My Cooking and My Garden: Winter In Peking

Chinese Cooking In China

Four grouped according to the four main geographical divisions of China: South, North, East and West-Central.
Although China is a continental country where the seasons are quite distinct, the spring and autumn are often very short. Before you have even begun to enjoy the first flush of spring, the temperature has risen, and the long, hot summer began. September and October are often windless and brilliant with sunshine, yet just as you start to enjoy the mellow, golden autumn, the north wind blows, the lakes and canals freeze overnight, and you are in the grip of what appears to be an arctic winter. Even in the West-Central and Eastern China, neither winter or summer is by any means temperate or short. In grouping dishes for the different seasons, there are a few which can only be served in the summer or winter, but the spring and autumn dishes need not be so strictly classified and can be movable. In making my selection, I have been guided by what is most characteristic of the season and area, and also not too complicated and time consuming to reproduce. Our pilgrimage through the Chinese culinary world starts from Canton, where most westerners enter China from Hongkong. (Chinese Food, by Kenneth Lo)

It is winter in Australia right now, I hope cooking some of the winter dishes from one of the provinces in China is going to be good.
The recipes from North China for winter, particularly Peking, are friendly and the materials can be found in the Supermarkets or Chinese grocery stores.

Cooking from North China, the recipes by Kenneth Lo

Peking in the Winter
Hot and Sour Soup with Shrimps
Peking Casserole of Beef
Empress Meat Pudding in Soya and Herb Sauce
White Braised Cabbage
Fried Pig's Liver with Tree-fungi
Aromatic Crispy Duck
Kao Li Frosted Bean Paste Balls

Seven recipes for seven dishes are for traditional Chinese communal meals for four to ten people. If you have more people you have to cook other dishes, from seven varieties of dishes become eight or nine instead of increasing the quantity of the dish/every dish.

Aromatic Crispy Duck

1 duckling about 2 kg
Soya and herb sauce
Vegetables for deep frying
1/2 cucumber
10 spring onions

Cut spring onion and cucumber into 5 cm, segments
Clean duck thoroughly. Immerse in a pan full of boiling water and simmer for 10 minutes. Drain
Heat the soya and herb sauce in a large pot when it starts to boil, put in the duck and simmer for 30 minutes. It will turn very brown and aromatic. Drain thoroughly.
Shortly before serving, heat the oil in the deep-fryer until breadcrumb sizzles in it. Lower the duck into the oil in a wire basket. Cover and allow it to deep fry for 10 minutes, or until the skin of the duck is quite crisp.
Drain and bring to the table in a hot serving dish. Loosen the flesh and kin of the duck with a knife.
The duck meat and skin should be eaten with steamed buns in sandwich fashion, together with a strip or two of cucumber and spring onion. Plum sauce, or soya chilli sauce as dips should be placed in small saucers around the table.

Cooking Preparation For The Duck