Chicken Soup with Oyster Mushrooms and Chinese Yam

中文：淮山蘑菇炖鸡汤

What Asian people mean by chicken soup is quite different from American chicken soup.  Our chicken soup is more like broth with diced chicken in it with added herbs or vegetables.  Southern Chinese are known for their delicious and wide variety of soups. 

The soups my grandma usually made in her kitchen were chicken soup and pork rib soup.  I grew up eating them and now they are two of the most frequent soups I make in my kitchen too. 

The combinations between chicken and vegetables added to the soup can be endless.  You can literally put in anything you like.  Don’t be afraid and get creative.  You might have some amazing soups invented! O(∩_∩)O~

I use Chinese yam and oyster mushrooms today.  They both have mild flavors so that the taste of chicken will not be over powered. 

Ingredients：

1 free range organic chicken
1 large piece of fresh Chinese yam (available in Asian grocery stores)
1 piece of ginger root, smashed or crushed
2 to 3 tablespoons pearl barleys
1 handful dried longan fruit
8 to 12 jujube dates
1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon ground white pepper
1 tablespoon rice cooking wine
1/2 to 1 teaspoon rock sugar
3 to 3 1/2 quarts of water
salt to taste

Directions：

Rinse the chicken under running water.  Dice it with a cleaver knife.  Try to find the chicken with yellow fat which will help to make beautiful bright yellow chicken soup.

Peel the Chinese yam and dice it into 1 by 1 inch cubes.  Chinese yam is a very popular ingredient in Asian soup because people believe it is good for health and human digesting system.  Plus, it taste good too!

(Some people might develop minor allergic reaction when exposed to Chinese yam liquid.  My husband does too.  Don’t panic if your skin itches if you peel Chinese yam with bare hands.  Be sure to put on gloves before handling it.  )

Dice the oyster mushroom roughly the same size as Chinese yam.

Fill a cast iron soup pot with water.  Add chicken.  Cook over high heat until the water boils.  Allow it to continue boiling for a few more minutes.  With a spoon, skim off scum that is clouding on top. 

Add ginger root, pearl barleys and rice cooking wine.

Cover the pot with lid and reduce the heat to simmer for about one and a half hours.  Adjust the simmer time accordingly. 

I use a Le Creuset 4 1/4 quart soup pot here.  It is perfect for stewing and simmering.  And it can go straight from stove to table, looking astonish.

After simmering about one and a half hours, increase the heat to high.

Add jujube dates, dried longan fruit, diced Chinese yam, ground white pepper, rock sugar and salt to taste.

Stew over medium heat for another 20 minutes or so.  Add diced oyster mushrooms.

After 2 to 3 minutes, the soup is done.  Remove from heat.

A pot of good chicken soup can be judged by its light golden color.  And this is definitely good O(∩_∩)O~

Serve immediately. 

When cooked, the Chinese yam has a similar texture to potato.  It is starchy and creamy at the same time.  Chicken soup and oyster mushrooms add extra flavors to the yam too.

Sometimes I serve Asian soups over induction cooktop on dinner table.  It can be kept piping hot this way through the whole dinner.  And it can also be transformed into hot pot in no time when needed.  

Grilled Chicken Salad

中文菜谱：GRILLED CHICKEN鸡肉沙拉

We enjoy making our own salads at home.  The most frequent one I make at home is grilled chicken salad.  Sometimes I use drumsticks; and some other times I use chicken breasts.  

For chicken breasts：

2 pieces of chicken breasts
freshly ground black pepper
2 to 3 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon rice cooking wine
1/2 teaspoon sesame oil
1/4 teaspoon McCormick grill seasoning of your choice
salt to taste

For the salad：

Romaine lettuce
1/2 to 1 avocado
walnuts
almonds
sunflower seeds
dried cranberry
grated parmesan cheese

For salad balsamic vinaigrette dressing：

1 part of honey
2 to 3 parts of aged balsamic vinegar
2 parts of extra virgin olive oil
freshly ground black pepper
salt to taste

Directions：

In a large bowl, add chicken breasts, along with black pepper, soy sauce, rice cooking wine, sesame oil, grill seasoning and salt.  Rub the chicken with spices until it is evenly coated. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for a couple days.

I don’t remove the skin because chicken skin can help chicken meat to stay tender and juicy.  You can remove it after the cooking if you like.

Take the chicken out of refrigerator an hour prior grilling.

Preheat the oven to 450F/232C. I use a toaster oven here because it heats up faster and more efficient.

Heat a cast iron grill pan  over high heat until it gets really hot.  Add chicken breast to the grill pan, skin side down.  Grill for 2 minutes.

That is the good thing about chicken skin for grilling.  I don’t even need to grease the pan or chicken and they don’t stick to the pan.

Flip them over.  See how beautiful the grill marks are? O(∩_∩)O~

Grill for another 2 minutes.

Send the chicken along with grill pan to oven to bake for 6 to 12 minutes depending on the sizes and thickness of the chicken.

When the chicken is in the oven, I resemble my romaine salads.

Add honey, balsamic vinegar, salt, black pepper and extra virgin olive oil to a small bowl or jar.  Whisk until everything is well combined.

Dice the grilled chicken breast and add to salads.  Sprinkle with grated parmesan cheese.

Add salad dressing and these amazingly delicious grilled chicken salads are all done!

 Bon appétit O(∩_∩)O~

Steamed Egg Custard with Shrimps

中文菜谱鲜虾鸡蛋羹

One of my must do things during weekend is visiting our local farmer’s market.  The great thing about our market is that a lot of local farmers show up here with their produce or meat product, unlike some other farmers’ market I have been to.

Every time I visit a city, I always go to its market.  You can learn a lot about a city and local people’s ordinary life through its market. That is really fun and amazing.

One thing I can never resist from these markets is free-range egg. 

Aren’t they just gorgeous?

I love eggs from local farmer’s market.   These eggs are not only fresh, but also more beautiful than grocery store eggs inside and out. 

The shells are usually tougher and yolks are slightly darker

I love to make traditional Chinese steamed egg custard with them.

ingredients：

4 eggs
equal amount of warm water as eggs
8 to 10 shrimps, peeled and devined
a pinch of chopped green onion
a few drops of sesame oil 
1 to 2 teaspoon soy sauce
1/4 teaspoon rice cooking wine
salt to taste

Directions：

I use a small bowl to measure how much are 4 eggs.  So that I can use the same bowl to determine how water will be added to the eggs. 

Add both eggs and equal amount of warm water to a large cup.  Add salt and rice cooking wine.  Blend with a hand blender  or whisk until everything is well combined. 

Use a spoon or strainer  to remove air bubbles on top. 

Divide the egg mixture into two small bowls. 

Wrap both bowls tightly with aluminum foil

Add a steam rack  to a pot.  Fill with water and heat over high heat until the water boils.  Reduce the heat to simmer. 

Place both bowls with egg mixture on steam rack.  Steam them over low heat for 10 minutes. 

Unwrap the bowls, add shrimp on top, and tightly warp them up again.  Steam over low heat for about another 10 8 to 10 minutes.

Discard the foil.  Sprinkle with soy sauce, sesame oil and chopped green onion.  And serve immediately. 

It is eating the softest tofu but taste so much better than tofu.  That is the beauty of farm chicken eggs.  You don’t need much seasoning.  They already taste so great on their own. 

Do not skip soy sauce  and sesame oil.  They really bring out the flavors from eggs and shrimps.  O(∩_∩)O~

Salted Duck Eggs

中文：咸鸭蛋

The authentic salted eggs in Asian are usually made with duck eggs.  They are usually served as a side dish or appetizer for congee or porridge.  My friend went to a local farm to pick up some really fresh duck eggs.  And we both make salted eggs! O(∩_∩)O~ 

If you don’t have access to fresh duck eggs, just substitute with regular chicken eggs.  I posted the recipe with chicken eggs before.

Compared to chicken eggs, the salted eggs make with duck eggs have more flavors and better taste.

Ingredients:

24 fresh duck eggs
1 cup table salt
1/2 cup Chinese rice liquor （I substitute with vodka）
plastic wraps

Directions:

Rinse the eggs under running cold water.  Pat dry with kitchen towel and then allow the eggs to get completely dry at room temperature.

Soak each egg in vodka for 20 to 30 seconds. 

Coat with a thin layer of salt

Wrap up with plastic wra

Add the eggs to a Ziploc bag.  Seal and mark the date.  Wait for 30 days.

30 days later, remove the plastic wraps and rinse off the salt.  Cook the eggs in boiling water for 10 minutes.  And then cool them down in ice water. 

After the eggs are completely cooled down, it is time to enjoy them with congee.

The yolk is the best part in the whole egg!  O(∩_∩)O~

Salted Eggs

中文： 咸鸡蛋

Salted eggs are a popular side dish all over mainland China.  They are usually served with congee or porridge.  The traditional ones are made with duck eggs.  Fresh duck eggs are rarely available on the market where I live, so I substitute with chicken eggs.  They turn out great.   I am quite happy with the results.

After brined in salty water plus alcohol brine for 4 weeks, some changes have been going on inside the eggs.  Aside from being salty, the cooked egg whites look pretty much just like regular hardboiled egg whites.   The best part is the yolks.   The salt and alcohol transform the yolks into a delicacy.  They are beautiful golden color.  The yolks taste a little bit grainy but in a good way.  The whole yolk is loaded with oil which comes from the yolk itself during the brining process.  That is a sign that I have a batch of successful salted eggs.

Whoever invented this way to preserve eggs was definitely a genius.  Ordinary duck and chicken eggs are transformed into something delicious and amazing which you have to taste for yourself. 

Ingredients:

24 fresh chicken eggs
1 cup table salt
1/2 cup Chinese rice liquor （I substitute with vodka）
 

Directions:

Rinse the eggs under running cold water.  Pat dry with kitchen towel and then allow the eggs to get completely dry at room temperature.

Soak each egg in vodka for 20 to 30 seconds.

Coat with a thin layer of salt

Wrap up with plastic wrap

Add the eggs to a Ziploc bag.  Seal and mark the date.  Wait for 30 days.

Remove the plastic wraps and rinse off the salt.  Cook the eggs in boiling water for 10 minutes.

After the eggs are completely cool down, it is time cut them in halves and serve with congee.