Notes about Recipes in this book

• Spicy stir-fried prawns with cashew nuts

  • MeganMason on October 18, 2024

    Recipe method incomplete. Full recipe at https://www.rte.ie/lifestyle/recipes/2013/0208/744981-spicy-stir-fried-prawns-with-cashew-nuts/

• Aromatic wok-fried beans

  • Nancarrow on December 27, 2021

    available online here: https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/5pX69Fjsc04G4NlfkwrfkTn/wok-fried-beans

• Garlic chicken

  • etcjm on July 05, 2018

    Works every time. Keep chicken smaller to cook quicker. This is not a saucy dish so don't expect to have liquid to go with your rice. It is so tasy though and has become a regular. I use extra spring onions and have done the recipe with both breast and thigh. Be careful not to dry it out if you use breast. Leftovers, if there are any, are even better.

• Ginger beef

  • Ro_ on June 18, 2020

    Ultimately, while this was perfectly nice a) it didn't taste that ginger-y and b) the attempt to replicate a crispy beef dish but lighter by just shallow-frying the beef doesn't quite work. It just made me want a proper crispy beef dish where the meat is properly deep fried.

• Prawn chow mein

  • etcjm on December 06, 2020

    Cooked this 'plain' as an addition to two other recipes. Omitted the prawns and used peas instead of mangetout (my daughter hates man-get-OUT). I can't attest to how it tastes because I can't eat egg noodles and had plain rice instead, however it went down a storm and leftovers have just been eaten for lunch. I halved the recipe. So, so easy for a dish you could any add any leftovers to. Cheap, quick - no need at all to buy take-away.

• Prawn and scallop moneybag dumplings

  • Ro_ on November 01, 2020

    I didn't have water chestnuts, so chopped up some beansprouts instead and used those. I also didn't use chives to "tie" up the dumplings, they stuck together fine without them. The interesting thing about these was that they don't actually have any chinese seasonings in them, so the prawn and scallop come through unadulterated, which is perfect for seafood lovers but perhaps not exactly the taste you might expect from such a dumpling. I liked the guidance on making them in advance and then just steaming at the last minute: that's what I did and it was very handy.

• Poppa Wan's amazing pork ribs

  • Ro_ on June 13, 2020

    The technique of steaming the ribs was new to me, but it definitely gave very tender meat. I simply lined my bamboo steamer with greaseproof paper and cooked them like that (in two stacked steamers) as I didn't have any bowls/plates the right size to fit in the steamer and accomodate a good quantity of ribs. The only problem with the steaming method is that ribs have layers of thick fat, and steamed fat isn't very appealing - some bits end up needing to be cut off so you can get to the good meat underneath. This was billed as a very light, clean-tasting dish and I'd agree with that, going so far to say as they were a bit too plain for me, I'd have liked a little more flavour.

• Chicken and leek magic potstickers

  • Ro_ on October 25, 2020

    My first time making posticker dumplings at home, and I was quite pleased overall. The filling is nice but not the most flavourful ever, I think there's a reason why pork is a more common filling for these type of dumplings and I will probably use a pork recipe next time. For the cooking method, it worked well but I think next time I would cook them for a bit longer in the pan to get more of a crispy coating, and maybe flip them so that the sides go a bit crispy too, before adding the water and finishing with a steam.

• Steamed beef and coriander balls

  • Ro_ on April 26, 2020

    These looked quite cool, but they tasted underwhelming. Also it's very easy to overcook the beef: mine ended up a little dried out so I'd steam for less time if I made them again...which I probably won't.

• Char siu pork buns

  • Ro_ on October 25, 2020

    My first time making this type of dim sum - it's really hard to tell when the bun is cooked, I think I learned that it can still look kind of raw on the outside but actually be completely cooked through on the inside, so not to leave it in the steamer too long! The char siu filling and sauce was absolutely delicious. I was worried that the buns would pop open during steaming as my filling/sealing technique was not great, but actually they were fine and stayed together well. The main issue here was that my buns ended up absolutely HUGE, and I think this is because I didn't have enough plain flour so ended up having to use some self-raising flour to get the full quantity needed. I will definitely make this recipe again, with only plain flour, and a bit more knowledge about the whole process.

• Steamed mushroom dumplings

  • Ro_ on October 25, 2020

    These went down very well in my house, I was surprised that they were probably the favourite item of all the dim sum I made, and they were also the only thing that was vegetarian - this is in a household of confirmed meat eaters! There was so much flavour in the mushroom filling, it really was delicious.

• Poppa Wan's simple soy-glazed chicken

  • Ro_ on November 04, 2020

    I didn't have massively high hopes for this very simple recipe, but it really exceeded my expectations! We both really enjoyed the sticky glaze on the on-the-bone chicken, which was full of flavour. I even scraped up some of the leftover glaze and sediment from the wok to serve over the rice, which was very tasty. Just be careful when reducing the glaze: the instructions say to boil on a high heat for 5m with a lid on the wok, but I caught mine JUST at the point of starting to burn after about 3 minutes, so did the rest of the reduction on a lower heat with the lid off. I guess this may depend on your wok.

• Carrot salad with sesame seeds

  • tekobo on April 01, 2017

    Super simple and super tasty. Grated the carrot and stored in fridge for a few days, adding dressing just before I served it.

  • Ro_ on May 22, 2020

    This was nice, worth doing if you have carrots to use up and want an Asian-flavoured side.

• Poppa Wan's easy Peking duck with pancakes

  • Ro_ on June 02, 2020

    I loved the flavours of this duck, the seasoning came through really nicely. Obviously however this recipe doesn't give you the typical texture of Peking duck as served in most Chinese restaurants. I think it's a good recipe for when you want something quick and simple, but for my next attempt I will try out one of the more complicated and long recipes for a more authentic Peking duck. Also, I didn't make the plum sauce, I used a readymade hoisin that I needed to finish up. For the pancakes I used a Ken Hom recipe.

• Lap chong and squid

  • tekobo on March 27, 2017

    Super simple to make and a lovely combination of slightly sweet sausage and soothing soft squid.

• Pork and radish pancake buns

  • Ro_ on November 01, 2020

    These were easy to make, and very tasty. My main issue is that they are quite large, and as such it's hard to know in what context you'd serve them - they're too big to be finger food, but don't really seem like something you'd serve on a plate with a salad or noodles or something either. For this reason if I made them again, I think I'd make 8 smaller buns rather than the 4 big ones Gok suggests, and have them as part of a dim sum.

• Poppa Wan's show-stopping twice-cooked melting pork

  • Ro_ on November 12, 2020

    Interesting, as the previous twice-cooked-pork-belly recipes I had tried had all been served with a sauce, whereas this one is served with just a glaze, and no liquid. (I tried to use the leftover braising liquid to cook rice in, but it didn't work out that well). It was extremely tasty, I loved the various sweet notes coming from the anise, ginger and honey and the texture was definitely melty. The only issue I had was that my pork belly had some bones running through it which made slicing it in the prescribed way a bit tricky (in the end some pieces we had to eat with our hands around the bone). I'd make this again if I was serving with e.g. a saucy vegetable dish or a soup to provide some "wetness" to the meal, I don't think it would work so well just on its own with rice.

• Braised aubergine with pork

  • helengeoghegan on December 14, 2013

    delicious & straightforward, -but hold back on the oil.

  • Ro_ on July 09, 2020

    Very nice dish, flavoursome and easy to do. The only reason I'm not favouriting this is because I know that as much as I love it, it's not really my family members' favourite sort of thing.

• Yum.Fi

  This was a pleasurable, unpretentious book that gives the total beginner (and the more experienced gastronome) many interesting recipes and a wonderful springboard to experiment further...

  Full review

• Fuss Free Flavours

  It delivers a broad range of accessible, straightforward and seriously tasty dishes as well as some challenges for rainy days.

  Full review