dish – there’s no need to marinate or brown the chicken drumettes before cooking (just buy already cut chicken wing pieces). The curry paste and coconut milk come from a can, so all you must do is open the cans. It doesn’t get any simpler than this.

Enjoy!

Chicken and Cantonese Sausage Hong Kong Noodles (臘腸鷄炒雲吞麵, Laap6 Coeng4 Gai1 Caau2 Wan4 Tan1 Min6)

I always have a package of Cantonese pork sausage in my refrigerator. The sausages have a characteristic deep red color and provide a tasty addition to any dish, in this case, Hong Kong noodles. The sausages are dried, so they are dense and hard, and not at all like fresh sausages. The sausages can be purchased at your local Asian market. Cantonese pork sausage can be made with many ingredients, but this dish uses the pork only version. The sausages are also available lean, with less fat content. Oil may be need to be added to the wok if the lean version is used, otherwise the sausages produce their own oil when cooked.

Enjoy!

Steamed Pork with Dried Shrimp, Preserved Mustard Stem, and Salted Duck Egg (蝦米碎米芽菜鹹鴨蛋蒸豬肉, Haa1 Mai5 Seoi3 Mai5 Ngaa4 Coi3 Haam4 Aap3 Daan6 Zing1 Zyu1 Juk6)

Steamed pork is a dish I grew up eating and all Chinese Moms have a recipe for this dish. Steamed pork is usually never the only ingredient used in making this dish and there are innumerable recipe variations for additions. Here are some other recipes: Steamed Pork with Salted Fish (鹹魚蒸豬肉, Haam⁴ Jyu⁴ Zing¹ Zyu¹ Juk⁶) , Steamed Pork with Salted Duck Egg (鹹鴨蛋蒸豬肉, Haam⁴ Aap³ Daan⁶ Zing¹ Zyu¹ Juk⁶).

This version uses an uncooked salted duck egg and dried shrimp, whose saltiness goes well with the savory pork flavor. You can buy uncooked salted duck eggs and dried shrimp at your local Asian market, but the uncooked duck eggs can be hard to find and not always in stock. I buy my uncooked salted duck eggs at my local Farmer’s Market. The third ingredient is called suimiyacai, which is preserved mustard stems, and can be bought at your local Asian market in small packets. The preserved mustard stems add a mild sweetness to the dish and can be omitted if you cannot obtain them, or you can substitute another preserved vegetable.

On the surface, this seems like an easy dish to make. If this dish is prepared correctly, the steamed ground pork has a tender mouth feel when eaten. I have found, through many attempts, that if you add 1 Tbs. (15 ml.) corn starch per ½ lb. (250 g.) ground pork, together with the other marinade ingredients, you get the desired result.

Enjoy!

Abalone Asparagus Chicken (鮑魚蘆筍雞, Baau1 Jyu4 Lou4 Seon2 Gai1)

Fresh abalone and asparagus adds a luxurious touch to this dish. If you’re able to find sliced abalone at your local Asian market, you should try making this dish. Even where I live, with many Asian markets in the vicinity, sliced abalone is only available occasionally at just one market. Pairing the abalone with chicken is classic combination of seafood and meat used in Chinese dishes. Fresh bamboo shoots (used canned if fresh is not available) is the final ingredient that’s added to this tasty dish.

Enjoy!

Bean Sauce Asparagus Chicken (豆瓣醬雞蘆筍雞, Dau6 Faan6 Zoeng3 Lou4 Seon2 Gai1)

Whenever I use asparagus in a dish, I usually use the thick stemmed version. However, for this recipe, I chose to use thin stemmed asparagus to match the thickness of the shredded tofu and sliced Shiitake mushrooms. The dish would have tasted the same if the thick stemmed asparagus was used, but using the thin stemmed makes the dish more visually appealing.

Enjoy!

Mesquite Grilled Ground Chili Garlic Oil Turkey Tails (燒烤豆科灌木蒜油辣椒醬火雞尾, Siu1 Haau1 Dau6 Fo1 Gun3 Muk6 Syun3 Jau4 Laat6 Ziu1 Zoeng3 Fo2 Gai1 Mei5)

Turkey tails are not the usual part of the turkey most people buy at their local supermarket, even though they are relatively inexpensive and available. If you’ve ever been to a Chinese delicatessen in the USA, turkey tails are a staple, often poached in soy sauce. So, they aren’t as uncommon as you think (you probably just never knew to look for them!). This is my grilled version of a Chinese delicatessen classic using ground chili garlic oil (which is made in Thailand!). You can, of course, use any other sauce if you can’t get ground chili garlic oil at your local Asian market.

Enjoy!