Chow Chung's Kitchen

by: Chow Wei Che

Hong Kong China: Cosmos Books, Ltd. 2006, $55.00, Paperback
ISBN: 988-211-614-0

Reviewed by: Jacqueline M. Newman
Winter Volume: 2007 Issue: 14(4) page(s): 21

Chow Wai Che's chef offers talented and terrific tri-lingual recipes; in Chinese, English, and Tagalong (Indonesian). This chef has appeared on television and radio, and done many in-person demonstrations; and seems to be the darling of many restaurant critics. He would be ours if more information in the book was not limited to Chinese. Do not despair. Even with some inconsistencies in recipe titles, making them can yield wonderful results.

Most recipes are more unusual than ordinary and more tasty than hum drum. His shrimp dumplings (har gao) are juicier than most; they include diced fatty pork and an equal amount of bamboo shoots mixed with lots of shrimp.

There are recipes for Fried Banana Dough with Mashed Lotus Seed, Brussel Sprouts Stuffed with Shrimp Paste, Shrimp and Bitter Gourd Casserole, and Chicken Roll Stuffed with Banana and Asparagus. All the recipes are teaching tools that provide Chinese culinary knowledge and terrific taste rewards. Ignore the few translation troubles and do rejoice in the wonderful results.

Brussel Sprouts Stuffed with Shrimp Paste
Ingredients:
6 large Brussel sprouts
3 Tablespoons crab eggs (roe)
1/3 pound shrimp, shells and veins removed, and chopped into a paste
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon sugar
4 individual teaspoons cornstarch
dash ground white pepper
Preparation:
1. Slit cross in the sprouts and steam them for five to eight minutes. Remove them, remove the center part of each and use for another purpose; then let them cool. Spread a few leaves out to make the sprout look like a flower, and put one teaspoon of the cornstarch into the center of each one.
2. Scald the crab roe in very fine strainer for half minute, at most (we left this raw, but did bring it to room temperature).
3. Mix shrimp paste with salt, sugar, one teaspoon of the cornstarch and the ground white pepper, then stuff this into the hollowed out cornstarch dusted Brussel sprouts.
4. Put crab roe on top, and steam for eight minutes.
5. Pull a very few leaves out and put the sprouts on individual plates (see illustration). Mix remaining two teaspoons of cornstarch with half cup of water, bring to the boil, and pour over the filled sprouts, then serve.

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