Wok Wednesdays | The Breath of a Wok

Beginning in September, after completing Stir Frying to the Sky's Edge, the Wok Wednesdays group has begun wokking our way through Grace Young's earlier book, The Breath of a Wok: Unlocking the Spirit of Chinese Wok Cooking Through Recipes and Lore. This is an intimate book, with so many stories about the chefs who contributed the recipes, as well as over 50 pages on buying and seasoning a wok. This is not just a cook book. It is a work of love and a cultural treasure.

Here's what I've made so far.....

The photo above is of Jean Yueh's Beef with Onions and Peppers. According to the author, "this is a simple Shanghai-style family dish...." It's a simple dish, naturally sweet from the onions and peppers. We loved it.

The dish in the above photograph is Liang Nian Xiu's Snow Peas, Tomatoes, and Chilies from page 132 of the book. It's a stir-fry that includes the magical ingredient, pork belly. It also included ginger and garlic. I'm also proud to say I finally figured out how to "de-string" snow peas. This was really good with this pesto stuffed cod. The recipe for this dish can be found here. 

The above photo is Uncle Sherman's Home-Style Chicken and Vegetables, from page 69 of the book.
To quote Grace, "Auntie Frances and Uncle Sherman... vary the vegetables according to what is in season..."

This dish included chicken, ginger, garlic, the magical ingredient ground bean sauce, broccoli, cauliflower, bok choy, and mushrooms, as well as sprigs of cilantro. This dish is super easy to prepare, and completely satisfying. Here's a lovely story about Uncle Sherman.

If you'd like to learn more about Wok Wednesdays, check out our Facebook page. We have a wonderful supportive community, and we get to ask questions from Grace Herself!

If you'd like to wok along, check out the Wok Wednesdays recipe schedule, and buy the book. There are actual prizes involved for posting your photos on the Facebook page. You don't need to have a blog.