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Chinese Food Recipes for the Holidays
'Talk of the Nation' Features Recipes from Ming Tsai, Joan Nathan
 Listen to the Talk of the Nation discussion.
 Mushroom and Leek Spring Rolls
Mint Dipping Sauce
Red-Roast Duck With Baby Bok Choy
Cambodian Chicken Soup
Matzah Balls with Fresh Ginger
Brisket in Sweet-and-Sour Sauce
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Ming Tsai's spring rolls. Courtesy Ming.com |
Dec. 23, 2002 -- What comes to mind when you think of the traditional Christmas dinner? Roast goose? Honey-baked ham? Yorkshire pudding? How about egg foo yung? Not everyone, of course, celebrates Christmas. And for many of those who don't, it's often been a challenge to find a good meal on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. And therein lies the story of an interesting and symbiotic relationship.
Talk of the Nation host Neal Conan and two cooking experts discuss the merging of Chinese and Jewish cultures and its affect on American cuisine. Joan Nathan is author of Jewish Cooking in America. And Chinese-American chef Ming Tsai is owner of the Wellesley, Mass., restaurant Blue Ginger and author of Blue Ginger Cookbook.
Ming -- winner of the James Beard Foundation's award for Best Chef in the Northeast in 2002, and star of shows on TV's Food Network including East Meets West -- shares recipes for two of his signature dishes: mushroom and leek spring rolls and red-cooked duck. The recipes are reprinted with permission from Blue Ginger Cookbook (Clarkson Potter, 1999).
Mushroom and Leek Spring Rolls
Says Ming Tsai: "These rolls are a Blue Ginger favorite, developed after a stay in France, where I took my postgraduate degree in leeks. Such a great onion! The rolls are easy to fill and form. Just make sure to drain the filling thoroughly to ensure a dry, cohesive mixture and to seal the rolls well with the egg wash so they won’t break open during frying."
Makes 10 rolls
2 tablespoons canola oil, plus more for frying the rolls
1 tablespoon finely chopped garlic
1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh ginger
2 serrano chiles, stemmed and finely chopped
1/2 cup hoisin sauce
2 cups thinly sliced shiitake mushroom caps
2 large leeks, white parts only, well washed and julienned
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro
1 cup chopped scallions, white and green parts
1 cup bean threads, soaked in warm water to cover until soft, 10-15 minutes, drained well and cut into 2-inch pieces
1 1-pound package lumpia/menlo wrappers or egg roll or spring roll wrappers
1 egg beaten with 1/4 cup water, for egg wash
Heat a wok or skillet over high heat. Add the oil and swirl to coat the pan. When the oil is hot, add the garlic, ginger and chiles and cook until soft, about 2 minutes. Do not allow the aromatics to burn. Reduce the heat to medium, add the hoisin sauce and cook until it loses its raw bean taste, about 3 minutes. Add the shiitakes and leeks and cook until soft, about 6 minutes. Season with the salt and pepper to taste, transfer the mixture to a strainer and with a large spoon press the mixture well to drain it thoroughly. Cool.
Transfer the filling to a medium bowl and add the cilantro, scallions and bean threads. Stir to blend.
Dampen a kitchen towel. Place five wrappers on a work surface with 1 point near you and cover the remainder with the cloth to prevent drying. Place about 1/4 cup of the filling on the wrappers just above the near corners. Bring the corner nearest you up over the filling and roll halfway; brush the edges with egg wash, then fold in the side corners and continue rolling to enclose the filling completely. Roll as tightly as possible. Cover with the cloth and allow the rolls to rest, seam side down; this permits the egg to set. Fill and roll the remaining wrappers, cover and allow the rolls to rest at least 2 minutes.
Fill a fryer or medium pot one-third full with the oil and heat to 350 degrees over high heat. Add the spring rolls 4-6 at a time and fry them until golden, turning as needed, about 5 minutes. Remove them with a slotted spoon and drain on paper towels. Slice the rolls on the diagonal and serve hot with the dipping sauce.
Mint Dipping Sauce
Makes about 1/4 cup
1/4 cup fresh mint leaves cut into thin ribbons
1 teaspoon sugar
1/4 cup soy sauce
Juice of 1 lemon
In a small bowl, combine the mint, sugar, soy sauce and lemon juice. Stir to dissolve the sugar and serve.
Red-Roast Duck With Baby Bok Choy
Ming Tsai says, "This spectacularly fragrant duck dish celebrates Chinese red roasting and French confit making. A red roast, which is in fact a super braise, derives its special character from the use of dark soy sauce (the source of the duck's "red" color), Shaoxing wine and rock sugar. The duck, red roasted until its meat is velvet, ends up confit-like, but without the stewing in fat that preparation entails. I've added baby bok choy and some chile heat to the duck, which underline the dish's Asian origins and ensure that people who eat it will be very, very happy!"
Serves 4
1 bottle dry red wine
2 cups Shaoxing wine, or 1 cup dry sherry
1 cut dark soy sauce
3 cups soy sauce
4 cups water
1 large duck, about 6 pounds
2 boxes (about 3 pounds) rock sugar, or 2 cups dark brown sugar
1 5-inch piece fresh ginger, cut into 1/4-inch slices
1 whole head garlic, unpeeled and halved horizontally
2 bunches scallions, white parts sliced into 3-inch lengths, green parts sliced 1/8 inch thick
2 star anise
4 Thai bird chiles
2 cinnamon sticks
8 baby bok choy, halved and cored
1. In a large, deep pot, combine the wines, soy sauces, and water. Bring to a boil over high heat and add the duck. If the liquid doesn’t cover the duck, add more water. Bring to a boil again, then reduce the heat and simmer, skimming the liquid until no more scum forms, about 30 minutes.
2. Add the rock sugar, ginger, garlic, long scallion pieces, star anise, chiles, and cinnamon sticks. Stir to dissolve the sugar and taste the liquid for sweetness. It should be pleasantly sweet; if not sweet enough, add more sugar. Place a second pot or stainless steel bowl half-filled with water into the first to keep the duck submerged and simmer until the duck is very tender and almost falling from the bone 2 1/2 to 3 hours. Do not overcook or the meat will come apart. During the last 10 minutes of cooking, add the bok choy.
3. Using a large-mesh spoon, carefully remove the duck and bok choy to a platter and cover with foil to keep warm Strain and skim the stock, return it to the pot, and reduce it over high heat until lightly syrupy, about 20 minutes
4. Transfer the duck to a serving platter and surround it with the bok choy. Glaze the duck with the sauce, garnish it with the scallion greens, and serve.
Cambodian Chicken Soup (Adapted from Sokhen Mao by Joan Nathan)
1 four pound chicken
4 tablespoons Thai Basil
5 - 6 cloves garlic, peeled and crushed
3 stalks lemon grass, crushed
5 - 6 lime leaves
1 teaspoon salt or to taste
2 teaspoons sugar
1. Place the chicken in a soup pot. Add water to cover, about 10 cups.
Bring the water to a boil. Add the basil, garlic, lemon grass, lime leaves,
salt and sugar to taste. Cover and simmer about an hour, or until the
chicken pulls away from the bone.
2. When the chicken is cool enough the handle, pull the chicken meat away
from the bone and peel it into strips. Put it back in the chicken and serve
with ginger matzah balls
3. Yield: 10 servings
Matzah Balls with Fresh Ginger
(from Jewish Holiday Kitchen by Joan Nathan)
6 tablespoons chicken soup
2 tablespoons chicken fat or melted pareve margarine
2 teaspoons salt or to taste
1 teaspoon freshly grated ginger
2 tablespoons chopped parsley
1 cup matzah meal
4 large eggs
1. In a large bowl, combine all the ingredients except the eggs. Stir in 1
egg at a time with a wooden spoon until all 4 eggs are incorporated.
Refrigerate a few hours or overnight.
2. Bring an 8 - 10 quart pot of water to a boil. Add a tablespoon of salt.
Wet your hands with warm water and form the mixture into balls the size of
walnuts. Drop into boiling water, cover and let simmer 30 minutes, or until
the matzah balls are fluffy and floating at the top. Remove with a slotted
spoon to bowls of hot chicken soup.
3. Makes about 20 matzah balls.
Brisket in Sweet-and-Sour Sauce
(adapted by Joan Nathan from Levana's Table by Levana Kirschenbaum (Stewart Tabori & Chang, 2002) as it appeared in The New York
Times, Nov. 27, 2002)
1 medium onion, peeled and quartered
1 two inch piece fresh ginger, peeled
6 large cloves garlic
1/4 cup Dijon mustard
1/2 cup red wine
1 1/2 cups Coca-Cola or ginger ale
1/2 cup ketchup
1/4 cup honey
1/4 cup cider vinegar
1/4 cup soy sauce
1/2 cup olive olive oil
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1 star anise
1 tablespoon coarsely ground pepper or to taste
1 six to seven-pound first-cup brisket, rinsed and patted thoroughly dry
1. Heat oven to 350 degrees. Place everything but the brisket into a food
processor, and process with steel blade until smooth.
2. Place brisket, fat side up, into a heavy baking pan just large enough to
hold it, and pour sauce over it. Cover tightly and bake for 2 hours. Turn
brisket over and bake uncovered for one more hour or until for-tender. Cool,
cover brisket and refrigerate overnight in cooking pan.
3. The next day, transfer the brisket to a cutting board, cut off fat and
cut with a sharp knife against grain, to desired thickness. Remove any
congealed fat from the sauce and bring to a boil on top of the stove.
4. Heat oven to 350 degrees. Taste sauce to see if it needs reducing. If
so, boil it down for a few minutes or as needed. Return meat to sauce and
warm in oven for 20 minutes. Serve warm.
5. Yield 12 servings
In Depth
 Read recipes from Joan Nathan for the traditional Jewish dish latkes.
Other Resources
• Get more recipes and cooking information at Ming Tsai's Web site.
• Visit the Web site for the PBS program 'Jewish Cooking in America with Joan Nathan'.
• Read 'Why Jews Love Chinese Food' from www.NewVoices.org, Nov./Dec. 2001.
• Jewish Food.org has many traditional Jewish recipes submitted by online visitors.
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