9 culinary tricks from China to teach Russian housewives

  • Jan 17, 2022
Even if you are cool about cooking and prefer to stay at arm's length from it, there still comes a moment when a meeting with a stove and products becomes inevitable. Novate.ru proposes to treat this philosophically and try to make the cooking process as easy as possible, using effective culinary tricks. By the way, they can be found not only in the family recipe book, but also from other cultures, such as Chinese.
Even if you are cool about cooking and prefer to stay at arm's length from it, there still comes a moment when a meeting with a stove and products becomes inevitable. Novate.ru proposes to treat this philosophically and try to make the cooking process as easy as possible, using effective culinary tricks. By the way, they can be found not only in the family recipe book, but also from other cultures, such as Chinese.
Even if you are cool about cooking and prefer to stay at arm's length from it, there still comes a moment when a meeting with a stove and products becomes inevitable. Novate.ru proposes to treat this philosophically and try to make the cooking process as easy as possible, using effective culinary tricks. By the way, they can be found not only in the family recipe book, but also from other cultures, such as Chinese.

1. Wash fruits and vegetables in salt water

Running water won't wash pesticides off apples
Running water won't wash pesticides off apples
Running water won't wash pesticides off apples

The Chinese take the issue of food purity very seriously, so they thoroughly wash vegetables and fruits, not limited to rinsing under running water. The second, no less important step is the use of salt water.

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According to a study conducted in 2006 by Chinese scientists, water with the addition of salt effectively removes pesticide residues from the surface of fruits and vegetables. If you want to use this trick, use 1 part salt to 10 parts water to wash your food.

2. Use starch for other purposes

Meat in starch in Chinese. / Photo: mir-da.ru
Meat in starch in Chinese. / Photo: mir-da.ru

And how about giving the finished dish an appetizing glossy finish? In this case, starch and the culinary cunning of Chinese housewives will come to your aid. This product is present in any kitchen of the Middle Kingdom, because it is a real lifesaver in the preparation of beautiful and delicious dishes. Almost no sauce can do without this ingredient when it comes to cooking at high temperatures. It is thanks to starch that an appetizing shiny coating appears in meat or fish.

3. Tenderize Meat with Egg White

We make meat tender with vinegar, and the Chinese with protein.
We make meat tender with vinegar, and the Chinese with protein.

The culinary secrets of Chinese housewives help to make juicy and tender even the toughest meat, which at first I wanted to throw away. Everything is very simple here: just marinate the food in egg white for a quarter of an hour. Such a technique can cause bewilderment and distrust among Europeans, because we are used to making meat softer with the help of ingredients such as vinegar, brine, lemon juice.

However, the Chinese are ready to argue with our opinion and defend their own. According to them, egg white gives the meat a smooth shell that protects it during further heat treatment. This, in turn, prevents the liquid from evaporating from the fibers. The result is tender and appetizing meat that melts in your mouth. By the way, the starch added to the marinade also performs the same functions.

4. Cook perfect rice without measuring cups

You can measure the right amount of water with your finger
You can measure the right amount of water with your finger

Most housewives cook rice at the rate of one glass of cereal to two glasses of water, or use other ratio numbers if the volume of the finished dish should be larger. However, women in China do not use scales, charts, or measuring cups. They simply pour the required amount of rice into the pan, and then put their index finger at a right angle to its surface. The last step is to pour just enough water into the container so that it covers one phalanx of the finger.

5. Pre-cook meat

The Chinese boil the meat first and then fry it.
The Chinese boil the meat first and then fry it.

Before starting the main type of cooking, the Chinese put a piece of raw meat in water, bring it to a boil, after which the liquid is drained and they begin to boil or stew the product again, but already in fresh water. Local housewives do not consider this a waste of time, on the contrary, in their opinion, such a procedure has a number of advantages. Firstly, pre-cooking allows you to rid the meat of excess blood, as well as to wash out all the dirt and bacteria from it. Secondly, in this way it turns out to soften some types of meat, for example, pork. Thirdly, famous chefs often resort to this technique: they bring the meat to readiness in water, and then fry it with vegetables and spices in a pan to give it the necessary taste and aroma.

6. Sculpt healthy dumplings

Dumplings with the addition of vegetables are not only tasty, but also healthy
Dumplings with the addition of vegetables are not only tasty, but also healthy

In Russia, it is customary to cook dumplings with minced meat or pieces of meat. Sometimes pork is used, sometimes beef, less often chicken. The Chinese do not share this passion for fatty foods. In their opinion, dumplings should be not only tasty, but also healthy. For this reason, many Chinese families use 50% vegetables and 50% meat as the filling for the dish. It turns out no less satisfying and original. Vegetables can be used any, at your discretion.

7. Steam cooking without special electrical appliances

You can steam with a sieve
You can steam with a sieve

Continuing the theme of healthy Chinese cuisine, one cannot fail to mention that many dishes are steamed by local housewives. Moreover, we are talking not only about meatballs, fish or side dishes. Even flour products, and those undergo a similar heat treatment. A traditional device for this purpose is a bamboo basket, which is placed over a container of boiling water. However, if you wish, you can do without it, replacing a typical Chinese kitchen appliance with a thing more familiar to us. We are talking about an ordinary metal sieve. You just need to heat water in a saucepan, put a sieve on top, put the product that you plan to steam into it, and cover with a lid. Just don’t go far from the stove - it’s very important to control the amount of water and not let it run out until the dish is completely ready.

8. Make dessert sweet without sugar

Sesame balls are a popular dessert in China. / Photo: chinasichuanfood.com
Sesame balls are a popular dessert in China. / Photo: chinasichuanfood.com

Unlike Russian housewives, who generously use sugar, chocolate, jam and other sweeteners when preparing desserts, the Chinese are indifferent to this. As mentioned, they advocate healthier cuisine, even when it comes to desserts. They give a light, not sugary sweetness to flour products with the help of sweet potato, legumes, sesame seeds, which are used as a filling. That is why Europeans often perceive Chinese delicacies as too bland due to the lack of sugar. But perhaps this is precisely the main secret of the harmony of the representatives of this people - it is very difficult to imagine a complete Chinese, unlike a complete European.

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9. Use ingredient for health and youth

Meat in sweet and sour sauce with sesame seeds. / Photo: pinterest.ru
Meat in sweet and sour sauce with sesame seeds. / Photo: pinterest.ru

One of the most beloved and revered components in Chinese cuisine is sesame, which has been used by local housewives in almost all dishes for hundreds of years. It is also used to make a popular dessert - sesame balls. The Chinese claim that this product is incredibly useful, and if you eat it every day, you can not be afraid of old age. And it's really true: sesame contains a large amount of calcium, as well as manganese, iron and copper. Therefore, if there is still no sesame among your spices, it's time to correct the situation and acquire such a treasure.

You can read more about another famous Chinese dish in the article.
10 restaurant dishes, behind the tricky names of which hides ordinary food
A source:
https://novate.ru/blogs/050921/60414/

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