 Now THIS is making me REALLY hungry. This fish fillet with XO sauce dish comes from one of our favorite local restaurants. I won’t complain about it at all, but I’ll say that if I were to make it, I’d go a lot heavier on the XO sauce, enough so that you could see the spicy, flavor-infused, dark red bits. A riff on the “XO” portion of a good cognac, XO sauce is made from equally fine ingredients including: dried scallop, very finely diced ham, and hot chili peppers. The combo ends up being oil-based condiment bursting with spice and umami-flavor that is good on everything - in a dish like this or served with my dad’s homemade noodles or dumplings. My mom’s recipe (and tips on growing hot chili peppers) will be found the book!
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Hello all! Timber Press and I have been working hard on planning some great events for 2017. Be sure to check out the Events page to see what I’ll be up to in the new year. If you’re anywhere nearby, I’d love to see you!  I'd especially love to meet you at Politics & Prose Bookstore where The Chinese Kitchen Garden will launch on February 5th at 1pm.  The holidays are right around the corner and if you're like me, you're finding joy in buying or making the perfect gifts for people you love. But here's my suggestion to you... buy my book. I realize how self-promoting that sounds but hear me out... The Chinese Kitchen Garden will be released in February, after the holiday and New Year hustle and bustle are over. And...
The Chinese Kitchen Garden will give you everything you need in a beautiful package with gorgeous editorial style photographs. I know you'll love it. And the best part is, you can pre-order now and maybe forget that you have done so. This way when it arrives in February, you'll be just delighted with your gift to yourself! Pre-order now at your favorite bookseller! If you're a gardener who appreciates quality reading, you likely have some Timber Press books on your coffee table. But did you know that the Timber Press blog is also packed with inspiring tips and ideas written by experts, staff, and authors? Check it out and subscribe to stay in the know! You can read my interview on the blog to learn more about the genesis of The Chinese Kitchen Garden (a quite personal story), hear about what I'm growing, and see some of photographer Sarah Culver's photos. The book is full of them and her work makes this book so beautiful. Please take a look and let me know what you think!
 Kohlrabi is such a good vegetable to shred or julienne onto a salad or for creating the base of a slaw. A lot of people like kohlrabi best raw as it adds a cool crunch with a taste like the heart of a cabbage head or like broccoli stems. While we tend to think of this vegetable as one to enjoy raw, it can also be steamed, stir-fried, or roasted. It’s a pretty interesting vegetable and the part that is most commonly eaten is the swollen round base of the plant (though the leaves can also be eaten, similar to collards). To prepare, pare the outer skin, which is fibrous and not pleasant to eat.
Kohlrabi is a common vegetable eaten in many parts of China, however, since it is not widely known as a Chinese vegetable and likely originated elsewhere, it does not appear in the book. Photographer Sarah Culver did take a lovely photo of it, don’t you think? She has a real knack for making any vegetable (even somewhat ugly ones!) a work of art. Just wait till you see the photography in The Chinese Kitchen Garden! |
AuthorI'm Wendy Kiang-Spray, gardener, home cook, and author of The Chinese Kitchen Garden. Learn more about the book here. Enjoy the blog and be sure to like The Chinese Kitchen Garden Facebook page for notifications when there are new posts. Archives
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