All Posts
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Below, view all our posts in chronological order, starting with the most recent. To browse recipes by category, course, or collection, visit our Recipe Index. Also be sure to check out our How-To section and Chinese Ingredients Glossary.
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Tan Tan Ramen (Spicy!)
Updated:View Post: Tan Tan Ramen (Spicy!)Tan Tan Ramen is a spicy, incredibly tasty Japanese ramen noodle soup. It also happens to be based on a Chinese recipe. Yep, Japanese “tantanmen” is actually based on Chinese “Dan Dan Mian,” or Dan Dan Noodles, a spicy Sichuan…
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Tang Yuan (Sweet Rice Balls with Black Sesame Filling)
Updated:View Post: Tang Yuan (Sweet Rice Balls with Black Sesame Filling)An important and auspicious recipe to make during the Lantern Festival is Tang Yuan (汤圆), or Yuan Xiao (元宵). It’s a food that symbolizes harmony and reunion. Note: This recipe was originally published in February 2016. It has since been updated with metric…
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Dried Chili Peppers
Updated:View Post: Dried Chili PeppersOriginally brought to China from the Americas by the Spanish and Portuguese via trade routes in the 15th and 16th centuries, chili peppers are now cultivated in countless varieties across China. Suddenly, Chinese cooks had a new source of spicy…
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Cantonese Mustard Green Soup with Pork Bones
Updated:View Post: Cantonese Mustard Green Soup with Pork BonesI’m not one to exaggerate about anything. To say that I’m in awe of this Cantonese Mustard Green Pork Bone soup is not an overstatement. It’s delicate yet flavorful, and it’s also incredibly simple, with just 8 ingredients! A Recipe…
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Chinese Broccoli (Gai Lan)
Posted:View Post: Chinese Broccoli (Gai Lan)Chinese Broccoli (芥兰, gai lan in Cantonese or jiè lán in Mandarin) is a leafy green vegetable you can use in a diverse range of dishes. Although they come from the same plant family, it is quite different from the…
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Chinese Year of the Tiger
Updated:View Post: Chinese Year of the Tiger1938, 1950, 1962, 1974, 1986, 1998, 2010, 2022 The Chinese Year of the Tiger is the third year of the 12 year cycle of Chinese Zodiac animals. The old Chinese story behind this was that the Jade emperor ordered a…
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23 Chinese New Year Greetings (Mandarin & Cantonese)
Updated:View Post: 23 Chinese New Year Greetings (Mandarin & Cantonese)Happy Chinese New Year everyone! It’s time to brush up on your Chinese New Year greetings. You might think that the only greeting you need is a simple and polite, “Happy New Year!” But here at The Woks of Life, we’re…
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Chinese Year of the Ox
Updated:View Post: Chinese Year of the Ox1937, 1949, 1961, 1973, 1985, 1997, 2009, 2021 The Ox is the second animal sign in the Chinese zodiac cycle. The old Chinese story behind this was that the Jade emperor ordered a race to select the 12 animals to…
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Hong Kong Egg Tarts
Updated:View Post: Hong Kong Egg TartsHong-Kong style egg tarts, or dan tat in Cantonese, are probably my favorite pastry. Period. And the best part is, you can make them at home! Note: This recipe was first published in July 2014. We have since extensively re-tested…
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Money Bag Dumplings
Updated:View Post: Money Bag DumplingsThese golden Steamed Money Bag Dumplings are a Chinese New Year specialty. Make them for the holiday, and they will help you ring in the lunar new year with abundance and good fortune galore! (At the very least, you can…
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Steamed Pork Belly with Taro (Wu Tau Kau Yuk)
Updated:View Post: Steamed Pork Belly with Taro (Wu Tau Kau Yuk)Pork Belly with Taro (芋头扣肉), or wu tau kau yuk in Cantonese (yùtóu kòu ròu in Mandarin), is home-cooked, show-stopping Chinese comfort food at its best. In this recipe, steamed taro and pork melt together into a perfect centerpiece dish…
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Nian Gao (Chinese New Year Sweet Rice Cake)
Updated:View Post: Nian Gao (Chinese New Year Sweet Rice Cake)The familiar image of a New Year Sweet Rice Cake (红糖年糕), or nian gao, is a welcome sight during Chinese New Year. Nian gao 年糕 symbolizes progress, advancement, and growth. Nián (年) means “year,” and “gāo” (糕) is a homonym for “gāo”…
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Fluffy Cinnamon Rolls
Updated:View Post: Fluffy Cinnamon RollsToday, our family’s tried-and-true, much-loved milk bread recipe gets the Cinnamon Roll treatment. These incredibly fluffy Cinnamon Rolls are the stuff of Goldilocks’s dreams. That is, they have just the right amount of cinnamon, frosting, and of course, the most…
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Chinese Vegetarian Duck (素鸭)
Updated:View Post: Chinese Vegetarian Duck (素鸭)This Vegetarian Duck, or sù yā (素鸭) recipe is a delicious vegan/vegetarian dish that feels super special, but is surprisingly simple to make. A savory, umami filling of shiitake mushrooms, bamboo shoots, and carrots is wrapped inside layers of bean…
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How to Wrap Spring Rolls
Updated:View Post: How to Wrap Spring RollsSpring rolls are a favorite dim sum item, party appetizer, and symbolic Chinese New Year food. However, some people steer clear because they don’t know how to wrap spring rolls properly, causing them to fry unevenly or worse—come apart during…
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Braised Pork Belly with Meigan Cai (梅干菜焖肉)
Updated:View Post: Braised Pork Belly with Meigan Cai (梅干菜焖肉)Braised Pork Belly with Meigan Cai (梅干菜焖肉) is a much simpler version of Mei Cai Kou Rou (梅菜扣肉). Both are well-known dishes from Shaoxing, China, and they are equally scrumptious. I grew up only aware of this braised version, as…
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How to Make Frozen Tofu
Posted:View Post: How to Make Frozen TofuIn today’s post, I’m going to teach you how to make frozen tofu. Tofu (or bean curd) comes in many different forms, and it’s really all about texture. You’d be surprised at how much tofu’s texture can change just by…
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Chicken with Chinese Broccoli & Mushrooms
Updated:View Post: Chicken with Chinese Broccoli & MushroomsThis Chicken and Chinese Broccoli stir-fry is a delicious, light meal that truly brings out the best in tender chicken breast and sweet, crunchy Chinese broccoli, or gai lan. This was one of the very first recipes we posted back…
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We’re Sarah, Kaitlin, Judy, and Bill– a family of four cooks sharing our home-cooked and restaurant-style recipes.
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