Sauce Simmering

Simmering in a spicy sauce is a very strong Cantonese culinary tradition. The food is then cut up and served cold as an appetizer, as a main dish with rice, or even alone as a snack. Ready to eat poultry and meat made this way—from beef tripe to squabs—are sold almost everywhere in small eateries in Canton. The Cantonese name of the spicy sauce is called lo, and the sauce simmered final produces are called lo mein. A variety of Chinese spices is simmered into a concentrated mixture, which is later combined with strong wine, rock candy, and soy sauce. The spices used vary from shop to shop for from chef to chef. Generally, the combination of spices would consist of star anise, ginger, nutmeg, cinnamon, clove, fennel, Sichuan peppercorns, aniseed, white peppercorns, aged tangerine peel, gingerroot, and garlic, plus some “secret” items. The aged tangerine peel can be the most crucial ingredient: it mellows with age and is very expensive. The master sauce is used again and again, over a long period of time.

Deep Frying

This is a technique of cooking ingredients using a large quantity of heated oil. Chinese deep frying differs form the Western version in that the Chinese season the ingredients first, then add an unseasoned coating or batter (The Western approach is that the ingredients are usually not seasoned but the batter is.)

            The most common oil for deep-frying is a vegetable oil such as peanut oil. The amount of oil required depends on the size of the pieces to be deep-fried and the diameter and depth of the wok. Normally four to six cups of oil will reach a depth of two to three inches in a round bottom wok. Deep-frying a whole fowl or fish requires more oil. The oil should be at the proper temperature, not too hot or too cold, or the pieces will be ruined. Rather than use a thermometer to test the oil, the Chinese evolved a simpler method: throw a small piece of scallion green or any tiny piece form a vegetable leaf into the oil. Watch for the following results to determine if the oil is how you want it.

• If the green remains undisturbed, the oil has not been heated sufficiently for any deep frying
• If small bubbles appear around the green slowly, the oil is about 200 – 250 degrees.
• If small bubbles appear around the green immediately with sizzling, the oil is about 275 to 300 degrees.
• If the green sizzles and moves about quickly, the oil is about 325 – 350 degrees
• If the green sizzles noisily and soon turns brown, the oil is about 375 degrees
• If the green turns brown quickly and a haze appears above the surface, the oil is about 400 degrees.

In Chinese deep-frying the medium (325 – 350 degrees) and high (375 degrees) temperatures are mainly used. Low (250 – 275 degrees) temperature is used in deep frying wontons and puff pastries, however, and only when deep frying rice crusts and rice sticks is the smoking hot (400 degrees) oil needed.

If the oil is too cold, heat it further. If it is too hot, add a small amount of cold oil to bring the temperature down. Do not put all the ingredients into the oil at once; this would lower the temperature too suddenly. It is best to introduce them a few pieces at a time. This way the oil temperature is easier to maintain, and the pieces will not stick together.

            Large chunks of food require two deep frying stages: first fry in small batches to a pale yellow color, and drain. Later put all the pieces together back into the heated oil until deep golden. The food is cooked in the first stage to about 75% doneness and the second frying crisps the outside without overheating the interior. This two stage frying process works well because you can do the first frying hours ahead and just finish up prior to serving.

Bird’s Nest Soup:
The chief ingredient in Bird’s nest soup is the nest of the swiftlet, a tiny bird that lives in caves in Southeast Asia. Instead of twigs and straw, the swiftlet makes a nest from its own saliva – the only bird in the world to do so. Harvesting these nests requires great skill – men must balance on tall bamboo poles to grab the nests from inside the dark caves. Like sea cucumber, bird’s nest actually tastes rather bland. Its recent rise in popularity comes from its growing reputation both as a health tonic and an aphrodisiac.