Guizhou Spicy Chicken-贵州辣子鸡, is very different from the dry, crisp laziji associated with Chongqing and Sichuan. The defining ingredient is cíbā làjiāo—a coarse paste of softened dried chilies, ginger and garlic fried in oil—which is cooked with the chicken until the meat becomes deeply infused with chile and coated in a rich, glossy red mixture.
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Ciba Chili Paste gets its name from its sticky, cohesive texture, which resembles freshly pounded glutinous rice cake (cíbā). Unlike dry chili flakes or smooth purées, it is a coarse, moist paste made by rehydrating whole dried chilies and pounding or grinding them together with fresh ginger and garlic, then slowly frying the mixture in oil until fragrant and glossy.
Continue reading “Cíbā Chili Paste (Cíbā Làjiāo, 糍粑辣椒) “The more I cook Hunan food, the more I realize that some of its most distinctive flavors don’t come from complicated recipes. They come from the ingredients that Hunan cooks keep on hand. Duo Jiao (剁椒), chopped salted chilies allowed to ferment until they become tangy, savory and deeply aromatic, is one of those ingredients.
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This vibrant Hunan seafood dish pairs shrimp with Duo Jiao—a pickled relish made from crisp green chilies, garlic, and ginger. Flash-fried over high heat, the chilies create an aromatic, savory-sour glaze that clings to the shrimp without the need for heavy cornstarch sauces.
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This Hunan pork belly recipe was suggested by a friend and is adapted from a recipe by UK based site, School of Wok. It’s delicious.
This dish belongs to a family of Hunan stir-fries known as xiao chao rou (小炒肉), literally “small stir-fried pork.” There are many variations, but the combination of fatty pork, fresh green chilies and fermented black beans is classic Hunan cooking.
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This braised chicken recipe comes from Jennifer Brennan’s wonderful The Original Thai Cookbook, 1981, one of the pioneering English-language books that introduced authentic Thai cooking to Western home cooks. Brennan describes first discovering Gai Tung after an afternoon wandering Bangkok’s bustling Sam Peng market, where a simple neighborhood restaurant served her a fragrant braised chicken over rice that became one of her most memorable meals. After making this recipe for years, I understand exactly why it left such an impression.
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I learned how to make demi-glacé from the legend Anthony Bourdain. I followed his wonderfully written step-by-step instructions in his Les Halles Cookbook, and the results were excellent.
Demi-glace is one of the foundations of classic French cooking. Made by slowly reducing rich brown stock until its flavors become deeply concentrated, it adds remarkable depth, richness, and body to sauces, stews, braises, and even soups. Just a spoonful can transform an ordinary pan sauce into something that tastes like it came from a fine restaurant.
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When you think of Spaghetti al Pomodoro, you probably picture a slow-simmered sauce of crushed San Marzano tomatoes cooking for hours until rich and dark.
At Ristorante Quattro Passi, the three-Michelin-starred restaurant perched on the cliffs of Nerano along Italy’s Amalfi Coast, Chef Fabrizio Mellino proves that sometimes less really is more.
His signature Spaghetti al Pomodoro abandons canned tomatoes, heavy purées, and long cooking times altogether. Instead, sweet cherry tomatoes, whole cloves of garlic, fresh basil, extra virgin olive oil, and just enough water are gently simmered together, creating a fragrant golden tomato broth rather than a thick sauce.
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After years of making Chinese recipes at home, I found myself measuring the same ingredients over and over. Eventually I started mixing a jar of sauce ahead of time. It isn’t meant to replace the unique seasonings that make each recipe different, but it gets me halfway there on a busy weeknight.
Continue reading “Three Foundation Sauces That Make Chinese Cooking Easier at Home”
This pasta from Norcia, in the Umbria region of Italy, is made with a crumbled fresh sausage which is traditionally made without fennel and seasoned with garlic and white wine.
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