A friend invited me to yum cha, and I thought we were just going for tea. You know, a pot of hot tea, maybe a cookie on the side. Then we sat down at the restaurant, and the carts started coming out. Steamer baskets piled high with all kinds of things I couldn’t name. By …
The first time I tried cheung fun, I had no idea what I was ordering. I pointed at something on a dim sum cart that looked like white noodles rolled up. When it arrived, it was slippery, soft, and covered in sweet soy sauce. I asked my friend what it was. She said, “Rice noodle …
The first time I saw an eggette, I thought it looked weird. Little egg-shaped bubbles on a waffle? Seemed like a gimmick. Then someone handed me a fresh one, straight out of the iron. Crispy on the outside. Soft and chewy on the inside. Slightly sweet. Not too heavy. I finished it in about thirty …
The first time I saw white cut chicken, I wasn’t impressed. It looked so plain — just pale chicken on a plate. No brown skin. No heavy sauce. Just some ginger and scallion on the side. I thought, “This is it?” Then I took a bite. The meat was tender, juicy, clean tasting. The ginger-scallion …
I’ve been in Guangdong for five days now, and I can’t keep up with all the sweet soups alone. The first time someone ordered one for me, I almost said no. I was full. Stuffed from a huge dinner. But my friend insisted. “It’s soup,” she said. “Sweet soup. You’ll like it.” A small bowl …
The first time someone ordered roast squab at a Chinese banquet, I was confused. It looked like a tiny roasted chicken. Maybe a pigeon? I wasn’t sure. I’d never had squab before. Honestly, I didn’t even know what squab was. Baby pigeon, apparently. That sounded… not great. But everyone at the table was excited. So …
The first time I saw hong shao rou, I thought it looked like candy. The pork belly was dark, glossy, almost sticky. Cubes of melt-in-your-mouth fat clinging to tender meat. The sauce was thick and sweet-savory, coating everything like a caramel glaze. I’d never had anything like it. Western pork dishes are usually roasted or …
The first time I saw a pork chop bun, I wasn’t impressed. It looked like a bread roll with a piece of fried pork sticking out. That’s it? No lettuce, no tomato, no sauce? But my friend insisted. “Just try it,” she said. I took a bite. The bun was crusty on the outside, soft …