Once again, I read a cookbook without actually making anything in it... (this time mostly because it's due and I need to return it), but I do want to get my own copy at some point. Recipes were written clearly and it seems like they'll be easy to follow. A fair amount of things used recipes from elsewhere in the book, which makes sense (why not repurpose something into other dishes?) ( )

Hsiao-Ching Chou was one of my all-time favorites when she was the food editor and columnist for the Seattle Post-Intelligencer. Unfortunately, the PI discontinued its print edition, but, over the years, I recalled her columns fondly. Imagine my delight when I saw a brief reference to Chinese Soul Food.

Chou begins with a brief but thorough 37-page overview of ingredients, techniques, and equipment. A nice assortment of 80+ recipes follows. These are grouped into seven sections: Dumplings, little eats, rice and
noodles, stir-fries, soups and braises, celebration, and guilty pleasures. Striking photographs by Clare Barboza illustrate the book throughout. An index and table of conversions provide useful information to conclude the volume. The production values of the book are excellent.

One shortcoming that mars many cookbooks is the failure to identify suitable substitutes for esoteric ingredients (i.e., the kind of thing that sets on your shelf for years without use after you bought it for a recipe in a cookbook). Chou suggests substitutes for ingredients you don’t typically use, and she identifies acceptable substitute in some recipes. Her emphasis is on making Chinese cooking accessible to the average cook.

I like a broad range of Chinese dishes, but fried rice is my favorite. I imagine many will roll their eyes at my plebian tastes. The first sections of Chinese Soul Food I turned to were on rice and noodles and stir-fries. I was delighted to see that my approach to preparing fried rice parallels Chou’s, but the differences gave me ideas for experimentation. I was pleased to learn about the role of high heat in making great fried rice. I often despaired that my fried rice wasn’t as hot and flavorful as that served in good Chinese restaurants. The woks used in restaurants hit more than 150 thousand BTUs. At home, the temperature of the average burner is 7 thousand. At least I know why.

Another feature of Chinese cooking I appreciate is the use of optional ingredients. Chou’s recipes direct readers to the optimal approach for each dish. However, many of the recipes provide a starting point for experimentation.

The picture Chou draws in Chinese Soul Food is one of flexibility, simplicity, and variety. This cookbook is a delight. ( )