Pan Fried Ginger and Green Onion Dungeness crab, 干炒薑蔥蟹

This is a very traditional old style recipe from generations down.  You can find this dish in most of the Oceanside restaurants in the Southern China region.  Although there is a wet version serves with noodle, the one you see here is the dry variety without the sauce.  However I can assure you this is a “finger licking good” recipe.

Since we live in West coast of Canada, it is obvious that we are using Dungeness crab.

Dungeness crab is very common and widespread in sandy areas along the British Columbia (BC) coast from the intertidal to a depth of about 180 metres (600 feet).

The meat has a sweet, mild and slightly nutty taste with tender body meat and slightly firmer leg meat.  If you have a chance to visit the Fisherman Wharf in San Francisco or the Pike Market in Seattle, you can see Dungeness crab almost in every corner.  Although you can find Dungeness crab in the entire Pacific North West, the best one is from British Columbia Tofino area off the west coast of Vancouver Island.  The color of the crab is lighter and taste is extra sweet.  They live off the sandy eel grass bottom and they grow to eight inches across the carapace.  The crab develops strong muscle to fight off strong Pacific current.  This is the reason why the crab is very meaty once they reach maturity.

Important Points:

1. Always buy live crab.  Dead crab develops an enzyme to destroy the muscle.
2. Press the leg (not the claw) hard; make sure the shell is rock hard.
3. Buy at least 2 pounds +, three pounds the best.

Pan Fried Ginger and Green Onion Dungeness crab, 干炒薑蔥蟹

Yang Zhou Fried Rice 楊州炒飯

Oh joy!!  Yang Zhou Fried Rice 楊州炒飯 is the most famous Fried Rice in the Chinese culture!  It is so popular that it is served in almost every Chinese restaurant around the world.   This fried rice is a staple among the Chinese fried rice dishes and is comparable to how Americans perceive hamburgers.  Chinese barbecued pork or ‘cha siu’ (叉燒) is an essential ingredient in Yang Zhou Fried Rice.   It is the barbecued pork that gives it its special sweetish flavour.   Despite the name, this dish does not originate from Yang Zhou; instead, the recipe was invented by the Qing dynasty’s Yi Bingshou (175–1815) and the dish was named Yang Zhou fried rice since Yi was once the regional magistrate of Yangzhou.  Still, there have been attempts by people in Yangzhou to patent the dish.

Yang Zhou Fried Rice 楊州炒飯

Mobile Cooking School (無比烹飪學校) Chinese Recipes – back from 1966 by Miss Tam Kwok Mui (譚國梅)

Please check out these recipes!  They are some of the most original and oldest Chinese recipes from Miss Tam Kwok Mui (譚國梅).  Some of recipes don’t exist any more due to method changes or lack of cooking ingredients.  I have kept these recipes for 45 years and it is my honor and privilege to share it with all of you in a PDF file.  These recipes are the foundation of my Chinese cooking knowledge.  Please feel free to download them and let me know how it works!

Mobile Cooking School Chinese Recipes

Paella, Spanish Seafood Rice

Seafood:

1 lb fresh clam

1 lb fresh mussel

1 Dungeness crab (cut up)

½ lb medium size tiger prawn (season with salt, pepper and olive oil)

½ lb fresh fish (salmon, halibut or red snapper)

1 hot chorizo sausage (cut into thin slides)

3 chicken drum sticks (cut into pieces, season with salt and pepper, grill chicken for three minutes to ½ cooked)

Rice:

1 cup long grain rice

1 cup jasmine rice

1 cup basmati rice

1 1/2 cup white wine

1 1/2 cup chicken stock

6 table spoons extra virgin olive oil

2 cloves of garlic (finely chopped)

1 clove of shallot (finely chopped)

Pour olive oil in a large pan under medium heat.  Transfer garlic and shallot in the pan but make sure it doesn’t get burn.  Wash the rice and drain well.  When you can smell the aroma from the garlic, put the rice in the pan and stir well.  Season it with 3/4 tea-spoon of kosher salt and a pinch of black pepper.  In a small bowl heat up the chicken stock and white wine.  Put a pinch of saffron in the liquid but don’t let it boil.  Let it cook below boiling point for at least ten minutes (allow the saffron to release its intense aroma) and transfer it to the pan with the rice in it.  Keep stirring to avoid sticking to the bottom.  Pre heat oven to 375ºF, put a lid over the pan and transfer it in the oven for 30 minutes. 

Take rice out from oven and place seafood, chicken, fish and sausage on top and put it back in oven under 400ºF for another 20-25 minutes.  Now your Paella is ready!

(Option – can pour in more olive oil before serving)

Baked Jumbo Prawns in Herb Butter, Soffrito and Roasted Yukon Potatos

Baked Jumbo Prawn

Jumbo Prawn before baking

This is a very easy and simply recipe and I can assure you to have dinner on the table in 30 minutes or less.  Also you can use left over herb butter for serving steak in the next day.

12x Jumbo Prawns (Green tiger prawn)            4-6 size (4-6 prawns/pound)

Herb butter -

1/4 lb unsalted butter

1/2 tea spoon minced garlic

1/2 tea spoon chopped shallot

1/8 tea spoon Herbes de Provence

1/8 tea spoon chopped fresh (or dry) terragon

1/8 tea spoon Kosher salt

pinch of freshly grounded black pepper

Mix the above ingredients in butter and spread it on top of prawns. Squeeze 1/4 fresh lemon juice all over.   Put it in a pre-heated 475ºF oven for five minutes and switch to broil for another five minutes and serve.

Please see my other page for Soffrito recipe.