This dish brings together two of the island’s most popular offerings: mango fruit and fresh seafood in the form of wok-seared shrimp. The mango is such a staple of Taiwanese cuisine that even the Taiwanese government’s official website lauds it as the “most loved and sought-after fruit in the sweltering days of mid-summer.”

[View high resolution image]

Ingredients

• One large mango, cut into into cubes or small chunks
• 8 to 10 large shrimp, peeled and deveined, cut into 3 sections
• 2 medium size zucchini, cut into chunks of the same size as the mango pieces
• ¼ cup green onion, diced
• 1/8 tsp salt
• 1/8 tsp white pepper
• Pinch of sugar

Instructions

1. Marinate shrimp with some salt, cooking wine, and sesame oil, then add 1/8 teaspoons of corn starch and mix.
2. Heat 2 tablespoons of cooking oil in the wok or frying pan, and first sauté the diced green onion until it is fragrant. Then add shrimp and stir-fry for about one minute. Remove the shrimp from the pan and set aside.
3. In the same pan, add and heat one more tablespoon of cooking oil, then stir fry zucchinis for about two minutes and add mango, seasonings and reserved shrimp, continuing to cook for one more minute. This recipe makes 5-6 servings.

Tips

Mango should ideally be ripe, but not too soft. If you discover that your particular mango is excessively sweet, you can eliminate the sugar from the recipe to help balance the flavor. Salt can also be reduced in this dish, if desired. The fruit will enhance the flavor of the food.

Much as beef stew is the comfort food of Americans and Europeans, beef stew noodle soup is the comfort food of the Taiwanese. Though variations on the dish may be found throughout China, Taiwan’s take on beef noodle soup is unique: beef is braised slowly for hours and cooked in chili bean paste sauce.

12/7/2012 – We’ve recently updated this recipe, originally published Jan. 3, 2011, to answer some questions from reader Emie Lee. Thanks Emie for following the blog and sending in your questions!

Ingredients:

• 3-4 lbs of beef shank. In Chinese supermarkets, they sell beef shanks in whole pieces. This recipe calls for 2 medium-sized pieces.
• Package of noodles, either thin or thick depending on your preference
• 1 medium-sized white onion, cut into chunks
• 1 large tomato, cut into chunks
• 8 -10 cloves garlic, peeled
• 6 slices ginger
• 6 Tbs. chili bean sauce or bean sauce (not spicy)*
• ½ cup soy sauce
• ½ cup cooking wine
• 3 star anise pieces
• 3 Tbs. cooking oil
• Water to cover the meat

Instructions:

1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil.
2. Place 2 whole pieces of beef shank into the hot water, then cook for 3 minutes. Remove beef from the pot, rinse the pieces in water, and then cut the beef into large chunks.
3. Heat oil in a wok, adding ginger and garlic first, then stir frying for about 2 minutes. Then add onion to the wok along with bean sauce, and stir fry for another 3 minutes.
4. Continue to stir fry, adding tomato and beef chunks until the meat turns white. Then add soy sauce, cooking wine and star anise. Either use the same wok or transfer to a larger pot with accompanying lid.
5. Add water to cover the meat and cook for about 4 to 5 hours over the low heat until beef is tender. The liquid in the beef stew will be condensed when it is done.
6. Cook noodles as indicated on the package instructions. Add beef stew soup into the noodle, as well as either hot water or soup stock to taste.
7. Garnish the beef noodle soup with fresh cilantro or green onion and serve.

*If you prefer strong flavoring when it comes to beef noodle soup, increase the quantity of chili bean sauce in the recipe.

What kind of chili bean sauce or bean sauce do you recommend? A picture of the packaging would help a lot.

Here is a picture of the type of sauce I use:

When cooking the meat for 4-5 hours, do you use a slow cooker or just a normal pot?  If it’s a slow cooker, what brand or kind would you recommend?

Use a regular pot to stew the meat. A slow cooker will be fine too, but a slow cooker will retain the liquid. By contrast, a regular pot will allow the soup to condense, which enhances the flavor of meat.

Fresh asparagus shines in this healthy, make-ahead vegetable entree.

Ingredients

• 1 lb of green asparagus
• 2 lbs of white asparagus
• 2 hard boiled eggs, finely chopped
• Any salad dressing you like

Instructions

1. Clean the asparagus and discard the tough base parts. Cut the asparagus stalks into the size you prefer. Three to four  inches is a good size for this dish.
2. Bring a pot of water to a boil and then boil half a pound of asparagus at a time, cooking each batch for 1 or 1½ minutes.  Then immediately remove the asparagus from the boiling water and place into a large bowl or pot of ice-water to bring down temperature. This will preserve the crispness of vegetable.
3. Arrange cooked asparagus on a big plate, then top with chopped eggs.  If desired, decorate with colorful vegetables or fruit, such as red and yellow peppers or cherry tomatoes.
4. Top the eggs with dressing before serving. Makes 12 to 15 servings.

Tips

This recipe is great for parties because it can be prepared beforehand and stored in the refrigerator. Keeping the vegetable crisp is the key to this dish. Sometimes it can be difficult to find white asparagus.  You can use Japanese or Persian cucumbers as an alternative or simply green asparagus alone.

[View high resolution image]

You might be familiar with these buns because they resemble char siu bao, the grab-and-go barbecue pork bun that is a Chinese street food staple. This version of the pork bun has more in common with the pork buns you mind find in the night markets or buy in bulk from a bakery in Taiwan. If you’ve never made your own steamed buns but enjoy making bread, you might enjoy the hands-on process of bun-making, perhaps the closest thing in traditional Taiwanese cuisine to baking bread.

PART I: THE FILLING

Ingredients:

Filling

• 2 lb ground pork
• 1 ½ large onion, diced
• 6 shitake mushroom, soaked in water until soft, then diced
• ½ cup dried radish, finely chopped (optional)
• ½ cup dried shallot

Seasoning
a) For the marinade use:

• 3 Tbsp soy sauce
• 1 tsp white pepper
• 1 tsp cooking wine
• 1 tsp sesame oil

b) For the sauce use:

• 3 Tbsp soy sauce
• 3 Tbsp cooking oil
• 1 tsp of tapioca starch + 3 tsp. of water

Instructions:

1. Marinate ground pork with the ingredients listed under section (a) of seasoning ingredient list and mix well.
2. Heat 3 tablespoons of cooking oil, add mushroom and stir fry for two to three minutes over medium heat. Then add ground pork and raise the heat to medium-high temperature. Stir fry until the ground pork has separated and begun to form small pieces.  This should take about four to five minutes.
3. Add onion and continue cooking for four minutes, then mix in the chopped radish. Cook for another minute, add 3 tablespoons of soy sauce, and blend well.
4. Mix in dried shallots and pour in tapioca starch water. Mix well and then turn off the heat. The filling is ready to use.

PART II: THE STEAMED BUN

Ingredients:

• 4 cups all purpose flour
• 1 tsp. yeast
• 1 tsp. baking powder
• 1 tsp sugar
• 1¼ cup water (use lukewarm water in the winter, cold water in the summer)

Instructions:

1. Mix flour, yeast, baking powder and sugar in a big bowl. Add water and stir the contents of the bowl until the mixture thickens into chunks. Next use your hands to knead the chunks into smooth dough.
2. Set the dough in a large bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Set aside until the dough doubles in size after rising.
3. Remove the dough from the bowl, place on a board and cut into 16 to 20 pieces, sized according to your preference. Roll each dough piece into a round shape, with a thick center and somewhat less thick edges. Place 2 or 3 tablespoons of filling in the center of the dough wrapper. Using your thumb and index finger to hold the edge of wrapper and your left hand to hold the bottom of wrapper, turn while making folds counterclockwise. At the end, seal the opening at the top by pressing dough edges together. Note: I place each wrapped bun on a piece of wax paper for easy handling. If you decide to do this, I recommend cutting wax paper into properly sized sheets in advance.
4. Set the buns aside for about 10 minutes and then let them rise again.
5. Boil water and steam the buns for 12 minutes over high temperature. Your homemade steam buns are now ready. Note that this makes 16-20 buns.

Tips

Be sure to cover the dough during this process to ensure that it does not dry out. With practice, the aesthetics of your buns will gradually improve. Your first batch of buns might not be beautiful, but they will be delicious.

[View high resolution image]

Whenever I return home from a trip, especially during the winter, I am always looking forward to eating something delicious and piping hot, but simple to prepare. A steaming bowl of Taiwanese-style noodle soup is usually my go-to choice.

Taiwanese noodle soup is one of my favorite dishes.  You can add many different types of ingredients according to your taste.  If you prefer something simple, you can add only meat to the noodle dish.  If you want something fancy, you can add seafood to it.

Here is a basic recipe that brings together seafood, pork and vegetables for a warm, hearty treat.

Ingredients:

• 12 shrimp, peeled and deveined, marinate with 1/8 tsp of salt and ½ tsp of cooking wine
• 1 or 2 calamari steak pieces, cut into strips
• 1 cup of pork strips, marinate with 1 tsp of soy sauce
• 3 green onion, cut into one inch sections
• 3 cups of shredded cabbage
• 3 Tbsp. cooking oil
• 2 cans of chicken broth 14.5 oz. each approx.
• 4 cups of water
• ½ tsp of white pepper
• ½ tsp of salt
• Some cilantro
• Package of noodles

Instructions:

1. Heat oil over medium heat temperature in a wok or large pot, and sauté the green onion until fragrant.
2. Raise the heat to medium/high and add pork strips, then stir fry until meat turns pale.  Then add shrimp and calamari strips and cook for another minute, following with the addition of 1 teaspoon of light soy sauce. Remove the contents of the wok and set aside.
3. Cook noodles as indicated on the package instructions.  Divide the cooked noodles into four parts and put into big noodle bowls.
4. Pour two cans of chicken broth and four cups of water into the wok and bring to a boil.  Add cabbage, white pepper and salt to taste, then cook until boiled.  Pour the cooked seafood combination back into soup and bring to a boil again.
5. Add soup to the noodles and garnish with fresh cilantro and serve.  Makes four servings.

Tips

I used Taiwanese-style yellow noodles in this recipe. You can choose to substitute these noodles with regular white noodles or homemade noodles if you prefer.

[View high resolution image]

These custard egg tarts are a common fixture at dim sum restaurants across the United States. They originated in Hong Kong in the 1940s and were eventually introduced to China and Taiwan. This recipe produces custard tarts which with a thin, golden crust and light, fluffy filling.

Crust Ingredients:

• 1 cup flour
• 3 oz cream cheese
• 1 stick of margarine (4 oz.)

Filling Ingredients:

• 1 cup milk
• 3 eggs
• 1/2 cup (or 1/3 cup to taste) sugar

Instructions:

1. Mix crust ingredients and use the dough to line a 12-cup muffin tin.
2. Beat the eggs with a fork and strain with a mesh strainer. Add milk and sugar to the egg mixture and mix well. Note: avoid creating bubbles in the mixture to ensure smooth consistency in the tart.
3. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
4. Pour the batter into the cups, filling 3/4 of each cup with the mixture.
5. Bake for 20 minutes.

Removal Instructions:

Cover the baking tin with a cutting board. Hold the sides of the board to the tin, flip the pan over and then lift the pan. The tarts will be face down on the cutting board and ready to move to a serving platter.

[View high resolution image]

Ingredients:

• 1 lb ground pork
• 1 ½ lb cabbage, finely chopped
• 4 stalks green onion, chopped
• 2 Tbsp. ginger root, minced
• 1 package dumpling wrappers (approximately 45 pieces)

Seasoning Ingredients:

• 2 Tbsp. soy sauce
• 2 Tbsp. sesame oil
• ½ tsp white pepper powder
• ¼ cup water (or 1/8 cup of water and 1/8 cup of rice wine)
• ½ tsp sugar
• ¼ tsp salt

Dumpling Serving Sauce:

• ¼ cup soy sauce + 1 tsp. sesame oil + 1 tsp white vinegar + chili sauce (optional)

Instructions:

1. Mix together the ground pork with all of the seasonings. Stir the mixture in the same direction until it is well blended.  This takes about two to three minutes.
2. Add one tablespoon of salt to the chopped cabbage and spread the salt out across the surface of the cabbage with your hands. Let the salted cabbage sit for two minutes. Use a mesh colander or your hands to squeeze the excess water from the cabbage.
3. Mix cabbage, ginger and green onion into the meat mixture and blend well with a folk. Alternatively, you can use your hands to mix the ingredients, but be sure to wash your hands first or wear gloves. At this stage, the dumpling filling is complete, but it is ideal to let the filling sit in the refrigerator for a minimum of one hour so that the ingredients will be well-incorporated.
4. Open the package of dumpling wrappers. Place one heap tablespoon of filling in the center of one wrap, moisten the edge of wrapper, and fold it in half. Press the edge of the dumpling wrapper at its midpoint, then make two folds on each side. Press along the circular edge of the wrapper to seal. There are many ways to make dumplings, and as long as you can seal it, you can make one, two or even more folds in the dumpling skin.
5. Boil plenty of water in a large pot, and then add 20 to 30 dumpling pieces to the pot. Stir gently while cooking and bring to a boil. When the water begins to boil, add one cup of cold water and continue cooking. When the water comes to a boil again and the dumplings are floating in the water, the dumplings are ready. Serve dumpling with sauce (recipe above).

Tip

You can add shrimp to the dumpling filling to enhance its flavor. You can also incorporate different types of vegetables into the mixture, as well as use different types of meat, such as chicken, pork, beef or seafood.  The dumpling making process offers many  delicious opportunities to express your creativity.

Many traditional and old-fashioned Taiwanese desserts feature sweet potatoes or yams as a main ingredient. In this recipe, we use yam to make the puffs. Deep-frying is a way of drawing out the fragrance of the sesame seeds as well as sealing in the sweet taste of the puffs. At Chinese banquets, such as those given for weddings, this dish is often served as dessert. The golden color of the puff symbolizes joy, good fortune and happiness.

[View high resolution image]

Ingredients

• 1 lb yam
• 1 bag of red bean paste (about one pound)
• 1 ½ Tbsp. ground sugar
• 1 ¼ cups glutinous rice flour
• ¾ cup white sesame seeds
• Cooking oil for frying. Note: Depending on the size of the pot, as long as you have enough oil to cover half of the puff, you can turn the puff over to ensure that both sides are cooked to golden brown.

Instructions

1. Peel yam and cut into chunks. Steam for 30 minutes or until soft.
2. Mash yam and add sugar. When the mixture cools, add rice flour, mix well and knead into a smooth dough. Divide dough into 20 small pieces and then roll these pieces into balls.
3. Cut a slit in the corner of the red bean package, squeeze paste out and shape it into a ball. (Note that the ball of red bean paste is for filling and does not have to be perfectly shaped.)
4. Take a piece of dough, press into a flat round shape and place a red bean ball in the center. Seal the dough and roll it into a ball, then roll the ball into a cylinder puff shape.
5. Place sesame seed in a shallow plate and roll the puff in the sesame dish. Gently press the sesame seeds into the puff to ensure that they stay on the puff evenly.
6. Pour frying oil into a deep pot or wok and heat over medium heat. Place the puff into hot oil and deep fry until both sides turn golden brown.
7. Serve piping hot or at room temperature. This recipe yields 20 puffs.

Yam Tip

Yam has orange flesh and reddish-brown or orange skin. It contains more water than sweet potato. For this recipe, using yam instead of sweet potato will enhance the color of the puff, as well as add flavor and texture.

Halloween is not celebrated in Taiwan, but the pumpkin is nevertheless a popular seasonal ingredient. In this recipe, pumpkin is steamed and then seasoned with plum powder.

[View high resolution image]

Ingredients:

• ½ pumpkin (kabocha squash)
• ¼ cup fresh squeezed lemon juice
• 4 Tbsp. sugar
• ½ cup of drinking water
• Plum powder (optional)

Instructions:

1. Steam pumpkin for 20 minutes or until cooked. Chill pumpkin in the refrigerator.
2. Mix lemon juice, sugar and water in a deep dish
3. Slice pumpkin into pieces approximately 1 cm thick. Dip each slice in the lemon juice mixture.
4. Place the sliced pumpkin into a container and pour the remainder of the juice mixture over the pumpkin. Refrigerate for at least two hours.
5. Place pumpkin on a plate. Sprinkle plum powder and serve.

Tip

Sprinkle plum powder over the pumpkin to enhance its flavor. You can also use other items to decorate the pumpkin dish, such as fruits or pickled daikon.

What kind of pumpkin does this recipe use?

This recipe uses a special type of pumpkin called kabocha squash, known also as the Japanese pumpkin. Kabocha squash is hard with knobby surface and a shape similar to that of a squat pumpkin. It is green on the outside, orange on the inside and known for its exceptionally sweet flavor. Kabocha looks like this:

_{Photo courtesy of FotoosvanRobin}

This dish introduces cooked seafood, a staple of Taiwanese dishes, to the sushi roll.

[View high resolution image]

Ingredients:

• 1 lb ground pork or chicken
• 15 pieces shrimp, chopped into a paste
• ¼ cup dried shrimp, pre-soaked in water for 10 min., then minced (optional)
• ½ white onion, finely chopped
• ¼ tsp salt
• 2 tbsp sesame oil
• 2 tbsp cooking wine
• 1 tsp white pepper
• 4 to 5 sheets nori seaweed

Instructions:

1. Mix the ingredients together except for the white onion and seaweed. Use a folk or spatula and stir in the same direction (e.g., clockwise) until the mixture is well-blended. This will take approximately three to four minutes.
2. Add chopped onion to the bowl and then mix well.
3. Lay the seaweed sheet flat on a table and then place approximately 3/4 cup of the mixture on the seaweed. Evenly spread out the mixture over an area that covers three-fourths of the sheet.
4. Roll up the sheet tightly from the side that has filling, as you would make a roll of sushi.
5. Use microwavable Saran wrap to wrap up the rolls and then use a steamer to steam rolls under at a high temperature for approximately 12 minutes.
6. Remove the plastic wrap and slice the rolls into 1 cm-thick pieces. Serve with chili sauce.

Tip

You do not need to wrap the rolls if you wish to cut the rolls into sections and deep-fry the pieces in cooking oil. Deep-fry shrimp rolls over medium heat until golden brown on both sides of the roll.