TOPICS INCLUDE: Ponzu sauce; Spoon measurements; Next Food Conference; Seafood articles kudos; Qufu and Mt. Tai; Keeping count; An apology

by Jacqueline M. Newman

Letters to the Editor

Summer Volume: 2016 Issue: 23(2)

EDITOR:
Am unsure if this is the place for this question, but is Ponzu Sauce Chinese or Japanese; and if Chinese, where can I get its recipe?
TONG HUA: The answer depends upon which year you are talking about; and we do have an easy recipe. You may know, and you should, that the Japanese did rule Taiwan for almost sixty years. In those years this sauce was commonly used, is easy to make, and we note its popularity is on the rise again. To do so, take half cup of a good thin soy sauce, add two tablespoons of home-squeezed lemon juice, filtered or not as desired. Then add six tablespoons of tangerine juice, again filtered or not, and do mix well. That is it. Use it in salads, fish dishes, more, and enjoy!

TO NEWMAN:
Can you explain to this Lee lady why you capitalize the word Tablespoon, and give the teaspoon a small letter?
MIRIAM LEE: We do it for quick reader recognition. When readers are in a hurry, they do not make mistakes selecting the correct measuring spoon; it is that simple.

From EDDIE in Brooklyn:
Heard you would be going to the next Chinese food meeting in Kyoto. Curious how you enjoyed the last one Qufu? Also, tell us about Mount Tai; and was it your first trip there?
EDDIE: Word gets out quickly, and we did get more than a half dozen queries about the annual food meeting in Qufu and the upcoming one in Kyoto next year. To date and to our knowledge, they have not finalized the exact dates yet. As to Qufu, we did very much enjoy, and did get to Mt. Tai, and loved that, too, though may have been heard complaining; there never is enough time in most places, and that was true where Confucius was born, read about that in the next letter. We also did learn that the Shandong Provincial Government will build a tourist attraction and cultural resort some twenty-five kilometers away in Lu Yuan Village, southeast of Qufu. A tall statue is already there designed by the Chinese sculptor Wu Xianlin in Confucian Hall at the foot of the mountain; but we did not see it.

In Qufu, we did get to the Kong Mansion, the Cemetery of Confucius, walked on Gulou Street which is the main tourist trek not too far from the Shangri-La Hotel where most of the conference was held. Yes, we did get to Mount Tai and to the Jade Emperor Peak some five thousand meters high. We also stayed over night on Mt. Tai, went to an important ceremonial center dating back to Paleolithic times where religious worships were held and saw a small ceremony there. Mt. Tai is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, so named in 1987; that ceremony honored Confucius, and it was highly ritualized.

On Mt. Tai, we was many stone inscriptions and temples including The Temple of the God of Mount Tai and The Azure Clouds Temple. They and the many mountain peaks are written about frequently, as are its tablets and rock formations; all most impressive. And as to how we got there, we went up by bus, boarded the cable car, and went the rest of the way on foot. Our guide, this magazine’s China Correspondent, had made this trek all by foot years earlier. Now, there are more than seven thousand steps making it lots easier. We went down walking part way, taking the cable car and bus as we had come. On Mt Tai, we were awakened before six in the morning, hiked the last half hour, and did see the sun rise. It was cloudy at first, but did clear later; and seeing it near the horizon was a magnificent site.

To the editor:
Love the articles on sea foods; do keep these treasures coming.
To all who wrote: More than ninety percent agreed, the rest asked for similar attention to fruits and vegetables. Several said they were allergic to sea foods and that was why they begged attention to red meats. We are working on these topics.

To those who asked us to keep count:
For you: To date, there have been some eighty five issues of Flavor and Fortune since its inception; and that was in 1994. Included were almost nine hundred articles contributed by nearly one hundred forty different authors, close to five hundred books reviewed, as well as more than two hundred seventy restaurants, and close to two thousand recipes were printed between these covers. Thanks go to all who have expressed appreciation, and whose contributions were done pro bono.

HELLO:
Began my subscription asking about Song Dynasty foods, as we were planning an event sponsored by my local medieval re-enactment group. I am a bit embarrassed that I did not report back as intended; and did not take pictures of the dinner for sixty my husband prepared. Thought about that when it was all over. Before this event, had lots of trouble finding recipes documented from the Song Dynasty. Upcoming, in 2016, a much smaller group plan to have a dumpling-making party in celebration of the Year of the Monkey. Would you want those pctures?
KIM: We are sorry, too, and invite you to make amends sending the intended dumpling pictures, and your recipe sources. Need ideas? Look though back issues and the web index for ideas.

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