SC - Chinese cooking - long

[Christi Redeker]

The book that I spoke of is The Cooking of China, By Emily Hahn and the
Editors of Time-Life Books

Copyright 1968

The reference that I was speaking of is below.  

*****
"I doubt if Shakespeare would have felt at home in the kitchen, but among
the stars of Chinese literature are many who have enjoyed spending time in
this fashion.  There are too many to list here completely, but among them
are Madame Wu of Kiangsu, who wrote and published a cookbook at the end of
the 12th century and Su Tung-po, the 11th century poet whose life Lin Yutang
has related in The Gay Genius.  Su loved to cook, and left to posterity a
beautifully simple recipe of his own braised pork.  The modern recipe for
red-cooked shoulder of pork is very similar.  He also prepared fish by a
method often used today - rubbing it with salt and stuffing it with Chinese
cabbage heart, then shallow frying it with scallions in a little oil.  He
directed that when the fish was browned you should add raw ginger and
pickled turnip sauce with a dash of wine, and at the very end when it was
just right and ready to come off the fire, he suggested the addition of a
few slices of orange peel."

"In the 14th century, Yiu-shan Cheng-yao produced a volume that was not so
much of a cookbook, as a health book, telling what effect different foods
have on the body."

"Li Li-weng a 17th century poet, wrote at length of food and cooking in his
Arts of Living..."

*****

Also there are the other references that I was talking about of quotes on
how food was prepared and what foods were eaten that follow below.

*****
In the eastern kitchen the meat is sliced and ready -
Pounded beef and boiled pork and mutton.
The Master of the Feast hands round the wine...

The fire glows and the smoke puffs and curls;
>From the incense-burner rises a delicate fragrance.
The clear wine has made our cheeks red;
Round the table joy and peace prevail.
May those who shared in this day's delight
Through countless autumns enjoy like felicity.

"The Golden Palace" Anon., First Century AD

*****

Rice affected by the weather or turned [a man] must not eat, nor fish that
is not sound, nor meat that is high.  He must not eat anything discolored or
that smells bad.  He must not eat what is overcooked, nor what is
undercooked, nor anything that is out of season.  He must not eat what has
been crookedly cut, nor any dish that lacks proper seasoning.  The meat that
he eats must at the very most not be enough to make his breath smell of meat
rather than of rice.  As regards wine, no limits is la down; but he must not
be disorderly.

"The Analects of Confucius" (Born 551 BC)

*****

There is a painting in the book that was done in the 12th or 13th century
that depicts a market place and they have rice and fish for sale there.  The
other items are too far away to recognize.

*****

My new province is a land of bamboo groves:
Their shoots in spring fill the valleys and hills...
I put the shoots in a great earthen pot
And heat them up along with boiling rice.
The purple nodules broken - like an old brocade;
The white skin opened - like new pearls.
Now everyday I eat the recklessly...

"Eating Bamboo Shoots" Po Chu-I, Ninth Century

*****

Decapitation is a gruesome affair but I am condemned to die that way...
Be sure not to forget to eat dried bean curd with fried peanuts.  The two
give you the taste of the best ham.

Chin Sheng-Tan's instructions to his son in his will, 17th century

*****

And finally here is the pork recipe the author wrote of in the first
passage.

Hung-shao-ti-pang
Red-Cooked Pork Shoulder
6 dried Chinese mushrooms
4 to 5 lb fresh pork picnic shoulder or cala with the rind left on
1/2 cup soy sauce
1 whole star anise or 8 sections of star anise
2 T. light or dark rock candy, broken into 1/4 inch pieces, or 2 T.
granulated sugar
1/4 cup Chinese rice wine, or pale dry sherry
2 Cups cold water
2 scallions, including green tops, cut in 3 inch lengths

Place the pork shoulder in a heavy pot or saucepan just large enough to hold
it snugly.  To blanch the pork, add enough cold water to cover it by 2
inches and, over high heat, bring the water to a boil.  Let it boil briskly
for 5 minutes, then transfer the meat from the pot to a colander and run hot
 tap water over it.  Discard the cooking water and replace the meat in the
pot.  Add the soy sauce, star anise, rock candy, wine and scallions and 2
cups of cold water.  Bring to boil and cover the pot.  Reduce heat to low
and cook the meat for about 3 hours, adjusting the heat to keep the liquid
at a simmer and turning the meat over 2 to 3 times during the cooking
period.  Add mushrooms (soaked) and cook 30 minutes longer.  There should be
about 1 cup of liquid left when the meat has finished cooking.  If there is
more, cook uncovered until liquid is reduced.


These are all very vague references, but more than I have seen in a book for
SCA use for recipes in China.  Do you think that these are viable items to
use in preparing the documentation for my feast?

Murkial
Christi Redeker
Digital Equipment Corporation
Colorado Springs, Colorado
719/592-4504
christi.redeker at digital.com

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