a culinary genealogy
Below, view all our posts in chronological order, starting with the most recent. To browse recipes by category, course, or collection, visit our Recipe Index. Also be sure to check out our How-To section and Chinese Ingredients Glossary.
Welcome to our How to Grow Chinese Vegetables series: Bok Choy edition! In this post, we’ll talk about how to grow bok choy (also sometimes spelled, pak choi). We’ll cover different varieties, ideal growing conditions, problems you may encounter and how to avoid them, harvesting best practices, and even some history! We have professional insights
…
Among beef stir-fry dishes, this beef and pepper stir-fry is one of our favorites. It can be mild or spicy, depending on which peppers you use, and is very simple to make. Combine these two ingredients, and you have a real winner of a dish! It’s simplicity makes it a good candidate for a regular
…
If you’re a fan of spice and lots of garlic, this recipe for Spicy Garlic Enoki Mushrooms will become your new go-to recipe. With just 9 ingredients and a few steps, you’ll have a tasty light meal or side to make over and over! Obsessed with Enoki Mushrooms? I don’t remember the first time I
…
Chao He Cai, a stir-fry of clear noodles, eggs, chives, carrots and bean sprouts, is Chinese home-cooked comfort food. Just like our tomato egg stir fry, it’s a modest dish. While it’s not shouting from the rooftops like some showier recipes, it’s what one would whip up at home on the regular—not simply because it’s
…
We’re overwhelmed (in a good way!) by everyone’s responses to our announcement about The Woks of Life‘s new HQ. Thank you everyone for your kind words and excitement around the next steps for our family and the blog! In that post, the photos we shared were mostly from last fall and winter, but a crazy
…
This Sichuan boiled tofu, or shuǐ zhǔ dòufu gān (水煮豆腐干) is an adapted version of Sichuan boiled beef—a delicious recipe from my mom. This new version is vegetarian, vegan, and also totally delicious. A local restaurant inspired us to make this dish, as they had a version of it on their menu. It was such
…
Time for our newest zongzi recipe: zongzi with pork belly and meigan cai (preserved vegetables). We’re celebrating the Dragon Boat Festival today, and we’re doing it this year with these tasty parcels! Combining Two Classics This recipe combines two classics: sticky rice zongzi (sometimes called sticky rice “dumplings” or “Chinese tamales,” though “sticky rice parcels”
…
This easy shortcut wonton soup base is perfect when you want an extremely quick meal. A little of this and that from the pantry (see our 10 Essential Chinese Pantry Ingredients list) makes wontons you fished out of the freezer taste like they’re floating in a tasty broth, when the soup was actually made in
…
The Woks of Life HQ has moved! Last year, in our busiest months of editing, cooking for, and photographing the cookbook, we had to pause. Not for a break (though that would’ve been nice), but to pack up everything from our family home and move somewhere new. (And then…unpack all the things over the next
…
Mapo Eggplant is exactly what it sounds like—the familiar flavors of everyone’s favorite Mapo Tofu recipe, with the replacement of tender, silky eggplant. Why Mapo An Eggplant? For some reason—some folks out there are STILL holding down the fort on hating tofu! I can’t fathom why, when tofu comes in so many different types and
…
The Dragon Boat Festival is coming up (It will be on Friday, June 3rd this year), and that means it’s time to make Zongzi, or sticky rice dumplings! Luckily, we have a few zongzi recipes you can try, including savory and sweet. We also have a lazy version for those of you who aren’t feeling
…
This recipe for stir-fried Chinese yellow chives with pork is especially tasty this time of year—spring and summer—when delicate, mild-flavored yellow garlic chives are in season. It’s easy to prepare, so if you have access to yellow chives, give this seasonal dish a try! What Are Yellow Chives? Before we talk about yellow chives, let’s
…
In this post, we’re introducing our brand new series, which we’ll run through the summer: How to Grow Chinese Vegetables. Each month, we’ll publish a comprehensive growing guide for a different crop integral to Chinese cuisine, including traditional growing knowledge and recipes for using that particular ingredient! The Inspiration For This Series A couple summers
…
These easy tortilla jianbing wraps are a godsend for anyone who loves this tasty and satisfying street food breakfast treat. Unless you live near a friendly local jian bing man or woman, though, it’s probably the case that this is a rare treat. UNTIL NOW. Jian Bing: Love at First Bite The first time we
…
Shredded Pork Pan-fried Noodles is a delicious dish with Hong-Kong-style crispy noodles and a flavorful pork stir-fry on top. The sauce drips down onto the noodles and makes for a very tasty combination! What Sets This Pan-fried Noodle Recipe Apart? This shredded pork pan-fried noodle recipe is the latest addition to our repertoire of pan-fried
…
I’ve seen a lot of detox soup recipes out there, but I think this version, which uses Asian ingredients like wakame (dried seaweed), ginger, soy sauce, sesame oil, and silken tofu, is particularly tasty. It also happens to be vegetarian, vegan, low-fat, and quick to make! A Quick Shot of Umami Some of you may
…
Hi everyone—we wrote a book! And it has a cover!! We are SO excited to announce that our cookbook is finally available for pre-order. After almost 9 years of blogging, approximately 6 years of telling readers that no, we don’t have a cookbook, but might write one someday, and 2 years of writing, recipe-testing, food
…
Beef with black bean sauce is a delicious, classic combination you’ll find on Chinese and Chinese American restaurant menus across the U.S. It’s quick and easy to make, using an ingredient that many of you have asked us about over the years—jarred black bean and garlic sauce! While we often use whole fermented black beans
…
