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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Kangkung Belacan (Water Spinach with Shrimp Paste)
Updated:View Post: Kangkung Belacan (Water Spinach with Shrimp Paste)Kangkung belacan, a Malaysian and Indonesian dish of stir-fried water spinach with fermented shrimp paste (belacan), is one of our favorite leafy green recipes. You can find it in much of Southeast Asia, but the first time we had it…
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Bacon Scallion Milk Bread
Updated:View Post: Bacon Scallion Milk BreadThis bacon scallion milk bread is reminiscent of the bacon scallion buns you can find at Chinese bakeries. We’ve made it in the style of a pull-apart bread, which makes it great for sharing and fun to make with kids! …
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Belacan Sauce
Updated:View Post: Belacan SauceBelacan sauce is a Malaysian-style sambal with dried shrimp, fresh and dried chili, and belacan, a fermented shrimp paste. With strong notes of garlic and shallots, this Malaysian-Chinese condiment is as addictive as some of our best sauces: chili oil,…
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Korean Fried Chicken (Dakgangjeong)
Updated:View Post: Korean Fried Chicken (Dakgangjeong)Korean fried chicken comes in many different forms, and though I’ve enjoyed it many times, I’ve never tried to make it at home—until now. When it comes to eating out, my favorite Korean fried chicken comes from a South Korean…
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Golden Fried Rice (黄金炒饭)
Updated:View Post: Golden Fried Rice (黄金炒饭)We’ve all eaten fried rice more times than we can count. Certainly enough times to know that a good fried rice can be hard to come by, and even harder to make at home without the right technique. I hope…
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Water Spinach: What It Is & How to Cook It
Updated:View Post: Water Spinach: What It Is & How to Cook ItChinese water spinach, known in our family as “hollow vegetable,” is one of our favorite Asian leafy greens. We love ordering it at restaurants as well as making it at home. In this article, we’ll talk about what this vegetable…
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Chinese Hot Pot at Home
Updated:View Post: Chinese Hot Pot at HomeWhen fall and winter roll around, one big treat tends to pop into our minds—Chinese hot pot. It’s a warm, comforting, and social meal to have with a close-knit group of family or friends. Plus, because all the food gets…
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Stir-Fried Rice Cakes (Nian Gao)
Updated:View Post: Stir-Fried Rice Cakes (Nian Gao)Chinese stir-fried rice cakes with pork and leafy greens is known in Chinese as “chǎo niángāo” (炒年糕). It’s a popular dish that is also distinctively “Shanghai” to me, as my Shanghainese mom and grandmother would make it often for a…
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Five Spice Powder
Updated:View Post: Five Spice PowderYou’ve probably heard of Chinese Five Spice Powder (wǔxiāng fěn, 五香粉), which has been used in Chinese cooking for centuries. Though it is widely known, its origins are still a bit mysterious. Five Spice Powder seems to have roots in…
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Sesame Balls
Updated:View Post: Sesame BallsDeep Fried Sesame Balls and me go a long way back—to when I was a little kid. We bought them in Chinatown bakeries, and snatched them fresh off of dim sum carts, where they were neatly cut in half for…
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Inside-Out Hong Kong Coconut Buns
Updated:View Post: Inside-Out Hong Kong Coconut BunsCoconut buns, or “cocktail buns” are a beloved bakery favorite among locals in Hong Kong and Chinatowns everywhere. It combines the soft, buttery milk bread ubiquitous around Asia, with a sweet, rich coconut filling. Often, the filling ends up baked…
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Moo Shu Chicken (with pancakes!)
Updated:View Post: Moo Shu Chicken (with pancakes!)I remember making Moo Shu Chicken at my first job at a Holiday Inn in upstate New York, and again in my parents’ Chinese restaurant in New Jersey. We made it the same way at both places. When we made…
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How to Wrap Egg Rolls
Updated:View Post: How to Wrap Egg RollsLearning how to wrap egg rolls at home may seem difficult, but with a few tips, you’ll wonder why you didn’t try making them sooner. Our family used to run a Chinese restaurant, and we wrapped thousands of egg rolls. …
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Osmanthus Cake
Updated:View Post: Osmanthus CakeThis Osmanthus Cake has a moist, dense yet airy crumb, with a subtle sweetness from the addition of osmanthus syrup and vanilla. Since this perfect yellow cake emerged from the oven, with it’s dark, thick crust, it has become our…
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Shanghai Pan-fried Pork Buns (Shengjian Mantou, 上海生煎馒头)
Posted:View Post: Shanghai Pan-fried Pork Buns (Shengjian Mantou, 上海生煎馒头)Shanghai Pan-Fried Pork Buns, or shengjian bao (生煎包) / shengjian mantou (生煎馒头) in Chinese, are iconic. Breakfast, brunch, lunch, or snack, people love them as much as the celebrated four Shanghai breakfast warriors. The combination of umami filling dripping with…
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Chinese Year of the Monkey
Updated:View Post: Chinese Year of the Monkey1944, 1956, 1968, 1980, 1992, 2004, 2016, 2028 The Chinese year of the Monkey is the ninth year of the 12-year-cycle of Chinese Zodiac animals finishing in 9th place in the race to the Heavenly Gate. The old Chinese story…
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Vegan Queso
Updated:View Post: Vegan QuesoOur vegan queso is so good, you may find yourself forgoing your go-to cheese substitutes (or, dare I say it, cheese?)! Whether you’re looking to eat plant-based, are lactose-intolerant, or just want a healthy alternative, with delicious add-ins like tomatoes,…
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Beef Lo Mein
Updated:View Post: Beef Lo MeinThis home-cooked Beef Lo Mein recipe tastes just like what you’d get at a Chinese takeout restaurant (or better, because it uses more vegetables than your typical takeout). It’s also easy to make. If you love lo mein, it’s a…

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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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