Chinatowns

by: Jean-Francois Mallet

London UK: JacquiSmallLLP 2015, $30.00, Hardbound
ISBN: 978-1-910254-23-3

Reviewed by: Jacqueline M. Newman
Winter Volume: 2016 Issue: 23(4) page(s): 20

This book has one hundred recipes written in assorted styles and in chapters titled: Starters; Chinese Dumplings; Soups & Broths; Chicken & Quail; Beef; Pork; Duck; Fish & Seafood; Weird & Wonderful; Vegetable, Rice, & Side Dishes; Noodles; Tea; Drinks & Desserts. The ingredients are also in various styles. Many are Cantonese, some Sichuan, and a few from other provinces., and most give preparation and cooking times.

The book was translated by Kate Rignell, and it has a subtitle: Asian Cooking From Around the World in 100 Recipes on its cover and on the title page. Edited by Kathy Steer, with its text by Emmanuele Jary, it was first published in Paris by Hachette Livre, and that was in 2004.

Before the recipes, there is a two-page Introduction about cuisine, culinary areas, and by compass. It also looks at Chinese food in Europe and immigration there and in some places in the world. After the recipes, a two-page two-column recipe index, a single page of Chinatowns around the word, addresses of eight Chinese recipes mentioned, and a partial-page of Acknowledgements (their spelling). This book has a large number of color photographs, none glossy, including a full-page one of every recipe, and many others of food and folk in the mentioned restaurants.

Salt and Pepper Prawns
Ingredients:
1 teaspoon fine salt
1 teaspoon ground Sichuan pepper
1 teaspoon superfine sugar
1 1/2 generous cups flour
20 frozen shrimp, heads and tails left on
chili sauce
cooking oil
Preparation:
1. Mix salt, Sichuan pepper, and sugar in a bowl and set aside.
2. Prepare and heat a deep fryer, put the flour in a shallow dish and dip the shrimp in the flour and carefully lower them into the hot oil and deep fry for five minutes.
3. Drain the shrimp on paper towels. Arrange on a serving dish, then season with the spice mixture. Serve immediately with the chili sauce.

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