Cucumber Salad

The weather just keeps getting hotter and hotter, and it's making my appetite decrease. In this hot summer days, I want to eat something cold and refreshing. This marinated cucumber does just this, and it is so simple to make.

Cucumber Salad

Prep time: 5 minutes
Cook time: 0 minutes
Ready in: 15 minutes

Ingredients:
1 medium sized cucumber, peeled
1 tablespoon of sesame oil
salt to taste

Instruction:

1. Split the cucumber lengthwise into two halves, then slice them into "half-moon" slices
2. Put the cucumber slices into a medium sized bowl and mix in 2 teaspoon of salt, let the cucumber marinate for 10 minutes
   
3. Pour the excess juice that came out of the cucumber, mix in the sesame oil and serve
   

Fried rice with Chinese sausage

Fried rice is one of the staples in a Chinese restaurant. Every Chinese restaurant I've been to have had at least one version of it, sometimes several different versions. For picking my first recipe on this blog, I figure it has to be a common and popular dish that is easy to do, what is better than fried rice?

Like I mentioned earlier, there are many different versions of fried rice. The variations between them are the ingredients and the cooking method. This version of fried rice I've learned from a Chinese post on the Internet and it has instantly becoming my favorite version. What I love about this version is once finished, every rice grain is separated from each other, and mixed with golden egg pieces. The "mouth feel"/texture of the individual rice grains is filling, almost crunchy, which I prefer much more over the soggy texture. This dish is also very healthy too (). Okay, without further ado, here is the recipe for fried rice.

Fried rice with Chinese sausage

Serves 2

Prep time: 10 minutes
Cook time: 30 minutes

Ingredients:
2 eggs
Half of a medium onion, thinly sliced
1 links of Chinese sausage, thinly sliced
5 cups of cooked rice from the day before, loosensed by using a spetula
1 scallion, green part only thinly sliced

Ingredients from left to right: cooked rice,
onion, Chinese sausage, eggs and green onion

Instruction:

1. Separate the egg whites from the yolk, and beat the yolk
2. In a medium sized pan, heat 1 tablespoon of peanut oil over medium heat, add in the onion. When onion is soft (about 5 mintues), add in the Chinese sausage and continue to cook for 5 minutes, then add in the egg white and cook for 1 minute.
   
3. Meanwhile, in a wok, heat 1 tablespoon of peanut oil over medium heat, when the oil is hot but not smoking, add in the egg yolk, let it cook in the oil for about 30 seconds, then break it into pieces with your ladle or spatula.
4. Add in the rice, using the back of the ladle to press the clumps of rice against the wok to break it apart. The goal here is to break up the rice into individual grains so we can have the crispy texture. Keep stir-fry and press the rice, and toss the rice and egg regularly to let the moisture built-up escape. When rice is sperated into individual grains and if you slow down, you can see the rice grains are jumping on the edge of the wok, then this means the rice is done, about 10-15 minutes.
   
5. Now add in the cooked ingrindents from step 3 into the rice, and add salt to taste. Stir fry until everything is mixed together and turn off the heat. Add in the scallions and serve.

Welcome!

Hi and welcome to the "Cooking Chinese Food in America blog!
This blog is intended to provide you with delicious Chinese recipes with all the ingredients that can be found in a typical American supermarket. Have you ever had an experience where you wanted to try to make a Chinese dish and it calls for an ingredient you cannot buy at the local supermarket? Did you feel frustrated or disappointed? I know I've had this experience, and that is why this blog is created.
My goal is for us to enjoy healthy, easy to make and delicious Chinese dishes that we can make in our own homes. So let's take a journey together into Cooking Chinese Food in America!

Mike Shang