We are nearing the end of our exploration of Thousand-Year Eggs (for now). There was just something congruous (perhaps logarithmic?) about offering 10 recipes for 1000-Year Eggs that really floated my boat. This is number eight, and it is a really delicious way to cook pidan. It is so good that we had it for breakfast this morning along with some steamed spicy Chinese sausage. … Read more
Dr. Seuss’ Sam-I-Am would smile at the sight of these green eggs. Century Eggs, or 1,000-Year Eggs, are classics in their own right, not a riff on a timeless children’s book. You won’t find them in Sam-I-Am’s house, box, car, tree or train, but these eggs appear in a rice porridge, or congee, that is enjoyed throughout Asia. The eggs in this congee are indeed … Read more
This interesting dish combines century eggs with sliced beef in a stir fry that is perfectly suitable as a main dish, or as one of many dishes in a multicourse Chinese meal. Most of the flavor in the dish comes from a brief marinade of the beef in mushroom-flavored soy sauce, sesame oil and Shaoxing – a type of rice wine. This is accented by … Read more
This recipe takes two strange-flavored foods and combines them in a chilled salad or light dish in a way that makes them better together. For those of you not familiar with bitter melon, it is very well named and packs a wallop of natural bitterness. It is so bitter as to make your mouth pucker and to wonder why humans began eating this food in … Read more
One of my favorite ways to enjoy 1000-year eggs is as part of a cold-tofu salad. This presentation of pidan is enjoyed all over China this way as well as in Taiwan, Japan and Korea. It is served as an appetizer or as part of a meal with many dishes eaten at the same time. For western cooks, it is simple to make, exotic, nutritious … Read more