Stuffed Eggplant

Actually, these delicious Dim Sum stuffed with fishcake are not made from the eggplants you used to see in supermarket. Not the usual fat round babes, they're made using Chinese eggplant, which is of course still eggplant except they're a lot longer and thinner physically (see picture below),



What's verdict on this one ?

I say they're alright. Worth trying ... but if you expect something crunchy or crispy, then please pass it on.

Ngao Chap

Ngao Chap or simply Cow Spare Parts Stew (in my language) is a rather tasty Chinese stew with stuffs like kidneys, tripe and radish.

Don't let the appearance fools you. It may look yucky, but it's pretty tasty.

It's stew with the classic Chinese Five Spices.

About Five Spices 五香粉

Five-spice powder is a mixture of five spices, encompassing all five flavors of sweet, sour, bitter, pungent, and salty. It is popular in Chinese cuisine, but also used in other Asian cookery.

Formulae

There are many variants. The most common is bajiao (star anise), cloves, cinnamon, huajiao (Sichuan pepper) and ground fennel seeds. Instead of true cinnamon, "Chinese cinnamon" (also known as rougui, the ground bark of the cassia tree, a close relative of true cinnamon which is often sold as cinnamon), may be used. The spices need not be used in equal quantities.

Another variant is tunghing or "Chinese cinnamon", powdered cassia buds, powdered star anise and anise seed, ginger root, and ground cloves.

The formulae are based on the Chinese philosophy of balancing the yin and yang in food.

Usage

Five spice is used well with greasy meats like pork and duck. It is used in stir fried vegetables and as a spice rub for chicken, duck, pork and seafood.

Five spice is used in recipes for Cantonese roasted duck, as well as beef stew. It is also used as a marinade for Vietnamese broiled chicken. The five-spice powder mixture has followed the Chinese diaspora and has been incorporated into other national cuisines throughout Asia.

Although this mixture is used in restaurant cooking, many Chinese households do not use it in day-to-day cooking. In Hawaii, some restaurants have it on the table.

A versatile seasoned salt can be easily made by stir-frying common salt with Five-spice powder under low heat in a dry pan until the spice and salt are well mixed.

Tofu Roll

If you fancy Tofu skin or wrapping that is tender and yet crispy is some way, then this Dim Sum is for you.

I would say this dish is very subject to taste bud. Some like it, while others may not.

You really gotta try it to know if it is your cup of tea.

About Tofu Skin

Tofu skin (Chinese: 腐皮; pinyin: fǔ pí) also known as beancurd sheet, dried beancurd, yuba or bean skin, is a Chinese and Japanese food product made from soybeans. During the boiling of soy milk, in an open shallow pan, a film or skin composed primarily of a soy protein–lipid complex forms on the liquid surface. The films are collected and dried into yellowish sheets known as tofu skin.

Spare Ribs

This Dim Sum dish is kind of tricky.

It's basically pork rib steam-cooked with Chinese Black Bean 豆豉 ... A kind of fermented soy bean. So, you either love it or hate it.

No harm checking it out.

About Chinese Black Bean 豆豉 (Douchi in Japanese)

Preserved Chinese Black Bean or Douchi (Chinese: 豆豉; pinyin: dòuchǐ), also called Chinese fermented black beans (simplified Chinese: 黑豆豆豉; pinyin: hēidòu dòuchǐ), is a flavoring most popular in the cuisine of China, and is used to make black bean sauce.

Douchi is made by fermenting and salting soybeans. The process turns the beans black, soft, and mostly dry. The flavor is sharp, pungent, and spicy in smell, with a taste that is salty and somewhat bitter and sweet.

Douchi should not be confused with black turtle beans, a variety of common bean that is commonly used in the cuisines of Central America, South America, and the Caribbean.

In Japanese, douchi is also referred to by the same kanji (豆豉) and pronounced as touchi.
The process and product are similar to ogiri and iru, both being African fermented bean products.

Siu Pao (Baked Roast Pork Bun)

This is a baked version of Char Siu Pao, a classic Dim Sum dish.

Basically, it's baked rather than steamed as in the case of Char Siu Pao (Roast Pork with Chinese BBQ sauce).

What is Char Siu 叉燒 ?

Char Siu (also spelled Cha Siu, Chashao, and Char Siew), otherwise known as barbecued meat (usually pork) in China or Chinese-flavored barbecued meat outside China, is a popular way to flavor and prepare pork in Cantonese cuisine.

"Char siu" literally means "fork burn/roast" (Char being fork (both noun and verb) and siu being burn/roast) after the traditional cooking method for the dish: long strips of seasoned boneless pork are skewered with long forks and placed in a covered oven or over a fire.

The meat, typically a shoulder cut of domestic pork (although in ancient times wild boar and other available meats were also used), is seasoned with a mixture of honey, five-spice powder, fermented tofu (red), dark soy sauce, hoisin sauce, red food colouring (not a traditional ingredient but very common in today's preparations) and sherry or rice wine (optional). These seasonings turn the exterior layer of the meat dark red, similar to the "smoke ring" of American barbecues. Maltose may be used to give char siu its characteristic shiny glaze.

Char siu is typically consumed with starch, whether inside a bun (cha siu baau), with noodles (cha siu mein), or with rice (cha siu fan) in fast food establishments, or served alone as a centerpiece or main dish in traditional family dining establishments. If it is purchased outside of a restaurant, it is usually taken home and used as one ingredient in various complex entrees consumed at family meals.
Recommended ?

Yes. It's one of the Dim Sum favorites. It's particular suited for non-Chinese who are used to baked food.

The Chinese may prefer the steamed version of Char Siu Pao here.

Usually, they just call the baked Char Siu Pao as "Siu Pao".

Lo Pak Kuo (Radish Cake)

All I can say is this one tender soft yummy cake that is delicious you must not miss.

It's prepared by first frying the cake (made of radish and a variety of flour including wheat flor, rice flour and quite possibly, tapioca flour as well ... I am not sure about the lasy one. I'd check and confirm.)

Personally, I love it with chili sauce, and it's usually one of the cheapest items on the menu. Reason ? Its ingredient practically cost nothing ... it's basically radish and flours.

Yummilicious !

Recommended.

Shrimp Tofu

I call this a Shaolin dish !

While it has nothing to do with Shaolin Kungfu, tofu is actually a staple diet for monks ! However, no monks is supposed to consume this Dim Sum because shrimps is no Kosher (monks are supposed to refrained from consuming any living organism ... No Killing is a precept of Buddhism).

About Tofu

Tofu or bean curd is a food made by coagulating soy milk and then pressing the resulting curds into soft white blocks. It is of Chinese origin, and it is also a part of East Asian and Southeast Asian cuisine such as Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Indonesian, Vietnamese, and others. There are many different varieties of tofu, including fresh tofu and tofu that has been processed in some way. Tofu has very little flavor or smell on its own, so it can be used either in savory or sweet dishes, and it is often seasoned or marinated to suit the dish.

Tofu is thought to have originated in ancient China, but its precise origins are debated. Tofu and its production technique were introduced into Korea and then Japan during the Nara period. It also spread into other parts of East Asia as well. This spread likely coincided with the spread of Buddhism because it is an important source of protein in the vegetarian diet of East Asian Buddhism. Li Shizhen in the Ming Dynasty described a method of making tofu in Bencao Gangmu.

Tofu contains a low amount of calories, relatively large amount of iron, and little fat. Depending on the coagulant used in manufacturing, the tofu may also be high in calcium and/or magnesium.