Washington Post: 10/22/2003
ON THE BOOKSHELF
Sichuan Revealed
. THE BOOK:
"Land of Plenty: A Treasury of Authentic Sichuan Cooking" by
Fuchsia Dunlop (W.W. Norton & Co., 2003, $30). The book was first
published two years ago in Britain, where it received the Guild
of Food Writers Award for Best First Book.
. THE AUTHOR:
When Dunlop was a British Council Scholarship student at Sichuan
University in Chengdu, she became sidetracked by a different sort
of education: the local gastronomy. She sampled street food,
queried home cooks, observed restaurant chefs and had a stint in
a provincial cooking class. Once her official line of study was
finished, she stayed on to enroll in a professional Sichuanese
culinary program.
Now an East Asia specialist for the BBC World Service, Dunlop
also writes about Chinese food for several British
publications -- and does so with the fervor and earnestness
typically reserved for American food writers who have traipsed
through Tuscany. For many returning from a trip and wanting to
shout to the world about their newfound culinary know-how is a
norm; for Dunlop, it turned into a vocation.
. THE FORMAT:
Dunlop somehow captured her enthusiasm and knowledge about
Sichuanese cooking -- all of it -- and packed it into an orderly,
straightforward, 395-page encyclopedia of sorts. One of few
English-language cookbooks devoted to the rich, diverse, eclectic
cooking of the Sichuan region, the book is a translated but not
truncated version of her education.
Dunlop takes on the vast topic with a comprehensive yet organized
approach, including succinct sections on basic cutting skills,
cooking methods, equipment, the Sichuanese pantry, the 23 flavors
of Sichuan and the 56 cooking methods. There's even a note on
transliteration.
In between the introductory chapters on elemental Sichuan skills
and the appendices on Sichuan ingredient sources are recipes,
each accompanied by several paragraphs of prose about the legend
behind them. Dunlop holds the readers by the hand as she
introduces them to the robust flavoring of star anise, cinnamon,
Sichuan pepper, ginger, rice wine and soy.
. WHO WOULD BUY THE BOOK:
Though entirely approachable by the ordinary home cook in an
ordinary home kitchen, Dunlop's work takes an authentic approach.
As such, it demands a dutiful investment of interest, shopping
and daring. Casual cooks in search of a decent kung pao should,
perhaps, think twice.
-- Renee Schettler
"The following recipe makes enough broth to cook a whole chicken
or duck, but you can use it to stew meats of your choice. Chicken
drumsticks and wings, duck wings, bean curd and hard-boiled eggs
(bashed slightly to crack them all over and then stewed in their
shells) are all particularly good. Rabbit, lamb and beef can also
be cooked this way. Meats are best prepared by blanching them
first in boiling water and rinsing under the tap before adding to
the broth. This removes most of the bloody juices and keeps the
broth clean. Some cooks also marinate beef or lamb in ginger,
scallion, salt and wine before blanching."
-- From the Appetizers chapter
@ @ @ @ @
Lu Shui (Aromatic Broth)
For the spices:
2 tablespoons whole Sichuan peppercorns
1 1/2 tablespoons cassia bark or cinnamon stick bits
1 1/2 tablespoons licorice root (optional)
2 tablespoons star anise
3 tablespoons fennel seeds
1 tablespoon whole cloves
4 cao guo* (optional)
Double layer of cheesecloth for spices
For the broth:
3-inch piece of fresh ginger root, unpeeled
5 scallions, white and green parts
2 tablespoons peanut or corn oil
1 1/4 cups rock* sugar
5 quarts (20 cups) Everyday Stock (recipe follows) or chicken
stock
3/4 cup salt
1/3 cup Shaoxing rice wine or medium-dry sherry
Beef, pork, duck, chicken or bean curd
For serving:
Dark sesame oil
Ground Sichuan chili peppers, paprika or cayenne pepper to taste
Ground roasted Sichuan peppercorns (optional; recipe follows)
Salt
For the spices: Place all the spices onto the doubled piece of
cheesecloth and tie securely with string. (The spices can be used
loose, but are then harder to remove from the cooked meats.) Set
aside.
For the broth: Crush the ginger and scallions slightly with the
side of a cleaver blade or a heavy object and cut each scallion
into 2 or 3 sections. Set aside.
Bring a pot of water to a boil. In a wok, heat the peanut oil
with 1/2 cup of rock sugar over a very low flame. Stir constantly
as the sugar melts (if the rock sugar is in very large pieces you
may wish to crush them first). Then turn the heat up to medium
and continue to stir until the liquid is a rich caramel brown.
Quickly splash in about 1 cup of the boiling water -- make sure
you stand back, as the wok will release a lot of heat and steam.
Stir well.
Put the stock, caramel liquid, the remaining rock sugar, the
spice bundle, ginger, scallions, salt and rice wine into a very
large saucepan and bring them to a boil. Give them a good stir
and then simmer over low heat for at least 1 hour, until
flavorful.
Add the meats, poultry or bean curd and cook until they are
tender and aromatic. Add enough fresh stock to cover if
necessary.
To serve: thinly slice any large chunks of meat; cut poultry into
strips. Serve hot or cold, with a drizzling of the cooking broth
and some sesame oil and small piles of ground chili peppers,
roasted Sichuan pepper and salt.
*Note: Amomum tsao-kuo (cao guo) is the olive-shaped dried fruit
of a variety of "false cardamom." It has a cool, cardamom-like
flavor. The dried fruits are dark brown and ridged and roughly
nutmeg-size. They are sold in Chinese supermarkets as Tsao Kuo
and are mainly used in aromatic stews. Rock sugar (bing tang) is
available as large pale yellow crystals at most East Asian food
shops.
[EDITOR'S NOTE: May make half a batch. We recommend using the
broth with beef, pork, duck or dark-meat chicken.]
Recipe is too variable for meaningful analysis.
_____
"An essential Sichuanese condiment, this aromatic powder is found
scattered on many hot dishes and mixed into dressings for a
number of cold appetizers. It smells heavenly and will make your
lips tingle as you eat it. The following recipe makes about 21/2
tablespoons of ground pepper. It's not worth making in large
quantities, as the fragrance dulls with time (in many Sichuanese
households the pepper is roasted and ground freshly almost every
day.). Do remember that you must use first-class Sichuan
peppercorns to appreciate this flavoring."
Heat a dry wok over a low flame. Add the Sichuan pepper and
stir-fry for about 5 minutes, until the pepper husks are richly
fragrant -- they will smoke slightly as you cook them. Take care
not to burn them or they'll taste bitter. Remove from the wok and
allow to cool.
Grind the peppercorns to a powder in a spice grinder or with a
mortar and pestle -- Sichuanese cooks use weighty mortars and
pestles made of iron. Sift the powder to remove any remaining
stalks or unground pepper husks. Use immediately or store in an
airtight jar.
Recipe is too variable for meaningful analysis.
_____
"This is the Sichuanese all-purpose stock, used for all kinds of
soups and sauces. It's not good enough for banquet cooking -- for
that you'll need a superior recipe -- but it is inexpensive,
nourishing and easy to make. If you use good bones, from
traditionally reared or organically produced animals and fowl,
all the better. Make the stock in large quantities and then
freeze it in smaller batches, which can be quickly defrosted when
you wish to use them. In restaurants a whole chicken is often
used, but I generally just toss in what's left of the carcass
when I've removed the breast and leg meat to use in other dishes.
You can add some duck or duck bones too if you have them."
-- From the Stocks and Soups chapter
@ @ @ @ @
Xian Tang (Everyday Stock)
About 2 pounds of pork bones
About 1 pound of chicken parts (wings and backs)
2-inch piece of fresh ginger root, with peel, crushed
A couple of scallions
Smash the chicken carcass and larger bones. Put all the meat and
bones into a large pot. Fill with enough water to cover, bring to
a rapid boil and skim. Then add the ginger and scallions, turn
down the heat and simmer gently for 2 to 3 hours. Strain the
liquid and let cool. Cover, keep refrigerated, and use it within
a few days, or freeze. Skim off the fat each time you use it.
