[rec.food.recipes] CHICKEN: Cashew Chicken, Egg Drop Soup, and bibliography for Dim Sum

nancy@ms.uky.edu (Nancy Van Cleave) (04/11/91)

After spending much $$$ over the last few years at a local Chinese
restaurant on Cashew Chicken, I devised the following recipe (which my
husband now likes better than the original!)

Cashew Chicken

boneless chicken, cubed
1/4 Cup soy sauce
3 Tab Hoisin sauce
1 tsp chopped garlic
1 Tab sesame oil
1 1/2 tsp grated ginger root
3 Tab plum wine (or 1 T plum sauce)
sliced mushrooms (optional)
dry roasted, unsalted cashews
1 to 2 Tab cornstarch      \  depends on how much marinade is left
2 to 4 Tab cold water      /

Marinate chicken at least 20 minutes in soy sauce, hoisin sauce,
garlic, sesame oil, ginger root and plum wine.  Cook over medium-high
heat (or in microwave) until chicken is opaque.  Add sliced mushrooms
and cook, then add cashews.  In a separate container, mix cornstarch
with cold water, then add to cooked mixture, and heat until thickened.
Serve with basmati rice if you have it, otherwise white rice will do.


Easy Egg Drop Soup  (ok, ok, it's not authentic, but it IS easy!)

1 can condensed Chicken Noodle soup
1 can chicken broth
1 to 2 Tab soy sauce
2 to 3 tsp sesame oil
1 egg, lightly beaten
chopped green onions to garnish
creamed corn, cooked chicken, ham, pea pods, etc. (optional)

Heat soup, broth, soy sauce, sesame oil and any optional items in a
saucepan.  When boiling, drizzle in egg and stir in ONE DIRECTION
ONLY.  (The back and forth motion breaks up the egg "flowers" too
much.)  I usually thicken the soup just a bit with cornstarch, then
serve garnished with green onions.  (I've also been know to splash in
some plum wine from time to time.)

Thought you netters might like a few references for dim sum recipes.
All but #2 contain other recipes as well.

1.  Encyclopedia of Chinese & Oriental Cookery
    by Jennifer Brennan
    ISBN 0-7481-0090-3
    published 1984 in Great Britain (reprinted 1988)
         Macdonald & Co (Publishers) Ltd
         3rd Floor 
         Greater London House
         Hampstead Road
         London NW1 7QX
    published 1984 by St. Martin's Press in the USA
    (bought this last May on our honeymoon in London - great memories!)

2.  Favorite Dim Sum
    by Lonnie Mock
    (couldn't find an ISBN # - sorry)
    published 1979
    Alpha Gamma Arts
    P. O. Box 4671
    Walnut Creek, California  94596
    (we were given this as a gift - friend bought it at a used book store.)

3.  Dim Sum & Chinese One-Dish Meals
    by Jean Yueh
    ISBN 0-941034-05-4
    published 1981
    Irena Chalmers Cookbooks, Inc.
    (Part of the Great American Cooking Schools series.)

4.  Chinese Cooking Class Cookbook
    by the editors of Consumer Guide
    ISBN 0-517-322455
    published in 1980 by
    Beekman House
    A Division of Crown Publishers, Inc.
    One Park Avenue
    New York, NY 10016
    (Excellent beginner's Chinese cookbook - good pictures and text.)

5.  Chinese Cookery
    by Rose Cheng & Michele Morris
    ISBN 0-89586-088-0
    published in 1981 by
    HPBooks
    A Division of Price Stern SLoan, Inc.
    360 North La Cienega Boulevard
    Los Angeles, CA 90048
    (Haven't tried anything in this one yet, but it looks like a good bet!)

6.  1001 Chinese Recipes
    8-(    I've loaned this one to a friend, one of the most complete
           Chinese cookbooks you'll ever find!

Nancy Van Cleave          nancy@ms.uky.edu