5 comments about The Everything Chinese Cookbook: From Wonton Soup to Sweet and Sour Chicken-300 Succulent Recipes from the Far East (Everything Series).

1. I highly recommend this Chinese cookbook. I don't know if I just lucked out when selecting it, but I will tell you it was put together very well by Rhonda Lauret Parkinson. It is packed full of recipes we have all heard of and feasted on at the tastiest restaurants. For example, I became really excited to learn how to make Honey Walnut Prawns, a dish that my husband and I really enjoyed at our favorite chinese restaurant in an area we long since relocated from. We hadn't been able to find a restaurant that served them since then--not until very recently. And I have to say, hands down, the recipe in the book is far better than the dish we had in Seattle. Also, I love all the tips she gives because I find them extremely helpful.



2. I picked this up from the library thinking to use it as a starter cookbook before moving on to a better one. It turns out that I really like it. I was a bit intimidated by Chinese cooking but the organization and layout of this book made everything so very easy. I looked at a few other books but finally decided to buy this one.



3. Take it from me, this is the book you want to get first if you're intent on cooking Chinese food in your home. Parkinson provides a lot of helpful information and background in the beginning of the book you'll be hard-pressed to find anywhere else. Almost every recipe is something an American would love. It details which spices, vinegar, wines, sauces, etc. to buy at your ordinary grocery store. All you'll need is a wok after that (get the Lodge cast iron, it's the best and will last you a lifetime). Every menu can be adjusted to your tastes, meaning you can make them more authentic or you can further 'Americanize' them, as incorrect as that sounds. But if you're wanting food the entire family will enjoy, this is the book with which to start. THEN try others! Finally, visit [..] and watch some of the chinese cooking videos there. They will illustrate in real time many of these same menus, and there you'll see shortcuts and other tips that many recipe books take for granted, but don't bother to mention.
   __________________
   TWO CAVEATS: (1) Within many menus, you'll see a measure of an ingredient (such as p.48) followed by the word "divided." For example, it will read: "2 tsp salt, divided." But you have to read the full process instructions below the recipe to know that you only add 1/2 tsp of salt first, and then sprinkle the rest on at the end during stir fry. (2) Nowhere is a batter recipe defined. You're told to deep fry chicken, etc., in batter first, but no batter ingredients are listed throughout. (I presume it's left up to personal choice.)



4. I purchased this along with my first Wok at Christmas, and I must say that this book gets a ton of use. The recipes are easy to follow, and reasonable replacements are listed for hard to find ingredients. The recipes are also adjustable when you get the hang of things, and I haven't had a bad recipe yet. I gave the book only four stars because of a lack of images and that it is just a tad on the basic side, but this in conjunction with other Chinese recipe books can help a beginner like myself and my wife make our first steps into cooking Chinese cuisine. As a stand alone guide, this book may lack in a few areas, but as part of a collection, you will find yourself referencing this one time and time again.



5. My friend Kathy asked for this for her Birthday. It arrived on time & she was very happy to have it.
   Thanks!!!

5 comments about Simple Chinese Cooking.

1. I tried one of Kylie's recipes that was featured in the Washington Post and liked it so purchased the book. The book is absolutely fabulous. The dishes are extremely tasty and everything is explained very simply. I have used many of these recipes and am going to do a banquet for 10 people in my book club on Monday to go with the book we have read: Women of the Silk by Gail Tsukiyama. I would recommend this recipe book as a wonderful gift for anyone who likes Chinese food.



2. I very much enjoy Chinese foods but have never found a cookbook that suited me. Not until I found this one. First, the title got my attention. Simple. That's what I needed. Then, I discovered why. All of the sauces and seasonings used in the recipes can be purchased in just about any large grocery store and certainly in Asian markets. Prep work is minimal and cooking in a wok has turned out to be quite interesting and kind of fun. Woks just don't act like skillets! I've had the book for only a short while now and have already made dishes with shrimp, beef, and pork. All of them were fairly simple and foolproof to make and were delicious. I just might have to go and buy a few more cookbooks by this lady.



3. I've made more than a dozen recipes from Kylie Kwong's Simple Chinese Cooking, and I am extremely satisfied-- there hasn't been a dud yet. I think it outstrips some of the other glossy asian cookbooks in this category (namely quick & easy, everyday chinese, the william sonoma food made fast-- i've had bad luck with WS's cookbooks for whatever reason... )
   
   Admittedly, some are easier than others (the King Prawn toasts defied my technique and sort of fell apart while cooking-- though this was probably some message from the universe about my cardiovascular health) but none is anything other than simple.
   
   Occasionally the liquid measurements seemed odd (for instance, why would a book distributed in North America [occasionally and seemingly randomly] cite the metric system? its easy enough to get around these quirks, but the american publisher should know better). Also, its fun to come across the Australian-English terms for cooking ingredients, and educational.
   
   All this said, the book now reigns as my favorite contemporary Chinese cookbook (there are some great old-school ones, that are worth exploring). For sure, the presentation and graphical content is MUCH superior to the chinese cookbooks of yore/the 70s and 80s (no more head-scratching line-drawings of how to tuck in the folds of a dumpling). The recipes are easily adjustable, and also come out perfectly if you follow them to the letter.
   
   Worthy of the highest recommendation!



4. This book is a fantastic introduction to Chinese cooking. The well-written, beautifully photographed recipes are fail-proof, usually healthy, and absolutely delicious. Few Chinese restaurants offer the nuances of flavors that Kylie Kwong manages to tease out. One word of caution-- the recipes are simple so using high quality ingredients is absolutely key. You will not get the most out of the book if you use sub-par ingredients, but the end result is always worth the additional cost/effort of tracking down the best produce.



5. This book is just ok. I read some good reviews about it but when I got it I thought it was mediocre. The recipes are kind of a modern take on some classic chinese recipes but I like the traditional recipes better. And some of the recipes are just a waste of 2 full pages ie garlic asparagus. Also way to big and HEAVY. Some of the recipes are kind of bland ie the steamed tofu recipe.

5 comments about The Wisdom of the Chinese Kitchen: Classic Family Recipes for Celebration and Healing.

1. As a first generation Chinese American, I can really relate to the author's recollections of growing up in a traditional Chinese family, and the importance of cooking and food. As a tai chi teacher, the restoration and balancing of yin and yang is a central requirement to maintaining good health and longevity. This book delivers great insight into how to achieve great tasting authentic Chinese food, while imparting understanding of traditional Chinese concepts of medicine in using herbs and dried ingrediants. Fun to read, this book is much more than a cookbook!



2. This is your basic good solid homey dishes. Recipes are easy to follow and not complicated.



3. I was raised in a family similar to the author's and was delighted to find someone with my issues when trying to get the family recipes out of my parents. The recipes in the book are what I grew up but my mom would be vague with the recipes so I could never duplicate them. She would say, "It's so easy, what don't you understand!"
   
   After reviewing the recipes, I knew most of them had missing ingredients and/or missing cooking steps to make them easier to create for a Western audience. This is disappointing because the author tries to explain Chinese ingredients and 'real' Chinese cooking but they are left out in the recipes.
   
   I tried 2 of the recipes, Braised Fuzzy Melon and Chicken with Baby Corn stir-fry. The Braised melon had missing ingredients so it wasn't tasty and the amount of liquids was not enough. The chicken stir-fry had the right ingredients (tasty), but some cooking steps were missing. I followed her directions and got mushy stir-fry with undercooked vegetables!
   
   Here are the steps for a stir-fry and it has worked for me. 1. Marinate & stir-fry meat with oil, until cooked then set aside. 2. Clean wok, stir-fry vegetables with oil, until cooked. 3. Add meat to vegetables and stir-fry. 3. Make a sauce w/ cornstarch and add to stir-fry. 4. Heat through & sauce has thickend, then serve.



4. book is excellent.
   
   my beef has to do with the inadequate protection for the 2 books in the shipping box. one of the dust jackets was badly torn during shipping because it got caught on one of the flaps of the cardboard box. the books were loose in a box which was too big; no paper or other material was used to stablize the content, so the books freely slid back and forth inside the box. :(



5. It is exactly a the book I have been looking for. I am Chinese like the author and I was not fortunate enough to learn from my mother while she was still alive. Now I have some same recipes from this book that I loved and can pass on to my daughter. Thank you.

5 comments about Revolutionary Chinese Cookbook: Recipes from Hunan Province.

1. The few recipes that I've tried from this book turned out very good. I'm starting to understand the different Chinese region cooking. I'm looking forward to trying several recipes from this cookbook.



2. Like Dunlop's previous cookbook, Revolutionary Chinese Cookbook offers a vast collection of authentic recipes, this time with a focus on Hunan cooking. The dishes I have cooked from this book taste true to the food I enjoyed in Hunanese restaurants in China. The book contains sections for street food, appetizers, meat, poultry, vegetables, tofu, and soups, with classics like nongjia("farmhouse style") stir-fried pork and Mao's red-braised pork. Hunan cooking involves less difficult-to-find ingredients than Sichuan cooking, and thus might be more accessible to the typical Western cook.
   
   Together with Dunlop's previous book on Sichuanese cooking, it is a refreshing change from the typical "Chinese" cookbook offering sticky-sweet Americanized versions of the real thing.
   
   Dunlop provides interesting commentary on the origins of particular recipes and Hunan cuisine throughout the book, making it enjoyable to read in itself, especially for those of us who love food. In addition, the book is printed on glossy paper and has many more photos than Dunlop's previous book. Highly recommended.



3. Dunlop does everything here except come to your house and make this dishes for you. What an incredible achievement this book is in every way, from its art, photography, history, stories, recipes, translations, and breadth of information. Sometimes she gives you the equivalent ingredients that will substitute if you happen not to live in Hunan Province, New York, or San Francisco. I live in the Midwest and I have to find creative ways to substitute for a lot of the ingredients she lists. For example, she's in love with potato flour, but that doesn't exist here. Flour is flour, right?
   
   Finally, this book has the distinction of poor writing. Dunlop likes to "verb" her nouns throughout, and she doesn't seem to recognize either a dangling modifier or how not to hang a preposition from every other verb. Soon this becomes intolerable to the point you scream, "Oh, come on!"



4. I bought Fuchsia Dunlop's first book about Sichuan cooking. I loved that, and I love this! Very different from the Chinese food I grew up with that my family got at the restaurants in America!
   
   There are a few differences between the first and the second book. This cookbook is also filled with many more pictures than the first. Honestly, I never worry about the pictures. I tend not to try to cook food I know nothing about. The paper is also different. The first book has the darker, off-white more textured pages. I like that. Because the second is filled with color photos, the paper is the bright white semi-glossy type. If you are like me, I spend long hours reading through cookbooks. My eyes tend to tire out when looking at the glossy white paper. For someone who like anecdotes about her experiences in China, will love both. I'm not very concerned about having those stories in there myself, but they do make it quite easy to imagine the dishes!
   
   More on the personal side, from my experience with her recipies in this second book, I seem to prefer Sichuan cooking over Hunan. For example, the Sichuan recipe for red braised pork I like much better then the Hunan version. The Hunan version calls for more spices which makes it much more aromatic. It's a bit too much for me, but that's just me. In neither of the books are there any menu planning guides. She does recommend dishes to go with the one your preparing. I would like to be able to see more of what a meal is like.
   
   I recomend this book to anyone who is familiar with Chinese cooking and or anyone who like adventure. I don't think that it is a good beginner's book. I have ruined many a recipe in my day and I relaize that it takes a whole lot of advice to avoid the common mistakes. However, I don't think anyone would be diappointed in this book.



5. A good cookbook, I would purchase it again. It is not my favorite Chinese cookbook.

5 comments about The Breath of a Wok: Unlocking the Spirit of Chinese Wok Cooking Through Recipes and Lore.

1. This is not your usual cooking book. In fact, I'm reading it and loving it for other reasons. The author goes into great detail about the subject of the book: the wok. She manages to fill the pages with such interesting and well presented information, that it's hard to put the book down. She'd done an incredible amount of research for this book. She visited countless cooking establishments and spoke with a large number of respected chefs. I love that she gives credit where credit is due.
   
   One can tell that writing this book was a labor of love. I thank the author for this unusual and outstanding book.



2. A great lesson into how to use a wok and insightful historical information. The recepies are OK but nothing especially new to me but are all very usable. When I got this book I was fascinated by the magnificent looking hand hammered wok that is on the cover and featured inside. Had to get one and looked everywhere but couldn't find one for ages. Eventually found the very same ones from the same makers on ebay. Seller is taost from Shanghai. A fantastic piece of rustic cookware that cannot be bought elsewhere. I would recommend this book to anyone interested in getting serious about wok cooking and also learning the basic fundamentals of Chinese cooking.
   
   One important thing the author does not mention is the option to use portable propane wok burners. These are very cheap and popular now and give the high heat that only dedicated restaurant burners used to produce. These have to be used outdoors because you will get restaurant style heat, flames, spatter and smoke. I would recommend anyone who can do cooking outdoors to get one. Matched with a good wok you will get genuine Wok Hei and extremely fast cooking times. With mine I can cook a typical stir fry in about 2 minutes from when I light up.



3. Ms Youngs book has been out for several years now and is just as fresh as the day it first became available. Her passion not only for the food, but the essence of how the Wok is and should be used, and the culture it represents are evident throughout this book. While Breath of a Wok is more extensive than any other book I've seen on the subject, even this book is only the tip of the iceberg. I know Ms. Young is working on another book on stir frying that hopefully will be out in the near future. Breath of a Wok is a book you'll enjoy whether just for the reading or for cooking from its many recipes



4. This gorgeous book offers everything I would hope for in a basic Chinese cookbook. Before anything else, it has eye appeal. Profuse illustration shows the ingredients, the featured chefs at work, the techniques involved, and of course the finished dishes themselves. Full-page photos leave my mouth watering, so much that I barely notice that the scent of the food comes wholly from my imagination.
   
   At the next level, this reference provides a wide range of recipes. Many describe familiar dishes, others describe more exotic preparations, but all seem approachable. The only challenge in bringing these dishes to life would come from the need for impeccable technique. With ingredients so basic and fresh, any flaws in their handling would stand out conspicuously.
   
   Then, as a background that pervades the book, the authors explore the culture and even family history of Chinese cooking in the US. The nineteenth century saw a huge immigration of Asian laborers, who seemed to live behind a curtain of cultural and linguistic isolation. Although their cuisine thrived within the Chinese enclaves, it remained largely unknown to the wider population until the second half of the twentieth century. While remaining true to its Eastern origins, Chinese food has become a fully naturalized citizen of the American kitchen.
   
   More than just a list of recipes, this represents a vivid tribute to the variety, the personal meanings, and the joy bordering on spiritual that Chinese food can bring to those who appreciate it. And, when it's so fresh, flavorful, and easy to prepare, who wouldn't appreciate it?
   
   -- wiredweird



5. I picked this up by chance off of my local library's shelves yesterday. I applaud the dedication and passion that went into making this book. Pictures are beautiful, text informative.
   
   I've been looking for info about successful wok cooking. This book guided me in the selection of a flat bottomed carbon steel wok (via a net store). I know I'll have the knowledge and confidence to season and use it well. I realize now why I had failed attempts with a wok I previously owned. I'm tired of chasing my stir fries around a skillet, thank you for this guide! I especially enjoyed the story behind the smoked chicken and eggs recipe.

5 comments about Asian Flavors of Jean-Georges.

1. All of the recipes in this book have the "wow" factor that I was looking for when I bought it. They're beautiful and have very intense flavors, which I like. JGV has an interesting twist to many common recipes. For example, his cold sesame noodle salad on p 15 contains 22 ingredients, including Granny Smith apples, wasabi powder, shaoxing wine, cinnamon, coriander and crystallized ginger. And the very popular Pad Thai noodle recipe on pg 232 uses a sweet and sour sauce that's made with Elderflower syrup (which took a long time to find), but there's no tamarind in the recipe, which I thought was what makes a good Pad Thai. So why only 3 stars? Because he uses so much sugar in his recipes, which I think ruins the flavor and is also pretty unhealthy. Personally I like recipes that use unusual ingredients, but I think that's all the more reason to let their flavors stand on their own rather than be adulterated by tons of sugar.



2. I love to cook and have been doing so for over 30 years. I have a cookbook collection of over 600 cookbooks. I have books by great chefs throughout the world including books by Charlie Trotter, Ming Tsai, Alfred Portale, Charlie Palmer, Allen Susser, Daniel Boulud, Marcella Hazan, Hiro Sone, Norman Van Aken, Jean-Louis Palladin, Alan Wong, Georges Perrier, Mark Miller, Georges Blanc, Alain Ducasse, Roger Verge, Sam Choy, Roy Yamaguchi, Nobu Matuhisa, Jeremiah Tower, Stephen Pyle, Andre Soltner, Nancy Silverton, Thomas Keller, David Waltuck, Mark Vetri, Grant Achatz, and Ferran Adria among many, many others. I also claim several of your own books I like such as Simple to Spectacular, however this book is a real disappointment. The recipes are barely asian and so simple as to be almost tasteless. China Moon, Harbour Tastes, Blue Ginger, etc, etc, are all better Asian cookbooks (amongst many, many others), although of older copyright dates. This book is definitely not worth what it costs and I say shame on you Jean Georges! A very serious disappointment to anyone who wants to capture Asian flavors in their cooking.



3. I worked in one of Jean-Georges' restaurants for a year and have made several of the recipes in this book dozens of times. Certainly most of them have been simplified for home cooks, but I can assure you that the spirit of the recipes is the same.
   
   What is remarkable about JGV, as a French chef, he is very limited in his use of cream and butter. He uses a lot of soy- and vegetable-based sauces. Some purists will say these aren't true Asian dishes, and they'd be right. This is "fusion," much as I hate that word. But JGV's food is straightforward and delicious. He doesn't try to go over the top, to make things complicated just because he can. He doesn't try to be whimsical or to blow your mind. He just wants to create great food that you will remember.
   
   Certainly some of the recipes here are ambitious and include a lot of obscure ingredients, but if there's an Asian market near you, there isn't anything you can't find there.
   
   The book itself is beautiful, the photography is fantastic. And a bargain, for what it is.



4. I just love this book. I am working my way through it and am enjoying the smells, flavors, and textures of these imaginative dishes on the way. It has become my favorite "go to" cookbook. This is the closest I have come to finding a cookbook that allows the amateur chef to produce a restaurant level meal in the home with reasonable time and effort. The list of resources at the back of the book has been helpful in tracking down ingredients.



5. I am just blown away by this book. I haven't even bought it yet, just borrowed it from the library, and sad to say, the pages are getting a little splattered. For such esoteric ingredients and rather advanced techniques, this cookbook is amazingly user friendly. Each recipe has that "wow" factor that makes you want to try it right away. As I thumb through, I keep envisioning dinner party after dinner party--there are a lot of special occasion recipes here. But there are also every day treasures. Check out the steamed cod with caramelized onion, ginger and scallions ([...]). So easy, so good. Just finished frying up a batch of eggrolls with shrimp and chicken--I had planned on freezing them, except I keep eating them!

5 comments about The Fortune Cookie Chronicles: Adventures in the World of Chinese Food.

1. Although I was hungry the entire time. I love that Lee's account ranges from the humorous to the political to the very tragic, and that she has taken the time to open up American eyes to this huge piece of our life we just take for granted. (I personally eat Chinese food at least once a week.) I really appreciated the chapters on the Fuzhou immigrant wave and on the plight of the "invisible" delivery men--I'm embarrassed that I never thought more about these facets of the business before.



2. There's an old saying that an hour after eating chinese food, you're hungry again. Unfortunately this book was a bit like that.
   
   It's certainly well written and was fun to read, though a bit long for the subject. And one is exposed to such exotic trivia as the fact that Chinese fortune cookies were invented by the Japanese and that most chinese food is a local creation and not authentically Chinese. But after reading it, I found myself thinking "that's it?!" and looking for a more substantial book.
   
   Two chapters were potentially more filling - one on the Kosher Duck Scandal and the other on the sad story of a Chinese family suffering the stresses of adapting to life in the U.S. But in both cases, the final result was a bit superficial. Which is too bad as the author demonstrates that there is a lot of potentially interesting material that just needed a bit more work.



3. It is a good chronicle about the Chinese and their cultures. It also lists some places to go for Chinese Food but does not have any recipes in it.



4. What began as an interest in the phenomenon of people playing lottery numbers based on lucky numbers from fortune cookies became something much bigger for Jennifer Lee. Chinese restaurants hold a special place for many of us, the author included, and are somewhat unique due to the sheer number of them in existence in the United States (more than all of the McDonald's, Wendy's, and KFCs combined). Lee digs in to understand them and their history, the role they play in the lives of Chinese-Americans, how certain dishes like General Tso's Chicken came to dominate menus, and especially how the fortune cookie came to be the standard dessert with every meal. Along the way are discussions of the greatest Chinese restaurant in the world, arguments over soy sauce, and the role New York City plays in the great network of restaurants all across the country.
   
   This book is fascinating and Lee's dedication to her research is impressive. She travels the globe and logs hours of interviews to truly understand her subject, doggedly refusing to give up her search for the fortune cookie's origin. This book fell short for me because the subject was so massive that the writing itself felt a little unwieldy. Lee attempts to use the fortune cookie as an anchor, but it goes unmentioned for whole chapters at a time as she weaves her way through topics ranging from dishes to ingredients to historical events. Though the intent was clear and the quality of the writing good, the scope became a little unmanageable, demanding a larger platform than this novel could possibly provide. That being said, there is interesting information in its pages that I have thought about long after finishing it. I certainly will not look at Chinese restaurants in the same way in the future and may even consider playing my fortune cookie's lucky numbers rather than leaving them on the table.



5. Like the author, I've always been fascinated by Chinese food. I'm half Chinese, and have fond childhood memories of my grandma's authentic Chinese cooking. I have rarely found restaurant "Chinese food" to be like my grandmother's, and now I know why! This book illuminates the process of how Chinese food in America has become Americanized.

5 comments about Mastering the Art of Chinese Cooking.

1. This book lacks charm, humor and practicality. perhaps if one were training to open an authentic Chinese restaurant it might serve some purpose but for the home cook it is terrifying! I'm an accomplished cook. I bought this for my daughter, also a fine cook, after hearing it reviewed on NPR. Sad to say it is not for anyone other than a professional and then a professional who can get his/her hands on live shrimp or carp; spend days making a sauce; scour China town for 5 pig feet; and scale the cliffs of Taiwan for spittle laced bird nests! Cooking should not be intimidating. This book offers the home cook no safety net. It will make for fun dinner party story telling.
   Gerry H
   [...]



2. I've been using this book for a month now, and I really enjoy it. Asian food in general can be intimidating because it requires ingredients that are almost impossible to find if you don't have access to an ethnic grocery or aren't willing to order some of the staples off the internet. I live in San Francisco and have access to both great Chinese stores and a lot of live produce both in italian markets and in Chinatown and this book has really helped me use obscure ingredients that otherwise I wouldn't know what to do with. And the receipes are REALLY GOOD.



3. This cookbook, like most of Eileen Yin-Fei Lo's cookbooks, is focused on authentic Chinese cuisine and is not a Chinese takeout cookbook. As the book does not cut corners, it includes the presence of some Chinese ingredients which may be difficult to find outside an Asian supermarket. For example, the cookbook includes a number of recipes which would be considered banquet or special occasion foods and include ingredients such as Shark's Fin and Bird's Nest. Nevertheless, this book does include a number of everyday recipes such as Ma Po Tofu and Hunan Hot and Spicy Shrimp, which can be made after a trip to the Asian foods aisle of most supermarkets, and provides useful recipes for Chinese sauces, such as XO sauce, which are usually purchased prepared. This cookbook is definitely geared toward people who are more accustomed to traditional Chinese cooking or are interested in how Chinese food is outside the local takeout place. Mastering the Art of Chinese Cooking includes a number of beautiful pictures of the prepared food and provides a taste of what Chinese home cooking can really be like.



4. First, she had me at shark's fin soup. I ordered this book and expecting elaborate chinese dishes and the author delivered. There were dishes that I was so excited to see and just cannot put the book down. The author does not take short cuts in any of her dishes. Though you may find some recipes that you can make on a typical weekday, there are also recipes that you may want to make on special occasions as well, such as Chinese New Year. For example, she shares the techniques on how to cook abalone, bird's nest, and she even shares recipes on the most popular dim sum dishes - the shrimp dumpling! I would say that if you enjoy cooking, you should want to at least have the knowledge of how to start from scratch. This book shares many recipes that I've always dreamed of learning. I'm glad I found this book!!!



5. This book is wonderful. I live in a small to medium city with no China town area. We do have one asian supermarket which is confusing to navagate. This book describes each ingredient, has the traditional Chinese spelling and its romanized equivalent for each item. I can now go into the store and find what I need. I've used other Chinese cookbooks before, but none have been so thorough in teaching about the ingredients or the techniques. And its absolutely beautiful.

5 comments about Land of Plenty: A Treasury of Authentic Sichuan Cooking.

1. This is a first rate recipe collection which is also a first rate introduction to Sichuan food culture. I appreciated the inclusion of names in characters + Pin Yin + English throughout, but wished the Pin Yin included the diacritical marks for proper pronunciation. There are recipes included which are exactly like I had on a recent visit to Sichuan. I especially appreciated the noodle & snack dishes & Gong Bao Chicken.



2. This is a great introduction to Sichuan cooking for "novices". I've never cooked Chinese food before, and it provides detailed enough instructions to get it right. Perhaps more importantly, it gives descriptions of the ingredients you need. I managed most of it at a local Chinese grocery store. A few things are harder to find. You will need to find the ingredients to make any of these recipes, but if you can, then this book is a great investment.



3. Although well written it reminds you of the old adage "ask an engineer the time and he'll tell you how to build a watch". I was looking for more of a recipe book rather than a history of Sichuan cooking.



4. dunlop presents both a good overview and introduction to sichuan cuisine and also a very practical and easy follow to primer to cooking some of its most well-known, and some lesser-known dishes. my only quibble is that i think it would be better to get ingredients by weights, as two leeks (for example) might be large or small depending on where you're buying them. that said, i've yet to get a bad result from this book in a couple of years. and as i've eaten a fair amount of sichuan food in the san gabriel valley outside los angeles, i think i have a good sense of the ballparks in which particular dishes' taste profiles should be. beware of reviews that say "my chinese friend/relative/spouse loved/hated this"--i am an indian and many of my indian friends and relatives can't be trusted with their opinions of indian food; cuisines are not static and there is more than one way of preparing something "authentically".



5. I should preface this review by saying that there really is a lot to like about this book. The author has a warm, friendly voice, and the recipes, which are quite varied and span a large range of flavors despite being all primarily Sichuan in origin, have appetite appeal right off the bat. I enjoy Sichuan food, having discovered it through a childhood neighbor from Sichuan province. When I went away to college, she gave me as a parting gift another book on Sichuan food, Mrs. Chiang's Szechwan Cookbook by Ellen Schrecker. This was before Land of Plenty and was probably the only Sichuan cookbook widely in circulation at the time. I've used it successfully for years.
   
   But, when Land of Plenty came out, surrounded by positive buzz, I didn't want to be behind the times. I immediately rushed out to get it and started cooking from it with fervor, trying out Dunlop's versions of the same foods I used to make from Schrecker's. Now, I do want to keep this review as untainted as possible by my love for the other book, but I just couldn't help but compare the two. And, in my opinion, Land of Plenty is clearly the inferior book.
   
   There are a few reasons why I believe this to be so. First of all, Dunlop's recipes are a bit simplified from their original versions. Not westernized, but a few differences here and there which might not matter to non-Chinese cooks but would be noticeable to a Sichuan person. One example would be Dunlop's recipe for Gong Bao Chicken (one of the few recipes that are superior in this book to Mrs. Chiang's version), using roasted peanuts instead of raw peanuts which are deep fried yourself. Does it really matter in the end? Maybe not, but a Sichuan cook is going to deep fry their peanuts.
   
   Another problematic recipe I can think of having tried recently is for hot and sour soup. Dunlop omits some ingredients that should really be there, like wood ear mushrooms, tofu, and golden needles. Also, strangely, I had a bit of trouble with the green onions. The soup would have to be about boiling to cook them to a point where they didn't clash severely with the other flavors of the soup, but that would have killed most of the vinegar, which is instructed to be added before pouring it over the green onions. Just a curiosity. These recipes are for dishes with which most people have some familiarity, which is why I highlight them, but these small kinks are present throughout, and often times I find myself consulting my older Sichuan cookbook for a second opinion. If you are really into Sichuan food, the two books together will give you all the information you need, as one will have things the other doesn't. But I wouldn't exactly recommend using Land of Plenty by itself to a perfectionist of methodology and authenticity. It comes very close to being the complete authority on Sichuan food, but just doesn't quite cross over. I waver between three and four stars, but I'll round up for the helpful Chinese glossary, basic explanation of flavors and methods, and appetizing, inspiring color pictures.

5 comments about The Steamy Kitchen Cookbook: 101 Asian Recipes Simple Enough for Tonight's Dinner.

1. This is a cookbook to buy! If you read my blog, you know that I am not someone who usually purchases cookbooks. I prefer to purchase books that teach me how to cook rather than being retrained by recipes. But The Steamy Kitchen isn't like other cookbooks.
   
   Here is what makes The Steamy Kitchen a Cookbook worth purchasing:
   * Great Reference Section. The front of the book has a great section that describes equipment and food to cook Asian recipes
   * Pictures. Mouth-watering pictures with EVERY recipe.
   * Unique recipes. This isn't a cookbook with 80 versions of stir-fry with Soy Sauce. This cookbook has awesome recipes from many Asian countries using a variety of interesting (but findable) ingredients.
   * An interesting read. The introductions she gives for each recipe are entertaining and will probably make you laugh.
   * Kid Friendly. These are things my kids really like. My 2 and 4 year-old really enjoyed the recipes for Baked Crispy Chicken, Chicken Adobo and Beef & Broccoli Stir-fry. And there are many more that we want to try. The pictures also come in handy to show your kids the exciting meal you are going to be making.
   * Variations. Many of the recipes include things you can change or substitute for different versions of the dish.
   
   The only negative I see is that some of the sauces contain MSGs which I try to avoid. I picked up some versions without, but I had a hard time finding an Oyster sauce without some version of MSG in it. But, this is a minor point as the rest of the ingredients are fresh and healthy.



2. It teaches while it entertains. Though Jaden was born in Hong Kong, the is not a Chinese cookbook, it is an Asian cookbook featuring flavors from Korea, Thailand, Japan, Vietnam and yes, China.
   
   One of its lessons is that different cultures in Asia have vastly different cuisines. Japanese is not Chinese. Chinese isn't Korean. Another lesson that all Americans need to learn is that stuff on the steam table at the Red Dragon Buffet is far from being Chinese food. It is American food.
   
   The Steamy Kitchen Cookbook has 101 authentic or inspired Asian recipes. It also boasts the most entertaining cookbook introduction I have ever read. Damned clever, in fact. And for you picture gawkers, Jaden is big into food porn, too. Quite the accomplished food photographer, she has packed the 160 pages of the book with tons photos bursting with color and allure.



3. This is the best "Easy Asian" cookbook I've seen. One major draw for me is the fact the recipes don't have a list of random spices/ingredients I would not use otherwise. I have most ingredients on hand, which makes these recipes very doable for "tonight's dinner." The photography is outstanding, some pictures actually make me salivate.



4. I love buying cookbooks. I love the pictures, the recipes, and trying new things. However, not many cookbooks have appealed to me because of their long, complicated recipes, so most of the time, these lovely cookbooks end up sitting on my shelf collecting dust.
   
   A good friend of mine got me this for Christmas, and I literally jumped for joy when I opened the package. Jaden is one of my favorite food bloggers, and I couldn't wait to try out her new recipes.
   
   I feel like she gets it-- who wants to spend 8 hours at work, only to come home and spend another 3 hours on dinner after stopping by the grocery to buy 50 things you didn't have and are only going to use once? She gets that I need dinner now, I want it good, and I want it to only LOOK like I spent a lot of time on it. This book is perfect. Her recipes are fresh, fun, and very simple. I've made some good stuff in a dinky studio kitchen (with no oven), and my husband is happy after a long day at pharmacy school. I HIGHLY recommend it, even for your kitchen-fearing friends!
   
   I also bought this book for a friend of mine who lives in Florida. I told her no excuses about not being to cook Asian food; if Jaden can do it, she can!



5. I love this cookbook. But not only that, I cook from this cookbook. And so far, every dish I've made (about 10 so far) has been a success. No flops. I can't say that about many of my other cookbooks. I worried that the cookbook would be a duplication of her blog, but it isn't. These are really good, authentic tasting recipes that make sense. They use shortcuts where shortcuts make sense (like using curry paste instead of hammering out your own). It has tips I have never seen anywhere else (like folding rice paper wrappers in half before rolling to make summer rolls easier to make). I just can't say enough about it. I highly recommend it.