Do you like Chinese food? If you do what are your favorite dishes?
@Perspectives (7131)
Canada
January 5, 2008 7:55pm CST
Once again my good Cyber friend Aussies mentioned Chinese food as one of his nurture foods and that reminded me that it has always been a favorite of mine as well. My family of origin included Chinese food in every special occasion. It was a tradition of ours to go our or pick up Chinese food on Christmas Eve, sometimes again on Boxing Day and usually again on New Year's Eve. David and I have maintained that even though my parents no longer enjoy it with us.
I wondered how many other people associated good times and special occasions with a good feed of Chinese food? We found most small towns in rural Manitoba have Chinese food restaurants and we have one right in town. Every weekend there is an puts all you can eat buffet that we go to and indulge ourselves with every couple of months. Other time we order off the menu and eat there or bring it home. If you do enjoy Chinese food I'd like to know your favorites are. David and I enjoy something called golden dragon, Cantonese chow mien, lemon chicken dry breaded veal, egg or spring rolls. I also like egg foo yung...not one of my hubby's choices. We round that out with some stir fried veggies and friend rice. I have included a photo from one of our take out feasts.
Here's to happy munching...whatever we decide to eat! Watch the waistline though we all know the enjoyment factor can pack on the pounds and we don't want to have 'lose weight' as next year's resolution! (smile)
Raia
6 people like this
35 responses
@Dblabcker2200 (183)
• United States
6 Jan 08
Mongolian Beef, is by far my favorite chinese dish.
3 people like this
@Perspectives (7131)
• Canada
6 Jan 08
I am not sure I have ever had that. Is a more specialized menu feature...or fairly common in many Chinese food restaurants? Always enjoyable to open oneself to new dining experiences...and that is the fun of sharing ideas here.
Thanks for coming by again...I am sure we will chat again.
Raia
2 people like this
@Dblabcker2200 (183)
• United States
6 Jan 08
Im not sure if its specailized, i have had it at 2 different chinese places, they were different in the way they were made, but tasted similar.
3 people like this
@Perspectives (7131)
• Canada
7 Jan 08
Thanks for the update...it must be a good dish. As I am going through and commenting to responses Mogolian Beef has come up a number of times. I think I will have to check it out and see who has it on the menu. Always good to try new things...and foods.
Raia
@jeweledbluerose (3061)
• United States
6 Jan 08
Mmmm, Chinese food. You my friend have just stumbled upon one of my many food addictions lol! I could eat that stuff everyday and never get tired of it. So full of flavor, it makes the ol' taste buds do a little tango inside your mouth, it's just wondeful. :)~
Excuse me a moment *wipes the drool from her lips* sorry about that. lol
I've enjoyed Chinese food for as long as I can remember. It all started out as a family outing sort of deal when I was a kid, to being a special thing we did on my birthday, which has carried on to this day.
My favorites are a dish call General Tso's Chicken (sort of a spicy dish if you eat to much at once, but I enjoy it for the honey flavor it has to it), egg rolls, chicken stir fry, beef stir fry, and peppered beef. Mmm, I'm getting hungry just thinking about it and I just had dinner not to long ago lol!
2 people like this
@jeweledbluerose (3061)
• United States
6 Jan 08
It's been a pleasure catching up and chatting with all of my friends on here. It seems like an eternity since I was last on here, and have missed everyone and the conversation greatly. But with things slowing down for awhile (hopefully) I will have the time again to come in here and share an hour or so of conversation time with my friends here, no matter what the topic is. :)
Luckily I keep my keyboard under my desk on it's own little shelf, since I don't need to see the keys while I type, so it's safe from any over-flow moment I may have while talking about my favorite foods lol!
I think it would be great, if we had the chance to go out and engage in some conversation while enjoying our favorite Chinese foods, love going out with friends in any case, gives my husband a break from my ever talkative nature..lol!
One of these fine days, gonna have the money to come up to Canada so I can meet my friends who live there, since I have many from that area. Would make a nice vacation I think.
2 people like this
@Perspectives (7131)
• Canada
7 Jan 08
Yes, it has been great to be back more and it is a sincere pleasure to have been chatting it up with you the way we have been the last couple of days. I will make a point of putting on my alerts for you so I can be aware of when you have posted or responded. I do not leave a lot of them on because it gets overwhelming at times...but I do want to hear from valued Cyber friends like you and a few others that I chat with more regularly. As I have made some 'like-minded' connections here I really do wish we all lived closer so that we could share some up close and personal face to face chats.
If and when you do come to Canada and want to visit...I would love to connect with you...and I mean that sincerely. I was blown away when one friend I exchanged e-mails with invited David and I to stay with her in Croatia if we ever got there...and I know she meant it. So I do hope you will keep David and I in mind if you ever want to explore the rolling hills of Southwest Manitoba...we'd be happy to have you.
So if you want to think on it send me an e-mail through Mylot with your other address and I will do the same back. If not, we'll carry on this way and continue enjoying our chats at this level.
One way or the other I look forward to more 'sharings and carings."
Raia
@Perspectives (7131)
• Canada
6 Jan 08
Wow we are all contributing to a stream of consciousness here and making ourselves hungry..even though some of us also ate a short while ago. You are not alone in the saliva overflow either...I am concerned I might short circuit my keyboard if it keeps flowing this way!
Your favorites have some overlap with mine...egg rolls, chicken and beef stir fries. I have never had the Tso's Chicken although someone else mentioned that as well. Too bad we didn't live closer we could go out on a gal/pal evening, share the cost and enjoy the food while chatting our faces off! Nice though eh?
Anyway, it has been great catching up and sharing ideas with you after sooooo long between. Hopefully it won't be that long again if we can swing it!
Raia
1 person likes this
@roniroxas (10560)
• Philippines
6 Jan 08
hmmm this discussion makes me hungry. here in the philippines chinese resto are very popular. and every where you go you can see it. my favorites are fried rice, dimsum and dumplings, brocolli with oyster sause, noodles, nido soup, sweet and sour pork, sweet and sour fish and some tofu recipe. now my diet is ruined whahahaha.
@roniroxas (10560)
• Philippines
6 Jan 08
i agree that this is a cyber feast so there is no harm done even we talk about food all day long. wink wink wink
2 people like this
@Perspectives (7131)
• Canada
7 Jan 08
Yes...eat, drink and be merry in our minds...all the enjoyment without adding bulk to our bodies...that sure works for me...and I bet you too!
Raia
@Perspectives (7131)
• Canada
6 Jan 08
Your lead into the discussion is akin to others I am responding to...talking about all the things we love is creating a drool-fest on the keyboard. You have some different favorites and they all sound soooooo...delicious. Yep, more drool need to finish this up and sign off before keyboard is fried!
You'll be OK...this is just a Cyber feast...so your diet will be alright until you go our for the real deal!
Fun to joke around with you...take care my friend.
Raia
1 person likes this
@lexus54 (3572)
• Singapore
6 Jan 08
I just love Chinese food and I get to eat it all the time. That's because I am Chinese. I also do cook Chinese food at home (well, actually my Filipino maid does that; I teach her how to and she is quite good at it now). It will be hard for me to name my favorite dishes because there are just too many to name. But the common ones are stir-fried beef with onion and ginger, lemon chicken, chicken rice, chilli crab, pepper crab, sweet and sour pork, fried scallops with asparagus, roast chicken, hotplate venison, roast duck, peking duck, and so many more.
There are many ways to cook Chinese food. For example, chicken can be steamed, fried, roasted, stewed in claypot, baked, or cooked in curry, black bean sauce, dark sauce, basked with lemon sauce, fried with vegetables, boiled in soups, etc. There are many varieties of Chinese cooking because the recipes originate from the different Chinese dialect groups.
In non-Asian countries like US, Europe, Australia and New Zealand, there are also Chinese restaurants, and Chinese food is usually available in food courts. But usually these are Cantonese cuisine. In the food courts, Chinese food is usually cooked by HongKongers and those who come from Vietnam or China. I have travelled quite widely and eaten such food in these countries, but usually those served in the foodcourts overseas are quite standard fare, and does not really represent the very wide varieties of Chinese food that are available in countries where Chinese food is widely eaten, like my country. That's why people here love eating, because the kinds of food available here are rich, diverse, delicious and tempting to one's palate.
2 people like this
@cwilson26 (2735)
• United States
7 Jan 08
Here in Ohio, U.S where I live there is a restaurant my husband loves to go to and the guy who owns and cooks all of the food is Chinese so that is why my husband likes it so much. Plus it's cheap and the guy cooks really fast. It is mainly a takeout place and it's so small you can watch him cooking it. My husband asked him one time how he learned to cook so fast and he said, practice over time. There is another one just down the street where my husband worked before we met but they are very expensive. The owner is also Chinese but I think she has Americans do the cooking. My husband is great at cooking Chinese food even though he is American. Actually he's great at cooking all food. That's why he is the cook in the house and I clean up after him, lol. Very messy cook, that husband of mine. But there is a saying that he always says, A messy cook in the kitchen is a great cook! :)
1 person likes this
@Perspectives (7131)
• Canada
7 Jan 08
Hi to all in this conversation...I feel like I am intruding a little. It is thoroughly enjoyable to be going down the response list and see people chatting among themselves on any discussion. So if you don't object to me joining in my comment to what the three of you have said here is that the cultural exchanges that are threading through the 'food' chats are great to read.
I agree that there are distinct differences in more traditional Chinese restaurants that specialize in that cuisine versus those who add an American-ized version of the entrees.
In our old hometown of Winnipeg, Manitoba there are numerous restaurants that hold to fast to their roots and that makes dining out with Chinese food a completely different experience.
So thanks to all who are making the threads of this discussion so varied and interesting.
Raia
@Jasmine78 (135)
• United States
6 Jan 08
So happy to see that many friends like chinese food. I love chinese food too, and I am also Chinese. There are so many cook style for a same material, like fish, chicken, duck ect. People living in diferent regions of China have different style of dishes uisng these material. For me, I came from cetral China and I pefert the style with spicy. I also like smoked or salted style of fish and pork. Last year I found a small resteraunt serving food with the style similar with my home town in San Francisco, then I had diner there almost every evening during a week when I stayed in that city. In the small town now I live in the mid-west of the America, there are three chinese restaurants. They serve some delicious food but most of the dishes are combined with the western style. To have food with real Chinese style, you'd better make a reservation one or two days earlier so they can prepare for you. If you happen to be the friends of the restaurant owner, you will be the luckest guy because he may cook for you himself. Usually, I cook at home myself, to make dishes both my husband and I like.
2 people like this
@peanutjar (5198)
• Canada
6 Jan 08
Hi,i like the wonton soup,egg rolls,spring rolls,vermicilli with shrimp and chicken in it and especially the shrimp hot pots with extra spicy sauce on it piping hot from the grill,lol.
Peanutjar:)
2 people like this
@cwilson26 (2735)
• United States
7 Jan 08
We used to have a Wok and my hubby loved it and I loved the food he made in it. I think the cord broke and that's why we don't use it anymore. I think I will have to buy hubby one for his birthday in April.
As for the Shrimp hot pots, I don't like Shrimp but since you mentioned you can use beef or chicken instead it actually sounds very good. But only if hubby makes it for me cause I won't eat from the Chinese restaurants. If you want to know why then read my response on the last page. Well I'm off to do the dishes and then I am going to make some chow mein noodles in the microwave, hmmmm, I love them. :)
1 person likes this
@Perspectives (7131)
• Canada
6 Jan 08
Here I am cutting in on your conversation...but like you Mooch I was not familiar with the hot pots peanut jar mentioned. I am glad you came back and filled Mooch...and me in.
The whole thing does sound like a 'food event' and that makes dining out and trying new things even more special.
So thanks to both of you for sharing your favorites...and as I am responding many are saying that all this talk about great food and fun times is creating a craving for a good feast of Chinese food!
I'm game...how about both of you?
Raia
1 person likes this
@peanutjar (5198)
• Canada
6 Jan 08
Shrimp hot pot is diced carrots,diced celery and whole mushrooms which is put into a wok and fried alittle with some oil,then they add some shrimp to it with some kind of spicy but sweet orange sauce and some thinly diced garlic,in the meantime they heat a flat pan,kind of like a small portable flat grill and pour the ingredients from the wok onto the very hot grill and serve it with a side dish of rice.Its very messy,all the splattering grease on the table,but after a minute it stops,just when it thinks its got enough splatter on my shirt,haha.Instead of shrimp you can add some beef or chicken meat and use teriyaki sauce.The whole key is the idea of the sizzling pan in the end coming at your table,it's excitable,plus scary,lol.
Peanutjar:)
2 people like this
@nichole1983 (1187)
• Canada
6 Jan 08
I love everything there is to do with Chinese Food. From the stir-frys, chow mein, friend rice, deep fried won tons, won ton soup (as my daughter calls it brain soup.), duck, mmmmm now im hungry. I want chinese now.
2 people like this
@Perspectives (7131)
• Canada
6 Jan 08
This conversation is affecting everyone the same way. Sharing our favorites while we are drooling all over our keyboards. Yummy Chinese...yes! Your favorites include some of mine too...too bad we can't run out to a local restaurant and share the food and the cost of a great oink out!
Raia
1 person likes this
@Perspectives (7131)
• Canada
7 Jan 08
Ahhh shucks...signed off before I got your invite....deep sigh of disappointment. Oh well...maybe another time and another place. This is fun to think about though...so many Cyber friends that I would love to meet in person...and oink out with a Chinese feast.
Hope you enjoyed your food...we are in a small rural town and the restaurant was closed. David and I will be feasting soon all this talk genuinely got my taste buds hankering for a good meal with all our favs.
Cheers,
Raia
@nichole1983 (1187)
• Canada
6 Jan 08
I have ordered some chinese and it should be here within the next 10 minutes so if anyone is interested you are more than welcome to come over and have an oink feast... :)
2 people like this
@Lakota12 (42600)
• United States
6 Jan 08
when I was a teen we would go to a noodle place and have great times tring to eat with chopstix now I am not sure which food I would really like for we dont go altho they have a place called China Star here we just havent gone to it.
One thing I know for sure I Wont eat raw fish lol
hugs
2 people like this
@cwilson26 (2735)
• United States
7 Jan 08
You and me both, lol. I will not touch sushi or anything raw, unless it is fruits and veggies. Oh even thinking about raw fish makes want to gag! I have never eaten with chop sticks before. I would love to try it though and see if I could actually do it. I would probably get irritated and go back to a fork or spoon, lol. :)
1 person likes this
@Perspectives (7131)
• Canada
7 Jan 08
Hello to both of you. Chopsticks...ah yes they can be a challenge to use initially. However, I find they do create a sense of ambiance when eating in a Chinese food place. Depending on what we've ordered I do use them...other times I feel as you do Wilson I get impatient and go back to the tried and true.
Ix-nay on the raw food is how I feel too!
Raia
@Perspectives (7131)
• Canada
7 Jan 08
From the responses to this discussion...you are not alone in having Chinese food on your food list. Wonton soup is sooooo good and I love it too. It is regrettable that you do not have a restaurant close by. We live in a town of around 800 people and we have one a couple of blocks from where we live. I would really miss it if it wasn't there because I've been loving Chinese food from my earliest recollections. It was something my family of origin loved and now so do I.
Thanks for you input,
Raia
@Aussies2007 (5336)
• Australia
6 Jan 08
I am not very adventurous with food... so when I find something that I like... I usually stick to the same thing.
So my four favourites are...
- Prawn cutlets
- Mongolian lamb
- Braised beef with plum sauce
- Fried rice
2 people like this
@Perspectives (7131)
• Canada
7 Jan 08
Opps...sorry my friend...others had mentioned the beef and I guess my brain didn't pick up on yours being...lamb.
I am up late and signing shortly. Just catching up on the number of interesting responses and discussions within discussions on this whole topic. One never knows what will be of interest here.
After all the heavy, deep and philosophical posts I decided to break them up with some lighter ones for a change. Anyway, I'm going to be heading off to dreamland soon...it is two twenty AM here...late or early however you want to look at it...sleep is appealing to me.
So long for now...got it...lamb...not beef!
@Zelmarq (12585)
• Cebu City, Philippines
28 Jan 08
Siopao is the Filipino version of the Chinese baozi (steamed buns).
It is also called Salapao in Thailand. It is a popular food item in the Philippines. It does not require utensils to eat it and can be consumed on the go. Unlike Mantou, Siopao will contain a meat and gravy type filling that is slightly sweet and can be pork, chicken, beef, shrimp, chopped scallions, water chestnuts, seasoned egg yolk (if available/desired, balut is sometimes used). In addition, a combination of any of these ingredients can be used. Outside of the Philippines, many Filipino restaurants offer variants of siopao with local ingredients ranging from Spam and canned pineapple in Hawaii, to haute cuisine concoctions involving Pate d'Foie Gras and truffles.
@Perspectives (7131)
• Canada
6 Jan 08
The fun with discussions of this nature is that we can be exposed to new things that we may never have heard of before. I am not familiar with siopao...but glad that it suits your taste buds and and appetite.
Thanks for adding this dish to the discussion on Chinese cuisine.
Raia
2 people like this
@tomcai2007 (69)
• China
7 Jan 08
maybe you all should try some real chinese food which could be got only in china.
2 people like this
@Perspectives (7131)
• Canada
7 Jan 08
I can appreciate that many of the foods we are talking about are not true traditional Chinese cuisine and have been westernized. My family and hubby has had the privilege of tasting true Chinese food because we have some friends who prepare it in the way they learned while growing up in China...and yes there is a vast difference alright.
From the number of credits I assume you are new to Mylot...welcome and hope you enjoy being here. It is a great site!
Raia
@zigzagbuddha (4601)
• United States
6 Jan 08
Hehehe. My daughter just spent 2 days preparing an americanized version of Peking Duck. The entire family is still raving over it, but I didn't get to taste it as I was up here in the mountain tending the chickens.
I have a few favorites. Crispy duck is one of them, also sweet and sour pork, and Chinese dumplings, especially Shu Mai.
2 people like this
@Perspectives (7131)
• Canada
7 Jan 08
Hi and happy new year...belated as it is. I do not think we have chatted since last year..or have we? Anyway, the greeting is genuine and hope all is well with you. Things are going very well with David and I.
So you have a budding Chinese chef in your family...how convenient even though you didn't have a chance to savor her handiwork. Oh well, I am sure there will be other times to do so.
Chinese dumplings has come up a lot as a favorite...never tried them...maybe I will. That and Mongolian Beef seem to be really popular choices and I have never eaten that either. That is the joy of Mylot sharing ideas and learning new things. Gotta love it...and I do!
Raia
@Perspectives (7131)
• Canada
22 Jan 08
Hmmmmm...OK...whatever works for you is fine by me. I see it differently...but that is what makes life interesting.
Raia
@zigzagbuddha (4601)
• United States
7 Jan 08
You are not wishing me a belated happy new year, you are very early, as for me the new year does not begin till spring. I just don't get why anyone ever figured the new year begins while the old one is still 'dying'!
1 person likes this
@oldhippo (45)
•
6 Jan 08
Chinese food is one of the best foods in the world. So many options of dishes. So many flavours and textures. The only downside of most Chinese restaurants and take-away's where I've been is the amount of MSG that they put into the food to give it the flavour. Dries the mouth out like nothing on earth.
Still fab tho. Favourite dishes would have to be Sweet & Sour Chicken (Cantonese style - crispy batter, sweet sticky sauce) and Deep Fried Crispy Shredded Beef.
Yum Yum
@Perspectives (7131)
• Canada
7 Jan 08
Hi oldhippo...interesting login and photo...I like it! From your credits are you new here..if so welcome!
I agree with you about the flavours and textures..and by the spelling on flavour I assume you are either from Canada or the U.K? Will have to check out your site and see. I am a Canadian and like to know of who else is inhabiting Mylot land from our country.
Anyway, on the subject of MSG. I read somewhere that if you take extra B6 just before you eat it compensates for what is eliminated in the body because of the MSG. We have tried it and it seems to work.
Anyway hope you continue the YUM, YUM'S of Chinese food eating for many years to come...and me too!
Cheers,
Raia
@sabbathandruth (567)
• Canada
6 Jan 08
i like chicken or veggies stiry fry and only if i make it myself
i hate grease
so thats the only type of chinese food i like ( the one i make at home)
plusthose stupid soy sauce makeRs add msg to everything
it sucks
2 people like this
@Perspectives (7131)
• Canada
7 Jan 08
Your points are well taken and yes, in many establishments the MSG and soy sauce can create upsets in the body. Fortunately the restaurant in our little town does not use much of either so we can go out and enjoy what they have to offer without the problems you describe.
Good to know you make good Chinese at home...no need for takeout!
Raia
@emarie (5442)
• United States
6 Jan 08
special occasion?? damn, i used to eat Chinese food almost once a week just to eat. i grew up in Hawai`i and its a basic food item there. now i moved away and find it hard to get good Chinese, Japanese, and Koren food. for most it can be called a comfort food. my favorite is Manapua (steam meat buns, normally with bbq pork aka..chair-su). couldn't find it and where i did i paid $2 for a single bun SO...i decided to make my own. the Chinese take out place around the corner has great chair-su and i just add a few things...bought a bamboo steamer to cook it.
i remember on Sundays we would get a dozen manapua, pork hash and chow fun at a store near us called Kwon-Ons ...they had great Chow-Fun (very hard to find here...) and also Libby's manapua was great...I stopped asking my family to bring over manapua when they visit (airline restrictions make it hard) and just made my own.
@Perspectives (7131)
• Canada
7 Jan 08
Hi Emarie...thanks for adding your favorites and providing a little cultural information along with it. Some of what you describe is foreign to me but still sound good. A few others have mentioned the meat buns and it would be fun to try them if the opportunity presents itself. I am marginally adventuresome in food tasting...but what you have discussed sounds delicious.
You sound like a resourceful person and good to know that you have found a way to have what you miss since changing locations.
Interesting addition...and appreciated!
Raia
@Perspectives (7131)
• Canada
7 Jan 08
Hi and welcome to Mylot...all of what you say is true and why so many of us love, love love it!
Raia
@wisedragon (2325)
• Philippines
6 Jan 08
Let's see, my favorites are probably spicy spareribs and Shanghai spring rolls. In the USA I love eating at those Chinese buffets. They don't have the best sanitary reputation though.
2 people like this
@Perspectives (7131)
• Canada
7 Jan 08
Spicy foods are not high on my list of faves..but I can appreciate those who like it because we have friends who love it too. You bring up a good point about sanitary concerns in some larger chains. Do you have a Foody Goody chain in the U.S.? They have been cited here...but even with that as a concern people still flock to their buffets in droves.
Where we are they maintain pretty tight control and we haven't heard of any problems ...and they do put on a good spread...even in our rural area.
Raia
@Perspectives (7131)
• Canada
7 Jan 08
Hi...and I appreciate your input here...chicken for me...not so much on the hot sauce if it is too hot. Preferences...it is what keeps life interesting and varied.
Raia
@andyliuzn (1029)
• Guangzhou, China
6 Jan 08
Hi Raia,
Nice to hear that you like Chinese Food.
As a Chinese People, I enjoy all kinds of Chinese food all along. I especially like Sichuan's spicy food, since I could get different kind of feeling after eating it and what's more, it keeps me warm during the winter.
Wish best regards,Andy
2 people like this