Chinese food has always been very popular in America. Many Americans grew up frequently eating lunches with dishes like wonton soup, chow mein and fried rice. Given the proliferation of ethnic markets in many parts of the country, now more than ever it’s easy to prepare your own Chinese feast at home.
When preparing Chinese meals at home there are several items that are important to have in advance. A good wok is essential. Woks can be purchased at most household supply stores. Buy a wok stand to go with it and keep the wok from wobbling on a burner. A frying pan is less preferable because many pans don’t have sides high enough to stir fry properly. Authentic Chinese ingredients are also important to assure good results. This does not necessarily mean exotic items. Garlic and ginger are readily available everywhere.
Other ingredients aren’t as familiar but are easily found on supermarket shelves in many places. Bok Choy is a very healthy crunchy cruciferous vegetable that can be quickly chopped up and thrown in the wok to add color and texture to many dishes. Other ingredients you’ll want around if you plan to serve Chinese food to your family are cilantro or Chinese parsley, five spice powder, sesame oil, sesame sauce, oyster sauce, hoisin sauce, rice wine, tofu or bean curd, water chestnuts and wonton skins. In addition you may want to have some kind of noodles and rice, both of which are staples of Chinese cuisine. Ordinary American rice can be used but it’s nice to be able to purchase the kind of noodles used by the Chinese to make an authentic chow fun or lo mein. Look for bean thread noodles, rice noodles and wheat noodles.
If you can’t find these ingredients in your local market you can often order them by mail or find them on the internet. The extra effort is worth it to experience true home made Chinese dishes.
Begin your meal with a soup. The easiest Chinese soup to make at home is egg drop. All you need to do is heat up a pot of chicken broth. Ideally the broth used should be home made rather than from a can for the best possible flavor. Once the soup is hot slowly mix in a beaten egg with a bit of sugar, salt and soy sauce. Add your favorite garnish and serve immediately.
The next course you might want to try at home that’s not difficult to make is fried rice. For this dish you’ll need pre-cooked rice, an egg, a little salt, some sesame oil and a chopped scallion or onion. Heat the wok. Add the oil and the amount of rice you want to use. Beat an egg and mix it up with the rice. Once these ingredients are hot, add the chopped scallion, keep the heat on for another minute and then serve as soon as you can.
A wok is also ideal for a straightforward main course. You can prepare a simple stir fry using chicken, bok choy and a few other additions. This is uncomplicated, easy and delicious. Chop up as many chicken breasts as you want into small pieces. Leave them in the refrigerator with some sesame oil, a bit of grated ginger, a teaspoon of oyster sauce or hoisin sauce and an egg white for a few minutes. In the meantime heat up the wok with a little oil. Cut up several leaves of bok choy into the same size pieces. Add the chicken to the wok and stir fry. Once the chicken appears done in a minute or two add in the bok choy, some garlic and a little rice wine. Let cook several more minutes and then serve with a few stems of chopped cilantro. Be careful not to overcook the bok choy. The leaves should remain green.
Once you’re done trying these recipes use the ingredients you bought and try making up dishes with flavors that you prefer. Add some bean curd to a soup. Put some water chestnuts in the fried rice. Substitute pork or beef for chicken in a stir fry. Chinese noodles can easily be stir fried in the same manner as rice. Experiment and find out what kind of Chinese food you and your family really like to eat. A little practice will allow your family to enjoy quick, delicious and nutritious meals.
