• Eat Your Books

  See Susie's review of this cookbook in her round-up of the best 2009 cookbooks at NPR Kitchen Window and sample recipes for Hunan hot and spicy shrimp and Barbecued pork.

  This cookbook was listed in The Chicago Tribune’s Best Cookbooks of 2009.

Notes about Recipes in this book

• Baked pork buns

  • tsusan on November 20, 2009

    Out of this world. Dough took a little longer to rise. Broiler time a little long in my stove for the pork. Still, insanely good.

• Long-cooked pork shoulder

  • Queezle_Sister on January 15, 2015

    This produced a tender and delicious pork roast, and one with unmistakable chinese flavor. The roast is rubbed with double-dark soy sauce, shaoxing rice wine, sugar, and sprinkled with pieces of ginger, star anise, and ginger. I was not able to source the red rice powder, yet despite deviating from the roasting instructions, mine came out looking almost exactly like the photo on page 310, albeit a bit less red. Instead of the long drawn out temperature adjustments suggested in the book, I first roasted at 425 for 30 minutes, then tented it with foil, stuck in the probe, and cooked it at 275 (to an internal temperature of 190). It was basted several times, and at the end I added 1C boiling water to the pan juices to make the suggested sauce. You could do a lot worse to your pork than this - in fact if you like big roasts, this one is an excellent choice.

• Minced "squab" rolled in lettuce

  • Delys77 on October 31, 2011

    Delicious little wraps with a meaty texture from the mushrooms and the tofu. Could do with a tiny bit of color but the flavor was great so careful what you add.

• Onion oil

  • Delys77 on October 31, 2011

    The fried onions are excellent and the oil is nice

• Panfried egg noodles with pork

  • Delys77 on April 04, 2012

    Pg. 122 This replicates the crispy chow mein at my favourite cantonese restaurant. The balance between noodle and sauce is just right. The only modification might be to up the soy in the sauce a little bit for the extra hit of umami. Delicious!

• Pong pong poached chicken

  • Delys77 on October 31, 2011

    The flavour is very different but quite rich due to the paste so eat in small quantities

• Pork Sichuan with chili sauce

  • Delys77 on October 31, 2011

    Added a little pickled serrano which gave a nice heat at the back of the palate. Could add a little more to give it more up front heat but just a little. The texture from the egg whites is very Chinese but the flavours are nice.

• Rice noodles Sichuan with shrimp

  • Delys77 on October 31, 2011

    Very authentic. You added a bit of chili paste to give the colour a boost but otherwise left as is. The mustard pickle also adds that extra little something. Spencer really liked this one. Very filling

• Scallion oil

  • Delys77 on October 31, 2011

    Again very subtle taste

• Shredded pork with bean sprouts

  • Delys77 on October 31, 2011

    Went a bit heavier on the pork and lighter on the sprouts and it worked out very well. The crispness was great, definitely go easy on the cooking times.

• Shredded pork with snow peas and chicken leg mushrooms

  • Delys77 on October 31, 2011

    Nice and crunchy snow pease with a lovely sauce and just the right amount of pork. Go easy on the ginger or make sure you cut it super fine.

• Shrimp and ginger soup

  • Delys77 on October 31, 2011

    Super simple and pretty good flavour but not extraordinary. You added a bit of pepper, salt, and star anise. Next time only add a little pepper.

• Shrimp dumplings

  • Delys77 on October 31, 2011

    Dough was actually pretty easy to put together. Did lard instead of the pork fat but I think it is the same result. They are very difficult to put together but the taste is delicious. Make sure you salt enough.

• Squash pancakes

  • Delys77 on October 31, 2011

    Very good but make sure to cut everything quite small and go with more flour and egg. Used a pan and worked fine

• Steamed pork buns

  • Delys77 on October 31, 2011

    Just like in the restaurants except that it might have been a tiny bit saltier, which is actually a nice change from the typical uber sweetness. They do expand so careful how you place them. The actual steaming time was closer to the 20 minutes. The recipe ended up making 12 buns.

• Stir fried Shanghai bok choi

  • Delys77 on October 31, 2011

    Good but still a little watery and over cooked, make sure you cook very ligthly next time. Second time you made it it was less cooked but still a little watery.

• Stir-fried "beef" with broccoli

  • Delys77 on October 31, 2011

    Captures the flavor of beef and broccoli perfectly. Great texture on the tofu. A definite winner for veggie fair

• The wonderful wonton

  • Delys77 on October 31, 2011

    Very tasty little dumplings but go easier on the cornstarch than she suggests. As for folding, I always find this difficult, so I made them more like tortellini.

• Tianjin bok choy with braised mushrooms

  • Delys77 on October 31, 2011

    Essentially it is like a salad with a sweet dressing. Ok but probably a little too sweet and probably a little boring.

• Tomato, bean curd, and chicken leg mushroom soup

  • Delys77 on October 31, 2011

    I added some mustard picle and it was quite nice. A little un-chinese but nice. Next day flavour were odd

• Vegetable stock

  • Delys77 on October 31, 2011

    Super falvourful for a veggie stock

• Wonton and whole chicken soup

  • Delys77 on October 31, 2011

    Delicious. The dates and the mushroom and the chicken make for a delicious broth, and the dumplings make for a super filling sop.

• Barbecued pork

  • Delys77 on October 31, 2011

    Delicous and just right

• Beef with pepper pickle

  • Delys77 on October 31, 2011

    Quite spicy but the tenderloin actually seems rich with the sauce, the vegetable accompaniment is great.

• Beijing baked breads

  • Delys77 on October 31, 2011

    This came together quite easily and produced something that tasted quite authentic. Recipe only yielded 12 buns.

• Braised mushrooms in oyster sauce

  • Delys77 on October 31, 2011

    A bit on the sweet side, might drop the sugar a little. Overall the flavour is nice

• Chicken stock

  • Delys77 on October 31, 2011

    Good with a subtle taste despite all the additional ingredients

• Chicken with chicken legs

  • Delys77 on October 31, 2011

    The veg is nice and crisp while the flavours meld well

• Choi sum in oyster sauce

  • Delys77 on October 31, 2011

    Need to up the sauce otherwise it is too lightly flavoured

• Fresh bean curd and green pea soup

  • Delys77 on October 16, 2011

    I used chicken broth as I was out of veggie broth. The overall flavour is relatively simple, which may work very well if it is the first course preceeding a spicy asian meal. The scallion oil does add some richness, overall it is pretty good and well balanced but not spectacular.

• Garlic oil

  • Delys77 on October 31, 2011

    Oil is great but the fried garlic is only so so

• Hot and sour soup

  • Delys77 on October 31, 2011

    A little too fiery and not quite sour enough but easily adjusted at the end of cooking

• Hunan hot-and-spicy shrimp

  • Delys77 on October 31, 2011

    Added a little bit of the chili sauce to it to increase the spice factor of the ketchup as I used western ketchup. It was very flavourful with a nice tangy balance.

• A simple fried rice

  • Delys77 on October 31, 2011

    This was quite simple and captures the flavour of restaurant style fried rice. You added shrimp at the end and it was quite nice.

• Baked duck breasts

  • Delys77 on October 31, 2011

    Delicious as is

• Eggplant with garlic sauce

  • thekitchenchronicles on January 17, 2013

    Absolutely mouth-watering, and tastes just like the dish I like to order.

• Fine Cooking

  Lo doesn't overwhelm with too many recipes, offering just a handful for you to practice and perfect... Lo wants you to master Chinese cooking, and this book makes it fully possible.

  Full review