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Shaanxi(esque) Carrot Salad: Orange on Orange Action

March 19, 2011 in COOK, PREP by the ladies | 4 comments

Sometimes, you just get the urge to shred something. Particularly as it (almost) feels like spring, and the markets around Beijing are finally filling back up with a loads of fresh vegetables, a sight for sore eyes after a winter of buying limp, overpriced turnips and making seemingly endless pots of stew. Inspired by the crack carrot salad at Yellow River noodles, when we spotted this orange toy set of mandolins and veggie carving tools, we had to have it. Easy choice, as this swanky set of plastic fun cost us a mere 7 kuai (1 buck).… READ MORE | 4 Comments

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New Things for the New Year: Dongjiao Market (东郊市场)

February 17, 2010 in PREP by christine | 1 comment

If you haven’t been to the Dongjiao Market, and you are a kitchenware junkie, then you must go now: for the sheer quantity and variety of items available, as well as the lower than low prices.  There’s a hotel/restaurant equipment supply shop with two floors of supplies, packed to the brim with ceramic, glass, tin, steel.  Lining the walls are uniforms, mostly related to the hospitality industry, which suggest endless Halloween outfit possibilities.  There is also a seemingly endless row of vendors devoted to things as useful as toilet paper, ceramic bowls, rope, meat grinders, and stools, should you want to open your own food cart and need to provide seating for your customers.

Many people have that longing for a piece of… READ MORE | 1 Comment

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Happy Chinese New Year, five dumplings to share (jiaozi 饺子)

February 15, 2010 in PREP by christine | 4 comments

It’s a northern custom to make and eat dumplings on the first day of the New Year (chuyi 初一), and we were determined to do it right, with several kinds of fillings.  We went out to Sanyuanli Market (三元里市场) to source goods for dumpling-making in celebration of Chinese New Year.  It was packed to the brim with fresh goods, and hopping with people picking up their hot pot meat and auspicious fishes, but all the vendors were calm and patient.… READ MORE | 4 Comments

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Beijing Street Food: egg crepe (jianbing 煎饼)

January 4, 2010 in EAT, PREP by the ladies | 13 comments

Sauces

Tianjin is the birthplace of jianbing, but here in Beijing there is no shortage of this street food. In researching how to make our own version of this street snack, we are shamelessly eating jianbing as we see fit (which is often).

This stand outside the Wukesong Photographic Equipment Center appealed because 1) this Beijing variation was fragrant with toasted black sesame seeds sprinkled on top, and 2) they were enormous. For 2.3RMB (40 cents) we got this one-pounder, two-egg jianbing monster that pretty much served as breakfast, lunch, and at least half of dinner.

Here is the step-by-step birthing of a jianbing.

1. A crepe-like batter is spread over a… READ MORE | 13 Comments

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