Menu description written by RST

3.08.04

*Nan hsiang xiao long pao (Soup dumplings in the style of Nan Hsiang)

*Tung rou ta ping (Smoked Pork with Mandarin Pancakes)

*Ta lian huo shao (Cigar-shaped potstickers)

*Bei Kuo Ta La P'i
Bei kuo (north world) (but Bei kuo = Ed's Chinese name) ta (big) la (pull)
p'i (skin)
This is the salad of "noodle" made from a thin "skin" of "congealed" starch.
A northeastern Chinese specialty. The same dish is also available at Dragon
King. The "toppings" (pork slivers, cucumber, and so on) is a chance for the
chef to exhibit knife skills. Dressing is sesame paste and
freshly-reconstituted mustard powder. At Dragon King, the dressing is served on the side. J
Gold never named this dish but describes something that sounds intriguing
similar in an old 1999 article on now-shuttered J.Y.Z. in LA.

*Griddled corn cakes
yu mi (corn) mian (noodle) ti'eh (paste up) ping tzu (little cakes)
According to Brenda, these are sold as street food in Beijing but also eaten
with meals.

*Lamb and cumin
Tzu ran yang rou
Perhaps my favorite dish of the night. Bold lamb meat flavors. Very "silk
road".

*sweet and sour pork
Lieu rou tuan
Lieu rou tuan" is a classic dish; it's better known as "sweet and sour pork".
Good version, not exceptional. Note to self: next time ask for the same
dish with intestines = lieu fey tsang

*yu hsiang chieh tiao (fish-fragrant eggplant sticks)
Eggplant "fries" with "fish-fragrant" sauce
Splendid version here at Ed's.

*Chien (sharp, pointed, acute) chiao (pepper, spices) kan tou fu (dried tofu
"noodles") chao (stir-fry) rou (meat) ssi (slivers)
Interesting. But I'm not sure I am taken by it. The bag of dried of tofu
that Brenda showed us calls "dry tofu" "soy bean noodle" (this is a bit
misleading).

*suan (sour, pickled) cai (vegetable) tung tou fu ("frozen" tofu) (???) pai
rou (white meat i.e. pork belly slices)
A great winter casserole. (At the bottom of this email, I am including stuff
from an earlier email exchange with foodfirst about this dish). Frozen tofu
is literally "frozen", to achieve that granular texture. Once upon a time, I
think that tofu was simply left out overnight in the cold (was there an
element of "accidental" discovery to any of this?). Very comforting. The dish is
about the fermented flavors of the veg, the richness of the thin slices of
belly, the slinky elegance of the glass noodles (fen ssi) and the strange texture
of the frozen tofu.

*Tzu rou (pig meat) tung (boil) fen tiao (= lu tou fen tiao, mung bean starch
noodle)
Very rich casserole of

*tsuey bi yu (fried fish) Tilapia. Forgettable gloppy red sauce. But
otherwise, nicely fried.

*pa pao la chiang Another tired old-school dish: squid, shrimp and scallops
in a red sauce.

*suan er pou cai (spinach stir-fried with garlic) Excellent.


Re: the frozen tofu and preserved vegetable casserole (from email w/
foodfirst)
Of everyone on this entire thread (click backwards), "Kathleen" seems to be
the one who comes closest to nailing what this is (note her description of
leaving tofu out in the cold to freeze overnight etc//this confirms for me my
feeling that that was a fantastic winter dish).

http://www.chowhound.com/boards/general3/messages/5118.html

This link has something on frozen tofu. It's an excellent article (intro) on
mainland eating. Frozen tofu is mentioned in the hotpot section.

http://www.oldbj.com/english/english00016.htm

Incidentally, if you scroll down to the list of dishes, you will see "suan
cai fen si" under "vegetables". fen si here is translated as "noodle made from
green peas!). Fen si in the south is understood to be made from "beans" (I
think!) but in the north it might be from a diff legume.

BTW here's a nice little list of Asian noodles:
http://www.foodsubs.com/NoodlesAsianOther.html

(see the section on fen si: glass noodles etc)

The same essay, in a slightly diff version could also be found, here:
http://www.tour-beijing.com/dining/index.php