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♪ One two three four ♪
- Hello, and welcome to a cooking video.
As you can tell from the
title, this is going to be
four easy Chinese dishes
to recreate at home.
I asked on Instagram the
other day about what videos
you would like to see over
the coming weeks and months,
and a lot of you said cooking videos
and also makeup videos, like turning
into a ABG, everyday makeup routine,
some fashion videos,
some more chatty videos.
So if you've got any other requests,
then please leave it down
in the comments below.
This one's going to be all
about four easy Chinese recipes,
and by no means am I a
chef, but these dishes
have all been tried and
tested over the years,
apart from one, which
was a recent recipe that
my sister found on The
Guardian, and it's delicious.
And I thought I would share
them with you all because
they are very, very quick,
simple, and easy to prepare.
These dishes are also with
ingredients that you've
either got at home or
they're easy to get hold of.
So, yes, here we go.
Number one, this is a twist
on a classic mapo tofu.
Quick note, the dishes shown here are for
three to four people,
enjoyed by my sisters and I.
If you're cooking for
yourself or one other person,
adjust the measurements accordingly.
Though it has to be said
that a lot of Chinese
cooking involves eyeballing ingredients
and just chucking things in to taste
over measuring things out exactly.
Mapo tofu is a classic
tofu dish from Sichuan,
which in Mandarin is Szechuan,
and it's spicy, full of
flavor, and one to be enjoyed
when you want a party
of heat in your mouth.
This is a slightly different take on it,
partly because we don't have dry Sichuan
peppercorns or doubanjiang at home,
and also because we've
always cooked it this way,
and I love this milder, garlicky version.
It's vegan, easy to make, and a great
alternative to the ground pork version.
You will need a pack of tofu.
Don't use silken tofu
and opt for the firm kind
instead so it doesn't break apart easily.
Slice it into cubes.
Five to six Chinese mushrooms diced up.
You can either use fresh ones
bought from the Chinese supermarket,
dried ones, which you
can then soak in water
for one to two hours to rehydrate,
but remember to keep the
water in to add later,
or you can use shiitake mushrooms.
Two garlic cloves, a red chili pepper.
Optional, but very much encouraged.
Lee Kum Kee's chili garlic sauce.
If you have doubanjiang chili
bean paste, use this instead.
Corn starch, light soy
sauce, sugar, and salt.
Heat the oil in your wok over medium heat.
Add the garlic and chili
peppers for a minute
until your nostrils can sense how good
everything is starting to smell.
Add the mushrooms and
cook for a couple minutes,
then add in the mushroom water,
a splash of light soy sauce, sugar,
and then cook everything together.
Add in the tofu and a tablespoon
of chili garlic sauce.
This will be controversial,
as traditionally,
you're meant to use a chili
bean paste, but it's very good.
Stir fry everything, but be careful
not to break the tofu cubes.
Let it simmer for a minute,
then prepare your corn starch slurry.
Combine a tablespoon of cornstarch with
a tablespoon of cold
water and mix together.
This will act as a thickening
agent for your stir fry
and result in a velvety and silky sauce.
Slowly add it in whilst mixing
the tofu and mushrooms together.
Once the sauce thickens
and the tofu is coated,
take it off the heat and serve it up.
This is incredible with
rice and a plate of simply
stir fried greens like gai
lan, bok choy, or tong ho,
also known as Chinese broccoli,
Chinese cabbage, or cooking chrysanthemum.
If you have spring onion, chop it up
and add it to the finished dish.
It will make a world of difference
and I'm gutted I didn't have anything left
when I decided to film this
video, so please use it.
Second of all, this is a recipe that
my sister found recently on The Guardian
by the guys over at SymmetryBreakfast,
and it is chili sesame noodles.
If you love spicy food,
and if you love chili food,
then you are going to love this.
This is quickly becoming one
of my favorite noodle dishes,
and I find myself constantly craving it.
The wheat noodles are
chewy, satisfying to eat,
and the thickness of the noodles means
the sauce clings onto the surface and it
makes you appreciate
the flavors even more.
Even saying this is
making me want to cook it
after I finish recording this voiceover.
You will need 400 grams
of thick wheat noodles,
four tablespoons of light soy sauce,
two tablespoons of sesame oil,
one teaspoon to one teaspoon and a half
of Chiu Chow chili oil
or Lao Gan Ma chili oil.
You can get this in Asian supermarkets.
Four tablespoons of Chinese sesame paste.
I only have tahini, which works as well.
Four tablespoons of vinegar.
The recipe calls for
black Chinese vinegar,
but I didn't have that,
so malt vinegar it is.
200 milliliters of boiling water,
two cloves of minced garlic,
and sesame seeds, which is optional.
First things first, let's make
this addictive spicy sauce.
The original recipe from The Guardian
calls for boil the
garlic in boiling water,
but I chose to brown it
off in a wok instead.
Add the tahini or sesame paste,
light soy sauce, vinegar, sesame oil,
and 200 milliliters of hot water
into the bowl and mix well.
It will look very watery, but don't worry,
it will magically thicken up
when it's mixed with the noods later.
In the meantime, prepare
your wheat noodles.
For this one, it was
cooked for eight minutes.
Drain the noodles and run it quickly
under cold water so it stops cooking.
Add one to one and a half teaspoons
of chili oil into your noodle bowl.
I personally love it extra hot,
so one and half to two is perfect for me.
But those in favor of
milder tastes might prefer
a half to a teaspoon at the very most.
Add your noodles in, drizzle
the sesame sauce over,
and top it with spring
onion if you have it.
Enjoy this delectable bowl of noodles
and sing at the very top of your voice
such flavors have been
blessed in your home.
Number three is the stir
fried tomato with egg.
The beauty of this dish is its simplicity.
Every Chinese family
will have their version,
and it's deliciously
moorish with a bowl of rice.
You will need two tomatoes per person,
one egg, two garlic cloves, ketchup,
one teaspoon of sugar, and pinch of salt.
First of all, heat up the wok or pan
to a medium heat, then add in the oil.
Add the tomatoes and a teaspoon of sugar,
then keep those tomies
moving around for a minute.
Add in a squeeze of ketchup,
about a tablespoon worth,
then cook for another minute or two
until the tomatoes start to soften.
Add in your egg and quickly
stir fry everything together.
The key is to keep it moving.
You can also whisk the eggs beforehand
so it scrambles, but
as this is a lazy meal,
I just added it straight in.
Cook until the tomato skin
has started to peel away,
and when the sauce is thickened,
it's ready to be served up and enjoyed.
The tomatoes are tangy,
eggs are silky, and there's
a sweet, caramelized flavor
from the ketchup added.
Feel free to add in spring onions,
because that's always a good idea,
then generously spoon over white rice.
One of my all time favorite dishes,
and something I eat pretty
much on a weekly basis.
Finally, we've got vegetable stir fry
with dry shrimp and glass noodles.
You will need one packet of glass noodles.
This can be bought Sainsbury's,
Tesco's, or Asian supermarkets.
A handful of dried shrimp,
five Chinese mushrooms
soaked in water for one to
two hours, then sliced up.
Again, remember to keep the water.
One packet of Chinese leaf.
Substitute with tender
stem broccoli, baby corn,
bean sprouts, Chinese
broccoli, if you can't find it.
Sesame oil, oyster sauce, salt,
white pepper, and garlic cloves.
First up, preheat your wok or
pan until it starts to smoke.
Add in your oil.
Add the mushrooms, dried shrimp,
and stir fry for a minute.
You can either add in
around a third of a cup
of water, or even better,
the mushroom water,
for extra flavor into the mix.
Put the lid on and let
it steam on a medium heat
for around five to ten minutes,
depending on how soft
you like those mushrooms.
While that's cooking away,
it's time to prep the glass noodles.
Pour over some hot
water to soften them up,
and leave it for a couple more minutes.
Add in the Chinese leaf and let it
cook down for two to three minutes,
and then add in salt, white pepper,
and about half a
tablespoon of oyster sauce.
Give it a good old stir and
then put the lid back on
so it cooks away for about four minutes.
Once your Chinese leaf is
cooked, add the glass noodles,
a drizzle of sesame oil, and mix it all
in for a minute or so, and ta-da!
It's ready to be plated up.
This is a healthy, light, yet fulfilling
meal for those who love veggies
but aren't too keen on salads like me.
Serve alongside a meat, seafood,
or veggie dish, and a nice bowl of rice.
There we go, four easy Chinese
dishes to recreate at home.
I hope you enjoy this video
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and future travel videos.
And if you did enjoy this
and would like to see more,
then please give this
video a big thumbs up,
and I'll rustle up some
more cooking videos for you.
But I hope you're having a wonderful
morning, afternoon, or evening,
and I'll see you next time.
Goodbye!
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