This week we’re exploring our final regional cuisine of China, Jiangsu Province (Su cuisine) and Shanghai. Shanghai sits outside of Jiangsu Province with its own classification of cuisine (Hu) and provincial region, but we will still consider a few dishes that are cooked in a Shanghai style. Many of the dishes of Hu cuisine are very similar due to the ingredients and cooking styles being roughly the same between cuisines.
Sometimes, as an outsider to a culture’s regional foods, it can be too easy to lump the different regions together and consider it as a generic representation of the whole. I definitely think that happens with Chinese cuisine in the West, although it does seem to be improving as information and exposure grows. Until I started really diving into Chinese cuisine, all I really knew of Chinese food were the most popular dishes from Guangdong (Canton) and Sichuan provinces, typically with a twist for the American palate. This week, another door was opened for me as I explored Jiangsu. I only touched the surface of the dishes and cooking techniques from this area, but it quickly became clear that things were different. Several of the dishes I made required a couple of days preparation, often with dishes sitting in a dry brine or marinade, then being cooked and cooled before eating. I hope the dishes presented serve as an overall representation of some of the most popular. Su cuisine itself contains four sub-regional styles, so even creating an overview of the cuisine is a little difficult with only a handful of dishes.
With one exception, all of the dishes this week are from the cookbook All Under Heaven. This cookbook is particularly special as it breaks dishes out by region. If you are into Chinese cuisine, this is another great addition to your collection.
The first dish I made was lively bean curd, or huo dòufu. It is a wonderful blend of soft flavors with chicken or pork slivers, wood ear mushrooms, and soft tofu. Sometimes I can get a little nonchalant when it comes to how firm the tofu is, but in this case I do suggest using the soft version. The broth has a higher amount of Shaoxing wine than we’ve seen used previously, and gives the dish a distinct flavor. My version had a bit too much broth, but it was a heck of a way to kick off the week.
Most people have had a salt and pepper shrimp, but I had no idea just how simple of a dish this is. It comes together in minutes. You do have to fry the shrimp, but it’s worth it. The crunch of the corn starch with the salt and pepper is just perfect.
Deanna often tells me I need to add more vegetables, and we had a bag of spinach that was going to take a turn for the worse soon. While not regionally representative of the week, I put to use some of the previous week’s lessons. The simplicity of how many vegetable sides are approach in Chinese cuisine takes a way the “burden” of having to make it. I blanched some spinach leaves and topped it with a little chili oil.
One dish that leaned toward Shanghai was Lion’s Head Meatballs. These are red-braised, meaning they are first fried then braised in a broth with dark soy sauce added. Bok choy is more traditional but I had broccoli on hand. I loved the way the broccoli soaked up the broth. It also reminded me that I need to find more excuses to cook in this clay pot.
Wrapping up the final two dishes for this week, I made two cold preparations Both dishes required some type of brining or marinading, then eating it later. With many Chinese meals involving an array of dishes, this is a great way to cook in advance.
The first is Nanjing salt water duck which is dry brined in salt and spices then left to rest overnight. The next day it is washed and cooked in lightly seasoned water. It is again rested overnight and eaten on the third day.
The final dish was Drunken chicken, aptly named after being poached and the cooked chicken soaked in a broth of Shaoxing wine and chicken broth. I tried warming this up to see if it would change the flavor and it did, in the wrong direction. These dishes are absolutely best served cold. The Shaoxing wine really shines here. Be sure to eat it earlier in a meal or with other lightly flavored dishes. It doesn’t look like much, but the flavor was on point.
This region seems to specialize in slightly more involved cooking techniques, subtly-flavored dishes, and an inclination toward a heavier use of cooking wines. It was major departure from the previous regions we explored and I’m glad it came last. I’ve just finished my exploration of China and I’m already missing it. Next week, we’re off to Portugal, where, thankfully, we’ll find a little but of crossover from where we’ve been. One thing I will take with me from these past few weeks is a preference for food being cut before being served. It’s so much nicer not to have to have a knife at the table.
This post is already long, but I promised a highlight of some other things coming to Home Cooked Happiness. I spent last Sunday taking my first steps into exploring chocolate. I made bonbons filled with Italian almond paste and bars loaded with freshly roasted hazelnuts from the farm near me. Chocolate was messier and more difficult than what I’m used to. I loved it and can’t wait to keep exploring the world of confections.