Chicken and Mushroom Clay Pot Rice (煲仔冬菇鷄飯, Bou1 Zai2 Dung1 Gu1 Gai1 Faan6)

Chicken and rice cooked in a clay pot is classic Cantonese dish. This version adds mini-shiitake mushrooms, dried lily flowers, dried black fungus strips, and dried scallops. Mini-Shiitake mushrooms (my nomenclature) are very small Shiitake mushrooms that are occasionally available at my local Chinese herb and dried foods store. Since they are hard to find, a good substitute is to use diced regular sized Shiitake mushrooms. The one caution when making this dish is that any excess liquid marinade from the chicken will burn in the clay pot when the rice is cooked, so the chicken needs to be separated from the marinade before adding to the clay pot. The same caution also goes for the oyster sauce, which is only added at the end of cooking.

Using a clay pot to make rice is very similar to making rice in a pot. A crust is produced on the bottom of the clay pot, similar to cooking rice in a pot, and you don’t have to reboil to release the scorched rice from the bottom. The taste of the rice is very similar to making rice in a pot. The sequence of cooking the rice in a clay pot is:

1. Pre-heat the clay pot over medium heat for 5 minutes to prevent shocking the clay pot and possible breaking it.
2. Bring the clay pot rice to a boil over medium-high heat for 10 minutes.
3. Simmer the rice for 15 minutes over low heat.
4. Scorch the rice using medium-high heat for 10 minutes.
5. Turn off the heat and allow the clay pot to sit for 10 minutes to release the scorched rice from the bottom.
6. Serve the rice.

Given that there are many variables when cooking rice in a clay pot, the cooked rice will vary from every time you cook it. If more water is used, the rice will take longer to cook. If too little water is used, the rice becomes more al dente and the volume decreases because the rice doesn’t get fluffy. Burner heat will determine how quickly the rice cooks and how scorched the rice will get. You just have to experiment and watch for the indications that signal when the rice is cooked to your personal preference. Making rice in a clay pot seems like a simple task, but you’ll find that it takes practice to get consistent results.

Enjoy!

Tomatillo Guacamole (粘果酸浆鱷梨, Nim1 Gwo2 Syun1 Zeong1 Ngok6 Lei4)

I regularly make this guacamole to use as a sandwich spread or for coating the interior of burritos. The tomatillos add a slightly citrusy taste to the guacamole and the spiciness comes from the Jalapeño and chipotle peppers. Since the amount of spiciness is a personal preference, feel free to adjust the amount of peppers used in the recipe. The chipotle peppers actually supply most of the spiciness and come canned with an adobo sauce (some of which is added to the guacamole), so use fewer of the peppers if you want less. Although the picture doesn’t really show it, the guacamole is chunky and not pureed, so the avocados are broken up with a spoon rather than placed into the food processor.

Enjoy!

Grilled Hard Apple Cider Pickled Chili Black Pepper Pork Rib Eye Steaks (燒烤蘋果酒風味糟辣椒黑椒豬排, Siu1 Haau1 Ping4 Gwo2 Zau2 Fung1 Mei6 Zou1 Laat6 Ziu1 Hak1 Ziu1 Zyu1 Paai4)

This recipe for boneless pork rib eye chops (you also can use bone-in chops) uses hard apple cider with pickled chili peppers in a soy sauce marinade. You can of course use regular apple cider in place of the hard apple cider; just use whatever’s available. The marinade is discarded and freshly ground black pepper is used to coat the pork before grilling.

Enjoy!

Steamed Ground Turkey and Salted Radish with Preserved Duck Egg (皮蛋菜脯蒸火雞, Pei4 Daan6 Coi3 Pou2 Zing1 Fo2 Gai1)

I recently posted this recipe: Steamed Ground Turkey and Salted Radish with Salted Duck Egg (鹹鴨蛋菜脯蒸火雞, Haam⁴ Aap³ Daan⁶ Coi³ Pou² Zing¹ Fo² Gai¹), which is the version of this dish using salted duck eggs. This recipe uses preserved duck eggs in place of salted, which for some people, can be disconcerting because of the appearance of the preserved duck egg. For those who feel that way, I say close your eyes and try eating it. I think you’ll like the taste, although I admit it is acquired.

Steamed meat dishes are a staple of many Chinese-American home-style dinners. The dishes are simple to prepare and cook quickly. I’ve previously posted some steamed pork recipes: Steamed Pork with Salted Duck Egg (鹹鴨蛋蒸豬肉, Haam⁴ Aap³ Daan⁶ Zing¹ Zyu¹ Juk⁶) and Steamed Pork with Salted Fish (Haam⁴ Jyu⁴ Zing¹ Zyu¹ Juk⁶, 鹹魚蒸豬肉). Pork is usually the meat of choice, but ground chicken and turkey can also be used. Corn starch plays an important part in producing a tender mouthfeel to the meat. I have found that 1 Tbs. (15 ml.) corn starch per ½ lb. (250 g.) ground meat results in the best texture in the cooked dish. In this recipe, ground turkey is used together with salted radish, shiitake mushrooms, and a preserved duck egg.

Enjoy!

Grilled Hard Ginger Ale Chicken Thighs

Hard ginger ale is used in the marinade in place of the usual Shaoxing wine to make this grilled chicken dish. Hard ginger ale provides a slight sweetness on its own, together with a slight ginger flavor. Regular ginger ale can be substituted, but I would also add some Shaoxing rice wine or dry sherry to the marinade if this is done. The ginger flavor is enhanced by using fresh crushed ginger in the marinade. This is a really simple dish to make and you’re only limited by the amount of grill space on your barbeque.

Enjoy!

Garam Masala Beef Hong Kong Noodles (胡荽牛肉炒雲吞麵, Wu4 Seoi1 Ngau4 Juk6 Caau2 Wan4 Tan1 Min6)

This is a slightly spicier version of the Beef Curry Hong Kong Noodles (咖哩牛肉炒雲吞麵, Gaa³ Lei¹ Ngau⁴ Juk⁶ Caau² Wan⁴ Tan¹ Min⁶) recipe using Garam Maslala. Hong Kong noodles are thin egg noodles and the literal translation in Cantonese is wonton noodles. While there aren’t any wontons in this dish, these noodles are typically used together with wonton in a soup broth, hence their name, and that leads to no end of confusion if you use the literal translation. So you’ll find dishes named in English referring to thin egg noodles, Hong Kong style noodles, and even vermicelli (whose use isn’t quite correct). Adding cabbage gives the dish an added crunch when you eat it in combination with the noodles.

Enjoy!

Oyster Sauce Mustard Green Shrimp (蠔油芥菜蝦, Hou4 Jau4 Gaai3 Coi3 Haa1)

Mustard greens are slightly bitter and is a great taste combination with the oyster sauce. Shiitake mushrooms are also another ingredient that is often paired with mustard greens. Altogether just the previous mentioned ingredients are a menu item in most Cantonese restaurants. Seafood is added to this dish to make it more luxurious, with the most common being sea cucumber (if you’ve been to a Chinese banquet, you’ll often see this combination). While I plan to make the sea cucumber dish eventually, I used shelled shrimp for this recipe. The shells add flavor to the dish, but need to be removed before eating (unless you’re strange like me and eat the shells). The usual method for eating the shrimp is to suck on the shelled shrimp to extract the flavors, and then remove the shells before eating the shrimp meat. If you’ve never seen this done before at a Chinese restaurant, you’re likely to be surprised the first time you see how this dish is eaten. Try this shelled shrimp eating method and you’re likely to do the same!

Enjoy!