Wok Cooking Was Re: [Sca-cooks] I'm back

[Mercy Neumark]

> >I need some help learning to make Chinese food, or at the very
> >least, how to cook with a wok.  If there is anyone who will be
> >at Pennsic (or who lives near Baltimore) that is willing to give
> >me lessons, I will be very grateful.  I'll be going to China for
> >10 months and I want to be able to cook local.  Asian cuisine
> >has always been one of those things that reasonably priced
> >resteraunts do so much better than I, that I have never bothered
> >to learn.

While I don't live anywhere near you, I could give you a few pointers.  I
used a wok for about 8 years, pretty much everyday, so I think I know a few
tings about it. ;)

First, you don't have to buy a fancy one, ESPECIALLY if you're going to
China.  Just get your basic one that most chinese households would use.

When cooking woks HAVE to be hot.  The oil goes in and you WAIT for it to
get hot so that when you drop your veggies, meat, WHATEVER, that you get to
hear that wonderful sizzle.

You have to cook in stages, i.e. thing that cook the slowest, goes in first.
  Normally it goes oil, garlic, ginger and green onions, meat, thicker
veggies, and last thin veggies.  You will have to experiment to know how
long each cooks, because I just do it out of habit now and just "know".
Sorry.

Using a lid for meats is a good thing for cooking things all the way
through.  Chicken is notorious for not cooking all the way, so I figured out
steam, but I know other people precook meats sometimes in order to speed the
process.

Speed IS the thing.  You want to put things in, quickly mix the ingrediants
and THEN pull out the stuff before the veggies overcook into mushy lumps.

These are the main stir fry techniques I can think of.  Remember that the
wok is also a steamer, deep frier and can be used as a cool grill like
device.  I'd suggest watching Iron Chef and Ming Tsai (and ESPECIALLY Martan
Yan) if you can to get some ideas.

Happy Woking!

--Artemesia/Raku

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