The history of some dishes dates back centuries, or even millennia, and almost every one of them has some kind of legend associated with it. What should you definitely try if you are in China for the first time? What are the culinary hits of the Middle Kingdom loved all over the world? What do the Chinese like to eat? Read about all this and much more in our article.
Governor at the stove
The Chinese love poultry meat. According to legend, it was invented by Ding Baozhen, a prominent dignitary who served as governor of Sichuan during the Qin Dynasty. And although he had an army of cooks in his service, Baozhen willingly cooked himself. This is how the gongbao chicken was born.
We will need the following ingredients:
chicken thighs – 800 g
soy sauce – 2 tbsp. l.
rice vinegar – 2 tbsp. l.
bell pepper – 2 pcs.
chili pepper – 2-3 pods
roasted unsalted peanuts – 70 g
chicken broth – 100 ml
ginger root – 2-3 cm
sesame oil – 1 tbsp. l.
olive oil – 2 tbsp. l.
sesame – for serving
Cut chicken thighs into pieces. We cut sweet and hot peppers, remove partitions and seeds, cut into strips. Cut the ginger root into strips. Heat the olive oil and fry the chili until it gives off a spicy aroma. Then pour sweet pepper with ginger, fry for 3-4 minutes, put on a plate.
Next, fry the fillet pieces in small batches and immediately remove from the pan. We return the whole chicken to the pan, add the peanuts, sesame oil and broth, and completely evaporate it.
The Chinese recognize only one side dish – boiled rice. For this dish, it must be fresh. In a pinch, serve rice noodles. Sprinkle the gongbao chicken with sesame seeds.
Impromptu from Grandmother Ryabushka
Mapo tofu is listed in all gastronomic reviews of dishes that are mandatory for tasting tourists. Its name translates as “pockmarked grandmother’s tofu”. All because the widow Chen Qiaoqiao, the owner of a run-down hotel that she inherited after her husband’s death.
came up with it. Things were getting worse, and in order to attract guests, she came up with a dish of meat, tofu cheese and hot Sichuan spices. The idea worked, and soon there was no end to the guests. Today, the mapo tofu recipe is popular throughout China.
Ingredients:
ground beef – 150 g
cubed tofu cheese – 500 g
dried red hot pepper – 3 pods
green onions – 2 stalks
garlic – 2 cloves
grated ginger root – 0.5 tsp
sesame oil – 1 tsp
salt, white pepper – to taste
sugar – 0.5 tsp
We grind the pods of red pepper and, together with grated ginger and chili paste, send them to the pan where the minced meat was fried. We pass them a little so that a spicy aroma appears, after which we pour in water. Bring to a boil, add soy sauce, sesame oil, salt, sugar and spices.
We spread the fried minced meat and tofu into the resulting sauce, cover with a lid and let stand for a minute. At the end, add chopped green onions with garlic and starch diluted in water. Mix everything well and let the dish brew for a couple of minutes. Mapo tofu in China can be served plain or with a generous helping of rice.
Asian khinkali brothers
We are accustomed to consider dumplings as our dish, but many researchers believe that China is their homeland. Traditionally, wontons are prepared for the Chinese New Year and a coin is hidden in one of them. Wontons are served on their own or added to soup.
Ingredients:
Dough:
flour – 500 g
hot water – 250 ml
Filling:
minced meat – 500 g
ginger root – 100 g
green onion – bunch
soy sauce – 50 ml
sesame oil – 2 tbsp. l.
sugar – 1 tbsp. l.
salt, black pepper – to taste
Soup:
chicken broth – 2 liters
bok choy salad – 250 g
We knead the unleavened dough from flour, water, vegetable oil and salt. At this time, grate the ginger root, finely chop the green onion. We mix all this into the chilled minced meat, season with soy sauce, sesame oil, sugar, salt and pepper.
We roll out the dough thinly, cut out circles with a diameter of 8-10 cm, put the meat filling on each and give them the shape of bags. Ideally, wontons are cooked in a double boiler.
Rinse bok choy lettuce and shallots, dip in boiling water for a few minutes, then pour over with cold water. Gently wring them out and finely chop with a knife. Let it boil a little, add the bok choy and shallots, boil for a couple of minutes and remove from the stove. In China, it is usually served with a hot sauce based on soy sauce and vinegar with a lot of garlic, ginger and sake added.
Wandering dumplings
Another type of Chinese dumplings is jiaozi. It is believed that Marco Polo brought them with him to Europe after an expedition to China in the 14th century. As a filling, not only meat is used here, but also fish, seafood, rice, soybeans and fresh herbs. Let’s try this variation.
Ingredients:
Dough:
flour – 250 g
water – 125 ml
vegetable oil – 2 tsp
salt – a pinch
Filling:
pork – 150 g
white cabbage – 150 g
green onions – 2-3 feathers
ginger root – 2-3 cm
garlic – 2 cloves
soy sauce – 2 tbsp. l.
rice vinegar – 1 tbsp. l.
salt – 1 tsp
Sauce:
rice vinegar – 2 tbsp. l.
soy sauce – 2 tbsp. l.
sugar – 1 tsp
lemon juice – 2 tsp
First, knead the unleavened dough from flour, water, vegetable oil and a pinch of salt.
Grind the pork pulp through a meat grinder. We combine all the ingredients together, pour soy sauce and rice vinegar, knead the minced meat well.
We make crescent-shaped dumplings from dough and minced meat and fry on all sides in a pan. Jiaozi is usually eaten with chopsticks and dipped in a bowl of spicy sauce. It is very simple to make it – mix all the ingredients indicated for the sauce.
