Kung Fu Eats

Pinyin: fǎ shì dàn juàn

Chocolate Covered Meat Floss Sushi

This dish was a calculated risk and I gotta say we came out on the losing side. My interest was piqued and then the waitress told me that the brown sauce was chocolate I couldn’t resist. I wanted to know how scrambled egg, meat flosh, cucumber, and chocolate combined to make a sushi like appetizer. The answer unsurprisingly was not very well at all. Meat floss in any dish is always a bit awkward, it’s a bit sweet, but also a bit savory, it’s meat but doesn’t feel like meat, very strange stuff indeed. It wasn’t helped at all by the chocolate.

No worries though for the average diner, I’m guessing that only this one tucked away restaurant in Jing’An District in Shanghai serves this dish. The real moral of this story is that you should try new and interesting things, including food, even when they might not seem all that great. There’s always a chance you’ll be pleasantly surprised. This wasn’t one of them, but maybe I’ll have better luck next time.

Pinyin: mǎ qiáo xiāng gān diào guō

Spicy Smoked Tofu

I’ve raved and raved about tofu before, so it should be obvious that I dig it. I know lots of people say they don’t like tofu but seriously there are hundreds of kinds of tofu out there, something for everyone so to speak.

The smoked tofu in this dish has a unique flavor, earthy and wooden, it reminds me of a deep dark dank forest which is a pretty unique flavor. A fair number of spicy peppers were added that give it a bit of bite, and like all good Chinese dishes a fair variety of vegetables and a few mushrooms were added for good measure.

I believe this is a Hunan style dish and is common throughout those Chinese restaurants here in Shanghai. Smoked tofu can be found in a number of dishes, again primarily coming from Hunan province or nearby areas. It’s a unique flavor and might not be for everyone, but it’s different and worth trying at least once.

Pinyin: tāi mó zhēn jūn huì dòu huā

Mixed Mushrooms and Tofu

Two of the most widely used and staple ingredients of Chinese cooking come together in this dish to form a savory dish great for a cold and blustery night.

Everyone knows about the relationship between Chinese and tofu, it’s a huge thing here and comes in all shapes and sizes. In this case it’s a very very soft almost pudding like substance that has a very mild flavor. The other major ingredient used here are mushrooms. The Chinese, no doubt through trial and error have discovered hundreds of kinds of edible mushrooms and this dishes uses at least three varieties, all of which you aren’t likely to see at your average American grocery store.

This dish comes together nicely, it’s fairly mild in taste, neither the mushrooms or tofu come on too strong and a bit of salt/MSG was added for flavor. The sauce/broth was thickened up quite a lot and really holds the heat nicely so it’s sure to keep you warm throughout your meal. It’s vegetarian but your carnivorous friends are likely to enjoy it equally well.

Pinyin: xiāng là bā zhuǎ yú

Sweet and Spicy Octopus

I love octopus and this was a surprisingly great dish. It was sweet but not startling sweet like your average sweet and sour dish, and it wasn’t sour it was spicy and balanced nicely against the sweetness.

The chef added sauteed onions which I always love and add great flavor. Also added were mushrooms of varying varieties that are another one of my favorites. Me and my dining partner were both sort of surprised that the octopus in the dish were absolutley huge and you can see that in the picture here to some extent. Normally baby octopus are used and generally fit in your mouth in just a single bite, not the case here each piece was several bites.

As a fan of octopus I had to give this dish a try and I wasn’t disappointed. The flavours were unique and fit my palate quite well. I think most people would like this dish once they get past the slightly odd sight of seeing tentacles in their food, which if you’ve been in China for any amount of time shouldn’t be too hard.

Pinyin: yān sǔn là ròu

Spicy Smoked Pork

This spicy smoked pork is to die for. It reminds me a lot of dried beef (it is in fact basically dried pork), it’s salty and has a nice cured meat flavor to it. I’m sure it’s incredibly unhealthy for you, but hey you only live once right?

The dish is composed of slices of this smoked pork, a rather strange kind of dried mushroom and of course peppers that give it that added kick. The pieces of pork are really half meat and half fat, the fat is what adds the most excellent flavors to the dish and if you want to be healthy it’s easy enough to avoid eating.

This style dish/meat is quite often served at Hunan style restaurants. There are many dishes available that use the 腊肉 and you really should try it. Again probably isn’t the healthiest, but if you like smoked fish, or beef jerky and can stomach spicy things this is the dish for you.

Pinyin: yù mǐ lào

Fried Corn Pie

For all the corn lovers out there this dish is a must try. It’s quite simple as you can see. The corn is fried somehow that it sticks together and turns out a lot like a cookie. A few peas are added just for good measure and the chef tops it off with a little mayonnaise or salad dressing.

The dish is most certainly vegetarian but its hard to say it’s healthy. It’s not really an appetizer but its not really a complete dish either. I order it from time to time just cause I like it. Its got the sweetness of the corn with a rather unique form factor.

I highly recommend this dish if you’ve got company coming from out of town who might not appreciate some of the more authentic Chinese food but still want local food. It’s safe both cause it’s vegetarian and you can see it’s only corn and it’s sweet so most Western palates will appreciate it. It’s also relatively easy to eat with chopsticks, or even hands if chopsticks prove too difficult. I’m guessing kids will love this one too!

Pinyin: sù bā xiān

Snow Peas, Sesame Oil, and More

At one time I really was not a fan of sesame oil, but those nutty flavors have really grown on me. Sesame oil is used a fair bit in Chinese food so you have the opportunity to encounter it in a variety of dishes.

In this case the dish is primarily fresh uncooked snow peas and a few other vegetables including green and red peppers and bean sprouts. It’s an all vegetarian appetizer served cold and crispy. Sesame oil is really the primary spice added so it’s got a strong presence in the dish but isn’t overwhelming.

Overall I like it a lot. I’m trying to eat healthier and this is an excellent vegetarian dish to help that along. Snow peas are uncommon enough to add nice variety and get you warmed up for the rest of the meal.

Pinyin: xiè fěn zhēng jiǎo

Crab and Pork Steamed Dim Sum

Something a bit different today. A little Dim Sum. Dim Sum as Americans know it, is more of a Cantonese style food. Dim Sum is essentially the Chinese equivalent to finger food and it’s usually eaten while drinking tea. Lots of time the dishes are sweet and dessert like in nature, although that’s obviously not always the case.

These steamed dumplings are filled with a mixture of pork and crab meat (which means they are salty/savory rather than sweet). I’m not usually one for liking crab, but I do like Dim Sum. Since I don’t much care for crab I couldn’t say I loved the taste of these little dumplings. The crab flavor was quite strong, the outer noodle shell was nice, not too chewy, yet it didn’t just fall apart. And the little orange red things on top were just for looks essentially.

I’d definitely recommend trying some Dim Sum while your in China, there are tons of options available. For me I won’t be getting these crab dumplings again, but hey if you enjoy crab, more power to you.

Pinyin: XO jiàng cǎo xiā

Shrimp with XO Sauce

Shrimp are just damn delicious so they frequently make their way to my dinner table. I’ll give this dish bonus points for looking great as well as tasting great. I’ve never been huge on presentation one way or the other, growing up eating home cooked American meals of potatoes and canned vegetables there wasn’t a lot in the presentation department, but I’m learning to appreciate it.

The shrimp have been sliced along the bottom from head to tail and they’ve been cooked in XO sauce. Then stacked nicely on this dish with just a few sprigs of onion added on top for some color contrast. XO sauce has a unique flavor that is sweet and salty and in my opinions suits an American palate quite well.

It was a bit strange that the shrimp were sliced along the bottom. It allowed the juices to sink in which was nice, but it was slightly different getting the shells off, more difficult but not impossible. This dish was a definite win and I won’t hesitate ordering and then devouring it.

Update: A similar dish I wrote about before: 油爆虾 Shrimp Stir Fried in Soy Sauce

Pinyin: dōng běi jiàng jǐ gǔ

Braised Pork Spine

A dish fit for a man. Meat and bones greasy and fried, not much in the way of spices or strange flavors, just meat and grease.

I’ve never had braised pork spine before, it seems as though it’s a lot like pork ribs, but more difficult to eat. Trying to dig in to the corners and crevices while keeping the cheeks clean was basically impossible. After the fact I’m not really sure that you could give the bones to a dog but I’m sure they’d appreciate it.

The only real complaint I had was that it was a bit greasy, overall the dish was just OK, nothing to rave about.