You found us! Tantalizing, mouthwatering edibles are just a few clicks, ingredients, and skillets away (not to pat ourselves too much on the back or anything. We like to maintain a healthy sense of humility).
The Woks of Life is a site for anyone looking to try their hand at Grade A authentic Chinese cooking (and any other great recipes, Asian or otherwise. We figure it’s best to keep one’s options open). Whether you’re a noob with an interest in going beyond Cream Cheese Wontons and Sesame Chicken, a college student with a drawer full of wrinkled take-out menus and only rudimentary knowledge of how to boil an egg, a suburban mom looking to make weeknight dinners a little more interesting, or just a fellow foodie, you’ve come to the right place.
We’ve been cooking and serving meals for a combined 139 years (Ugh. We’re so old). The fact that we all cook can, admittedly, lead to the odd kitchen squabble or heckle-fest here and there (*scroll down for embarrassing illustration of said phenomenon), but we make it through okay.
Aside: What we’re all doing in these photos:
Bill: Grilling steaks for fifty people at a family party, Corona in hand. Judy: Getting ready for BRUNCH time in Beijing. Sarah: Awkwardly stirring cheese curds at a Pennsylvania renaissance fair. Kaitlin: Chillin’ in the way (way) back of the family truck, whilst grandparents and other older (read: higher ranking) cousins chill up front.Italian, Spanish, Korean, French, Brazilian, Japanese, Vietnamese, Mexican, Moroccan, Thai, Indian, Malaysian…you name it, we eat it. We overanalyze our food, think about what to make for dinner before lunch is over, and relentlessly criticize any restaurant we walk into (yeah…we’re those people. There was a time when local wait staff couldn’t come within ten feet of the family matriarch without breaking into a cold sweat).
But then half of our group–the parental half–relocated to Beijing three years ago. Kaitlin was (and still is) in college stateside, and Sarah began moving between both China and the U.S. whilst figuring out the meaning of post-college life. Between all the plane rides and intermittent Skype conversations, it became difficult to stay up-to-date on all of our day-to-day comings and goings, let alone argue over the proper flour-to-water ratio for dumpling dough.
We also realized that the kid-parent separation led to said kids eating a lot less of the Chinese food normally served up by said parents. Because let’s face it…though the two daughters of this family can make restaurant-quality thin crust pizza like nobody’s business, they haven’t exactly been studying up as much on certain dishes that are usually left to the older generation.
Our solution? This website and blog, where we could share recipes, kitchen exploits, and other experiences from our lives in a metropolitan city, a college town, and a sleepy suburb/wherever the older kid ends up. We’ll share what we do best…authentic, simple recipes–some traditional, and some reinvented. For all you Chinese American generation X’s and Y’s out there who love to eat it, but have no idea how to make it, welcome to the promised land.
So take a look around. Pour a beverage and find tonight’s meal. Pick up some travel tips, a quick Chinese lesson, or an explanation of what the heck Chinese vinegar is.
(It’s the nectar of the gods, is what it is.)
Happy Wokking!
*An example, just for illustrative purposes. We’re not like this all the time. We swear.
B: “They’re burning!! The heat is WAY too high.”
K: “They’re not burning.”
B: “Who taught you how to a flip a pancake anyway?”
K: “You did.”
B: “Not like that, I didn’t.”
K: “These will be the fluffiest pancakes you’ve ever had in your life. Now go set the table and get some slippers, ‘cause yo socks are about to be knocked OFF.”
J: *wildly gesticulating toward pan* “Hey! Shouldn’t you really be flipping that one now?”
S: “Did you remember to add the lemon zest?”
Yeah, not a dramatization. Want to know more? Check out our bios here:
Bill: Dad/Husband/Dude Who Brings Home the Bacon
Grew up in upstate New York delivering newspapers, shooting marbles, and accidentally crashing questionably maintained snowmobiles into neighboring garages (okay, just the once). Had a couple stints in the restaurant world, rising from modest beginnings as a Burger King sandwich assembler to Holiday Inn busboy and line cook, to cooking at the family’s Chinese restaurant, while also learning the finer points of Cantonese cooking from immigrant parents.
Judy: Mom/Wife/Former Career Woman Adjusting to Life as Lady of the House in Beijing
Born in Shanghai, and arrived in the U.S. at age 16. Pretty much a boss when it comes to languages, being fluent in both English and three separate Chinese dialects. And boy, can she fold a spring roll (the rest of ours tend to just fall apart. It’s sad). Plus, she’s the only one in the family who’s actually good at reading Chinese, so she’s our professional menu-translator when we’re tooling around Beijing.
Sarah: Daughter/Older Sister/Enterprising Gen Y’er Susceptible to Many an Existential Crisis
Born and raised in the Garden State, with a tragically ironic lack of gardening skill. Grew up on episodes of Ready Set Cook and Iron Chef. Writer, piano enthusiast, and daydreamer, figuring things out between continents, from job opportunities in Beijing to occasionally holding down the fort in the suburbs.
Kaitlin: Daughter/Younger Sister/College Kid
Notoriously unable to follow a recipe (usually preferring to freestyle it), Kaitlin’s the family artist, knitter, chunky-sweater-obsessed crazy shopper, and keeper of an unreasonably detailed knowledge bank of Korean pop music. Currently living the college life and blazing her own path off the meal plan.
Jen says
I’m an American living in Beijing and your ingredient guides/recipes have been super helpful. It’s been really fun exploring sections of the grocery store I’d never touched, and I love when I try a new recipe for something that I’ve had in a restaurant and can’t believe how easy it was to make at home. Thank you thank you thank you!
Judy says
Oh, Jen, I really miss Beijing (except the pollution). Happy wokking and let us know if there is anything we can help with!
Su says
I’m still waiting to buy the Woks of Life cookbook…
Judy says
We are too, Su! hehehe…
Staci says
I’m an American expat living in Shanghai and I check your blog regularly to help me navigate the markets. Your recipes have saved me. I would be really interested to know more about how to buy tofu. I love all your recipes but just buying tofu is intimidating with all the different shapes, colors and densities.
Staci
Sarah says
Hi Staci, check out our Tofu & Bean Curd ingredients page: https://thewoksoflife.com/chinese-tofu-bean-curd/.
Larry LoVerde says
I’m not a fan of food blog sites. I generally scroll to a recipe, give it a glance, and I’m gone.
Today, I found myself caught up in the style of the writing and really intrigued by your family.
I’ll be back. By the way, the herb grilled shrimp and scallops will be dinner tonight.
Be well!
Sarah says
Thank you so much for the compliments, Larry. So glad you found us. :)
Doug says
Stumbled on your blog while looking for a lap cheung bao recipe, and immediately bookmarked it. I can see why you received a Saveur blog award — really good stuff!
Meanwhile, a question of origin: Coming from the Canadian border of New York, I learned early on that the colloquial geography of the state is, well, loosely interpreted depending where you’re from. Where is the Upstate in which Bill grew up?
Thanks…
Judy says
Thank you so much for your kind words, Doug. Bill is from Liberty, NY!
Doug says
Ahhh, Liberty… Route 17 and I are old friends from my IthacaManhattan days. Thanks!
Lisa says
Hi!
Thanks so much for this wealth of teaching and insight and deliciousness! You have changed my culinary life for the better!
I have a question that you may have answered previously, but I am new to your site and haven’t found it. How thick do you intend the slices of ginger to be?
Thank you very much!
Lisa
Judy says
Hi Lisa, usually each slice of ginger is about 1/8″ thick.
Chandra says
Hi,
I am a little surprised with the amount of sugar you put in your food, specially in your instant pot soy sauce chicken. Is that traditional or something that was developed later?
Chandra
Judy says
Hi Chandra, this instant pot soy sauce chicken recipe is adapted from Bill’s Cantonese Soy Sauce Chicken recipe.
Howard says
Thanks for your terrific website!
Do you have recommendations for best cleaver to buy?
Also, what is cost for personal cooking class/demonstration in NJ area?
Regards,
Howard
Bill says
Hi Howard, if you plan on using your cleaver for everything, a lighter thinner steel works nicely and is easier to sharpen. However, don’t try to chop lobster shells or meat bones, or it won’t hold up. A separate heavier cleaver is needed for the tough chopping. We don’t offer any cooking classes, but that may be in our future one day!
AL says
Absolutely Loving your Recipes! they are all so genuinely Chinese Restaurant tasty! I’m a British ExPat, former Soldier working and living abroad as a contractor and miss Chinese Take Away and Restaurant food sooooo much! Many Many Thanks for your ownderful recipes, please keep them coming, do we subscribe with a subscription fee to keep the Blog up and running?
Amazing!
Kind Regards,
AL….
Judy says
Thank you so much for your kind words, AL. There is no cost to subscribe to our email notifications, and there is no cost to visit our site. We just ask that you come to visit us often and maybe try some recipes! :-)
Areta Lok says
Thanks guys for being a go-to resource for the times I don’t want to pester my mom or when she just tells me to get out of her kitchen. I am a second-gen Chinese, born in Canada and in an inter-racial marriage so keeping the recipes alive is a cause that is dear to my heart. My kids can’t pronounce char-siu bao but frequently request it!
Sarah says
Haha we are happy to be of help, Areta! Thanks for reading :)
Normah Ahmad says
Hi all
Thank you so much for sharing your recipes. They all look so good and the detailed steps. My 1st attempt would be the steamed radish. So far getting halal dim sum is very limited so I hope to be able to cook a few for my family.
Would you have the recipe for chee cheong fun? I’m not much of a meat and fried person :)
Thank you
Normah
Judy says
Hi Normah, we have a rice noodle recipe and a cheong fun recipe for your to try: .
Nancy says
Hello!
Any chance you have the recipe for the steam yellow spongy cake one might find at a bakery or dim sum place? I must be blind if it’s on your list…
Sarah says
Hi Nancy, we don’t have recipe for that yet, but it’s on our list!
Mike Romano says
wonderful site. Thanks for the recipes and illustrations. I saw that your parents had a Chinese restaurant in New Jersey? where about? I grew up in Northern Jersey
Judy says
In Orange, NJ.
C Ho says
Hi Kaitlin. Sarah, Judy and Bill.
I find your site wonderfully interesting and mouth watering. It seems you are all ethnic Asians, mostly Chinese, I am guessing. I call myself a fake Chinese, as my forefathers migrated to South East Asia more than 200 hundred years ago (as I am already in my early 70s and cannot cook at all). I have, however, eaten some of the stuff you write about and it is like meeting old friends in your recipes.
Thank you for your most enjoyable and mouthwatering site. What you are doing is spreading your culture with such peace and love, you are better than the UN!
C.Ho
Sarah says
Thank you so much for your kind words! :)
Crystal says
You guys are the best :) I love this blog.
Judy says
Thank you for your praise, Crystal.
Jessica says
I love your blog. If my Pawpaw could speak English (and were alive), she and I would thoroughly criticize everything you wrote but also eat it all up. Your jook recipe is genius. Thank you and please don’t stop blogging!
Judy says
How fun, Jessica! We criticize every dish that we put in our mouths, so we know it well :-)
Adam says
This is a cool blog to find.
I’m looking for dried veg to try in a seitan roast (was looking for olives), and found your post about Chinese dried veggies.
I live in Toronto, so tomorrow I’ll go to one of the China Towns to try my luck with those mushrooms, and maybe to find some dried olive.
It’s exciting to read your story.
Best of luck!
Adam
Sarah says
Thank you Adam!! Lucky you have access to one of the world’s great Chinatowns. :)
Lorrenda says
I am thrilled with your site. I am looking for a recipe. I’ve only found this dish at one restaurant. They have closed and I would love to have it again. The name of the dish is princess chicken. It has chicken, baby corn, cashews, bamboo cubes, peanuts and a delicious brown sauce. I would love to know how to make it. If this sounds familiar to you could you please point me in the right direction?
Judy says
Hi Lorrenda, not too clear about the dish that you described here. But I suggest that you make Bill’s Mongolian Chicken, I bet it is very close to “your dish.” ^_^
Debbie says
Wow! What an interesting and lively bunch. Hello guys. What a great family. I have just discovered your site this afternoon while googling how to make chilli oil. There were a lot of recipes but yours instantly caught my eye and I have been reading your site all afternoon until now which is 10:02 pm Australian Eastern Standard Time (will be going to bed soon). Being a lover of chinese food I couldn’t believe why I did not come across this site earlier. I am so excited about what I’ve read about so far. I can’t wait to read more. The recipes have been written out quite well and the methods and explanations are quite easy to understand. I love how you explain and clarify the ingredients and where they can be bought. Also love the humor that you throw in every now and then. Makes a funny and interesting read and made me LOL 😂 I like your writing – flow and easy to read. The recipes look so good. I have a big task ahead of me to try them starting with the chilli sauce. This site is an absolute god send to chinese food lovers like me with no chinese background. You are doing an extraordinary job. Love your work. As from today, I have a new favourite site. Wok on guys! Greetings from Qld, Australia. 👉⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Sarah says
Hi Debbie, thank you so much for your kind comment! We’re so glad that you found us and that we could help with some late-night entertainment in the form of our crazy stories haha. Happy Cooking and let us know in the comments if you ever have a question about a recipe. :)
mouse says
Wow! This crew seems very interesting to follow. Love Chinese food, but recently have become vegan for some health issues. Love steamed buns, so a vegan version with instructions is truly inspiring.
Looking forward to getting inspiration from your newsletter. And of course, being a decent cook, I get the substitutions necessary ( sometimes) to make a simple chicken dish, vegan. What I like to follow are folks that love to cook, love to make an art of making a meal. Thanks.
Sarah says
You’re welcome! Thanks so much for reading––and for your supportive comment. :)
Erika Engle says
Aloha! I posted a gushing comment under your braised tofu recipe earlier today, mostly because it was the most recent post I saw and I thought it might get your attention more rapidly than a comment on the xiaolongbao recipe page. Get ready for more fan-girl action. As an enthusiastic, ever-curious home cook, I am (to use a different adjective this time) enthralled with your blog! The fact that you started it in order to stay more connected with one another, with your family legacy and your culture, and sharing your passion for cooking, absolutely warms my heart and makes your blog more special to me than most. Living in Hawai‘i, it’s really easy to find Chinese food of all types. In fact, most Chinese restaurants I’ve been to serve a variety of regions’ food, in order to keep their customers happy. Yes, some of it is Americanized-Chinese as well. I’ve read several of your posts and harvested several of your recipes today (I don’t blog, but always grab links to the recipes for attribution, etc. #RecoveringJournalist). I love the voice of your writing — all of your writing. It’s super-engaging and I’m so happy to have found you. I loved Sarah’s line in the dumpling recipe post: “my grandmother, my mom, my sister, and I get all Joy Luck Clubby about it…” That made me laugh out loud, but it also made me wistful that my mom and sister and I have not done the same thing with her gyoza recipe, her better-than-a-restaurant tempura recipe, and the best teriyaki chicken I’ve ever eaten (she’s Tokyo-born Japanese). Please keep up the great work, and know that you’re doing a wonderful thing, both for yourselves, and for us, your grateful readers. Love and hugs! ~Erika
Sarah says
Aloha Erika! (Pretty jealous that you live in Hawai’i.) We’re so glad that you’ve found us. Thank you so much for such a lovely comment––reading stories like yours and getting feedback like this is really what keeps us all going––all these years after we first started back in 2013. Happy cooking! :)
Rosalie says
Hi Bill, Judy, Sarah and Kaitlin,
Thank you for such a great blog. I found it while looking for a recipe for Cantonese poached chicken. I used your recipe for the Chinese New Year dinner. Your recipe made the best tasting White cut chicken and brings back memories of my dad’s cooking. It was so good that even fussy chicken eaters really enjoyed the chicken. Will try more of your recipes. Ma Po Tofu is next!
Rosalie
Judy says
Super, Rosalie! So glad everyone enjoyed it.
Agnes says
hi there, just wondering whether Woks of Life has a book about all of your recipes?
thank you so much.
Judy says
Not yet, Agnes!
Martin Ramone says
You are such a cool family! Keep cooking, and the party alive!
Sarah says
Aw, thank you so much Martin! We will!
Laura Littlefield says
I am at this very moment chowing down on the scrumptious Di San Xian – one of my current favorites of your recipes since I love eggplant and every Chinese eggplant dish I’ve ever tasted (have you ever tried the deep-fried stuffed eggplant sandwiches they make in Tianjin? Man oh man…) AND Spicy Stir Fried Rice Cakes, which of course I had to tweak cz I can never do a recipe straight up and I had a hunk of lean pork on hand and no pork belly. (Always have rice cakes on hand since I eat gluten free and they’re my toast, fried in oil, whenever I have eggs.)
I’M SO HAPPY I FOUND YOU GUYS!!!
I’m a fellow American foodie who cooks for the sheer pleasure of eating what I cook, living currently in Nanning. It’s fun to think Bill and Judy are only 1,500 miles to the north. Also, I grew up in Englewood, NJ; there’s something somehow comforting in knowing you’re from NJ, too!
Thank you sooooo much for all you do to help us make and eat GOOD Chinese food. I’m just thrilled you all haven’t abandoned this blog just when I found it, though it’s already a treasure trove that I personally would label a great humanitarian effort. All right, a great service to society.
Judy says
Hahaha…Laura, thank you SO MUCH for your generous praise! I do personally think of this blog as 为人民服务 :-)
Bill Owens says
As a Jersey Citizen, I see that you are headquartered here. I’d love to hear some of your recommendations for great restaurants in J.C. or nearby. Looking forward to my subscription.
Judy says
Hi Bill, my favorites are Chengdu 23 near Willowbrook Mall, Fortune Cookies in Bridgewater, Qin Dynasty near Parsippany and China Chalet in Florham Park. I know, all Chinese food :-)
Sophie says
Hello there!
I love your website. Growing up in a chinese family in Germany we always had the best chinese food (not the restaurant kind, but proper chinese food :D). However teaching isn’t my moms strong point, her recipes are all: a litte bit of this and that and then season with everything that’s in the cupboard. So your recipes have enabled me to recreate all my favourite dishes (without a 2 hour phone call for details) and impressing my family with maintaining a healthy college life diet (at least on pictures). So thank you all very much for sharing your recipes and I look forward to all of your new posts.
Stay hungry! All the best, Sophie
Sarah says
Hi Sophie, I’m so glad that you’re enjoying the blog and recipes, and that we could help you bring a taste of home into college dorm life!
DMc says
Pintrest has blocked your links due to causing SPAM. Please review your processes and fix.
Thank you
DMc
Sarah says
Thanks for letting us know about this! We reached out to Pinterest a week or so ago and are waiting for them to resolve the issue. If you want to lend a hand, fill out an appeal using the Pinterest contact form (https://help.pinterest.com/en/contact) so we can get their attention and you can get back to pinning! Thanks so much for reading, and we hope to be back up and running on Pinterest soon.
Mark says
Glad to have found you. Been bumbling around my quasi Asian styles bank of food ideas and memories from pre-1980 life as a Farang in Thailand, a resident in Philippines and visitor to Honk Kong, Japan and a few other places first courtesy of the US military adventure in Vietnam and later for a multinational corp.
When we moved our young kids, born abroad, back to New England we had to hunt to find coriander/cilantro seeds and a decent range of pepper seeds. We started growing a little market garden for a range of flavors simply not available in semi-rural area (ever barely available out of metro Chinatowns in Montreal and Boston. On first post Navy loving for a year in manhattan there were, if you can believe it today just Two (2) thai restaurants in Manhattan. It was later we had kids overseas and stating pre-school in Thailand that we moved to New England and needed to grow some of our own essentials. Kids grew up eating a balanced diet of “Mom food” and “Dad Food.”
So the other day I ran across your process for dry-type beef chow fon it did what I’d been aiming to duplicate the best restaurant I’ve found in Montreal. It improved my batch (though I did customize it bit with modest garlic and I top everything with heavyish cilantro garnish. Also saw your recipe for Ma Po Tofu, a favorite for years and it looked right to me so I’m looking forward to rambling my way around your recipes and getting my tastes back in line.
Side note: I consider Thailand the best eating place I ever lived. Now, I’ve never been closer to China than the New Territories since in my day China was verboten. But one of these days I’ll get to travel through a number of regions.
This all will be fun.
Sarah says
Thanks for sharing your story, Mark. We’re so happy that this blog can help you rediscover/duplicate some of the dishes that you remember. Keep cooking with us and enjoy your travels through Asia!
Ciara says
Hi! I was looking for Vietnamese coffee recipes and found your fantastic blog! Looks like I found a new place for authentic Chinese/Asian food recipes. :)
Bill says
Welcome Ciara and hope you try our recipes!
Bea Wong says
I was wondering if you had a recipe for sui op or translated water duck. It was served at banquets and was a boneless duck that was stuffed with duck meat and greens while keeping it’s shape as a duck. The skin and gravy with the greens were fantastic. I know that the duck was deboned while leaving it’s skin intact.
Bill says
Hi Bea, that duck sounds delicious and quite a project in the kitchen! I have not heard of this dish but will do a little research :)
geom says
Just discovered this site and I am hooked.
I am intrigued by a statement in the comments below
“Getting the outdoor “flamethrower” (aka a propane tank hooked up to cast-iron burner that kicks up a 2-3 foot tall flame) was an ABSOLUTE game-changer. You know the one……it’s the sound you hear across Asia at any good restaurant and/or hawker center/street food stall serving up great tasting grinds.”
was this something that was discussed in the blog? can you explain what this is about? I’m always frustrated by lack of power on my gas stovetop (usually because I try to cook too much food at once)!! This sounds like a solution, and I love outdoor cooking on my patio.
I can’t wait to make the char sui pork roast.
Also, can you make some comments about Ah-So sauce, the bright red sticky sauce that I grew up on?
Bill says
Hi geom, wok cooking with a nice hot flame is always best. You can use one of those turkey fryer setups for outside cooking that gives off a nice flame. That said, you are right about volumes – cooking small batches on the regular stovetop always yields tastier dishes. As for the red ah-so sauce, I’m not sure what it is you’re describing, since nothing comes to mind.
Darryl Woo says
Do you have a Hung Tao Yee Foo Fried Won Ton Soup recipe or where I can find one??
Judy says
Hi Darryl, I googled images for “Hung Tao Yee Foo Fried Won Ton Soup”, and it looks like we’ve never had this soup. I’ve actually never seen it before. Speaks to how varied Chinese cuisine is!
Nancy Yip says
Hello!
Love, love your website. Your recipes remind us of our Daddy’s cooking.
Would you happen to know why your search feature does not show up when the iPad is in portrait mode? It’s fine in landscape mode though!
I definitely will buy a cookbook if you all decide to publish one in the future. Make it soon please.
Judy says
Thank you so much, Nancy, we will let our readers know when the time comes for a cookbook :-) Also, check the setting on your ipad. Maybe there is a lock on portrait mode?
Doug says
Love your blog. Lifelong vegetarian, married, new dad of a Leizhou princess ( though this has made me very happy/proud it does not make me a king). Been eating/cooking rice and noodle-y stir fries for 40 years but two weeks in Guangzhou last winter and the last year cooking for Rent Hai Qun has both opened my eyes and shifted my palate alot! Thanks…
BTW…. Fried “enami” ( That is my crude pinyin translation of Renn’s Leizhou Min word for noodles) is now our dinner table staple… But I wonder about that word. It definitely means noodles to her.. sometimes emphasis is on the first syllable. “ee” na mee..but I wonder just how close I am coming to what it is she once ate. Anyway, dumplings ahoy! Keep up the good work.
Bill says
Thanks Doug, we’ll do our best to continue posting :) As for your pinyin translations, I have no clue lol!
bob says
Love your blog. Just signed up. Am gonna try and make the HK coconut buns and will report back the results (note I didn’t say “success” or “failure”!). We usually get them from JJ’s Bakery in Arcadia, CA but wanna give them a go on our own. I’m American born and raised and met my wife while I was living & working in Taiwan (she’s from Pietou)….truly where I fell in love with her as well as the people and food from The Beautiful Island. She’s the smartest woman I know since she (doesn’t like to cook) taught me (LOOOOVE to cook) how to make some great Taiwanese and other Asian dishes. Getting the outdoor “flamethrower” (aka a propane tank hooked up to cast-iron burner that kicks up a 2-3 foot tall flame) was an ABSOLUTE game-changer. You know the one……it’s the sound you hear across Asia at any good restaurant and/or hawker center/street food stall serving up great tasting grinds.
Thanks for all you do!!
Sri Muljani says
Hi All,
Love your blog – everything about the authentic Chinese recipes; and love the funness the way you guys put together the blog.
I lived in Beijing for 13 years, and then I came to the US. So, when I see your recipe in my inbox every week, I always look forward to reading new Chinese dishes you guys created/cooked. I get to drool all over the computer screen while reminiscing all the Chinese food I got to taste and eat in Beijing, and other parts of China I visited.
Tried to cook some of the dishes myself; and I was so happy to find your blog – valuable treasure box of Chinese recipes to replicate all the food I tasted, at my own home.
If it’s not too much to ask, would you once in a while cook/write out some Hakka food for us? My origin was Hakka, but I have never cooked Hakka food. My mom used to cook at home, but since I left home long time ago, I haven’t had good Hakka homecooked meals. She passed away almost 7 years ago, so the chance of having Hakka food is none, whenever I go home – in Indonesia.
Keep up the good work!
Best wishes,
Judy says
Hi Sri, Bill’s mother was from Hakka and we would love to cook more Hakka food. Can you please give us a few popular Hakka dishes that you would like us to try? We will get it done for you :-)
Sri Muljani says
Based on what I could remember, my mom always cooked the bitter mustard vegetables stew aka boey chai (? Sp), yong taufu, mei chai with mushroom and pork, and there’s a vegetable dish with mei chai that looks like the hand. (I couldn’t remember what vegetable exactly.) she did cook a lot using mei chai, I remembered. Bai cam kee (if you like, white steam chicken), and chicken stew with goji berry, dried jujube, white medicinal stuff (bai he (?), and the wide like a leaf white herb) to name Just a few.
Would appreciate much if Bill’s mum would share some more Hakka foods.
They are homey and delicious.
Best wishes,
Sri
Judy says
Hi Sri, we have some of these dishes covered and a few more that you did not name :-)
Hakka Style Stuffed Tofu
Mei Cai Kou Rou
White Cut Chicken
Chicken Mushroom Soup
Chinese Herb Soup
Salt Baked Chicken
Sour Plum Duck
If you think of a dish, search our site––you might find it :-)
Sri Muljani says
Hi Judy,
it was quite a collection you have! Yes, most of those were also cooked at home. Except the Sour Plum Duck – I guess my mum was not a fan of cooking duck, or the ingredients were difficult to find.
Hope you will keep adding to the list. Yong Taufu, Mei Cai Kour Rou, Herb Soup were very popular back then. She made Salt Baked Chicken a few times, but I guess it was more hassle to do, she didn’t want to cook it again :-)
I remember we had Abacus seeds also, I had to help rounding them, and we made tons of them.
Keep up the blog with flavorful delicious Chinese home cooking!
Best wishes,
Sri
Judy says
Thank you, Sri, will do!
Ellen says
Love your recipes! gives me inspiration for new recipes and also a good look back at something more traditional when I have to whip up a classic.
I am just wondering if you have a good 發糕 (fa gao) recipe (usually made during Chinese new year)?
thank you!
Sarah says
Hey Ellen, we don’t currently have a recipe, but it’s definitely on our list for next year!
Chandra says
Where can I get shaoxing wine? Is shaoxing cooking wine the same?
Is there a difference between oyster flavored and oyster sauce?
Love your recipes!
Sarah says
Hey Chandra, you can get Shaoxing wine at any Chinese grocery store. Yes, Shaoxing wine and Shaoxing cooking wine are the same. I believe oyster flavored and oyster sauce are likely the same, but there ARE variations among different brands. Oyster sauce can range in price based on quality, so definitely keep that in mind. Find out more in the oyster sauce entry on our Chinese sauces, vinegars, and oils page: https://thewoksoflife.com/chinese-sauces-vinegars-oils/.
Peter Phillips says
I am a Welshman (Google that or think Tom Jones, Stereophonics, Catherine Zeta Douglas et al, living a wonderful retired life in S.W France with another home in the Black Forest of Germany.
We are without doubt foodies, we have enjoyed many years of the interesting multi cultural of London and some of the best of Europe.
At the end of the day we have always had a passion for the rich variety offered by the various regions of China, Peking, Szechuan, Cantonese to name but three. Sadly France has a great bias to a cover all attitude to what is called Asian restaurants, the main origin being from Vietnam. Thai which is amazingly popular in the UK is matched in France with a move to Sushi albeit run by Chinese. Sad as the fine cuisine is being lost.
I look forward as a new member to your blog and wish a Happy New Year
Sarah says
Wow, sounds like you’re living the dream, Peter! South of France and Black Forest? That’s amazing.
Glad that the blog can help you guys get a taste of China in your corner of the world. Happy New Year!
Dawn says
Really enjoying your blog – recently used your recipes to make myself some Shanghainese spring rolls (yours was the best English recipe out there!) and 炒年糕 while separated from the family over Chinese New Year. Hoping to test out some other ones soon!
Sarah says
You’re welcome Dawn! Happy New Year. :)
Emily says
Hi guys!
Thank you for creating this website! I love the recipes, especially the ma la xiang guo and ma po dou fu! I was wondering whether you have any plans to do a recipe for 锅包肉？I ate is every week in China and really miss it! I was also wondering whether you have any tips on how to make 水煎饺 with the bottom that is crispy and together? I don’t really know how to explain it haha like this http://www.douguo.com/cookbook/752109.html
Thank you
Judy says
Thank you so much for your request, Emily. I will add these two dishes to our list.
Ranger24 says
I’ve been using y’alls blog like it was holy scripture for the past year.. thank you so much for making this awesome site
Sarah says
hahahha thanks for the high praise!! So glad the blog has been a help to you over the last year :)
Chris says
Love the blog guys. I’m here in the UK and really looking forward to getting stuck into these recipes.
Cheers!
Judy says
Great Chris, just let us know if you have any questions. ;-)
Lydia says
Hi, i am Lydia my grandmother was a Nonya in Singapore and born in Bejing so here i am born in the Netherlands and i love to cook al kind of flavours and love your web to read thanks
Judy says
Thank you so much, Lydia!
Cheryl says
Can you post a recipe for mango sticky rice??
Judy says
Hi Cheryl, do you mean mango sticky rice sweet soup or mango in the mochi like sticky rice?
virgie says
Do you have recipe book that you can purchase
Judy says
Hi Virgie, sorry, we don’t have a recipe book.
carolyn says
thoroughly enjoying your recipes, it is a taste and memory of my mom…question about: jan 11, 2018 post on chinese pickled long bean noodle soup, love the tall cylindrical container holding chopsticks, what is it’s original purpose, is it old, does it have a name, how to locate one? thanks.
Judy says
Thank you for your noticing, Carolyn. We have had that ceramic container forever, but I’m not sure about its history.
louise says
Please tell me do you have a cookbook with all these recipes? would like to buy. Please reply
Bill says
Hi louise, we don’t have a cookbook yet but are planning on it for sure!
Hannah says
I’m so excited to hear that you’re planning a cookbook! Selfishly I’d love a vegetarian one…
Jeffrey says
Thank you so much for your amazing recipes! I am personally amazed by how much you guy improved, and I wish you good luck!
Bill says
Thanks Jeffrey!
Peter says
I am looking for good healthy vegetarian
Chinese , Thai and Indian food receipies
Plus Ian open to experiment with vegetarian dishes from any other countries
Help..
Bill says
Hi Peter, try going through our list of vegetarian recipes in our visual recipe index:
vegetarian recipes
Joyce says
I discovered your blog (probably one of the best things that’s ever happened to me.. not even exaggerating) about a year ago but never got to try any recipes since I never really had to cook.. and when I did I would just panic and get anxiety.
I just got married last month and thanks to you guys I’m excited to cook for my hubby and I. We both come from a Chinese background with Dads that can really cook and we always loved traditional Chinese food. I always thought that when I would move away from home that I would no longer get to enjoy that. But with your recipes, I can now create them right in my own home. And my husband is also a HUGE fan. We depend on your site for food.. IN FACT today when your site was down I panicked because I didn’t know how I’d make dinner without it. Looking forward to trying more and more recipes! Keep it up!
Bill says
Thanks Joyce. Glad you and your hubby are cooking with us!
atc says
not sure what’s going on with the site…every time i click on a recipe to open it, it goes back to homepage
Judy says
We had some technical issues earlier today. It’s working now. So sorry for the trouble!
Cecilia says
I just discovered your website. Thank you! Now I have new recipes to try on my daughter who is a picky eater.
Bill says
Welcome Cecilia, hope you cook lots of dishes!
Sabi says
Thank you so much for the culinary insights of you family – you make it look so easy…. I will make sure to hit my local Asian supermarket and try to reenact your recipe to a t. Culinary greetings from Germany.
Bill says
You’re welcome Sabi!
Tom Matthes says
Love your we site!! When printing recipes today (1/10/18) the first line of the page (date and recipe name) is black. The remainder of the printed page is in a “reddish” color that is (because of the color) difficult to read. Many attempts ended with the same results. Recipes I print from other web sites are the correct black ink color. I cleaned the heads on my printer and the condition was not corrected. It appears there is something wrong on your end. For your reference, https://thewoksoflife.com/easyrecipe-print/9874-0/ is an example.
Bill says
Hi Tom, Not sure what the problem is but it seems to print alright for me. Will investigate and update you if I find anything.
Douglas Russell says
Hi, I’ve been working my way through a lot of delicious recipes on your site (and everyone I’ve fed it to is now also a big fan!) and I was wondering if you had a recipe for a dish that is (at least in the UK) pretty popular.
I used to live across the road from an extremely average Chinese takeaway when I was at university, but they made the most delicious Crispy Shredded Chilli Beef. Recently I had this same dish in a restaurant in Manchester (doesn’t really matter, but this one: http://www.the-rice-bowl.com/a-la-carte-menu) and was reminded how delicious it could be!
I tried this recipe (https://www.recipebinder.co.uk/recipe-46840.html), but it wasn’t quite right, certainly my beef looked nothing like that! Flavour wasn’t too far off though, but still not quite right. Was definitely too oily tasting. The recipe is pretty light on implementation details which is part of the problem and without in-progress photographs it’s difficult to diagnose if I’ve made some mistakes.
If you have a recipe for this (which I’m sure would eclipse the one above anyway) I’d love to see it on the site at some point!
Thanks and keep up the good work,
Douglas
Bill says
Hi Douglas, Sounds like a dish I have not had in a long time––dry fried beef (shredded with veggies). There are so many variations out there that there is no real “standard” for this dish, but I will add the version I am familiar with to our to-cook list. Stay tuned. Hope it meets your expectations when it comes out :)
Sharon says
Hi There! I just read your Curry Mee recipe and I am sooo incredibly thrilled to have found it. My hubby and I go to Penangs a lot and we were there last weekend and I have been craving there Kari Mee since and he has been craving there curry beef stew! So we decided to try and make them! YAY! We actually bought the ingredients yesterday without a recipe, but figured we would find one this morning! So excited to try it today! I will let you know it goes and I agree…Kim Man and Penangs are the best!
Judy says
Hi Sharon, here is our curry beef recipe. Please allow me to brag––it’s truly a great recipe :-) Hope your husband likes it.
Sharon says
Thank you so much! I will let you know!
Nancy Seegers says
Happy New year! I grew up in Shanghai and came to the states when I was 14. I love making my favorite dishes from Shanghai for my kids using your recipes. Keep up with the great work and enjoy Beijing!
Nancy Seegers
Judy says
From one Shanghainese to another Shanghainese, happy New Year, Nancy! :-)
Gary Chan says
Love the site ! Raised in SF but now living in Tokyo, so its nice to be able to replicate the food that I grew up eating. I imagine maintaining the site is a lot of work, though just know that it is widely appreciated!
Judy says
Thank you so much, Gary, for your gratitude. We really, really appreciate your appreciation :-)
Gloria says
Dear Bill, Judy, Sarah and Kaitlin: HAPPY NEW YEAR! Just wanted to wish you a wonderful new year and tell you how much I enjoy your site! It is my go-to site for Asian recipes and for a good reason: everything tastes wonderful; as good or better than I can get in a restaurant! Thanks to all of the extra information you provide, I’ve learned so much! My cabinets/fridge are now stocked with ingredients I would never have tried before because I didn’t know what they were or how to use them. Ingredients that might seem so common to you, now elevate my cooking to dishes I am proud to serve – the Shaoxing Wine absolutely takes home-cooked beef fried rice to the next level –wok hei!!! Thanks again – don’t stop cooking…we need you!!!!
Gloria
Judy says
Thank you very much for your lovely words, Gloria! So good to have you cooking with us. You too, don’t stop cooking :-)
CARMEN Wei says
W9uld like to know if you have written any cookbooks. I love your recipes.
Thank you
Sarah says
Hey Carmen, we don’t have any plans for a cookbook at the moment, but we’ll let you know if that changes!
fred says
Do you have a recipe for Sichuan chicken gizzards? It seems simple, but my attempts of recreating this dish are not succesful. Thus far I have chili oil, dried red peppers, sichuan peppercorns, garlic, and scallion in my ingredient list.
Judy says
That’s a great looking dish, Fred! Chicken gizzards are not for everyone, but I love the crunchy texture. I’d eat it everyday if I didn’t have to worry about the high cholesterol issue :-) Thank you for your request, Fred. I will add it to our to-do-list.
George Eastes says
So far, I have tried 25 of your recipes. I love them, so do my friends and family! I am a 76 yrs old man living in Indiana. There are NO good Asian restaurants. So I am the “Asian Chef”.
Sarah says
Hahaha that’s awesome George! Keep up the pace, and you’ll have cooked our entire repertoire by the end of 2018. :)
Jim Payne says
Hiya all.
Had to learn a bit about cooking a couple of years ago, when wifey had two knee joints replaced. I now cook usually, every other day. Do have a repertoire of dishes various, mainly spicey but will look forward to learning some more with your blog.
Jim. West Sussex, UK.
Sarah says
That’s great, Jim. We’re glad we can be of some help in the kitchen. Keep cooking with us and let us know in the comments if you ever have any questions about our recipes!
Laura Chan says
I was just simply looking for enoki mushroom recipe but what i really found was treasure! Im not the best cook nor do I have extensive knowledge in Chinese dishes but thewoksoflife gave me so much insights! Theres so much recipes here I want to try together with my partner.
Thewoksoflife has been bookmarked and favorited! Literally my go to for all Chinese cooking!
Sarah says
Thank you so much, Laura! We’re so glad that we can be a go-to resource for you guys. :)
Dallas says
I cannot find a delicious recipe I believe I once found here. A whole chicken marinated in soy sauce and other things for a day or two and then dried for several hours before cooking. I find so many excellent recipes here, I have to believe I found this one here too….
Sarah says
Hi Dallas, the only recipe that sounds close to that is our soy sauce chicken: https://thewoksoflife.com/2015/02/soy-sauce-chicken/.
But the chicken isn’t dried before cooking…perhaps it was another site where you saw that particular recipe?
Mari Jovan Fernan says
I am so pleased to have found your website. Just looked over the XO sauce recipe you provided. Sauces are a complete mystery to me even though I live in the Aloha State. They seem so mysterious and magical. When I peruse through Chinatown I am utterly lost when it comes to condiments…aside from sesame oil, sriracha, different fish sauces, soy sauce, and sweet chili sauce…but it doe snot compare to the sauces I come across at Yauatcha my favorite restaurant.
Thank you so much for sharing with us. I’ll have to print out quite a bit from your site and build my stock of basic ingredients and cooking tools….oh and cute footed condiment dishes to boot.
Mahalo
Sarah says
Hahaha love that. We’re happy to help you up your sauces and condiments game! If you ever need help in the sauce aisle of the Asian grocery store, check out our Chinese Sauces, Vinegars, and Oils page: https://thewoksoflife.com/chinese-sauces-vinegars-oils/. Happy cooking!
Peggi says
Oh.my.gosh…I can hardly write this due to overdosing on your “Mongolian Beef” tonight. Such flavor and texture, I really liked that it was more savory than sweet, so yum! I didn’t have chili peppers so threw in some crushed red pepper but otherwise followed every recipe detail to the letter (I usually cook free style, like your younger one). This is a keeper and I will definitely be perusing the rest of your site, thanks for sharing!
Judy says
Welcome to our site, Peggi, happy wokking!!!
George Lewis says
So very much enjoy your enthusiasm for food, love of cooking, respect for ingredients, and general joy of sharing your combined wisdom! Just love the recipes. I’m learning from your blog, and what a treat that is! Thank you.
George
Judy says
Love your comment, George! Looking to pass our love of food to our readers, hope it’s working ;-)
Jeff says
Hi there. I was checking out different pages for an egg foo young recipe and I stumbled upon this page. I must tell you that I love the way you have written your copy. It had me laughing. The thing I like best about your page is how down to earth it is yet “existential” at the same time. Cooking together as a family usually results in chaos and calamity. at least in my family and apparently yours as well! Also, I had to do a double take when I saw that you worked in Liberty, NY. I did too as I am from that general area and was in the restaurant industry. Anyway, enough of my mindless rambling. I just wanted to express how much I enjoyed your web page. Keep it going!
Judy says
Thank you so much for your “rambling,” Jeff haha. with our recipes, we definitely have ramblings of our own on our thoughts, travels, meals and fond memories. Come back and leave us a note anytime :-)
Cassandre says
I am a huge fan of chinese takeout but once i started making my own fried rice, i realized that, like all other foods, chinese tastes better homemade. I’ve been looking for a site with genuine chinese recipes and so glad I found this one! I love how informative you are (I like that you even have a separate page for ingredients so we can know what they actually are and how else to use them). Anyways, really looking forward to making these! Gonna start with hot and sour soup (perfect for the approaching winter haha)
Bill says
Hi Cassandre, welcome to our corner of the internet. May you cook more delicious meals at home with us! :)
sonny says
thank you so much for this webside,so i can found so many recipe and knows aboud chinese dise and learn aboud how to cook chinese foood
best regard
sonny
from bali ( indonesia )
Sarah says
So glad you’re enjoying the site, Sonny!!
Elizabeth says
Love your blog! I am nearly half your combined age and COOK. Rare to find decent inspiration. You have done it. I grew up on mainly asian cooking, from Indonesia to Thailand and China but as a westener have had a fair dable in traditional european and american cooking, but it always seems easier to me to turn left-overs into a tasty meal asian meal. You will definitely add something to my already very large repertoire of recipees. We work very hard as farmers in the south of France, growing vegetables and rearing rare bread pigs, but as cooking is my form of relaxation, two amazing meals hit the table everyday, but one runs out of inspiration and too many re-runs. I now have some idea what to do with with the kilos and kilos of chillies being harvested!
Sarah says
oh my gosh, your farm sounds magical! Glad to hear some of that beautiful produce is going towards making our dishes. :)
Panny says
Hi Bill~~~ :D Long time no see. I am Panny in Nokia. I worked in Nokia in Beijing in your team from 2012 to 2014 until Nokia closed. Remember me? :D Haven’t got news from u for a longgggg time~ Hope u and ur family be healthy and happy.
In 2014 Apr, i went to America myself for the first time, and u gave me soooooo many amazing suggestions about the trip for example the Mur Woods in San Francisco, the big beef hamburger restaurant in Chicago and the Wired opera in New York. U told me not to stare strangers’ eye when i am walking alone at night, some wired people are not bad. And U recommended an excellent and romantic Beef steak restaurant in Chicago. I went there take a pleasant dinner with my friend there, whom is my boyfriend afterwards my husband now. :) It was our first meal~
U always give me the impression of nice, intelligence and diligence. I always want to be a man like u ,enjoying and loving life from the heart. Miss u and hope everything goes well with u and your lovely family.~~~
Sincerely Panny
Bill says
Hi Panny, 好久不见!
How can I forget. :) Hope you and your family are doing well! Drop me an email at [email protected] the next time you are visiting the US and hopefully I can help out again. You should check out our travel posts for great visits in US national Parks and Europe. Both of my daughters, Sarah and Kaitlin love to share and write about their travels also. Take care and thanks for your pleasant message!
Jane says
Hello, I just made the Sichuan boiled beef dish – it is one of my favorite dishes ever and I never thought I’d be able to make it at home. Your recipe is easy to follow and the result is absolutely spectacular. Thank you so much!!!
Bill says
You’re welcome Jane!
Jack says
Hi Sarah,
I was browsing a few recipes yesterday afternoon while waiting at a car parking lot. At first glance I was a bit overwhelmed with the number of ingredients, after 5-10 mins reading I was excited and decided on your Hot and Sour soup recipe. So went to a local groceries and got all the ingredients.
I went home and attempted my first time Hot and Sour soup preparation and cooking. After almost 2 hours, it was finally done, it turn out beautifully with great taste!
I like to share my son positivecommented, “The Hot and Sour soup has great taste and is better than Aco’s version (our Taiwanese family friend loves to cook)”. He has 3 bowls and was pretty content after the meal.
Many thanks to your excellent instructions, photos and list of ingredients.
I swapped the bamboo shoot with fresh baby corn by mistake but still turns out well!
Jack
Sarah says
Nice!! thanks for sharing your experience, Jack. This soup is one of my all-time favorites, and I’m so glad you and your son enjoyed it.
Max says
I just wanted to say a massive thank you to you guys for this blog. It has been an total inspiration to me. I am a very keen cook but (like a lot of people!) was always terrified of Chinese cuisine. I now have 4 or 5 Chinese recipe books and regularly travel the length and breadth of my native London town in order to find essential ingredients. This blog is still my first go to reference for Chinese recipes (and beyond!). Please never ever ever stop!!
P.S. when is the cookbook coming out?!
Sarah says
Thank you Max! We’re so glad that you’re finding the blog to be a great resource in your kitchen––no concrete plans for a cookbook yet, but we’ll definitely keep you all posted!
Norbert says
I just wanted to ask the same question about the cookbook. Your site is my reference number one in Chinese cooking, especially the step by step explanations with not only one picture but showing the progress and preparation. This could be a big USP for a woksoflife cookbook.
Well anyway, if you ever pusblish, let me know. I will buy that book for sure!
Greetings from Brazil
Sarah says
Thanks for the encouraging words, Norbert! No concrete plans currently, but we’re thinking about it!
Emilyna Cullen says
I love your family blog. How cool! I wanted to explore cooking authentic Chinese dishes from various regions and I pretty quickly found your page tonight and just spent the last three house looking through just about ALL your recipes. I can’t wait to try some out!
Thanks for making a beautiful and fun food blog.
Sarah says
Thank you Emilyna (cool name, by the way)––let us know in the comments if you ever have a question about a recipe and happy cooking!
Elaine says
Hello, I just stumbled across this blog looking for a beef chow fun recipe. I usually call my mom for Chinese recipes but sometimes it’s quicker to turn to the internet. The beef chow fun was so easy to make and turned out wonderfully. I love that you guys are a family of cooks and bloggers. So entertaining too. Will definitely look for more recipes to try. Keep up the great work!
Bill says
Thanks Elaine, glad you found us and welcome to our blog! Hope you continue to follow and cook with us!
Susan says
Hi there! Thanks for all the great posts about yummy food recipes. I had just forwarded the recipe you posted today of Bho Kho. My friend stated that it looks more like Bun Bo Hue. Just wanted to clarify.
Sarah says
Thanks for sharing, Susan! Yes, we’ve heard that from another reader already––a local Vietnamese restaurant in our area calls a similar dish they serve “bo kho,” so i guess we took their lead. Good to have clarification, though!!
Alfee says
Hey,my name is Alfee
It must be awesome and hectic to have such wonderful traffic on your website. I have long enjoyed all Chinese cooking and so imagine my joy when I found this site and it’s pork collection.
Will first be a careful student as I get these items and ingredients. Am from Kenya btw so something’s take grace and patience to procure them
Keep loading more recipes. I hope to visit China one of these days for pure culinary heaven
Sarah says
Hey Alfee, so glad you found us––hope you enjoy the recipes. :) There are definitely things you can do to get creative with substitutions for certain ingredients!
JinJin says
OMG!!! I can’t believe that I accidentally found this AMAZING blog!!!!
I can finally share all the traditional recipes to my English speaking friends.
I also have so many dishes to share! :) Pls keep posting!
Sarah says
Will do!
Angie says
I love your blog and have been following it for a while now. I’m not a great cook but your recipes do actually turn out well when I do it! One thing I’d like to ask though is if you have a recipe for Fujian fried rice. I love eating this at restaurants but it would be an absolute wonderful if I could make this at home too for the family.
Keep up the good work and thank you for sharing your lovely recipes with us.
Sarah says
You’re welcome, Angie! Can I ask for a more detailed description of the fujian fried rice you’re talking about?
Angie says
Hi Sarah
Thanks for taking the time to reply to me. If I remember correctly it is fried rice and it is then topped with a mixture of chopped scallops, shrimp, carrots, mushrooms and other veg (can’t remember what though) and this wonderful gravy like sauce. I have tried at home to recreate it but each time I have failed miserably. Your take on it would be much appreciated as I know your recipes do work!
Sarah says
Hmmm will have to chat about this one with my parents to see if they recognize it. Thanks for the suggestion, Angie!
mohamad says
I was googling for the chinese characters and pronounciation of dough sticks and by chance saw your you tiao picture. Glad I found you.
Judy says
Glad you found us too, Mohamad! Hope you start to cook along with us, and remember we are here if you have any questions :-)
nadine trujillo says
Good grief, sounds like this family grew up on
Charming feed, you are a hoot!
Sarah says
Hahaha thanks Nadine!
Audrey says
Your family is soooo adorable! You all seem very funny too.
This blog is just awesome, so many delicious original asian recipes, I want to try it all.
Is the “about” page up to date? Kids grow quickly, are they still 1) traveling for job opportunities and 2) a college student? I’m pretty curious to know more about you all.
Keep up the work, I love this blog, it is now in my favs tab ;-)
Sarah says
Hey Audrey––the about page hasn’t been updated in a while. We’re all living in the US now, and my sister has since graduated. We should definitely update it at some point. I’ll have to add it to my to-do list. ;)
Janice Lindegard says
We just returned from a whirlwind tour of China and fell in love with Guilin noodles. Any chance you have, or will have, a recipe? I’d love to make them at home.
Judy says
Hi Janice, I love Guilin noodles myself. I will get on it, in a hurry!
Jos says
A live safer is your internet side. I am living in Shanghai for 8 years and have a wonderful ayi who is an extreme good cook. Pity enough she twisted her leg and according Chinese doctor have to rest for at least 100 days. Mine wife and I decided to do a few months with out ayi, this incl the cooking. As mine wife is from Taiwan she preferred Chinese food, understandable as mine home country is holland which is not really famous for food.
We have a kitchen with really everything you need to cook Chinese food, by opening some drawers found about 60 bottles of soyasauce, or at least for me that was how it looks like. With the help of your side have sort the bottles out and all the kitchen stuff and know now what to use for what. Specially the bottles was a headache but with your pictures, explanation and mine Chinese dictionary can find now mine way around. I am now in 2 week cooking and mine wife is impress how a Dutch guy can cook such nice Chinese dishes. As you know the love from the man goes through the stomach but that can also be said for the ladies. Thanks for your wonderful blog and recipies.
Sarah says
Aw, what a sweet story, Jos! Thanks for sharing. I’m glad that you’ve been able to unlock the mysteries of your ayi’s pantry and cook some dishes for your family. I hope your ayi is back on her feet soon. :)
Michelle lian says
Can you do a section of Chinese barbecue recipes for outdoor grilling on the barbecue for chicken, fish beef and vegetables etc?
Sarah says
Interesting idea, Michelle! We’ll consider it. :) That said, if you want to find grilling recipes, just search the term “grill” in our search bar at the top right corner of the site, and you’ll find them!
Kayee says
Hi! I just found your site and followed your Hunan Pork Tofu recipe and it turned out great! Do you have a facebook/instagram site where I can follow you?
Sarah says
We do, indeed Kayee! Follow us on instagram here: https://www.instagram.com/thewoksoflife/, and on facebook here: https://www.facebook.com/thewoksoflife/.
Alicia says
I probably, most likely…definitely, visit your website as much as Google.
Thanks for your time and effort in creating this amazing blog! Your recipes that I have braved in the kitchen have turned out delish!
From a Kiwi foodie living in Shanghai :)
Judy says
Hi Alicia, thank you so much for your love and support. (Big Smile!)
Fulton Li says
I have been following your blog for some time now, but I have just noticed that I had not received any new posts since the month of June. I have tried to resign, but keep getting an error message. Please advise.
Bill says
Hi Fulton, check your spam or junk mail box. Our email may have been routed there inadvertently.
Bob Linscomb says
I’ve tried many of your recipes and I’ve loved each one! However, in your list of recipes, I can’t find any for rabbit. I was mildly surprised, and disappointed. Do you have Chinese Rabbit recipes that you just haven’t posted?
Thank you and keep on producing all these fine recipes!
Bob
Bill says
Hi Bob, I have to admit we have not tried any rabbit recipes yet, but we’ll keep it in mind and on our long list :)
Cindy Ma says
This is awesome!!! I came upon it while trying to learn traditional Chinese dishes that my mom and grandparents would make. Regretfully, I never bothered to pay attention to my mom’s cooking process when I was growing up. This was so helpful. Keep up the good work!
Bill says
Thanks Cindy, Documenting and reviving old lost recipes continues to be one of our goals on this blog. Glad you’re enjoying it, and hope you are cooking with us!
Susan says
Hi!
The new Wegmans that opened in the neighborhood has fresh rabbit. Once you get past the ‘OMG it’s a bunny!’ thinking, it may become one of your favorite proteins. It can be fried, grilled, braised and sautéed, but it has very little fat on it.
I too would love some recipes!
Robert Lee says
I couldn’t bring myself to to be eating Bugs though. Bugs Bunny, wascally wabbit that he is- ;)
Judy says
Hi Susan, thank you for your kind reminder, we will add it to our list.
Tina says
Just came across this site and After a few browse through some recipes…. this page is ridiculously awesome! Thank you for making it so clear and providing links to ingredients I have no idea of! You’ve made it to easy to understand! Thank you!!! I can’t wait to test it out in the kitchen!
Judy says
Hi Tina, looking forward to have you cooking with us. Just let us know if you have any questions :-)
leev says
I hope you can help. My mom used to make this chicken dish with shitake mushrooms. I don’t know if you would consider it a stew. The chicken pieces were on the bone and it was so tender that it fell apart and left like a delicious and sticky gelatinous feeling on your lips. I remember the shitake mushrooms and probably soy sauce. Do you have a recipe for something similar?
rgee says
This sounds allot like dish I ate growing up as a youngster, the sauce is oyster sauce based I cant give the acctuall amounts for the recipe cause when I make it its basically from feel and taste but heres the ingredients.
soak whole dried shitake till plump slice in half discard stem
chicken mid wings coated with corn flour then fried and drained when you got the right colour
minced garlic and sliced ginger cooked tilll aromatic 1 mins maybe
put back wings.mushroom and enough chicken stock to cover 3/4 season salt pepper to taste
add oyster sauce to taste(if yove had this before youll know)
cook low heat 15 mins thicken with conflour and water if required add slash of soy and sesame oil
rgee says
i forgot sliced spring onions 3 mins before finishing
Judy says
Hi Leev, sorry to have missed your comment. We actually do have a recipe, which is my favorite: Braised Chicken with Mushroom. Please let me know if this is similar to what your mother used to make. For this dish, I like to use chicken wings, because the meat is still very silky even after braising.
juliana.K says
First off, I’d like to comment on how great your blog is and my husband said I should write to you to thank you for all the great recipes that had made it to our dinner table!
I would also like to comment on the photos of the recipes. I understand now that the color saturation has been ‘tweaked’ to make dishes look more savory, however it is not a real representation of how the finished dishes looks with the ingredients listed. I struggled with your recipes as all my dishes never looked as bright in color as your photos until I realized that it never would. The negative side of this is your readers are always unsure if they cooked the dishes right. “why is my tomato dish not as red as the photo, shouldn’t it be?”
So, I recommend that the color saturation of photos be left alone as a correct guide to a finished dish. Thanks for your time in listening.
Sarah says
Hi Juliana, thanks for the feedback––I’m the photographer here so I’ll take it into consideration. :)
Frances Warburton says
Hi there was just looking up recipes for bok choy and came across your blog. I have decided to try your lovely grilled soy ribeye steak with the garlic bok choy. Will let you know how I get on!
Thank you from a very rainy London.
Kaitlin says
Hi Frances, wonderful! Glad we could bring a bit of summer bbq sunshine to rainy London :)
Catpainter ^..^ says
Love your blog – recipes are just what I have been looking for. Thank you so much! We lived in and near SF for 23 years and moved up to Sonoma. Only a little over an hour away, no wonderful Chinese restaurants, no Gai Lan, tofu cakes, no Dim Sum or breakfast congee. Just decided to start making my own and freezing them. Just the 2 of us so it’s the only way to go for a Dim Sum feast when we are in the mood. Keep the recipes coming!
Kaitlin says
Thank you for the kind words! Homemade dim sum feast is the best! No lines!!! :) Thanks for reading and cooking :)
Kamran says
Hi Bill, Judy, Sarah & Kaitlin,
I’m thrilled to find this blog, with its great looking recipes. I’m planning to try out your Shanghainese Prawns recipe soon. It must be wonderful to have the whole family interested in and obviously very skilled in cooking. I too am a keen cook. IMHO, of all the arts, gastronomy is the only one which engages all 5 senses.
Please consider putting up a recipe for Paper Wrapped Prawns. Its my favourite Dim Sum and despite looking high & low for a recipe, I’ve had no luck. Many thanks in advance!
Sarah says
Hi Kamran, thanks for stopping by and commenting! We do have a recipe for “Firecracker Shrimp,” which is basically shrimp/prawns wrapped in crispy spring roll wrappers and fried. Is that what you’re looking for? Here’s the link! https://thewoksoflife.com/2016/06/coconut-firecracker-shrimp/
Kamran says
Hi Sarah,
This particular dim sum which I’m after looks more like: http://photobucket.com/gallery/user/jen_energy/media/bWVkaWFJZDozMTI4MjAwMQ==/?ref=
And here’s another site with the same dim sum: http://footscrayfoodblog.blogspot.co.uk/2014/04/golden-horse-yum-cha.html (the blogger calls them crispy prawn rolls).
I’m in the UK. You guys across the pond may know it by a different name. Many thanks!
Sarah says
Interesting! Weirdly, I don’t think I’ve ever seen those at dim sum restaurants here in Chinatown or anywhere else. Maybe it just hasn’t ever been in my family’s “dim sum rotation,” so I never noticed it. I will do more research!
Kamran says
Hi Sarah,
I found a video on Youtube where a chef goes through the preparation of these paper-wrapped prawns. But the video is in Chinese, possibly Putonghua, and I don’t speak or understand this language.
I would be very grateful if you could write down a brief summary of the process in English, so that I can attempt making it. Here is the link to the video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O5Pkf4FzRzI
Many thanks in advance!
Kamran
Lou says
Looking at the recipes, reminds me of all the Shanghainese home-made dishes my Mom made, especially during the annual Chinese New Years dinners. My Dad had a northern Chinese restaurant (seats 250 people) in the East Village (Manhattan) for over 30 years and many of the dishes, especially making pancakes for moo-shu pork and peking duck bring back many memories. I still make them for my children, as well as dumplings, steamed buns and many of the dishes in your website, which are favorites of my nieces and nephews (are Italian).
Seems we have a lot in common, as I started in the restaurant when I was 13 and have managed a few whenever I was not working in the corporate world.
Keep up the great “how to” chinese recipes.
Judy says
Thank you so much for your encouraging words, Lou!
yvette says
I am so impressed with this amazing site. I am on 4th recipe ans everything works!!!! Thank you! Thank you!
Judy says
Hi Yvette, so glad to have you cook along with us. Happy woking!!!
Heyjude says
Hi! I am an ABC Californian living in a part of southern China where the Chinese food is just OK and there isn’t much else. At home I cook mostly Mexican food. I do love Xinjiang food. I found your site while searching for a recipe for 大盘鸡 Big Pan Chicken, which I will try out tonight. I am excited about your recipe collection because it is so eclectic…just the way I like to eat. I like that you have a lot of vegetarian recipes as the meat here is…um…a bit scary? I do eat meat now and then though. Looking forward to checking out your family’s recipes! Thx for sharing!
Judy says
Heyjude, after blogging for four years, we have A LOT OF recipes. Happy wokking!
Sarah says
You’re welcome!! My mom’s Big Plate Chicken recipe is one of my favorites––you’ll love it. :)
Kathy says
Dang am I SO GLAD to have found this site. I am a Cantonese-American college student starting to venture out on my own. I’m so happy that I found a good place to teach me traditional Chinese dishes like the ones my grandma make! I am proud of my background and it’s hard being away from home and not being able to eat a home-cooked meal when you want. I have some rudimentary knowledge of cooking because I watched Food Network all the time so I’m not hopeless but I’m looking forward to trying this stuff since I have to cook for myself now!
Thanks for this! The tips and recipes are very useful <3
Judy says
Hi Kathy, funny, we are watching the Food Network as I am typing this. So glad you found us; just let us know if you have any questions.
Tyler Stone says
Everyone,
Thank you so much for sharing your knowledge and passion with the rest of us. It is appreciated more than you know. My fiance and I are always look for new recipes to try. He loves to cook and I love to eat anything he cooks :) We recently found your blog and immediately dived right in. Our personal favorite so far is your chicken lo mein which we make multiple nights every week. We adore Asian food and love the fact that we know your recipes are tried and true.
From two guys that have gone through three woks with much love,
Chase and Tyler
Judy says
Hahaha…three woks? You beat me on that record :-)
Kento says
Hello!! Finding your website feels like hitting a goldmine! :D I’ve been searching for a website that has traditional Chinese cuisine broken down for dummies. I’m an Asian-american (mostly American :P) who was brought up with a western pallet now dating a girl from China. I love to cook but I want to be able to cook dishes that my S.O. and I would both enjoy. The problem is I have never had genuine Chinese food so I don’t have a taste for what is good and what isn’t. I don’t know what the different spices, sauces, vegetables, and cooking utensils are and how to best use them. So this has been great so far! I did have one question, my job can be pretty mundane, so I’m usually looking for things to listen to while I work. I have been searching far and wide for an audio book or even a podcast about Chinese cooking for beginners. I haven’t had much luck so far but I was hoping maybe one of you guys might be able to help me out. Do any of your know of any podcasts or audio books that I can use to try and build up my skills? I really appreciate everything you guys do! And I’m looking forward to trying out some of your recipes!!!! Thanks!
Kaitlin says
Hi Kento, thanks for the kind words!!! And glad we can shed some light and broaden your culinary horizons ^_^ As for your question on podcasts, it’s a good one, but unfortunately nothing comes to mind! It’s a hole in the podcast market, it seems. Maybe we should start one! :P
Sarah says
Hey Kento, we’re so glad that you found us too! That’s so great that you’re (re)discovering Asian dishes. I don’t know of too many podcasts related to Asian cooking, and it’s difficult to find a good book out there on it, but I’m open to recommendations if any other commenters know of anything!
Andre M Lee Sr. says
Very glad that I have stumbled across your site. I am very bored with the traditional American cuisine.
Tired of the average every day fried chicken, fried pork chops, BBQ rbs, hamburgers and hotdogs.
I’m ready to expand my stomach……I mean horizons, into a different dinner experience.
So how do I join and keep up to date on your new postings and adventures….lol
I feel so excited, as if I am going on a far away vacation (lame I know). But let’s get the cooking….
Sarah says
Hey Andrew, thanks for the comment. We’re excited that you found us as well. (Hopefully you never get bored here!) To keep up with our latest recipes, just type your email address in the box in the sidebar, and you will get an email every time we post something new. Happy cooking!
Mary says
Your recipes and pics are amazing! I drool just looking at them :)
Judy says
Come on, Mary, join us and start cooking :-)
Jane Valmonte says
Awesomeness …!! Glad to have found your blog from my search of different authenticity.. I’ve have a ton of cookbooks from all over as well..but nothing beat the actual and the style presented not to mention the different mix of spices one from the other.
Thank you..and sure will be calling out to you for help..
-jv?
Sarah says
Hi Jane, so glad that you’ve discovered our corner of the internet as well! Definitely let us know in the comments if you have questions about any of the recipes here. We’re always happy to help. :)
Albert Leung says
Judy, what postpartum chicken recipe were you referring to in your reply to me? Thanks!
Judy says
Hi Albert, I was talking about the famous Taiwanese Sesame Oil Chicken Soup. Please read the post for my recommendation, it’s very good for new mommies. https://thewoksoflife.com/2016/12/taiwanese-sesame-oil-chicken-soup/
Albert Leung says
Thanks a lot for the recipe, Judy. I’ll have to give it a try. Sounds good, … a whole bottle of rice wine? That sounds like a quite a bit of alcohol. Would you consider adding wood ears, dried goji berries and some dried red dates to it as well or are they part of a different “medicinal” soup recipe?
Judy says
Hi Albert, the rice wine （米酒）has a “heating” effect, and that’s why you need a whole bottle. Also, don’t worry about the alcohol content as it cooks off in the process. As to goji berries and dried red dates, I think adding a little bit would be a good idea.
Albert Leung says
Thanks Judy. I made the Taiwanese Sesame Oil Chicken Soup as you suggested with the chicken thighs. I also included some wood ears, goji berries and dried red dates to the recipe. It turned out great and mother and newborn are continuing to regain their health and strength. Thanks again for the recipe.
Judy says
Lovely, so glad to hear the good news. Wish your family all the best wishes!!!
Elaine says
My Cantonese mother-in-law made something similar for me when my children were born … it was virtually the ONLY thing I was “permitted” to eat for the 30-day postpartum ‘hibernation’ (for someone brought up in a Shanghainese family, this seemed like country superstition). The soup included chicken, pig knuckles, pickled eggs, ground nuts, wood ears and rice wine — LOTS of rice wine. I gotta say that it did indeed help with a mother’s physical recovery as well as fortified milk production. My kids were hardly ever ill. Coincidence? I think not…
Judy says
Hi Elaine, I give you a lot of credit for having gone through the “30-day postpartum hibernation” full term––I did it for about only 10 days, and I followed most of the “rules”, but I just had to take hot showers and blow my hair very dry before stepping out of the heated bathroom!
dorothy says
Glancing at your recipes I am so happy. I make a lot or Chinese dishes and also some Thai. So glad to find your site and I am bookmarking it for future references.
I totally love Chinese food and have been eating it since I was about 6 years old. Won’t say how old I am now, but I am over 21.
Sarah says
Glad you found us, Dorothy!
Brendan says
your recipes are really great. i make them all the time for me and my wife. thanks for posting them. this site is such a great resource for trying to reproduce all those dishes i used to get at the chinese restaurant where i grew up. every place is different and i’ve been searching for ways to reproduce my fave dishes from back in the day. this site has been great for that. thanks.
Sarah says
That’s awesome, Brendan! Thanks for leaving us a comment. It’s always great to hear how people are using the blog. :)
Norbert says
Congrats to that great place you created on the internet! Actually I found your site some time ago, but today it was the first time to actually try and cook two of my favorite Chinese dishes, the eggplant – green bean stir fry and the twice cooked pork!
I am a German, living in Brazil now for almost 20 years and I also spent 3 years in Changsha, Hunan. I really miss authentic Chinese food here, what i find in the local restaurants has nothing to do with real Chinese food. So, only way to get it is to cook myself! And my first try was not perfect yet, also missed some ingredients but it was quite close to the real thing – thanks for your recipes!
I also love your pictures of the food and also the travel part! Too much to read but I love it!
Thanks again and take care
Norbert
Sarah says
Thanks for the comment, Norbert. Glad that the blog can help you reconnect with some of those Hunan and other Chinese regional dishes all the way in Brazil!
Albert Leung says
I remember when my wife had each of our six children, my mother would always make a traditional boiled chicken soup with Chinese herbs and wine that was supposed to help with postpartum recovery, along with other “confinement” foods. These recipes have traditionally been handed down from generation to generation for possibly thousands of years.
My eldest daughter just delivered our first grandchild a couple of days ago and I was wondering if your family had any of these postpartum recipes, particularly a boiled chicken one. Everyone knows chicken soup is good for you. Thanks!
Judy says
Hi Albert, congrats for becoming a grandfather!!! Yes, I have one for you: . You can use a whole chicken for this soup, but I like the drumstick option because its texture holds up even after simmering for awhile.
Albert Leung says
What’s the recipe you were referring to? Thanks!
Gloria says
I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE your site!!! The recipes are WONDERFUL, the pictures are BEAUTIFUL and best of all, you don’t have to be a professional chef to make GREAT, authentic Asian food. I am from Chicago, and your recipes are the first I have found (and I have collected and tried many recipes) that taste like what I am used to and what I crave since moving to California almost 30 years ago (especially the fried rice recipes – PERFECTION!!). I also really appreciate all of the information your site provides about spices, sauces, and equipment. Thank you so much for sharing your expertise, your interesting commentary and the best recipes out there! You have a fan for life!! Gloria
Judy says
Hi Gloria, thank you so much for leaving us this lovely comment. Your generous words are well received and deeply appreciated. THANK YOU!!!
Carolyn says
WOW. What a remarkable
family. I thought the 4 of you were just cobbled together as strangers with a love for provincial Chinese recipes/food.
I’m old school Chinese raised by grandparents that never taught me cooking.
THANK YOU SO MUCH!!! SPRING CHICKENS NEVER STOP LEARN !!!
Judy says
Why should they, Carolyn! The search for yummy foods will never end :-)
Chris Pelissero says
Where has this blog been all my life? That’s right we didn’t have them. I have had 35 years of culinary journeys but when I started cooking Chinese, finding an authentic cookbook in the US was not easy. Anyway the site is great and I love the fact the you’re a family. It would have been nice to have your family around when I was raising mine. Keep it up and thanks.
Chris P.
San Diego, CA
Sarah says
Aw, thank you Chris! Glad you found us. :)
Jack H says
Hey y’all! Thanks so much for this treasure trove of recipes and (maybe more importantly!) directions around our Asian grocery store sauce aisle. I made your ji dan bing recipe for breakfast Sunday and was convinced that would be the high water mark of the day’s culinary delights, but then came the Peruvian chicken with that absurdly good green sauce and we just about lost it! Please, please, please keep this up and I’ll keep trying to make everything on here!
Judy says
That’s a promise, Jack! Hope to hear more from you through this journey :-)
Thomas Tan says
I’m very interested in cooking for my big family.
Sarah says
That’s awesome, Thomas!
Stevie B says
Hi
I m Guyanese and never tried cooking Chinese dishes but seeing this site really caught my attention. I live in the Bronx. NY and when it comes to Chinese cooking I usually go to the restaurant (LOL). I love cooking but stay within the Indian, Italian. American and Spanish dishes. but am willing to try other cultures. I like your site and find it very informative…….thank you much for sharing your culture and dishes when I finally try some of your dishes I will be sure to post Home cooking is the best cooking one dish at a time.
Thanks
Sarah says
That’s so great, Stevie!
Michele says
Hi, I’m looking for a new wok, is there one that you could recommend?
Kathryn says
I really, really don’t like the taste of ginger. Obviously a very bad trait for someone who wants to cook/eat more Asian cuisine. Is there a good substitute?? Oh, and I must thank you for all the knowledge you’ve provided and I’ve gleaned today (my first time visiting your site) about sauces, spices etc. You’re so thorough, especially describing the flavor profiles. I’ll certainly continue to be searching out information and recipes from your site from now on!
Thanks, Kathryn
Judy says
Hi Kathryn, I hear you. If you hate the taste of ginger, just omit it. As far as “a good substitute,” it really depends on the dish.
Yvonne says
Absolutely love Chinese food, China, the antiques, etc. etc. in fact anything Chinese. Not so good at cooking Chinese.
Have been watching a show called The Chefs’ Line on SBS Sydney Australia. Filmed in a Chinese Restaurant named China Doll. Can’t wait for 6 PM Monday to Friday to watch it. Brilliant Chefs competing against keen amateurs.
Would love to see you in action. Only discovered you when I was looking up how to cook whole Chinese steamed fish.
Keep on blogging.
Will B Me says
I’ve wanted to find a site with Chinese cooks cooking Chinese. Yours seem interesting. I read the braised ribs and give it a try
Sarah says
Awesome, let us know how it goes!
Gwen says
Love all your recipes! This is where I go to when I need to have a good authentic Asian recipe. I am 100% Chinese and I never watched my mother cook but now that I am in my 50’s, I find myself yearning for all the dishes my mom used to cook. Just recently, my mom came for a visit and I cooked a wonderful Chinese meal for her. Was she surprised! All the dishes were from your website. Keep the recipes coming!!!!
Judy says
Hi Gwen, so glad you could make your mom proud. Keep on cooking!
Sarah says
Thanks Gwen! We will!
Sherie says
Love the energy of your family! You Rock!
Missing hot dog buns and seriously contemplating baking some.
From sunny California,
Sherie
Judy says
We really encourage you to make some, Sherie, you won’t be disappointed :-)
Sarah says
Thanks Sherie! Go make those hot dog buns. :)
Linda Ong says
I tried to sign up in my email. It says I have been sign but i did not get it. I am very interested in your recipes.Please sign me up.
Sarah says
Hey Linda, I checked out our email list, and it looks like you are already signed up. You will get email notifications whenever we publish new recipes. :)
Diane says
I have an electric range and want to know if i need to use a wok ring when cooking with a wok??? please let me know, because i really want to try more of your recpies but i want to have the right equipment. Thanks!!!
MJ Cooper says
Yes. Unless you have one of those flat-bottom wok-pan hybrids.
Carole says
Dear Woks,
You rock! As a third-generation New York City jook sing who’s been living in Paris for the last thirty years, your blog has become favorite reading. There’s so much here that reminds me of Gramma! So much cooking know-how disappeared with her, I’m thrilled to find you and this lovely blog to help renew some of those culinary ties. Keep up the marvelous work.
Sarah says
Aw, thank you so much Carole!
Chance Miller says
I`ve been cooking for over forty years now, about 20 years of professional kitchens,Italian and French were most of my experience comes from. But Asian food is where my heart is. I`m wanting to learn how to make Hiananese Chicken. I`ve only seen it on the food channels and travel channels. I assume it`s served cold.But I want to perfect the sauces as well. Your recipes all look really legit here.Can`t wait to try some of them out.
Sarah says
Thanks Chance! Let us know how the recipes turn out in the comments. :)
Keira says
Love your site! I’m new to using a wok — do you have a favorite brand/ model that you could recommend?
Thanks! :)
Letta says
Loved the eggplant and Thai basil dish! Thanks!
Judy says
Thank you, Letta!
John Baker says
G’day Good People
Just found your site and I’m very impressed. I was searching for Chinese cabbage recipes for dinner tonight. I am now all motivated and ready to go yeehah! Thank you!!
I am English living in New Zealand but I have formed many awesome relationships with people from Asia over many years and they have easily convinced me to adopt Hot Pot as my favorite dish. I am now a Dumpling Master!! I love exploring Asian foods.
I had a quick look at your bio (which I like) but the photo of Kaitlin kept haunting me so I decided to send this message with a question. ” Is Kaitlin using the “fingers V sign” as an insult to the people who view the picture? Or, is she ignorant of the meaning of what she is doing? If she is insulting people and is fully aware of the message it conveys people then my final question is “why would she want to do that”?
Wiki have a great explanation for the V sign.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/V_sign#As_an_insult
Cheers!
John Baker
jbj says
In the US, that gesture is not considered offensive, just a little surly. It usually means “Peace out,” and depending on the context it can be someone simply saying “I’m outta here” to friends (sometimes preceded by a kiss of the fingers) or someone being dismissive, like “Go away” or “F- off.” It probably evolved over time as a mishmash of the hippy peace gesture and the vulgar British one by imitative adolescents trying to be cool, but it is not at all considered to be on par with (or even in the vicinity of) flashing the middle finger.
Hollis Watkins says
Dear Woks (of Life),
I have recently had the Mei Fun from a new restaurant in my area (Clayton, NC) and it was amazing. So I am off to make some for my family. I thank you for your time and recipe, but I have one question (out of laziness of not going to the store anymore this week).
Can you make this dish using basic cabbage or is not having napa cabbage a deal breaker?
Thank you for reading this,
Hollis Watkins
Sanderson High School
Husband, father of two
Judy says
Hi Hollis, you can use regular cabbage, which will give this dish a crunchier texture, but just know that napa cabbage gives out more liquid which keeps the noodles lightly saucy. In this case, you can add about 2 tablespoons of stock instead. Hope this helps. :-)
Randall Colman says
I think I may have met you father, I went to Sullivan county community college in the early 70. I remember the Holiday inn serving both Chinese and American food. What was your father name? Thank you for this information. Eddie, seem to stand out in my mind but I am just not sure.
Bill says
Hi Randall, I am not sure who was working on the Chinese side of the kitchen at the holiday Inn at that time. I think it was the late 70s when my father started working there and became head chef after 2 years. Everyone called my father Mr. Yiu :)
Sherra says
I have been looking forward to making drunken noodles for a long time and tonight is the night! I am a vegetarian so I will need to make a few adjustments to my dish…not sure how mine will turn out, but really hope my son and husband like it. I will be going by your recipe exclusively when preparing theirs. I am so excited to have found your blog as I am trying to be more adventuresome in the cooking department. I’ll let you know how I do:)
Thank you,
Sherra from Tennessee
Bill says
Hope you enjoy it, Sherra, and thanks for stopping by! :)
ML says
Your blog makes my mouth water! I could look at it all day. The photography is excellent and the recipes are nice and clear. My husband and I had a hard time picking out recipes for dinner tonight. (I think we are going with lo mein, egg drop soup & scallion pancakes. As a side note, you sound like a nice family :-)
Sarah says
Thank you so much for your kind comment!
Wenderella says
Hello, my message comes to you from New Zealand.
I’m a forager and gardener as well as avid cook. Not very familiar with authentic Chinese cooking, but well acquainted with foraged cloud ear mushrooms from my garden, I found your blog when looking for recipes to cook with them. I am currently eating the very best, most authentic-ish Chinese meal I’ve ever cooked – braised chicken with mushrooms from your blog.
Coincidentally I am going to visit China for a couple of weeks in April. I had been thinking for some time that I should be familiarising myself with the tools and tastes of eating in China.
Sarah says
That’s so awesome, Wenderella! It sounds amazing to forage and grow your own ingredients and then find new ways to use them. I hope you have a great time in China––definitely check out the travel page on the blog, where we have some China-specific posts. :)
Linda whynman says
Dear folks,
Love the blog. Might you have an urge for a trip to Mexico?
I am not sure where you all live but by chance,might any of the family have access to an apartment or home in NYC , we are always open to options. We would like to visit NYC December 11/12 to December 21….
Our home is available for those dates and/ or August 13-September 9th….
It is really lovely here. We can accommodate all of you…we used to live in upstate New York, Near Pine Bush. Do not be afraid, we are seasoned exchangers and are always eager to visit NYC and Chinese roasted duck.. etc.
Check out homeexchange.com. Listing 68320
Thanks for all your blog work…
Linda
Bill says
Hi Linda, I remember Pine bush used to kick our butts in High school football. I know because I was on our team back then. Lol.
We have never tried a home exchange before, and it does sound a bit intimidating, but your place looks marvelous! We don’t have anything nearly as nice as your place but if you do decide to visit, we would be happy to give you tips on what to see and where to eat :)
Adem says
Great recipes! Turkish living in the Netherlands married with Vietnamese.
Cheers!
Bill says
Thanks Adem!
Roxy says
love your website, from Shanghai living in London!
Bill says
Thanks Roxy!
Virginia Turner says
This site looks very appealing. Several recipes I’d like to try. However, Montana has not ONE Oriental grocery store in the whole state! I’m starting with a couple of your 15 min recipes.
Bill says
Hi Virginia, I feel your pain. We loved Montana during our visit and brought our own ingredients since we did quite a bit of camping. Try Amazon and the internet – prices vary but you can definitely find reasonably-priced ingredients. Happy cooking!
Rober Rosen says
I love your recipes. It is really nice to be able to cook dishes that I would normally have to travel hours to find. I don’t know how the Chinese-American cuisine got started but it a curse. I do have a question.
I made the standard sauce that you can refrigerate which aske for 21/2 cups of water. Did I read the recipe wrong or was that a misprint? It was obviously without taste.
By the way I made the Braised Pork Bellys the other day and they were great.
Judy says
Thank you for your kind words. Regarding your question on the standard sauce, please let me know which recipe are you referring to. Thank you.
Anthony Huynh says
Hey love your recipes!! What camera do you use for the pictures?? The images are spectacular!!
Sarah says
Thanks Anthony. For the past several years, I’ve been using a Nikon D3200 with a 35mm f/1.8 prime lens. I do my editing in Adobe Lightroom as well.
george darveaux says
hi have you seen youtiao sold commercially in the us ? thanks
Judy says
Yes, almost all Asian/Chinese supermarkets sell it.
Michele Stepto says
I discovered your blog about a month ago and so far I’ve made, oh, I don’t know, maybe a dozen of your recipes, all delicious. I’m a good Italian and French cook, but I’ve decided to branch out and explore some little corner of the vast continent of Chinese cooking. The more I cook (with your help and Fuchsia Dunlop’s), the more I discover how much there is to learn. But it’s such fun and, of course, the results are seriously tasty. The lady at the Chinese mkt is sweet and helps me get just the right ingredients. My shelves are filling up with great Chinese ingredients. Sometimes I experiment and, for instance, substitute zucchini noodles for wheat noodles to cut down on carbs (splendid in Dan Dan Noodles). I’m just having fun, and I want to thank all of you for that. This is a great blog!
Bill says
Hi Michele, Good that you are building up your pantry of ingredients. We love to hear when our readers our cooking with us!
Sarah says
Thank you so much, Michele. It’s so encouraging to hear positive feedback from readers!
elisabeth says
Yeah, a great family life ;)
I just came on your blog and won’t live it, subscribing in the go !!!
thanks for sharing
Sarah says
:)
Esther says
Wooww is the only word for me. Your website is the best website i have ever come across, its easy and sinply to inderstand for a person like me who is just blind in the culinary world! I am so impressed and love the work you have put into. Thank you so much, i am trying to print out all the recipe ??
Sarah says
Haha thank you so much for your kind words, Esther! If you’re looking to print any recipes, just scroll down to the recipe card at the end of each recipe post (with the dotted lines bordered around it). There’s a print button!
Mo says
Great website! I am learning to make Chinese food (I am not Chinese nor have I had much authentic Chinese food) and this website had really good recipes with step by step instructions. Me and my boyfriends favorite recipe is the dan dan mian and the oxtail with ramen noodles. Keep up the good work!!!
Sarah says
Thank you so much!
Kelly says
I love your website! I am an ABC who was born and raised five minutes away from Chicago’s Chinatown, but moved to a cornfield town with almost zero authentic Chinese restaurants. I suffered through a few years of Chinese-food dry spell, but now am trying to learn to make Chinese (specifically Cantonese) dishes myself. Your blog is a huge help! Thank you :)
Sarah says
That’s awesome, Kelly. Thanks for sharing :)
Diane Lane says
Loved your web site. Born and raised in New York, grew up on Cantonese food. We moved from NY in 1977, a youth group at church gave us a going away gift, a wok and a chinese cook book (they knew we loved to cook chinese food) we have been cooking chinese food all that time. We have lived in Napa, CA for over 40 years now, Been to China a few times, We have a saying when the kids or friends would ask “who taught you how to cook chinese” Our answer is always “GrandMa Wo” My sister-in-law who is chinese was convinced we really did have a grandma who was chinese, I think we may have been in another world. Will incorporate many of your recipes into our cooking. Thanks, Good Job!
Sarah says
Thank you Diane, for sharing your story, and for your kind words. Must be amazing to live out in Napa––I’m just waiting for the opportune moment to move out to California :)
Robyn says
I have just purchased a non stick carbon steel wok, was this the best choice for my electric cermic top stove?
Mark says
Hi sorry to post here. Tried to use your contact script to send you an email.
It can’t resolve my email address and it’s valid.
Sarah says
Hey mark, feel free to reach out to me directly at [email protected].
Stephan says
I think you may have put together the most inspiring cooking website ever! Congratulations. I have tried 10+ recipes from your site and over the last 18 months, I have become the king of Mapo tofu, the master of Chicken tikka masala, the emperor of Singapore noodle, etc. My wife is originally from Hong Kong and while I am as white as snow, I have lived in China for 6 years (Guangzhou and Shanghai) as well as three years in South Korea (Seoul). Now that we live in Haiti, we were both starving for authentic Chinese food (not readily available in Port-au-Prince) and you guys, with your recipes and wonderful step-by-step visual recipes, sure delivered it for us, bringing back to our life these flavours and comfort of Asia.
Your work is amazing … many thanks!
Stephan
Bill says
Thanks Stephan, You’re welcome and keep on cooking with us!
brambo2000 says
Thank you for the wonderful site
I can tell it’s a Labor Of Love.
Very Well Done.
Sarah says
You’re welcome! :)
Thomas says
You guys are awesome!
I just came along your blog this week and already tried a couple of recipes and the dishes were all wonderful. This blog is a great source of information and I hope you never stop.
Keep up the good work and I’m already looking forward to cook more dishes from your site.
Sarah says
Thank you so much for the encouragement, Thomas!
Brendan says
Thanks for letting us into your world. On the food topic, you mentioned the girls can make a restaurant-quality thin pizza crust. Any chance you could share that recipe, as I love a good thin crust pizza?
Sarah says
Hey Brendan, our favorite pizza dough recipe is definitely the one we used in our Wild Mushroom Pizza here: https://thewoksoflife.com/2014/02/wild-mushroom-garlic-white-pizza-foolproof-pizza-dough/.
T.R. says
I’m so glad I happened by accident across your blog! I love all kinds of Asian
foods and love challenging myself to cook anything! (almost) Looking forward
to seeing what you guys come up with!
Judy says
Welcome to our site, T.R. Happy wokking with us.
Sarah says
Thank you, TR!
blee says
I can’t recall how I stumbled upon your website; it was during one of my marathon recipe searches into the wee hours of the night, when one link led to another and on and on. Your site, however, caught my interest right away and I’ve been returning frequently. The recipes are so spot on and so relatable for me (I’m a baby boomer, been in US since the age of 7, my mother is Shanghainese and father, Szechuanese). I’m not in the food profession but I love to cook and bake and entertain a lot at home.
Since you are so good at coming up with perfect recipes, I was wondering if you can look into a great recipe for Chinese beef jerky. There is a little hole-in-the-wall place in NY Chinatown (Ping’s on Mulberry St) that sells only Chinese beef jerky. The mother used to make the jerky for many years (the place has been there for over 65 yrs) and now the son makes it and the mother pops into the small store area once in a while. Their hours are eratic and they take orders for the jerky and always sells out as fast as they make their limited supply. My husband always makes a detour there when he’s on business in NYC to buy a few pounds to lug back to NC. I see from your bio that you’re in NJ and thought might try some and come up with the secret to their delicious jerkies (although they are friendly enough, there’s always a communication problem when I ‘ve tried to ask them questions about how they’re made). If not, hopefully you can come up with an equally delicious recipe of your own which you do time and again. Thank you for your wonderful blog/website – I’m hooked.
Judy says
Hi blee, thank you for your tip on this beef jerky place in Chinatown. We will definitely go and have a taste. I have been wanting to do a beef jerky recipe, but my personal favorite is the curry beef jerky, not the sweet kind.
blee says
I agree, I like the curried type better as well and they are more popular with the Northern Chinese – I think?? – but my husband likes the sweeter Cantonese ones. The ones at Ping’s, both spicy and sweet types, are on the “wet” side and the curried type I like are much dryer. I’d appreciate whichever type you can figure a recipe for – maybe both. Thanks for all you and your family post; I’ve recommended your site to my sister and my grown kids.
Judy says
I will add this to my recipe list :-)
Amanda M says
Love, Love, LOVE your website! I only discovered it 2 weeks ago and have already made 3 recipes, all turned out great! Your recipes, writings and pictures are superb. Thank you for this great content and sharing your wonderful recipes!
Judy says
You are very welcome, Amanda! Just let us know if you have any questions while cooking through the blog.
Brendan says
Thanks so much for your website. Is there any type of food you haven’t mastered? Every recipe seems to be really high quality. If you had cooking classes, I would happily pay to be able to attend. Thanks again.
Judy says
Thank you, Brendan, for your love and support!
Sarah says
Thanks for that compliment, Brendan! I would love to teach cooking classes! If only i had a space to do that in…
Robert Blue says
Dear Judy,
I read your recipe for savory mooncakes. I will try it out. But I have a question. I have been to China a number of times and plan to finally move there. I notice that Chinese kitchens do not have ovens – at least in the western sense. They have two burners and that is it. Therefore, what is the standard way to cook mooncakes in China? Ovens do not seem to be standard and I do not think that toaster ovens would be up to the job. I will be in Changchun from March through April. I would appreciate any guidance you could share with me.
Thank you so much.
Sincerely,
Robert Jonathan Blue
Judy says
Hi Robert, you’ve posted a very good question. There are usually no ovens in kitchens in China, so for recipes like this, people tend to use griddle-like, flat-bottomed metal pans with a rim that’s about 3-inches in height and a flat wooden lid. When in China, get yourself one on Taobao. With the lid on and low heat, it creates a oven-like cooking environment inside. I have a post coming out on Shanghai Good Eats. The savory mooncake in Shanghai is actually not usually cooked in an oven like mine, but cooked inside a griddle.
Frani says
Reading your bios, I think I would have love to be your next door neighbor!
Maybe you can help me. I have been searching for two specific recipes – Lion’s Head and a Braised Pork Belly with Black Moss. My grandmother used to make the Lion’s Head for New Year. She has since past away, I have tried and never been able to duplicate the tenderness of the meatball. As for the Braised Pork Belly dish, I remember it had the sea moss on top, can’t be sure if it had taro between the slices of pork belly. I have not have any success finding a recipes for this (must have the black moss), even in all my Chinese Cooking book collection. Any ideas?
Bill says
Hi Frani, These are less common dishes you describe but we do have Lion’s head on our list. So much to do, but we hope to get to it one day!
Tammy says
I discovered your website when trying to find a Bo Lo Bao recipe! I tried it and loved it by the way :) Thank you so much for sharing your humor, wit and great recipes. I look forward to trying many more of your recipes along the way. So glad I came across this!
Bill says
Welcome and good to have you with us. Be sure to sign up for our email list so you can get our updates!
Sarah says
Thanks for stopping by and leaving a comment, Tammy!
Francis says
I’ve never commented on a blog before but I felt compelled to do so, because this is exactly what my Dad and I have been looking for. He has 10 years of cooking experience with every cuisine and has been looking at doing more Chinese food! I’m recently graduated and am used to the gourmet food at home, so I love your stuff.
One suggestion: I think a lot of people who cook for themselves struggle from 1) not being able to use up perishable ingredients fast enough 2) not knowing what high-yield ingredients (ingredients common to many recipes) are. In addition to your helpful “How-To”s, perhaps indicating the basics of what people might want to stock their kitchen with would be helpful. For example, just my brief forays into Chinese cookings seem to say that ginger, garlic, shaoxing rice wine, light soy sauce, oyster sauce, and sesame oil are essential. But of course you all have a better sense for this than me :).
Thanks again!
Bill says
Hi Francis, Thanks for your input! I agree that some guidance on stocking a pantry would be real useful for beginner home cooks. I’ll put this on my To-Do list :)
Eric Wilson says
Hi Judy,
I found your site trying to get information on the difference between rice wine and rice wine vinegar. Thanks for providing the 汉子 to go with the recipes. As I live in China, I can get almost everything needed for the Chinese recipes. Thai/Vietnamese…not so much. I am in a little town outside of 江西省，九江市。Your website (and my awesome new kitchen) have reinvigorated my passion for cooking.
Cheers and I am excited about trying your recipes to show off to my students.
Judy says
Hi Eric, please don’t take it the wrong way. “汉子” means a man, a good man. I think you meant to say: 汉字. Keep up the good work, you are doing great!
hanshan mountain says
THANK YOU FOR THIS SITE! ITS GREAT! Foodie here. Had foodie family, that’s my excuse. But need easy not time&work-intensive recipes. Love your recipes, and love your superb, illustrated ingredients pages. Not everyone shopping in the asian market speak english or can provide examples of dishes using them. Not everything is translated in the aisles. But curiousity abounds so onto the internet. Thank you for all your hours here to help us food lovers!
Judy says
You are very welcome, Hanshan! We are grateful that our hard work has been put to good use. Thank you for your lovely comment!
Larisa Duhart says
I’m browsing thru the Hot and sour soup recipe and ur website has a bug. Leaving a com. Help
Sarah says
Hey Larisa, we haven’t heard anything from other readers. Can you describe what’s happening when you browse the site? Thanks!
Ally Lai says
Tks for your recipe on you tiao. In Singapore the hawkers making you tiao made “busy chee” looks like a butterfly, do you have recipe for this?
Judy says
No, Ally! But I will look into it :-)
Karen says
Greetings from Boston. Discovered your website while looking for vegetarian Chinese recipes. Making a feast for friends tomorrow for Chinese New Year.
Wonderful discovery!
Judy says
Lovely! Thank you so much for your comment, Karen! Happy New Year!
Sir Kevin Parr, Baronet Kendal says
Love cooking and travel. Been all over the known old world trying all meals. i have to admit i love food too. China gave me fried rice and many hundred meals. i say nothing better ever passed my pallet than my six weeks in China. Italy too was exciting and all have their talents in preparation work. i cook only at home so built a useful chefs kitchen. Thank you for your blog and ideas.
Judy says
Thank you so much for your love of our blog. We do hope you will try some of our recipes and let us know if you have any questions! Cheers!
So Cal Gal says
Discovered your site 6 months ago, now check it almost daily. Love the recipes, stories and especially the glossary of ingredients. My sisters and I are 3rd generation Asian Americans and food obsessed travelers so everything here “clicks” for us. While traveling, we visit Chinatown in every Amercan/ Canadian city that has one to eat and shop, so I’m wondering if you could write a travel piece with your observations, food choices, etc. of Chinatowns you have visited. The one article that mentions a restaurant in NYC’s Chinatown was an aside in a recipe rather than a travel article and we’d like more!
Sarah says
Sure, we’re not in Chinatown(s) super often, but next time we visit a new one, we’ll try to write about it!
mark says
I’ve emailed you before and I will say it again…I love your recipes and more to the point, I enjoy the way you describe the cooking process in detail at the start and then recap at the very end. I pass them onto family and friends too. The photos really help too. keep them up.
looking up a storm in Auckland, New Zealand
mark says
that should have been
“Cooking” and not “looking” up a storm!
Judy says
What a lovely comment, Mark! Thank you so much! Happy wokking!
Larry Bourdet says
In your description of wood ears, you say to let you know if we ever find them fresh. Well, I’ve bought them fresh several times at Marina Food, 10122 Bandley Dr., Cupertino, CA 95014. I use them to make Tyler Florence’s version of Hot and Sour Soup. Maybe I’ll try your version some time, but his tastes pretty good!
Judy says
That would be lovely, Larry! Many readers have highly rated our Hot and Sour Soup recipe and made it their go-to recipe :-)
Lauren says
Thank you so much for this blog! Growing up in upstate New York, and being half Chinese, it’s been tough to keep the authentic recipes going in my household. I just discovered your recipes and already know I’ll be trying some of them out very soon!
Thanks again!
Judy says
So glad that you have found us, Lauren! Happy cooking!
Happytobeme5 says
Hi Judy,
My apology for the mistake, no offense meant. Sincerely.
My mind yesterday could have been thinking about your most recent post that I made mention about “Jian Diu” in your site. No offense meant for the origin, either.
Next time I will be more careful.
However, the recipe in your site ROCKS! I will let you know the result after I am able to find the list of your ingredients. I found the source now in Chinatown.
Again, please accept my sincerest apologies.
Judy says
No worries! No worries!
Happytobeme5 says
Hi Judy,
After 2 weeks of searching for the Authentic Glutinous Rice Flour here in Manila, Philippines… Finally I was able to accomplish my experiment on Sesame Balls – Jian Dui. I must admit that there are a lot of versions including Filipino Version called “Buchi”, I really want to follow your recipe to the T.
And the result?
FANTASCTIC, AMAZING and DELICIOUS!!!
Worth the wait to find the said Flour. You are very precise in giving out instructions both written and video. There are a lot of recipe which I would like to do for the Chinese New Year, my only problem is where to find all the ingredients shown in your Chinese Ingredients Glossary, which I would like to buy and use for authenticity. if you happen to know any dealer or Distributor in the Philippines, please let me know.
Thank you for being precise and truthful in your instructions.
Sarah says
Thank you so much for your kind comment! We aren’t very familiar on the market for Chinese ingredients in the Philippines, but maybe another reader will have some insight. :)
Christina says
I would pay good money for a cookbook of all your recipes!
My mouth is watering!
Judy says
Hi Christina, we are asking our readers about the cookbook: should the cookbook have all NEW recipes, or should we include many of our top recipes in it? Thoughts?
Alice says
This is the most amazing Chinese Cooking Site I have ever seen. I’m passing this on to all my family members and friends.
Judy says
Hi Alice, thank you so much for your love and support! Hope your friends and family share your love for cooking :-)
Hayley says
Hi
Would you please suggest simple Cantonese soup recipes for Chinese New Year? Something with symbolism would be great. I already have whole steam fish, chicken, dumplings on my menu…I do have access to Chinese grocery stores but not a lot of familiarity with certain techniques or ingredients.
Thanks,
Hayley
Bill says
Hi Hayley,
A soup with symbolism that jumps out at me is a Shanghainese classic that has gold bars (ground pork wrapped in tofu skins and coin purses (little omelets with pork filling) but unfortunately Judy has not yet posted the recipe. That said, any kind of soup served at New Year’s like a simple chicken or pork bone soup symbolizes wealth and abundance like having water in the household. I have also been behind on publishing some of my favorite Cantonese soups and tonics my parents used to make. I think an easy, yet delicious soup for CNY would be Chinese Chicken Mushroom Soup which would would be well received. Happy Lunar New Year!
Bill
Hayley says
Thanks, Bill. Happy new year to you too!
Clark P says
As a kid, some 50 years ago, it was all about the spaghetti. I truly loved Italian food. The simple yet complex flavors completely overwhelmed. The truth is Chinese, especially Sichuan, Chengdu is now my obsession. With your blog, my new love (not too new, just better defined-understood) has left me powerless. I have spent the last five plus years in and out Asian markets trying to make sense of the hundreds of goodies on the shelves, in the veggie section, in the seafood, meat departments. Now, in 20 minutes of marvel, you have articulated every condiment in the largest Asia market, simplified complex recipes and moved me to a new level of understanding of Asian delights. What a great job of bringing such a complex, dynamic art form to those of us that dream about “chili oil, fermented black beans and stinky tofu. Clark P
Bill says
Thanks Clark P – keep up the cooking!
John says
I was trying to find a way to request a recipe, but couldn’t find anything else. I used to eat Wor Wonton soup in California and it was something special. I believe ‘wor’ means everything, so it was wonton soup with shrimp, scallops, chicken, pork, and I don’t know what all else, but it was heavenly. Could you research it and publish a recipe that you like? It has been over 30 years since I tasted one like that, and I think I will have to make my own to experience it again. Thank you!
Bill says
Hi John, I know the soup you are talking about and most of the time fried wontons are added to the soup as well. Did the version you ate used fried wontons?
Josh says
I just want to say this blog completes my life, haha. I’ve started cooking a ton because of all your great recipes and I’m so much better off for it! Thanks for being dedicated to the craft and putting together all of these wonderful recipes :)
Judy says
You are very welcome, Josh! So glad to have you cooking with us and thank you so much for your lovely words :-)
Gabriela says
How do I sign up ?
Sarah says
Hey Gabriela, I saw the email you sent and replied there, but for anyone else who wants to know––sign up for our newsletter by putting your email address into the form on the sidebar of the site!
Susantha Djong says
Hello all..
I came across your lap yuk recipe last night and started the marinade or curing liquid this morning. It was amazing (keep it in mind that the flavor from the spices hasn’t come out yet). I didn’t have star anise, so I substituted it with a few of cloves, and dried sherry for the rice wine.
I was amazed, they tasted really authentic, not like some American “made up” recipe. Not too salty or too sweet. Flavor was extremely well balanced.
I have the pork belly marinating as we speak now. I am making it so I can take it with me to Taiwan and Indonesia to my family. Thank you so much.
One question though, how often you guys travel? Are you guys traveling together or separately?
Again thank you so much.
Btw, I am always crazy about authentic Asian recipe, since it’s a little hard to get it close enough to the authentic ones. Now I found one, and will be trying different one from your site.
Susantha Djong
Judy says
Hi Susantha, I am so excited that you are making my lap yuk recipe. In my opinion, it is absolutely the best. Please let me know what you think after you get to taste it.
Mary Anne Wong says
I’ve enjoyed reading your blog and hope to try out some of your mouth watering recipes. Will let you know how I go. Found your website mentioned on someone else’s recipe and decided to have a look. Glad I did.
Sarah says
So glad you found us, Mary Anne! Have a look around and let us know if you have any questions on any of the recipes here. :)
Katharina says
This is one of the most beautiful blogs with the most alluring recipes I have seen – ever! Thank you for providing such wonderful food of unique and mouth watering kind and photography!
Judy says
Thank you so much for your lovely words, Katharina!
Puppycat says
I think finding you guys will change my life. I recently moved to Germany with my husband and I find the food here incredibly bland and boring. I was craving noodles today and found your Hong Kong pan fried recipe. Luckily there is one Asian supermarket in my city (just one) so I went and bought the ingredients after school, rushed home, cooked and ate them so fast I don’t think I actually chewed once. I also ate enough for about three grown men heh. Whoops. After all was said and done I sat down and actually read your blog. The info you have here is great, it’s amazing, I’m feeling really passionate about making all of these dishes. I see you stick mostly to Chinese but aren’t afraid of other Asian cuisine either- would love to see a Korean hot pot recipie or Korean bbq recipie too as they up to date have been my favourite food to eat abroad.
Thank you again for this great website, you’ve earnt a massive fan and my husband will love this too (we’re both foodies ;) ! Tschüss from Germany!
Bill says
Glad to have you and your hubby cooking with us. You’re in good company among foodies! :)
donalee says
John, my husband, and I are having a great time with your recipes. For us, it’s more fun and better than any cooking class I could imagine.
Thanks!
donaleen and John
Judy says
Thank you so much for your kind words, Donalee! I really enjoy this blog myself.
Sarah says
Thank you sooo much Donaleen!!
Sandra says
Kaitlin sounds like the person I am; I can never follow a recipe to the T. I always do a little bit of my own thing but it sure taste good.
Anyway thank you all for such wonderful recipes.
Bill says
Hi Sandra, Yep that’s Kaitlin alright, so I am sure you could be friends :) She has gotten much better since the blog has forced her to write down recipes so others can enjoy also!
Karen says
I just (12/29/16) came across your recipe for “Loaded Crispy Tofu Tacos” online. They were a big hit in my house and that says a lot because my husband, 20-year-old and 17-year-old sons are difficult to please.
I just wanted to mention a few things I did:
1) I pressed the water out of the tofu overnight.
2) I didn’t have sriracha sauce, but I did have Vietnamese chili garlic sauce. I checked online and found out that, indeed, it is a good substitute.
3) I used a regular, old copper-bottom frying pan (I don’t have a cast iron or non-stick skillet) and the tofu cooked up PERFECTLY! I heated the oil on medium heat (no splatters of oil) and checked for crispiness before turning the tofu cubes over.
Discovering your blog is the best holiday gift! I am looking forward to trying more of your recipes. Oh, and I LOVE your glossary of Chinese ingredients!
Thank you, guys! Gong Xi Fa Cai & Gong Hey Fat Choy! Or, as we Jews say in Hebrew, L’Shana tova!
I’m so glad to discover your blog! I will definitely try more of your recipes!
Judy says
Wow, it’s so nice to have you join us, Karen! Happy wokking and let us know of any questions along the way :-) Looking forward to hearing about your many triumphs!
Sarah says
Thank you so much for the feedback, insights, and kind words, Karen! Happy New Year to you an your family as well. :)
Reeshard says
What brand/model of woke do you use? I have no knowledge of what is good out there. The top rated one on amazon doesn’t look like its made of the same material as older wok’s used in restaurants and in your pictures. Would like to know! :)
Bill says
Hi Reeshard, We use a few types, including light cast iron and carbon steel. In my opinion, the carbon steel woks are the best, but there are also different grades that use different heat treating processes. The one we use the most is a very large carbon steel wok, so we have lots of wok space for our photos. It is also the material used in most Chinese restaurants and can be found under $40 from Amazon similar to the link we have on our cooking tools page HERE.
These woks do require a bit more care and get better (seasoned with a nice patina) the more you use them. Best advice on daily use is to make sure you scrub lightly with water making sure all of the food particles are cleaned off. Then heat the wok back up to dry it completely. If you think it will be more than a day or two before you cook again, use a paper towel to wipe the wok lightly with canola oil, and you’re all set to store it for use the next time. Happy cooking!
Yolanda says
I love your blog. I find myself spending hours here! I eat vicariously through your pictures because I am too lazy, for the most part, to go to the trouble for 1 person except for stir fry.
Judy says
Hi Yolanda, you should take the time to cook for yourself because you’re worth it :-)
Bill Follette says
Hi, Love you site and recipes!!! Do you have a recipe for Japanese Gyozo Soup with the dumpling pan fried and or deep fried. Also, in the same realm Chinese Wor Wong tong soup with fried dumplings. Very few restaurants have it in the New Orleans Area. Thank you Bill
Judy says
Hi Bill, we have a gyoza recipe: . :-)
Jenni says
i found this today as I was getting ready to prep for my annual dim sum new year’s eve meal. My husband is 1/2 Chinese and 1/2 Korean (but speaks Japanese, go figure) and when I relocated him from the big city to the middle of no where we lost any good food options unless I make them. Having make several similar recipes in the past with his family I am very excited to try the bakery and dim sum options. These have been the hardest recipes to find for me.
Now that my kiddos are starting to grow up it is important to me that they known their heritage. Since we live in the middle of no where (town of about 10,000 and a good 4-5 hours from a good asian store) I have to teach them at home. I don’t want them growing up to think that Chinese food is just what you get from the local takeout place.
one question, when will you have a cook book so that I can have easy access of line???
Sarah says
That’s awesome, Jenni––we’re so glad that we could be of help! We don’t have any concrete plans for a cookbook currently, but we haven’t ruled out the possibility. :)
Jackie Scott says
Hi! I am a newcomer as of yesterday and I made your Soy Sauce chicken last night – turned out great!! Thank you so much for this site – I am first generation and am grasping onto my Chinese heritage – doesn’t help that my husband isn’t Chinese! As it is I don’t send my kids to Chinese school so I NEED them to know the food at least. Your site is by far the easiest to navigate and I love the one page recipe print outs. Nice and neat. Your photos are amazing too – will be trying something else on the recipe list real soon!!
Bill says
Hi Jackie, the Soy Sauce chicken is one of my favorites and definitely rivals the ones you get at local Chinatowns. Glad you found us and keep on cooking with us!
Judy says
I’m having trouble finding an efficient way of grinding Sichuan peppercorns. I bought a little spice grinder with top ratings but after running it through several times, it is still not grinding it fine enough. I tried a mortar and pestle but it took forever. Do you guys have any recommendations on a good spice grinder for the peppercorns? Thanks in advance!
Bill says
Hi Judy, we’re old school and use a mortar and pestle. If you have a larger and heavier one, it definitely goes faster.
Cort Harrington says
There are numerous dishes displayed on a cutting board that I’m curious about. One example is Nanjing Salted Duck. Do you know the wood type?
I’m the cook in the family but my wife comes up with recipes she wants me to try. Your soy sauce chicken was particularly good. I now regularly check your version of recipes I try.
Judy says
No, Cort, I don’t know the type of wood my cutting board is made of. I bought it in China from a furniture store. BTW, tell your wife that she is very lucky to have you as her personal chef. :)
steven wong says
hi folks;
I just want to let folks know, my Colombian wife follows your turkey congee recipes to make the congee and it turns out great.
she is so happy and say thank you very much.
love your blogs, please keep it coming.
Judy says
Thank you so much for your lovely comment! Happy holidays to you and yours!!!
John says
Please add me to your blog.
Thanks’
John Hancock
Barbara says
I have been unable to receive email from you for about 2 months and wonder if you could check from your end and see if there is a reason. I am unable to resubscribe… Thanks I love your recipes and blog!
Bill says
Hi Barbara, our system tells us that you have unsubscribed, but I am not sure why you cannot resubscribe.
Hansen says
My wife and I in Chongqing just copied your recipe for Lo Han jai. Hope it’s as good [or better] as the one served by Sam Woo Bar B Q in L.A.Chinatown. Curious about the red fermented tofu. Never noticed and hot flavor in the Lo Han jai I used to get in California.
Bill says
Hi Hansen, Lo Han Jai has many variations, but the one we posted is a traditional Cantonese recipe. Hope you like our version which is what my family has been cooking for generations.
Yolanda says
Is Sam Woo’s still open? I was there in the early 80’s. I was amazed at the comments written in the margins from the chef such as (not worth the price)..haha.
Lyn says
Lovely family.
Sarah says
Thanks Lyn!
Marcia Woodward says
Just discovered you!!! Love your ingredients list and how to use them.
Perhaps you can help me find a recipe. We once lived in Penang, Malaysia in the early 90’s. (Heaven on Earth!) Every weekend we would visit a little shop called New Shanghai, sit on little stools on the sidewalk and enjoy what they called “Sour Soup”. No noodles but a wondrous broth, sour and spicey but mellowed by the roast duck wings and necks that cooked in it And there were vegetables… pickled? fermented? Kim Lai, who always looked after us there, would always see that our bowls were topped off and ensure us that if we drank enough of the hot tea, it would flush away any duck fat! Good times! How I would love to find a facsimile of that soup!
Sarah says
Hey Marcia, I’m not sure I’ve ever tried that soup that you’re describing, having never been to Malaysia myself. But if we ever encounter something similar, we’ll try to replicate it. :)
Also, your “hot tea flushes away duck fat” point is awesome.
Angela says
It is a Peranakan dish called Itek Tim, itek is duck. It is a duck soup cooked with salted mustard greens (kiam chye),tamarind and sour plums.
Neil says
So glad I stumbled across this blog. It’s just my daughter and I here, she was born and raised for a while in Bangkok when I was living there but has developed a fine interest in all things food, Chinese style also J pop,K pop and who knows, maybe its L pop these days! Anyway, here in Scotland we got a huge Chinese supermarket locally and it has a bakery as well!! So, all set ingredients wise and I cannot believe you got a recipe for egg tarts and custard buns but im awful with dough/pastry/any sort of baking. Interesting times ahead in the kitchen :)
Oh btw,…cups,oz’s??….man, go metric! Its so much easier ;)
Sarah says
Hey Neil, yes we in America are for whatever reason still rejecting the metric system. We have it on our list to add metric measurements to all of our recipes, but with over 500 recipes to go over, it might not happen any time soon. Luckily, there are really helpful measurement converters available on the internet!
Suju says
Do you have any ideas on how to make Black Sesame Pudding like soup? Recall my mom used to use blender to grind white rice and toasted black sesame added rock sugar and boiled but do not know the proportions or recipe.
Judy says
Hi Suju, are you referring to 芝麻糊? If so, I do know how to make it.
Sofia Wahaj says
Love this webs site! It’s so helpful and useful. I love the recipes, the way the ingredients are explained and how to find them, the list of essential tools, the pictures, and of course, the recipes. Thanks for making my life a little better.
Judy says
Hi Sofia, we are very happy to hear that our site is helpful and useful, which means our hard work is paying off :-)
michybae says
Nice website and clear recipes even for Chinese to follow. Love your food pictures (;
Sarah says
Thanks!!
Lou says
Hi Guys,
I came across your website and now know what I did wrong in trying to make Chinese Pork Buns. Great website and will definitely be making other authentic Chinese dishes using your receipts.
I can relate with your Mom as I also came from China (Shanghai area) in 1952 (actually smuggled out with Mom to HK) as a 4 year old, I grew up in the Chinese restaurant business my father owned for over 30 years in the 60s on the lower east side of NY, managed it part-time and dabbled in the kitchen with the Chefs. A group of us worked at Grossingers and Kutchers in the Monticello area as waiters and bus boys, as their fathers were head chefs.
As a retired bank executive I know have plenty of time to make these Cantonese dishes that my family enjoys so much. Keep up the great website.
Judy says
Hi Lou, my grandma and Bill’s mother worked at Grossingers for many, many years. I remember the Chinese community was very small in that area back in the day, so we might know each other! :-)
Carolyn Shaughnessy says
I really like your boards and web pages, such awesome recipes and information. My favorite boards are Judy’s as I like the way she organizes them, it is so easy to find a recipe for anything. Your board Drop Dead Gorgeous Desserts is truly a work or art.
Thanks for all the effort you all put in to make your recipes available to the average Canadian aspiring cook. Your glossary is very helpful as there is such variety in the flavour of your recipes it is sometimes overwhelming.
Your fan, Carolyn Shaughnessy Peterborough Ontario
Bill says
Thanks Carolyn and glad you are enjoying our Pinterest boards! Judy is definitely our Pinterest expert and glad to know she is doing her job ;-)
Chen says
You are great! I am Chen live in Quebec giving asian cooking class in French. Your website gives me a lot inspiration! Well down!
Judy says
Glad to help!
Bruno Ko says
I found this website last week when I was searching for some chinese recipes (I’m Taiwanese Brazilian and a college student) and now I have tons of your recipes saved in my Favorite Bar!! It’s the best of it’s kind!! I’m desperate that I can’t find a Shaoxing wine that you use in almost all of your recipes hahahaha
Keep doing this incredible, organized and practical work!!!
Greetings from Brazil
Kaitlin says
Hi Bruno! That’s great! Glad you’re enjoying the recipes–now to to get cooking! As for Shoaxing wine, hopefully that’s not the only thing holding you back, as it can easily be purchased online! :)
Mary Ann says
I stumbled across your blog while searching for a pumpkin scone recipe to work from. I absolutely love that your blog is a family of four cooking and sharing! I am looking forward to trying some of your Chinese cuisine recipes too. I hope you don’t mind, but I would like to give you a shout out on my next blog post for the scones @DrakeFarmDREAM.
Thanks and Happy Cooking!
Kaitlin says
Hi Mary Ann, so glad you found us! Hope you like the recipes, and we don’t mind a little shout out at all! :) Cheers and hope to see you around the blog more soon!
Cai Zhenken says
Hi Judy,I am Ken,i tried your ma la xiang guo receipe,however the infused oil turned out to be a bit on the dark colour side instead of red,any advice?
However the receipt do work too!except,i need to make it hotter,any tips as well?:)
Judy says
Hi Cai, sounds like you had the heat on too high when infusing the oil. Try reducing the heat next time. Also, to make the dish hotter, cut the dried red hot peppers open and keep the seeds. You can also add more if you want it really hot. :-)
Cai Zhenken says
Hi Judy,
Well noted,will reduce the heat and cut the hot dried chilli open to make the infuse oil less black and hotter,will post the result here:)
Judy says
Good deal, Cai!
Dwayne says
Oddly, I have found several dishes on wok of life that I really liked and cooked for my family. The first few tasties I referred to your blog here but didn’t think twice about it. After four sucessful hits I began to recall that all of the recipes come from the same place. I suppose I enjoy your recipes because of mt six years in Beijing, which I thoroughly enjoyed. I’m going to have to subscribe because I’m sure for variety and many sucessful delightful meals lurk on your blog. Thanks for your efforts.
P.S. I can use chopsticks excellently and I could use them before I arrived in Peiking. Had lots of fun with that talent.
Dwayne
Kaitlin says
Hi Dwayne, so happy to hear you’ve had a solid success rate! And we’re always glad to help dust off memories from Beijing :) Cheers and hope to see you around the blog in the comments!
Gayle says
I’m in search of a recipe and wondered if you could help. My Chinese ESL partner describes a soup that his wife and daughter have for breakfast: boiling water, sugar, stir in an egg. Maybe this is too simple to require a recipe, but I’m curious about quantities and whether this resembles egg drop soup when it’s done. Does this sound familiar? Thank you!
Bill says
Hi Gayle, I wonder if your friend is Cantonese because this sounds like a popular Cantonese favorite. There are lots of variations but I remember my father used to boil water and tapioca (small bb sized pearls) and added sugar, a little bit of cornstarch to thicken it and beaten eggs like egg drop soup. It was an eat anytime kind of a sweet soup. I have it on my list this winter to try and hopefully it will be good enough to share!
Gayle says
Thank you! I look forward to seeing how that works out. Meanwhile I’m going to try your steamed egg recipe.
Sue says
I stumbled upon your blog when looking up rice noodles and what you wrote in your “about” sections is completely true!! I definitely can relate to once you’re out of the house, you slowly lose the language and dont even know how to make the food that you loved so much as a kid. I’m so glad I came across you blog as I hope to share the same love of food with my future kids as well!
Judy says
Hi Sue, thank you for stumbling upon our blog. Please do share and pass on the tradition. Let’s do it together!
Nancy Bossio says
HI,
Just came across your site. Not Chinese but a fan of all things Chinese, spent some time in mainland because of my garment business. Loved going into a restaurant and ordering something that someone else was eating that looked good. No idea what it was.
I have been using tofu Ma Bo that I buy in Chinatown. Do you have a receipt for that sauce?
Judy says
Hi Nancy, are you referring to Ma Po Tofu? Here is our recipe.
Angela says
Excellent list of sauces, etc. with pictures. Many cookbooks or online recipes will tell you what to buy, how to cook it without telling/showing you what the ingredients look like.
Our family is like yours; we start critiquing a restaurant before we even get inside — yes, we are Chinese too!!! My husband is the only one who isn’t food imprinted. As he is also Chinese, I think he must be a mutation.
I always wanted to try sour plum duck once I heard about the from a friend. Shall look forward to my next experiment.
Judy says
Hi Angela, I have to say Bill’s sour plum duck is very good. It’s a dish from his childhood. Hope you like it.
Kate says
Visual Recipe Index = Brilliant!
Can’t wait to try some of those delicious-looking dishes. Thanks for releasing all that great food out into the interwebs!
Judy says
Hi Kate, we are so happy to be able to provide this service, and it’s a great joy to see so many of you cooking and enjoying our recipes. Thank you!
Sue says
My mom used to make the most amazing Taiwanese braised oxtail dish, she passed away last year and I miss her and her cooking so much. I am ecstatic to have stumbled upon your Chinese braised oxtail recipe, I knew instantly from the photo, ingredients and the recipe that this is it! I can’t wait to try it. Looking forward to share with you how it turns out.
Thank you for sharing your wonderful recipes.
Sue
Judy says
Hi Sue, can’t wait to hear back from you! Hope you like it!
Serina says
In my search for a Pad Kee Mao recipe, I stumbled upon your site! I grew up being raised by my Japanese grandmother (from Tokyo) in suburban Ohio so I have always had a love of Asian foods. I enjoy authentic recipes and am trying to expand my abilities from Japanese cooking into other enjoyed Asian foods. Chinese and Thai being two of my favorites! I am so happy to have discovered this amazing site and look forward to browsing the site thoroughly and begin printing off a “to-do” list of recipes! :)
I don’t quite think I fit the Gen-X (just turned 40!) but my 21year old son, Farez, and I are looking forward to trying so many of these recipes! Thank you so much and I look forward to learning more about your amazing family!
Sarah says
Hey Serina, thank you so much for your lovely comment! We’re looking forward to having you as a regular reader on the site as well. :) Let us know if you ever have a question about a recipe.
Diane says
Love this site and look forward to your updates and recipes.
Sarah says
Thank you Diane!
Julie Wilder says
Just discovered your site and am insanely in love with you and your families passion for food! I will be following you on Pinterest and playing in my kitchen with lots of your ideas. This weekend is is Char Sou (sp?) Pork Buns, I can hardly wait! Thanks for such an awesome blog! From a fellow food lover!
Sarah says
Thank you, Julie! Let us know how those pork buns turn out! :)
Schantall says
Hi there,
I’m a huge fan of your blog and I constantly cook the recipes. However, I comment far too rarely, sorry for that.
I have a question- have you considered printing a book with your fantastic recipes?
I’d certainly buy it and I’m sure many more people out there wouldn’t mind having your recipes sitting on a shelf instead of just having them in the internet.
Kaitlin says
HI Schantall, Thanks for your kind words! We have been simmering on the idea of a cookbook for quite some time now, but are waiting for the perfect timing! Our readers will be the first to know when we do start putting one together, though :)
Sarah says
Hi Schantall, we haven’t had any concrete plans to start a cookbook yet, but it’s something that we’ve been thinking about on the horizon. It’s all a matter of when we all have time to work on such a big project! Will keep our readers posted if anything does happen, of course. :)
Joyce says
Hi,
Just read the article on Matchmakers Corner, I ‘chanced’ upon it last year and I figured it out but was still good to read about it too. Glad I just found your site, have eamarked and printed off some recipe’s to try. I like the vibe of your site and the very clear recipes and the photos are great too.
Judy says
So glad you found us, Joyce. We are here if you have any questions while trying out recipes :-)
Charmaine says
Woooo! You have plenty of vegan dishes :) I am Asian with Chinese blood on my my mom’s side. I’ve been vegan for 9 years, mostly raw actually, but now I am severely tempted by your yummy-looking plant-based recipes.
You have a lovely blog. The family that cooks together stays happy together :)
Kaitlin says
Thanks for the lovely words, Charmaine
Sarah says
Thanks Charmaine! Enjoy the blog. :)
Robert says
Ok, just dropping u a another note to let you know that I do most of the cooking for the family (24 year old daughter, 17 year old son and…….year old spouse (she hates the word “wife”. Anyways, I now cook recipes from your site 3/7 nights. Lots of times I am too ambitious; trying to do 3 of your dishes at the same time, but when I am more realistic, everything works out great. Simply speaking, your Smashed Cucumber Salad is a family favorite and this summer we are having it almost every couple of days. Just a thought, that it would be much more convenient for me, (and others) if you would have someone develop an app for Woks of Life. Next month I am back to Hangzhou for a few weeks. I’ll let you know if I find some new interesting dishes. My partner there, Xi Ting Jun, is a huge foodie.
Sarah says
Hey Robert, that’s awesome! The app idea is interesting.
He Lan says
Hi Guys,
why didn’t I find this page earlier? The dishes are so yummi yummi…:o)
Definetely I will try some of the recipes!
Judy says
We are so glad that you’ve found us too, He Lan! Just let us know if you have any questions! Happy wokking!
Sarah says
Thanks He Lan! Let us know in the comments if you ever have any questions about a recipe.
Bob Conrod says
Hi there, Love your page, it’s great!
I was wondering if you could help me? I’ve searched your site but the recipes I’m looking for are not there as yet.
I’ve been living in Beijing the past 6 years but before that is Zhuhai for 12. And while down south I often used to go to these little hole-in-the-wall Lanzhou noodle places. I would often go there for a noodle or other dish and when ever I whatever I ordered was always accompanied by this little free bowl of soup or actually more like just a broth. I really love that broth. I think it is beef based but possibly lamb. It was a clear broth and on the bottom there would be spices. Any idea what it might be? The Lanzhou places up here in Beijing don’t seem to serve it. I’d like the recipe if you know it please.
Also, one for Lanzhou Beef potato noodles 牛肉土豆拌面 Niúròu tǔdòu bàn miàn Its a dry noodle not a soup noodle.
Thanks so much!
Judy says
Hi Bob, I have heard about this dish but never tried it. I will do some research and see what I can do. Thank you for your request.
Kathy says
I just discovered your blog and I want to cook everything on it! I’ve been blogging for 11 years myself at Minxeats.com, and have, with my husband, written three books on food in Baltimore and Maryland. I love Chinese cuisines and Baltimore is a really terrible place to find good Chinese food. There are two pretty great restaurants about 45 minutes away, one Hunan and the other Sichuan, but there’s a dearth of even decent American-style, gloppy, oversweet Chinese in Baltimore these days. We tend to do our own renditions of stir-fries and dishes with Chinese-y elements, and have found Fuchsia Dunlop’s books to be indispensable. And now your blog, which has some really great, easy-sounding recipes. I look forward to being a regular reader.
Sarah says
Thank you so much for your kind words, Kathy! Looking forward to exchanging ideas with you in comments. :)
Jamie says
I recently moved from Hawaii to small country town Pennsylvania. Dishes that I could have just had in Chinatown to enjoy, I can no longer do. Confesses Chinese dishes here are Covered in a brown goo. Thanks to you and mom in Hawaii for some Chinatown ingredients, I can now prepare everything I missed and so much more!
You have my gratitude!
Sarah says
That’s so awesome, Jamie. Thank you for sharing your thoughts with us. :)
Ari Iskander Krohn Berle says
Hey guys, greetings from Norway! I find your blog-concept very charming, and as I love cooking Asian food your recipes and advices really helps me with my Chinese cooking skills. I know much more about cooking Japanese food than Chinese food, but I’m still looking for a great Japanese Miso-ramen recipe – I’ll share it here if I manage to create it ;-) BTW Kaitlin, I’m a musician and a producer who’ve lived in both Japan and South Korea – So I know my share of K/J-pop!
Thanks for all the fantastic recipes and advice.
Kaitlin says
Hi Ari, greetings! Okay, let’s get to the most important part of your comment–are you or are you not one degree away from Big Bang? hahahah anyways, we’re also looking for a reliable miso ramen recipe! Please do let us know if you find one. Cheers and hope to see you around the blog more :)
Anne says
So happy I stumbled on your blog! I’m a Malaysian Chinese and I grew up with many of these Chinese food you have featured but since my mom’s the matriach and main chef in the family, she was also a tigress in her kitchen. That means my siblings and I grew up with all these food but not quite allowed into the kitchen to help with the cooking. Now that I’m living abroad I miss these food. So finding your blog add the easy to follow recipes is god-sent!
Kaitlin says
Hahahah your mom sounds funny. I’m sure my mom and your mom would both get along over their tiger ways ;) Enjoy the recipes and let us know if you have any questions in the comments!
Nisha says
Can you use other meats instead of of pork?
Thank you
Kaitlin says
Hi Nisha, pork is the holy grail of Chinese cooking, but we do have recipes that use beef and chicken as well. And there’s always tofu. But you should feel free to sub in other meats for pork. For example, we have a fair number of recipes that use ground pork–you can definitely feel free to sub in ground beef, turkey, or chicken.
Cindy says
I just find this blog and I’m already sure it’s going to be used often. I love Chinese food, but I’m sick of my local restaurants deciding to change their recipes with no forewarning. It goes from what I like, to what I don’t. So I decided to look up recipes and try it myself because I miss the dishes I used to enjoy. There’s just nothing better than Wonton soup when I’m sick!
Kaitlin says
Hi Cindy, yay! You found us. We couldn’t agree more about your point on the restaurants. Just this past weekend we went to an old standby and was sorely disappointed by the quality of the food! New recipe, new chef, who knows. You can always count on your own kitchen :) Cheers!
Casey says
Hi, just wanted to say that I love your website! I’ve grown up in New Zealand learning to cook from my immigrant Chinese parents and I feel I share a lot of similarities with you guys – best thing about your website is I know the names of the ingredients in Chinese but I can’t translate or explain what they are to my European boyfriend so the ingredients glossary is super useful!
Kaitlin says
Hey Casey, that’s great! Always helpful to learn the old eyeball tricks from the parents and then use a recipe later when you can’t quite remember quantities. And glad we could help with the SO’s assimilation ;) Cheers and see you around the blog!
Roderick Bass says
Hi everyone I had a craving for fry asian chicken wings with flour. I came across the recipe, Fried Chicken wiings, Takeout Styles. I plan to cook the recipes with fried rice for breakfast. I will add one or two spices after reading the reviews. Everyone have different taste buds. Thanks for the recipes.
Kaitlin says
Sounds like a plan, Roderick! Thanks for stopping by :)
Andre Chan says
Hi. I have tried your char siu bao several times. The problem is that each time the bao is slighlty sticky when eating. Your comments please.
Judy says
Hi Andre, are you talking about the baked version or the steamed version?
Andre Chan says
The steamed one
Mary Ann says
Hi! just wanted to say I love your blog! I found it while looking for a recipe for spicy pork with kimchi and tofu.
And Kaitlin, while probably know where near in your ranks, I know way too much about Kpop for a 58 yr old woman! Thank you, oh youngest daughter of mine (whom I saw BTS with last July)!
Kaitlin says
Hi Mary Ann, hahahahahah AMAZING! Mom of the year award :)
Aleksander says
Hi! I’m very glad to find your blog. My girlfriend and I spent our last vacations in China. We spent a little bit more than two days from Brazil to visit Xi’an, Shanghai and Beijing, and Hong Kong. It was wonderful. And we have loved all the bakerys, specialy Holiland. Do you have some recipes from Holiland? Thanks
Sarah says
Hey Aleksander, check out our Chinese bakery category for all of the recipes we have for buns similar to what you can get at Holiland! Here’s the link: https://thewoksoflife.com/category/recipes/chinese-bakery/
Cathy says
I am so happy to find your blog. For about 15 years my family ate at a Chinese restaurant in Houston almost every Sunday. We ordered the same thing every week. egg drop soup, moo goo gai pan, pepper steak and our favorite, vegetable steam dumplings. They were freshly made and fabulous. We moved away after about 15 years but managed to follow the restaurant to its new location and have at least one meal a year there for the last 15 years. We hold our breath each time holding out hope that the steamed dumplings will be the same. Our worst fear came true this year when the restaurant changed hand and the dumpling were ok at best . Oh well we had a great run! Do you have a good recipe for fresh steamed vegetable dumplings? I would love to give it a try. I’m trying your moo goo gai pan this week. It looks fantastic!
Bill says
Hi Cathy, Welcome to our blog! Try Sarah’s recipe for vegetables dumplings HERE.
Jan says
Hi Judy, I note you write from Beijing. My brother and his Chinese wife, are back in Fuzhou and Xiamen right now and he is having trouble locating a source for ‘baking powder’. We usually use 1 tsp of this per cup of flour. He has found something that requires MUCH more. Found some sachets once, but they have been used. Any ideas where to source? Thanks
Judy says
Hi Jan, this is easy, all supermarkets in China sell baking powder and it’s called 泡打粉 in Chinese.
Jan says
Thanks Judy, I forwarded to my brother and he has tried to reply to you but cannot from China. Anyway, thanks.
Judy says
No problem, Jan! Just let us know if there is anything else we can do to help.
Matt says
It is really nice how, even though your family is separated by distance, you find a creative way to keep in touch. This is far better than most social media sites, because it focuses on something we all have in common and it includes others in educational content. We all have to eat, and many of us do not know how to cook.
Thank you for making this website.
Sarah says
You’re welcome, Matt!
Roscy Thomas says
Hello Guys,
I came across your blog and found it very interesting . I am the owner of Realicious butters and we make a line of healthy, high quality nut and seed butters. I am trying to see if you are interested in doing a promotion/ blog/ workshop with us . Please let me know
Sarah says
Hi Roscy, we are no longer based in China, but feel free to reach out to me directly at [email protected] with any inquiries!
Annece says
what a wonderful family you have! I have recently relocated to Beijing and have fallen completely in love with the food in China. Do you guys by any chance have cooking lessons in Beijing? I would love to learn how to cook :)
Sarah says
Awesome! We have since moved out of Beijing, but that would have been a cool idea to do cooking classes. Good luck on your Beijing adventure!
John in Wisconsin says
First off I love to cook. Had my own pizza place for close to 11 years after walking away from my factery job till health stopped me from working. Last night a friends wife who is from China showed me how she made dumplings with pork and some kind of grass like veggie that are to die for (I must have ate 40). She did everything from scratch and now finding the 4 of you I dont think I will be going out for this type of food much anymore. Thanks for doing this blog.
Sarah says
You’re welcome, John! sounds like that grass-like veggie was chinese chives––we actually have a recipe for pork and chive dumplings here on the blog.
D. Mack says
Hello BJSK, want to let you know my plans for this weekend is to try your takeout egg rolls and banquet fried rice. I’m from the Chicago south suburbs, and a true foodie. I’m hoping to WOW my family. I’ll take pictures and post, only if they are worthy.
Kaitlin says
Hi D. Mack, sounds like a killer plan! And we like to see pictures regardless of the turnout, but I’m sure you’ll get it right :) Good luck!
D. Mack says
I’ve also decided to do the take out BBQ spare ribs. Stand by for photos.
D.Mack says
BJSK, egg rolls and spare ribs made this weekend. I did you all proud! My husband loved them. He ate so much, he had to go to sleep, I ran out of wrappers so I have to make a trip to the store so I can use the remainder of my filling. I didn’t get to the banquet fried rice but that is next on the agenda. Thanks a million for the awesome recipes. All of you are now my new foodie bffs. :-)
D.Mack says
How do I post pictures?
Sarah says
you can share them via Twitter, Instagram, or Facebook. Links in the sidebar!
Sarah says
Sounds amazing! Hahaha — “He ate so much, he had to go to sleep.” Been there.
Sarah says
Woo! Can’t wait to see what you come up with!
Jessica says
“For all you Chinese American generation X’s and Y’s out there who love to eat it, but have no idea how to make it, welcome to the promised land.”
YES!! This is my saving grace! Thanks for sharing all these Asian food recipes. Do you have other blogs in a similar field that you look up to/would recommend?
Sarah says
Thank you Jessica! You could also check out chinasichuanfood.com and omnivorescookbook.com!
Maria Crossan says
I love your page. I am Maria Crossan.
I live in Vancouver BC Canada.
My family has been here for over 100 years, I am 3rd Generation Canadian Chinese.
It is so nice to see recipes and pics. I was raised by my grandmother Anne Soon Leong.
For some strange reason, our family always ate out in Chinatown, so being able to see your
pics and recipe’s I feel so connected, and no longer have to order out, and I refuse to eat in the chinese restaurant down the street where house chowmein is 20.00 without tip. We did once, and not enough chowmein for 4 people.
My Grandmother only cooked Hoisin chicken Wings, and Roast beef.
I grew up on Cantonese food, which in Vancouver right now is very rare to get good Canto food.
We were in Calgary in April, and the food was better there for Canto Chinese food then here.
Your food is so Awesome.
Love reading your blog and your trips.
Thank you very much, for taking the time to do this.
Sincerely yours
Maria Soon Leong Crossan
Kaitlin says
Hi Maria, thanks for sharing your family’s story! We completely agree that eating out can often feel overrated and disconnect you from what feels right rather than center you in what matters. We’re actually headed to Vancouver this fall, so would love any recommendations if you have them!
Sarah says
Thank you so much for your comment, Maria! I’m actually a bit surprised that it’s hard to get good cantonese food in Vancouver! I heard that the Chinatown there is pretty awesome. We’re actually going to be there for a couple days in September. We’ll let you know if we discover any good restaurants!
Shiraz says
Hi Bill, Judy, Sarah and Kaitln,
Greetings from the southern Caribbean! This was just awesome! Love your site. Your little “squabbles” are what makes it family (LOL!) Looking forward to trying more recipes. Best regards to you all for the future.
Judy says
Thank you so much, Shiraz, for your lovely comment! Just let us know if you have any questions while cooking the recipes.
Don B. Whipkey says
If we ever met I would shake your hand, hug you, give you a big kiss and bow down before you. You treatment of Ratatouille just has me so overwhelmed. Needless to say that has been a favorite dish of mine for several decades and so far you are the only ones to give it honor.
You are absolutely great! My best to ya!
(Have you ever tried it with sausage cut up in it? Maybe some anchovies, capers or black olives?)
Judy says
Wow, Don, thank you so much for your wonderful praise! This was Bill’s idea and he deserves the credit, for this recipe is truly remarkable. And I do like your suggestions. Will have to give them a try. BTW, it’s also the perfect time of the year to make this recipe. Happy wokking!
Nicole says
Bill, Judy, Sarah and Kaitlin,
I am so happy to find your blog! My husband and I are obsessed with Asian cuisine and can’t wait to try some of your recipes (and learn how to cook our favorites at home!). Thanks for all you do on this blog! I can’t wait to check it out!
P.S. We may have to start with the Mongolian Beef tonight… Yummm!
Nicole
Kaitlin says
Thanks for the kind words, Nicole! Let us know if you have any questions as you try things in the comments. And the Mongolian Beef is an excellent, excellent choice :)
Sarah says
Thank you so much, Nicole! We hope you enjoy the recipes. Let us know in the comments if you ever have a question we can answer!
Nam Boyd says
Hi! Bill, Judy, Sarah, Kaitlin.
I’m so happy to run into to your site again, because while back I saw your blog and some how I couldn’t remember name of your blog.
Anyway, you guys made my day!!! I love to learn how to cook Chinese food, but not knowing the Chhines ingredients made it difficult.
Now I have your handy glossary, look ~~~out here comes Korean trying to be a want a be Chines chef….Ha~~ha ! Thanks! Nam
Sarah says
Haha you’re so welcome! Keep cooking and let us know in the comments if you ever have a question about a recipe!
Adriana Fantes says
Hi, i am thrilled to find your page. I was born in Borneo, lived in Dutch Guyana, Mexico, the Netherlands, and now the States. where i married an american husband with very american taste. But I find that i am going back to the food i grew up on, but don’t know really how to cook it. Hope you can help me with simple food. hope to hear from you Adriana
Sarah says
Hey Adriana, have you checked out the “Quick and Easy” section of the site? These are all recipes that are very simple and easy to make. :)
AJ says
I just love this! Can’t wait to try my hand at some of these recipes. Have a suggestion on what should be number 1?
Sarah says
Hm…what are you hungry for? Noodles? Dumplings? Something easy? I think the 15-minute lazy noodle recipe is a great way to start, because it’s so simple and flexible. https://thewoksoflife.com/2016/04/15-minute-lazy-noodles/
Francine says
Kept forgetting to do this (excuse: I am an old woman-good excuse for forgetting things): Congratulations winning the Saveur BLOG ’15 awards both from the Editors’ choice AND the readers’ choice for the Best Special Interest Blog! I hope you will win both again this year! How do we get to vote?
Francine
Sarah says
Thank you so much, Francine! Voting opens every year around the same time––I think this year, it’s going to be late summer. We’ll keep you posted, and thank you so much for your support! :)
Sam says
Love your Blog. Great recipes. Thai basil beef is the best, although we have many more to try.
Bill says
Thank you for your kind words, Sam!
Sarah says
Thank you Sam!
Frances Kham says
Just found your blog and I am wished I would have found it sooner. I am looking forward to read all your travel experiencing around the world and can’t wait to try out some of your recipes. Thank you for sharing your recipes and travels with us.
Frances K.
Sarah says
You’re so welcome, Frances! Welcome to the blog!
Ashley says
Thank you so much for sharing your family recipes!!! My husband is from Beijing and I was raised in Utah so this has helped me learn to make meals that he loves!!
Sarah says
Welcome, Ashley!
Ria says
A link for 15 Minute Coconut Curry Noodle Soup is how I came across your website (two hours ago), and I am glad I did. There is so much I can learn from the entire family. I hope to turn my love of Asian cuisine into a love of Asian-style cooking. It’s a good thing the soup only takes 15 minutes because now I am starving :)
Judy says
Welcome to our site, Ria! Just let us know if you have any questions while cooking our dishes. We are here to help! Happy wokking!!!
Shirley says
Hi Bill, Judy, Sarah and Kaitlin!
I’m so happy to find out this site while I was looking for the most authentic chinese recipes my dad used to make and trying to find out how to cook them.
My father is a chinese, born in Canton, China and he passed away last year. He was the one teaching me how to cook chinese meals. My mother is a caucasian canadian.
I’m a deaf person who only speak english and french. I couldn’t learn to speak chinese since I became deaf at the age of 4, which make it hard for me to communicate properly with my current chinese family siblings. That’s a reason why I turned to the internet looking for what I want to know.
This site is truly helping me to keep in touch with my roots. Thank you for sharing everything on this site!
Judy says
Hi Shirley, thank you so much for letting us know that our site is helpful to you. Please let us know if you have any questions while cooking our recipes. Happy wokking and hope to hear more from you!!!
Gina PB says
Hello family :) I grew up in a restaurant family too, born and raised a Jersey girl and I can’t garden either, however now I live in Seattle and I can raise anything evergreen so go figure!
I lovingly did everything from busboy to line cook and kitchen manager eventually across the US & your recipes are the most authentic, easiest to follow and most honest I have ever come across. I ADORE your writings too, you all have a great sense of family and humor.
I refer people to your site constantly and just wanted to thank you for all you have shared. I missed authentic east coast home cooking of my friends who came over from Beijing et all as well as the food of all the cultures I grew up with and you all gave me the most accurate path to recreate and have it anytime I wanted! Looking forward to every word and adventure ♥
Sarah says
Hey Gina! Thank you SO much for taking the time to write this lovely comment. We’re so glad that you’re enjoying the blog, and that it’s helping you recreate some old memories. :)
Alexandra says
Hello! I’m an American woman about to get married (to a man who works in the American foreign service) and move to Chengdu! I would like to try to cook in harmony with the small kitchen, no oven, and largely foreign ingredients over there, so I’ve been looking for not just Chinese cookbooks, but advice on how to cook in a Chinese kitchen with Chinese tools. Your blog seems like a great start! Can you think of any other resources to point me towards?
Thanks so much!
I can’t wait to try some of your recipes!
Judy says
Hi Alexandra, what an exciting journey you and your new husband are about to embark on––so happy for you. As far as cooking is concerned, we can help you along. All you have to do is ask questions in the comments! In the meantime, check out our HOW TO tab. There is so much information there that can be worth your while. Best of luck!!!
Michelle says
“For all you Chinese American generation X’s and Y’s out there who love to eat it, but have no idea how to make it, welcome to the promised land.”
This is me! I knew your website was legit when I found your “steamed pork with salted fish” recipe. I grew up eating that and I love it. When I grew up and learned more about cooking, I couldn’t find authentic Chinese recipes on the internet. Your website goes a long way towards filling that gap! Thank you!
Judy says
Welcome to our blog, Michelle! Happy wokking!
Brian Kelly says
Hello guys,
Excellent Web site! I’ve been cooking Chinese food at home for a long time!
I started out using a cookbook by Peter Wong “the Chinese menu cookbook ”
Which is good introduction to classic Cantonese coooking.
When I came across your website I immediately tried your recipes,especially
The noodle dishes all really great with good explanations! Your suggestions on
Ingredients are invaluable as well as your insights on cooking techniques!
Many thanks for your work here and continued success!
Regards,
Brian
Sarah says
Wow, thank you so much, Brian!
Nandini says
Bill, Judy, Sarah and Kaitlin I swear by your noodle recipes.. What a moth watering blog you guys have. I cannot help but drool at all your photos. Love your blog and look forward to many many more wonderful recipes.
Sarah says
Thanks Nandini!
Colin says
Hello Bill, Judy, Sarah and Kaitlin!
I found your culinary oasis a few days ago whilst looking for some authentic Chinese recipes. WOW!! I am so impressed by the whole site. The recipes look and sound amazing and I absolutely love the way the blog is written;it’s like you are writing for friends and I feel almost as if I know you just from reading your words. Really like the humorous style and the photos too.
I am sure I will be eating at this oasis for a long time to come!!
Thanks very much for this blog and keep up the great work.
Best wishes from London,
Colin.
Sarah says
Thank you SO much for those kind words, Colin! Welcome to the Woks of Life family. :)
Let us know in the comments if you ever have a question about a recipe or just feel like sharing something!
James says
Love the site! I was curious – are you all planning on doing a cookbook? It seems like a natural. I’d buy it!
Sarah says
Hey James, no cookbook officially in the works at the moment, but we’re thinking about it!
sheryl granade says
I love the best ever chocolate cake but would like to know if you can make that recipe for cupcakes and I want to add peanut butter chips
Sarah says
Hi Sheryl, I actually have some experience making this cake into cupcakes, and it doesn’t actually work very well. Because the batter is extremely runny (which leads to a very moist cake when made in two layers), the cake will end up quite sticky and spongey when baked in small cupcake portions, and the chips will sink right to the bottom. BUT––we have made this cake with peanut butter frosting instead of chocolate frosting. Now THAT is highly recommended!
Adam Newman MD says
Wow! I’ve got about 20 tabs open with recipes I’m going to import into MacGourmet so I can have them everywhere that I go. Made Pan-Fried Noodles with Chicken – heavenly memories of dim sum at our favorite place in Tucson, AZ.
VERY eager to try out so many of these recipes – thank you so much for all of it!
Sarah says
You’re welcome Adam!
Winn says
I just came upon your website. I was looking for lotus wrapped sticky rice recipe. Viola it is here! I have “Pinned” so many of your recipes for future meals! Awesome! How about some chicken feet or pig trotters? Chinese ol’ school comfort food for me! Love so many of the Chinese recipes! (and non-Chinese as well)
Judy says
Hi Winn, so glad you found our recipes useful, and we will look into your suggestions. Happy wokking!
Robert Burke says
Hi Guys,
I’ve been going back and forth to China since 1980. I do business there, but mainly I go for the Chinese food with my friends/business associates. i live in Montreal and I stopped eatning at Chinese restaurants here in about 1985. Ecchhhh!
I do the best I can cooking chinese food at home. I’ve been following your blogs since you started and the recipes are SO EASY to follow. Now teaching my son (17) to cook for himself. There is a Chinese saying about being able to cook for oneself. I forget it……….Anyways keep it up.
Judy says
Thank you for your comment, Robert. We are glad to hear from you after following us for about three years. Cheers!
Laura says
Hello! I tried to use your ‘contact’ form but for some reason it does not seem to work for me :(
I love your website. I just wanted to ask permission to rewrite (in my own words, with little tweaks) one of your recipes on my blog. I also would change the ingredients from US measurements to European/UK ones.
Of course I would link back to your website saying where I found the original recipe.
Kindly let me know if this is OK, thanks a lot!
Laura
Sarah says
Hey Laura, as long as the recipe is written in your own words and there’s a link back to the original recipe on our site with credit given to The Woks of Life, feel free to feature the recipe!
Charlotte says
I just found your blog and it is wonderful – such beautiful food photography! I could certainly learn from you for how to take pictures on my own blog (Which sadly the pictures leave a lot to be desired!) I will have to adapt a lot of your recipes (special diet (autoimmune protocol/paleo) – I can’t eat wheat (gluten), grains, soy, other legumes or any nightshades (including tomatoes/chilli peppers etc), but I have found such inspiration at your site. love it!
Sarah says
Thank you so much Charlotte! I feel like i’m constantly learning about photography, and I was definitely in the same boat a couple years ago when we started The Woks of Life. The best thing to do is just to constantly practice! Sounds like your blog is going to help a ton of people! :)
Safina says
I love your blog, as a Taiwanese person growing up in the US, I really had no idea how to translate the name of the dishes to my friends, but your blog has really helped me. I hope in the future, you guys can add more dishes from Taiwan, especially Doufu Hua and Stinky Tofu. Thanks for all your hard work!
Also is there a search bar for your recipes? Maybe I am just blind, but i didn’t see one :(
Judy says
Hi Safina, we do have Lu Rou Fan and Three Cup Chicken to name a couple of Taiwanese favorites. The “search bar” is on the right side bar, near the email notification sign-up. I will definitely work on more Taiwanese dishes. Thank you for your lovely comment.
Marie Yan says
Thank you for such a fantastic website!!! Can you try to provide the recipe for Bake Lobster with cheese that they sometimes serve in the Chinese Restaurant ??/
Sarah says
Hey Marie, we’ll add that to our list of recipes to research!
Madeline says
Once, in a Viet Nam restaurant, I tried a large egg/pancake stuffed with vegetables, almost like an omelet.
Do you know what the name was and how to make it?
Also, I had a glass of something white, with beans that looked like tapioca. Both were delicious.
Love receiving your e-mails.
Madeline
Sarah says
Hey Madeline, I think you’re talking about banh xeo…I actually don’t know how to make it, but it’s been my recipe research list for a while. I’m not entirely sure what the drink you’re describing is, though! Hopefully I’ll unravel the mysteries of banh xeo soon. :)
Mark says
Making Fried Rice.
Many Take-out Restaurants Season the White Rice in the Rice Cooker for Fried Rice. I would like to know what those seasonings are and How much to use. I think they use Soy Sauce and White Pepper plus other seasonings. Hope somebody can answer my Question.
Bill says
Hi Mark, most restaurants use oil, yellow food coloring and some soy sauce. I have a post planned for our version of how to make takeout style fried rice from scratch so stay tuned for the recipe!
Laura says
Hello-
I was reading your article on Chinese rices and flours to settle a debate my mother-in-law and I were having about flour in China. My sister-in-law just moved to Chengdu China and my mother-in-law says you cannot buy bread flour in China. Do you know if this is true?
Bill says
Hi Laura, You can actually buy what is called high protein flour which should be similar (or perhaps the same?) as the high gluten bread flour found in the US. Flour is slightly different in China for sure but the good news for your sister-in-law is that the available flour can definitely be used to make western cakes and breads.
Karina says
I am so happy that you guys share such wonderful recipes. My husband is Chinese and I am Mexican so I have been using your amazing blog to learn to cook for my husband. My husbands mother passed away before she could teach me her recipes so I am very happy to learn from your family. Can you recommend a Chinese cookbook?
Bill says
Hi Karina, Glad you are cooking from our blog! I would like to recommend our cookbook but we haven’t quite gotten there yet. ;-)
Safira says
I’ve just, perhaps a little belatedly, found your blog! The writing and the photographs and instruction are excellent, and have already tried Mongolian Beef and Chonqing chicken, fantastic. I think I was sold though when I realised someone else out there agreed that Singaporeans scratch their heads over Singapore Noodles – it has been a topic of many a discussion and we have no idea what it is though it seems to be found everywhere BUT Singapore.
Bill says
Hi Safira, welcome to our blog and keep on cooking!
Lisa says
Just a super huge THANK YOU to all of you for this blog!! Loving every recipe I have tried and am on a mission to try them all!
Sarah says
You’re so welcome, Lisa!
Billie Souto says
I just Found Your Page. I Love Oriental Food .I’m Trying To Find Chop Suey Recipe. I like It With Rice. Instead Of Fried Noodles.
Judy says
Welcome, Billie! Did you try our chicken chow mein? It’s very similar to chop suey. Happy wokking!
kat ♥ says
Hello there! :)
Just dropping by to say super thank you for everything ♥ i don’t know how else to express my gratitude :)
super loving your site :) i get to cook yummy chinese food for my family especially my dad who loves chinese food :) you guys are the best :)
Cheers! ♥
Judy says
You are so welcome, Kat! Glad we are here to help! A big “HI” from the Woks of Life to your dad.
Heidi says
Hello from the Jersey shore! I found your blog while trying to discover the secrets of the chili oil I burned my lips off with tonight. I’m a writing student and big time foodie trying out blogging.
Can’t wait to try some of your recipes! Your stuff is hilarious and informative. So many food blogs just…aren’t. But yours is just what my bf and I needed so we can make Chinese BBQ ribs, Asian soups and all the other stuff we’ve been dying to learn.
Will be reading more! And cooking!
Judy says
Welcome to our site, Heidi! We are happy that you found us too. We are here to help if you have any questions while cooking (or reading). ^o^
Lbarroga says
Just discovered your blog! I was looking for chicken ginger rice recipes and came across yours. Have made it my resolution to make more Asian food and can’t bookmark your recipes fast enough! Your blogs and instructions appear easy to follow. I’m big into the step by step photos to help guide you. Very helpful. I look forward to making your dishes!!
Judy says
Welcome! Thank you so much for your kind words! Please let us know if you have any questions while cooking.
Carina says
Hi – Love your recipes, really inspiring me to cook more. Was wondering if you had a good recipe for some cold dishes like Aromatic Beef and that cold fish dish which I only know in cantonese as “Fun Yu”. Going to try to make your drunken chicken this weekend.
Sarah says
HI Carina, I’m not sure if this is exactly what you’re thinking of, but yes we do have an aromatic cold braised beef recipe! Here’s the link: https://thewoksoflife.com/2013/08/chinese-braised-beef-shank/. Glad you’re enjoying the blog!
Terry says
wow, you guys make cooking your Chinese receipt (recipes) a breeze, a great, fun blog.
Sarah says
Thank you Terry!
Katie D says
I am incredibly happy to find your blog!! I’m a SAHM and I love to explore new recipes. My family are dubious guinea pigs :-). Your egg drop soup was whipped up for lunch today and much appreciated by my daughters (and myself!). I am looking forward to enjoying more of your recipes and following your blog!
Bill says
Thanks Katie and welcome to our blog!
rich says
Grew up in Sullivan County NY and wonder which restaurant your family owned? One of my fav’s was Kings in Liberty
Bill says
Hi Rich,
Yes, King’s by the junkyard! We did not own any restaurant in Sullivan county but while I was growing up, my father and family friends worked in Singers and when I was old enough to work, I joined my father at the Holiday Inn. They had a continental and Chinese menu. My parents did not get into the restaurant business until we moved to New Jersey.
Rich says
At at Singers and the Holiday Inn. Thanks for all your great recipes and tips!
Judy says
You are very welcome, Rich!
Djams says
Lol, just read the about section on your website and man that was funny!
Really nice and clean blog with a lot of great recipes, need to dig into this! I really like Asian cuisine and looking forward to in the near future visit a country in Asia!
Keep doing your amazing work, Greetings from Sweden!
Judy says
Hi Djams, that’s Sarah’s writing that you just read. I have to say, both Sarah and Kaitlin are good writers. I am so glad that you enjoy our blog, please come and visit us often :-)
Tünde says
Hi! Your blog is amazing! Keep on doing this hard and wonderful work! Thank you for sharing it all with us!
Tünde from Hungary
P.S. I’m going to Shanghai in two weeks. Can’t wait to eat there :-)
Judy says
Hi Tunde, thank you so much for your praise! When visiting Shanghai, remember to go eat at “小杨生煎” (it’s a chain) and order what everyone else orders. Have fun!
Yvonne says
Love your website, how you showcase each dish with step by step photo instructions and interesting intros! Haven’t tried any of the recipes yet but I am very motivated to begin!
Judy says
Hi Yvonne, we have so many yummy recipes, do give them a try. Happy wokking!
Sarah says
Your blog has found that sweet spot between traditional and understandable that I have spent the last five years searching for! (also, English)
I love all things Asian + food but my forays into cooking anything not Thai or Japanese has been stunted by complex traditional recipes or hyper-Americanized one-skillet dinners. Your family has found a way to write recipes that are simple enough for daily use, but traditional enough to make me feel like I’m eating at a multi-generational Dim Sum restaurant. Plus, I am so with your Sarah in not wanting shrimp in every one of my Chinese dishes!
Thank you so much. I have no idea how you’re doing it but seriously, keep it up.
Sarah says
Hey Sarah, that is so awesome to hear! I think that coming from a Chinese American background––cooking traditional dishes while also being really into other food blogs and American recipe sites––has helped us develop that blend of traditional/understandable that you’re talking about! And yes, I’m not shy about my aversion to seafood haha. I really wish I liked it though!! I do enjoy sushi…
Sarah says
I have the exact same weirdness. I love sushi but my seafood intake is limited to eel, scallop, and tuna. Can’t stand anything else XD
Sarah says
I think it probably has to do with the freshness factor––fish doesn’t taste “fishy” when it’s really fresh. I’m a fan of salmon sashimi myself. :)
Erica says
Hi, just ended on your blog and I am still chuckling away. My husband and I fall in the “no point living if not to taste good food” and also the “am not criticising but I would never ….”categories so I know how you feel. Been living in Asia for 6 years now and getting ready to go back to Europe for good this summer and realised with a jolt that my favourite Dim sum place, hawker centre, food court etc will not be at the tip of my fingertips anymore and starting to panic. Since I love to cook but always relied on a wonderful “auntie” to get me a bowl of Asian noodles I am now getting ready to master some of my favourite recipes and I bounced around the web until I fell on this blog, loving it. Keep it up
Sarah says
Haha thank you so much Erica. We hope The Woks of Life can help make that transition back to Europe a little easier. I know I still miss the food in Beijing!
Jess says
I stumbled upon your blog, and I love it!! Being 2nd generation and having lived in China for a while, I know how to appreciate great Chinese food. But when my friends ask me to make them a traditional meal, I look like a deer in the headlights and start backing away slowly. Your recipes are easy to follow and so delicious. THANK YOU SO MUCH!!!
Sarah says
You’re welcome, Jess! :)
Sean says
Hi
I was just searching Chili oil because I have three big birds eye plants that are producing way too much fruit for me to eat at the moment, I’m in Australia so it is mid-summer now for produce. I saw your site, looked at your Chili oil recipe, I’ll have to dry my chili’s first, and have just spent the last hour poking around without even realising. I love to cook, and often cook Chinese, and I love your site.
Thanks
Judy says
Thank you so much, Sean! Now that you’ve found us, please come back and visit us often \^o^/
Amanda says
I recently found you guys through a google search for “clay pot recipes” and boy, am I so glad I found you!!! ^_^ I have already bookmarked enough recipes for the next month, and am ridiculously excited about working my way through all of them! :D Thanks for such a great site, and please keep sharing!! XO
Sarah says
We’re so glad you found us as well Amanda! Thank you for your kind words of encouragement. :)
Annalisa says
I have just discovered your blog and am in love! I love asian food and never knew a lot of the reciped could be achieved so easily (meaning it’s not IMPOSSIBLE)! Thank yout all for being awesome cooks and teachers! I can’t wait to make every thing I’ve read so far! Starting with wonton soup my child hood absolute favorite!!!
Bill says
Hi Annalisa, Thanks for your kind comments and happy cooking!
okiegirl says
I also comment regularly on another website. It isn’t food related, but there are a regular group of foodies there from all over the country (and a few internationals). We fairly often get off-topic and comment about cooking, recipes, etc. I love your recipes and the way your site is organized so much that I’ve linked to it several times. Thought you should know that at least three people on that site recently tried your Chicken Adobo (and all loved it!) — from Baltimore, Michigan, and Connecticut. At least one has also made several other recipes from your site and raved about them. You’re a hit!!! You never know where you might spread to from okieland!
Sarah says
hahaha that’s so awesome! Thank you so much for being a Woks of Life ambassador. :)
Which site is it that you’re talking about? I’m curious!
okiegirl says
It’s a political opinion blog on Washington Post. (If your blog measures sources of hits, you should see it.) No telling how many commenters and/or lurkers might have checked the blog or even made one or more of the recipes without mentioning it.
Correction: In my comment above, Michigan should be Minnesota.
Colin says
Like Mike B., I’ve been pouring over your recipes and I can tell they look well constructed and can’t wait to start trying them out. Thanks for sharing your families recipes.
Sarah says
you’re welcome Colin! Happy cooking!
Mike B says
After looking through these pages for an hour, I have come to the conclusion I am in love!! This is exactly what I was looking for when I found it. Thank you so much for taking the time to share this with the rest of us. I can’t wait to try the first recipe!
Bill says
Thanks Mike and happy wokking!
Sarah says
Thank you Mike!!! Let us know if you have any questions about the recipes when you start cooking!
Suzanne says
Hi, Family blogging for such a great purpose! I love your site and the connection you are keeping and sharing with the world. I am looking for non-gluten spring roll wraps and other noodle or dumpling doughs. I am not feeling very hopeful or optimistic based on what I have found in the markets, but I am wondering if you have experimented with any gluten free substitutes either purchased or homemade? Thank you!
Sarah says
Hi Suzanne, you can certainly make gluten free spring rolls with vietnamese rice paper wrappers (they’re usually not fried, but I have heard from Vietnamese friends that they can be fried if you like!). We also just published a recipe for gluten-free homemade rice noodles here: https://thewoksoflife.com/2016/01/homemade-rice-noodles/. You can also buy rice noodles from any Asian grocery store. Hope that helps!
Janice Lindegard says
I’m so glad I found you! My daughter was adopted from Guangdong at 13 months. I am a pretty dang good cook when it comes to Southern, Mexican and French cuisines; she and I made a huge batch of macarons that had feet! But, she loves Chinese food–especially Cantonese. While we live near Chicago, Chinatown is still a hike. And, even though there is a high concentration of Chinese and other Asians in our community, the “best” Chinese restaurant close by is Szechuan. First in our explorations of my daughter’s heritage cuisine are your Won Ton soups. I can’t wait to get started! (Haven’t checked yet…do you have a chicken soong?)
Judy says
Hi Janice, we are so happy that you found us, too! We have so many Cantonese recipes that will keep you busy for a long while. Happy Wokking!!! Regarding chicken soong, the dish we have is made with ground turkey Asian Turkey Lettuce Cups, one of our earlier recipes. Hope you like it!
Mo-Kit says
I just stumbled upon this site due to your simple yet lovely pork and cabbage recipe. This is a wonderful resource for recipes and I love the banter between family members. I’m from a large Cantonese family, but some of the members don’t cook and rather critique which is not as much fun. My mother doesn’t cook as much anymore so I’m longing for certain Cantonese dishes I grew up on. How I wish I had this cooking playground with my family, especially my siblings. I love to cook and bake, especially sourdough breads. Thank you!
Judy says
Hi Mo-Kit, thank you for your lovely comment. Hope you will find like-minded people to share your culinary passion.
Heidi Horan says
I found your site/blog when I Googled necessary supplies for Chinese cooking. It far outshines anyone else’s list, plus the pics make it easier. I live in the Dallas/Ft.Worth area and have a good Korean market and a couple of good Asian (encompassing many different cooking styles), so tomorrow I go on the hunt with my illustrated list in hand. I am also a flight attendant who flies Beijing, Shanghai, Hong Kong and Incheon. There are only two things I don’t like, liver and spam. I am pretty much willing to try anything and view it all as an adventure…squid on a stick in Seoul, chicken feet in Hong Kong, lots of other good stuff. I pass by the live scorpions and sea horses, the sea horses because of a book I had when I was 5 called, Sally Seahorse. They’re all Sally to me now. The scorpions because, well, ick… Since I have an electric glass cooktop that just doesn’t get to temperature with my wok, plus I don’t have a decent hood, I have found an outdoor propane wok, for sharpening my skills this summer. It’s an adventure and so glad that I found you. Also, if you might think about it at some point, share some good places to eat in Beijing. I have eaten some incredible fare at hole-in-the-wall mom-and-pop places, and always looking for more. This is going to be a kick!
Judy says
Hi Heidi, welcome to our site. Hope you enjoy cooking up some of our recipes. I do want to share a couple of our favorite foods in Beijing:
– 九十九顶毡房, where you can enjoy a whole (or half, or quarter) roast lamb inside your own Mongolian yurt. Make sure to try their fresh-made yogurt. The food is wonderful and what a fabulous dining experience. Bring a lot of friends… each yurt can fit a party of 10 – 12 people.
– 火烧, biscuit/pancake (not sure how to describe it). Every local has their own favorite 火烧 shack. Ask around and you will find one easy enough. This is the only food that my parents would request that I bring back to the US (at least 2 dozen) when visiting.
– Roast chestnuts, they are in “season” right now…go and get yourself a small bag and eat them while they are still hot.
Anna Yang says
Hello! I’m one of those chinese americans that love to eat but have no idea on how to cook it (let alone touch anything live)! hehehehe! Just found your website recently cuz I was trying to cook some lobsters for New Years and OMG so delicious! I cooked the Ginger Scallion Lobster recipe… wow! Who knew that I can make something so delicous, huh?? I’m gonna surprise my mom next time I see her and she’s gonna think she’s in Heaven… hahah! (all those painful lessons on how to cook did not go waste after all!) Thank you!
Sarah says
Thanks Anna! So glad you enjoyed the recipe––that’s an adventurous one, even for me! (I still haven’t cooked lobster myself…)
Bill says
Hi Anna, just keep on cooking and your mother will love it!
Nadja says
Love, love, love your blog. I stumbled across it a couple of days ago trying to find Chinese desserts because our family is doing a Chinese themed New Year’s Eve dinner. Instead of just finding dessert recipes, I have discovered a gold mine of beautiful recipes that I still have yet to try recreating, but will try in the near future. Our family has our own version of shumai, but I will be sure to try your recipe.
Once again, love your blog and can’t wait for more recipes, and stories in the future.
Sarah says
Thank you so much for your kind comments Nadja! We hope to see you in the comments section more as you explore the site!
Susan B says
Aha! I didn’t think you had stopped posting, but there’ve been no new posts in my newsreader since before Thanksgiving. Please restore your RSS feed–you have quickly become indispensable and my new wok is getting lonely!
Sarah says
Hey Susan, yes, something’s been up with our RSS feed lately! We’ll try to figure out the issue. in the meantime, though, feel free to sign up for email updates!
Susan Scott says
Please sign me up for your fabulous blog!
Sarah says
Hey Susan, you’re on our mailing list! Thank you so much!
Laura says
Yay! Just discovered you guys today because I went to a dim sum restaurant for brunch with friends in the DC area (China Garden in Arlington, FYI) and my mouth met the delectable coconut buns! OMG NOM NOM NOM. I wanted to see if I could make them and lo and behold, my eyes met the family blog.
I can’t promise I’ll actually make them, but at least I know where to go to get a fantastic recipe. Baking from scratch is a LITTLE intimidating. You know, yeast and stuff.
Smooches and che che (?),
Laura
Sarah says
Hahaha that’s awesome Laura! Thanks for sharing. I have confidence in your nascent baking skills. You can do it!
okiegirl says
Blessings to your entire family for this blog! I can’t even remember how I found it, but it’s a godsend. I’m not a trained chef but a longtime foodie/cook, have spent many years on the lookout for authentic ethnic recipes. Asian food has long been one of my favorites. Your easy to follow recipes, common sense ideas and substitutions, not to mention the glossary of ingredients (the best!!!) . . . I could go on and on and on. I’m a huge fan and wish you the very best with this work in the future.
Over the short time I’ve been lurking here I’ve probably read every single recipe and tried many of them, all to my delight, and it has become a site I check daily for new posts. All of which is augmented by the insights into your family, so much that I feel like you’re distant friends.
Thank you!
Judy says
Thank you so much for the lovely comment. Please sign up for our new post email notifications in the sidebar. But feel free to lurk all you want! ^o^
Jenny says
Hi!
I am a baker, and a lover of Italian cuisine. I am also an American born Chinese, so for the longest time, my dad has been nagging me about cooking dinner in addition to dessert, and also to “focus my energy on Chinese food” haha xD I’m so glad I found this site. The recipes are easy to follow and they taste absolutely amazing. I have the 蚂蚁上树 recipe down by heart, and I will never go to another one. Thank you guys so much you’re so awesome <3
Judy says
Hehheheheeeee… Thank you so much for your high praise, Jenny! Your dad must be so happy when you put the Ants Climbing a Tree in front of him.
Jingjing says
Found your website while looking for do sum recipes in English. As a Gen X Chinese living in Canada and almost no Chinese reading skills your website is a god send! Thank you for allowing me to make my favourite dishes!!!
Judy says
You are very welcome, JingJing! Happy Wokking!
André Vlugt says
Hello,
thank you for the great and very well explained recipes!
I want to make for Christmas the Chines bbq pork buns, but fill the buns with your Chinese braised oxtails.
Do you think this is a good idea?
Judy says
Hi Andre, I think it’s doable! Once the oxtails are braised, de-bone the oxtails and set aside. Then follow the bbq pork bun filling recipe by using oxtail meat instead of the bbq pork. I would reduce the dark soy sauce and light soy sauce, because braised oxtails are very dark and salty enough. Also, remember to use low-sodium or no-sodium chicken stock to avoid the filling from becoming too salty.
Joe says
You guys are awesome – thanks for sharing. After 2+ years living in China I returned home and began experiencing withdrawal from lack of authentic Chinese dishes. Been attempting to recreate some of my favorites with decidedly mixed results but your recipes and instructions all look so good, I’m hoping that will soon change for the better. Can’t wait to take a crack at the Ma La Xiang Guo.
Sarah says
Thanks for your comment Joe! We’re so glad the recipes are helpful!
Joy says
I love your blog! Thank you sharing your delicious recipes. I grew up in an Asian home where recipes were just ‘known’ and never documented. Having to make dishes by memory alone is just not the same of having a compendium of noms. I will be busy bookmarking every other recipe here :)
Sarah says
Thank you Joy!
Weiwei says
This blog saved my poor culinarily-weak life. Your recipes are super easy to follow and learn, and I made your milk bread recipe today at literally 2am in the morning. Totally worth it! (side note. i used just plain all-purpose flour instead of cake+bread flour and it was still GLORIOUS)
Bill says
Hi WeiWei,
So glad to hear you are cooking and doing well! I suggest you look at our Chinese Ingredients glossary to read more about different ingredients we use!
Yumi says
You’re my favorite cooking website, surpassing Deb Perlman’s Smitten Kitchen and Cook’s Illustrated. I’m kitchen-challenged with cookbooks collecting dust on the shelves. My Chinese-American husband is glad I’ve switched from the daily Mediterranean fare to your dishes. Keep the beef/flank steak and chicken breast recipes coming. Next trying the bitter melon dish. The soy-butter spaghetti and both cucumber salads were tasty. Now if you can only tell me where I can find a website just like yours for authentic Japanese dishes like Mom used to make.
Sarah says
Thanks Yumi! So glad you’re enjoying the recipes. Have you checked out justonecookbook.com?
Betty says
I am so EXCITED and HAPPY to find your site for some awesome recipes. My family LOVES Asian Food. My 18-year-old daughter would eat Asian every day if she could. I am going to have her help me make some of your dishes. She will be leaving for college next summer and can eat Asian every day if she chooses and
also WOW her friends with her ability (with all your help) to make great Asian Food. THANKS SO MUCH!
Sarah says
You’re welcome Betty! That’s awesome!
Si says
You guys looking into putting your great recepies in a book?
Love your site.
Sarah says
We’re thinking about it!
Nancy says
Finally! A website that has some of the most beloved dishes from my childhood with the added bonus Of fantastic anecdotes of its history and beautiful pictures. I regret never sitting my mom down to capture some of her recipes but yours really nails it.
Keep up the great wok?
Nancy
Judy says
Thank you very much, Nancy, for your lovely comment. Happy cooking!
DebzL says
Hello! Found your website when googling for cha siu pork to use up some pork spareribs thawing. Oh.My.Word. What a great website! I may even make up the Asian Seared Pork Chops to cook up tonight while the Cha Siu is marinating. And the Dim Sum recipes – my husband is going to love it when I try making lo mai kai (lotus leaf sticky rice & chicken) and the soup dumplings. So many other dishes that I can make for him too – Scallion Beef, Mongolian Beef, Broccoli & Beef (only way he’ll eat broccoli LOL!), Poached Chicken, Cha Siu, oh and Hong Kong style Egg Custards. Yes, I’m excited!
We like to go out for dim sum locally, but it’s a once-a-year anniversary treat. We love Chinese takeout, but I’d like to try cooking Chinese more often at home. Been using sauce & seasoning packets, but if I can get the flavors from scratch, that’s a big plus. So finding your website is a HUGE step towards getting things right the first time.
Thank you for taking the time/effort to developing and archiving your family recipes.
DebzL
Judy says
You are so welcome, Debzl! Happy Wokking! Come visit us often!
Lorelle says
Hiya – haven’t read through all the readers messages so sorry if I’m doubling up. Are you using US tablespoons? I’m in Australia and a tablespoon here is double the US one. Can you let me know as I want to make your Hong Kong Egg Tarts and you say the water quantity is crucial (my word).
Cheers
Lorelle
Sarah says
Yes! We are using US tablespoons, which is equal to 3 US teaspoons.
WendyLL says
I love your blog. There are so many traditional Cantonese recipes I grew up with and want to learn how to cook now that I’m an adult. However, there isn’t anyone around to teach me any more. The recipes on your blog has been the most representative of the foods and flavors I remember. Thank you for putting it all together here. And the photography and writing are wonderful!
Best regards,
Wendy
Sarah says
Aw, thank you so much Wendy!
Bill says
Thanks Wendy, Now get into your kitchen and cook! :)
Kaitlin says
Love the blog! I found it on Instagram, and have been in love since! It reminds me of my grandparents who cooked these recipes, and never taught any of the grandchildren their recipes! I have been able to recreate some of their recipes through this blog, and it has brought back some wonderful memories of my childhood.
Thank you for that!
P.S. love the spelling of your name Kaitlin :)
Sarah says
You’re welcome Kaitlin! So glad you’re enjoying the blog. :)
Bob Conrod says
Hi there, As I just said a few moments ago through your ‘contact us’ page I LOVE YOUR BLOG!
As a American Expat who’s been married to a Chinese since 1996 and living and working full time in China since ’98 and loving it who is also an avid cook I will be a regular reader for sure!
Also, while your collection of recipes contains many of my favorites (I’ve just sent you a request for a few others) I’m also an avid traveler having visited about 65 different places here in China over the years and have come to love may dishes from the far flung corners so you may get an occasional odd request for a dish I can’t remember the name of, sorry ;-)
Keep up the good wok!
BeijingBob
Sarah says
Thanks Bob!!
Moe says
This is beautiful and heartwarming! Sometimes I wish there was even just one other person in my family who didn’t at least mind cooking (we won’t go to “like” just yet) but I am the sole person with fascination with cooking and pastry adventures. Heh. It’s so nice to see blogs like yours, great job you all are doing :)
Bill says
Thanks Moe and keep on cooking because it is contagious around others in a good way!
Jessica says
I found this blog about a month ago and I was instantly obsessesed. I’m in that same boat where I moved out away from my parents and I suddenly realized I don’t know how to make any of the Chinese food I grew up with. I’ve been searching around the web for a good blog/website I could depend on and I’m so glad I found The Woks Of Life! Thanks so much much to all of you for keeping this blog up, don’t ever stop! :)
Judy says
Hi Jessica, we are thrilled that you’ve found us too. Hope you will start cooking and start to enjoy the foods from your childhood. ^o^
Raul says
The holy grail has been found! Im so excited to start whipping up some of these recipes in my own kitchen. Along with my staggering mother who will probably try to intervene for fun.
Thanks a lot guys!
Sarah says
Awesome, Raul!
Yen says
I’m such a huge fan of your site. I visit your site almost daily for regular recipes (gai see chow mien, mei cai kou rou , chicken mushroom clay pot) and to try out new recipes. There are many Chinese food recipe sites out there but I find that yours taste most like my childhood (tomato beef stirfry).
Thanks so much for sharing your great family and travel stories. Please keep up the great work!!
Sarah says
Thank you Yen! We will!
nadine says
Your blog makes me smile :) WIDELY! I did a little variation on your red cooked pork and it was a huge success. I must say that whenever I am homesick for Kuala Lumpur and some good Chinese cooking, I just trawl through your blog. I’m not Malaysian but I’ve lived there thrice. Also Southern Africa, India, the UK and now the Middle East and yes I love good food and good writing. Both which are here in abundance so a huge thank you from Dubai this Thursday morning!!
Kaitlin says
Hi Nadine! Wow you’ve been around! Seriously awesome. Thank you so much for your awesome comment. They keep us going :)
Julie says
Love your blog of stories, recipes and pictures! As a child of restaurant owners as well, I am really interested Bill’s experience in the family business and how that shaped his culinary journey. I am always interested in the way that the restaurant life helped shape the children who grew up in them. I can tell there is a serious food passion here!
Kaitlin says
Hi Julie! Definitely a serious family of food lovers here. My dad has plenty of gems throughout his posts of tales from his restaurant days! Thanks for your lovely comment :)
Maureen Nagy says
I just found this website and Thank you SO much!! I just finished my four month study abroad in Shanghai and I have been craving the food ever since! I am extremely excited to try these out! Especially the xiaolongbao and steamed pork buns :)
Thanks so much guys!
p.s one of my favorite vegetable dishes was suanlabaicai (算辣白菜）and was wondering if you had any recipes for that?
Judy says
Hi Maureen, welcome to our site, hope you will try out some of your favorite foods soon. As for 酸辣白菜, it’s a great dish, we will definitely add it to our to-do-list. Don’t forget to sign on for our email notification of new posts! Hope to see your comments often here! :-)
Ulf says
Hello!
I just stumbled upon your website today when I did a web-search for ho fun noodles and found Bill’s recepie from 2014. We had actually had that just two nights ago, but that time cooked by professionals at Royal China Baker Street (http://rcguk.co.uk/rcbs.html, where you have to go if you visit London, especially for their Dim Sum). However I got such a craving for it again that I searched for recepies and found yours – it was delicious and very easy to follow! Many thanks, will definitely try to make more of your food in the future.
Best regards
Ulf
Sarah says
Thanks for the tip, Ulf!
hans says
Just came across your blog and absolutely love it. Within 10 minutes already found a bunch of inspirations for futur posts on my blog. Good stuff :-)
Cheers !
Sarah says
Thanks Hans! Glad we could be of help.
Judy says
I stumbled here after looking up steamed chicken because I had hoi nam gai fan in Sydney and really enjoyed it. Went home and told my mom and she was like they have that here too – to which I was like…and why have you never taken me to eat it ever?
Then one click lead to xiaolongbao and now I’ve sent this great blog to 3 coworkers.
My mom’s way of cooking is also by feel so I’m hoping this site helps me cook Chinese dishes until I know enough to cook by feeling, too. Or just not burn the kitchen down…
Judy says
Welcome Judy, so glad to have you joining us, please come and visit us often! Please try our hoi nam gai fan: .
Doris Lee says
I just discovered your site looking for a good broccoli and beef recipe. Your site was mentioned in Nagi’s website (which I also just stumbled on) so I followed it.
I was immediately drawn to your recipes after reading the reasons why you started this site. I am an American-born Chinese from San Francisco, foodie, and someone who also thinks about the next meal before finishing the one I am on. Cooking is a passion and hobby of mine and your website is exactly what I was looking for!
I miss all of the wonderful dishes my Mom use to prepare without measuring anything so I am looking forward to trying all of ones I am seeing here (with measurements).
Now being married to a Greek who loves Chinese food, it’s great to be find recipes I will be able to prepare from days gone by, as well as dishes from our favorite restaurants.
Thank you immensely for putting your time and effort into this site and I look foward to trying your recipes and reading your anecdotal stories!
Bill says
Thanks Doris, Would love to hear your comments and experience on the recipes you try!
Tina McFall says
I found this site today and have been literally reading every recipe and it all looks so great I can’t wait to start making some of these recipes….
Thank you for such a great web page!
Sarah says
You’re so welcome, Tina! Let us know if you ever have a question about a recipe!
Susan Butterfield says
Where have you guys been all my life?!? I’m so glad I found your site! Your instructions and pictures makes cooking look so easy and delicious. Thanks for sharing your love of cooking and traveling.
Bill says
Welcome Susan! We may not be so great at marketing and spreading the word of our site but we love cooking and sharing great recipes so be sure to tell your friends about us!
Sarah says
Thank you so much Susan! We hope to see you in and around the comments on the site. Let us know if you ever have a question about a recipe!
Marie says
Found your site after reading about it on yahoo – love it! I love to cook and am always trying to copy/make my own recipes after trying them in restaurants or improving on a cookbook recipe (love to do it my own way – hardly ever follow a recipe to the letter….. Anyway, after looking through your site I will be trying these this week, can’t wait to get started! (These I will follow as they look great!) The stories and your descriptions, and photos regarding the ingredients and cooking process are a great help.
Bill says
Thanks Marie! Let us know which ones you try in the comments or if share a pic on instagram or facebook :)
Robin says
What a wonderful site! My husband had the luck to work in China for two years, and now he still visits several times a year… He fell in love with the people, the history and the FOOD! Since his first visit, I’ve wanted to make some real Chinese dishes at home but I’ve been intimidated by ingredients or cooking methods I’m not familiar with … your site with all the photos and clear descriptions has given me the confidence to try some recipes… Now I just have to search your recipes for those potatoes he loves….. Thank you so much!
Bill says
Your’re very welcome Robin. Tell us about your results – I’m sure they will be great!
Judy says
Hi Robin, hopefully this is what you are looking for:
Kai Y. says
Bill,
What a surprise when I saw your picture on the Yahoo article yesterday. I thoroughly enjoy your website. I will certainly try some of your recipes. Thank you and your beautiful family for sharing.
Bill says
Hi Kai, Glad to see you on our family blog! We have to catch up some time in JC!
Lorelei says
Hey, just saw your blog featured on Yahoo. I discovered your blog some time ago from Tasty Kitchen and have been addicted since. Like many ABCs our there, our parents didn’t have a whole lot of patience teaching us and their idea of telling us how to cook something is to just a put a little of this and a little of that into a dish. When you ask how much, they respond by saying something to the effect of “the right amount.” Vague. Apparently there is even a chinese term for that…no wonder it is such a common complaint of children trying to cook the dishes from their childhood.
Anyway, congrats on your success and thanks so much for all your work. Keep it up…we’ll be out here waiting for more recipes!
Bill says
Hi Lorelei,
Thanks for sharing your story! We mostly cooked by feel before Sarah started the blog and would probably be the same as your parents if it weren’t for this blog keeping us disciplined in recording recipes. Stay with us and recipes will follow ;-)
Julie C. says
Your blog is addictive! I stumbled on it at Yahoo this morning, which I read for news and entertainment everyday. Thank you SO MUCH for taking the time and effort to do this! I came to the US (from Malaysia) to go to college in 1980 in rural Georgia which had one American Chinese restaurant serving dishes that I did not recognize.
My mother was a fabulous gourmet cook who could replicate any restaurant dish she tasted and we were spoiled rotten growing up eating her dishes. Unfortunately, she did not have the patience to allow us in the kitchen to learn how to cook them. After college, I was eager to learn to cook the dishes from my childhood, but Mom did not use recipes and mainly “eyeballed” quantities which made things difficult for me. However, this has not deterred my attempts at cooking Chinese and other Asian cuisine. Unfortunately, Mom passed away more than 10 years ago and I will never be able to ask her how to fix anything again. Sarah and Kaitlin, you are so lucky to have your parents share their skills with you!
I also want to comment on your amazing writing skills….it is sad to see how many Americans have such poor grammar and writing skills. I am shocked that some of us whose mother tongue/first language is not English have a much better command of the language! Keep it up, guys!!!
Kaitlin says
Hi Julie, so happy that we can help you rediscover some old favorites! Our family always survived using the “eyeball” method, but it definitely was difficult for Sarah and I to recreate the dishes, as you mentioned. We love comments like yours because this is exactly why we started the blog! Hope to see you around the blog in the future ^_^
Judy D. says
Came across your story on Yahoo Food. I’m originally a New Yorker and we had lots of Chinese and Korean restaurants. I now live in California, but in a very rural area, so restaurants are limited…no matter from what ethnic group.
I purchased a wok not too long ago, but have only used it to fry tortillas for tacos. Shame on me. :-) I’m looking forward to trying out some of your family’s recipes.
Thank you for sharing your story (and recipes),
Judy D.
Kaitlin says
Hi Judy, being in restaurant Siberia is one of the worst things! Glad we could help! And yes, definitely must put your wok to work :) Thanks for commenting!
HT says
Where have you been? Thanks to YAHOO! for highlighting your blog! I have been looking for authentic Chinese recipes that are not written in Chinese. Being a child of immigrant parents, I have always wanted to make Chinese food — food I grew up with — for my very Americanized children. So they too can experience the joy of eating. I can’t wait to try your recipes.
Have you tried to replicate the “orange” sauce that is served on Baked Pork Chop Spaghetti in HK-style cafes?
Kaitlin says
So glad you discovered us! My mom’s the secret–she’s a handy bridge between us and all those authentic Chinese recipes written in Chinese!
We’re not familiar with Baked Pork Chop Spaghetti, but we’ll look into it!
Joe Buck says
Bill and Family!
Joe Buck calling, yes that Buck from Liberty. So excited to discover your blog and the story of it’s creation! I enjoy cooking and Chinese food has been a frontier I’ve wanted to experience from my own kitchen and hands. Thank you for making it accessible and now when I prepare a dish I will consider it as a touch of home from your roots to mine.
Warm regards,
Joe
Bill says
Hi Joe, What a pleasant surprise to hear from you! Your comment definitely triggered questions about you from my girls and the Liberty stories followed. They always enjoyed a “sandlot” story from Liberty! Welcome to our “home” and let us know how your first dish turns out!
JonD says
Wow, love your site. Just an overly Caucasian male from Montana that enjoys great authentic food! Did you pork fried rice tonight and it was incredible, nice work…. Thanks.
Kaitlin says
Thanks so much, Jon!
Sarah says
Thanks Jon! I’ve always wanted to go to Montana. I’m kind of over the whole Jersey thing. -___-
L says
Hi, I just found this blog and I absolutely love it!! I was born in North America but my parents are from China. My mom makes the best food and now that I live away from home, I find myself craving Chinese food all the time but often times am at a loss for how to make it, and make it well like my mom. This blog is so lovely and entertaining and has all the recipes that I want! Keep up the great work.
Kaitlin says
Thanks for your lovely comment, L! Wanting to make all those traditional Chinese dishes far from home is exactly why we started this blog. Hope to see you around in the comments! :)
Marie says
Hi all,
Just discovered your site and thinks it’s absolutely fantastic! My mother’s originally from Pekin (Beijing) and my father from Singapore and I’m a CBC (Canadian-born Chinese) here in Montreal, Canada and also loooove cooking comfort food from my youth. If ever you’d like a homemade wah teep or Chinese hot sauce recipe, lemme know and I’d be happy to share :)
Keep up the great work. Cheers!
Marie
Judy says
Thank you so much, Marie! Welcome to our site! Hope to see you and your comments often. ^o^
Rae says
Found your website while looking for a recipe for Cheung Fun. My partner and I are hopelessly addicted to that dim sum staple, but with a little one on the way it’s not so easy to run out every Sunday for dim sum anymore so I decided to try and take on the task of making it myself!
Boy is this blog a gold mine for yummy meals, what started as a hunt for one recipe has turn into a bookmark tab FULL of future meals! My mother, who first go into exploring Asian cooking via watching K-Dramas, and I are planning to big family meal but are having the hardest time picking which recipes to make. There are just too many we want to try and it’s starting to look like it will be a week long affair!
I always look forward to your email recipes and the stories that come with them.
Thank you so much and keep up the amazing work!
Judy says
Hi Rae, high praise!!! We also look forward to comments like yours. Thank you so much!
Lorea says
Can’t believe I never found this website. You guys are just amazing, y’all should have your own cooking show. I went through every recipe yesterday reading, such great insights and tips. Been cooking for over 15 years (pastry chef and hobby) and could never quite master Chinese cuisine until I found you. Thank you so much for the great information and such a nice introduction into your lives. I just love how y’all respond to everyone, makes me feel very welcome to your blog. Keep up the great work!!!
Bill says
Hi Lorea, a big welcome to our site and thank you for your kind words. You have a lot to catch up on…happy wokking! ^o^
Patti T. says
I am beyond glad I found your web site. Am trying the Beef Lo Mein recipe tonight. You guys rock!
Bill says
Welcome and thanks Patti!
Xinyi Zhu says
You guys are so charming! The detailed step by step recipes with images makes it less intimidating for a newbie cook like me. :) In fact I’m going to try our your “Shumai” recipe tomorrow! (I wonder if i can omit the ginger altogether…would that change the overall taste?)
And if you wouldn’t mind me asking, was this website designed from a template or scratch?
Kaitlin says
Hi Xinyi, thank you! For the shumai recipe, omitting the ginger is fine, but we highly recommend keeping it in–maybe reducing the amount to make the flavor less prominent. But it’s definitely not a deal-breaker, so you can make adjustments!
The website was designed from a template with some modifications :)
Katrin says
Hello all! What a great site! I am currently sitting in Kunming and was looking for recipes for some of the amazing food we have been eating during our time here. I can’t wait to get back to my kitchen and try as many recipes as possible – although a few are simple enough to try here in our rental kitchen! We can’t thank you enough!
Bill says
Thanks Katrin! Have a nice bowl of “mi xian” for us! I really like the rice noodles and the way you eat it with a raw egg cooked in the hot soup at the table!
Katrin says
Will do! We’ve had several bowls of Guo Qiao Mi Xian since arriving – enough that I think I could even order it on my own now ;-) The food here is amazing! And thanks to your site, I will be able to make some of these treats in my own kitchen. This week I will be trying the Ants Climbing a Tree – we have enough pots for that and we bought the ingredients yesterday. Thanks again!
Fay says
OK, I have been looking for someone who actually know how to make any of the Chinese foods that I love. I tried that lo mein recipe tonight and let me just tell you, I’m never eating it at a restaurant again! I cooked it better by following your recipe and using the ingredients at hand. I noticed your dish didn’t include onions but I love onions and so I added a smidgen and it was so delicious. In the next coming months, I will be trying every recipe on this board. Thank you for sharing and I did have a happy wokking!!! :)
Judy says
Hi Fay, how great is that!!! You are in for a treat. Let us know how it goes and if you have any questions. Hope to hear from you as you cook through the recipes. ^0^
Roy says
This is a fantastic site and an excellent resource of culinary goodness!!!
I made the beef ho fun last weekend which was excellent!!! No way it would’ve turned out so good if I experimented on my own.
As a British born Chinese with HK heritage, but living in Thailand now, it’s great to be find recipes my parents used to prepare and also dishes from our favourite restaurants.
My parents used to cook a lot based on instinct instead of using precise measurements so it was never easy to learn from them, but the instructions and methodology in your instructions and very clear to follow.
I look foward to seeing more recipes and thank you for putting the efforts into this site.
Judy says
Hi Roy, thank you for your lovely comment. You are part of one our target audiences–ABCs like Sarah and Kaitlin. One of the goals Bill and I had was to document all these authentic Chinese dishes in English, for all Chinese people born overseas to cook, enjoy and most importantly, to pass down to their kids and grandkids.
Stephanie says
So glad to have stumbled onto your blog while looking for “claypot rice.” Like your family, mine is much the same. Dad from the US and my Mom came from China to study in the US. My siblings and I grew up with generations of traditional Chinese foods while being very much immersed into other cultures and foods. And like you all, we all live everywhere but the complexity comes with having partners who are not well-aquainted with our food culture (sister in law is Swedish, my hubby is Dutch, other brother has a Malay wife, and younger sister is still in college) and trying to teach them, while trying to make sure we still keep our traditions. So thank you for sharing your blog. And please keep the recipes coming. It is a great way for my hubby to try and learn how to cook Chinese, as well as my other siblings.
Kaitlin says
Hi Stephanie!
Wow sounds like your family is a force to be reckoned with! Glad that you all can benefit from some of our recipes here though. Good luck with the recipes and don’t hesitate to comment with any questions or concerns as you’r wokking along! :)
Stephanie says
Omg! Your site is amazing!! Great recipes, how to’s and humour!! Thank you!!
Judy says
Thank you SO much, Stephanie.
Susan Way says
What a splendid idea! Great recipes too! Bookmarked. I look forward to more of your posts! Outstanding!
Judy says
Thank you so much, Susan.
Judith says
Well, I think I already love you all. Kaitlin, we’ll have to compare K-music libraries! I’ve gone from K-pop to K-indies, mostly. And if you ever want a good kimchi recipe, I’ve got that.
I’m looking forward to exploring a new cuisine with you all!
Kaitlin says
Hi Judith! Wish I had seen your comment sooner! Sarah and I were on a European odyssey and are catching up to our comments just now. I feel like the transition from K-pop to K-indies is a rite of passage that all K-pop fans must go through lol. I still stick to the classic core though–mostly Big Bang, Epik High, and the occasional guilty SNSD track hahah! As for K-indies, Clazzi, Nell, Mate, and 10cm are my jammm of choice. Though I am making a pretty concerted effort to reconnect with the American music scene.
And I would LOVE your kimchi recipe–it’s so hard to narrow down. I tend to think that Maangchi’s looks pretty good, but I get freaked that I’ll mess it up and it will just result in one big shameful trip to H mart hahah!
Glad you stopped by and commented :) See you around!
Candice says
My husband and I are NYC/Hawaii expats living in Shanghai and stumbled upon your blog while researching Xi’an for my parents visit to China. I had to sign up for email updates to learn, chuckle and get inspired from your family adventures in traveling, eating and cooking! Thanks for sharing!
Judy says
Thank you, Candice, I’m jealous…I so want to live in Shanghai for awhile.
Anna says
Love your story and your site! You’re my food bible!!!
Thank you!!
Anna from Seattle
Judy says
Hi Anna, thank you for dropping us a note. We really appreciate your comments.
Paula says
Hi!
I just had to leave you all a comment about how I love this website!
I’m from Brazil, mom born in Hong Kong and dad born here but his paretns came from Canton area. Me? Born and raised in a big metropolis with all the fast food and microwave stuff you can get, but now, trying to discover my chinese stomach preferences! And you guys happened to be one of my lead recipe website to do that!
Thank you!!
May I just add one more thing? You take Astonishing photos!!
All the best!
Judy says
Thank you so much for your kind words, Paula. We are pleased to have you cooking along with us. Hope to hear more from you.
Krystal says
OMG I am so glad to have found this blog, you guys are awesome. My husband is Chinese and his mom knows how to make a few things but doesn’t really love to cook. Good thing I do :)
I have been browsing all the recipes and have been drooling over them all morning. I can’t wait to try out all of these recipes and make my husband gain more weight heehee
Kaitlin says
Hi Krystal, Thank you so much! Kudos to you for assuming the helm of your Chinese kitchen! A little bit of healthy weight gain is good sometimes!
Amy says
Found your site via the ma-po tofu recipe – it looks authentic! Thank you! I’ve been making “improvised” ma-po tofu with 2-3X the amount of meat for my spice-adverse kids and meat-loving non-Asian friends, but I said to myself, one of these days, I will make it the way I like it and I was so happy to see your recipe here.
Just a question of curiosity – are you guy related by blood or merely a “family” of good friends? Your bios indicated that you grew up in different places, which would be difficult if you had the same biological parents.
Judy says
Thank you, Amy. As to us, we are a family of four: I (Judy) am the mother, Bill is my husband, and Sarah and Kaitlin are our daughters.
Milja says
Hi Guys,
Thank you for this website. Not only do you have a talent for very entertaining writing it also inspires to dive in to the kitchen and actually try something new. I’m part Dutch part Indonesian ( Living in Amsterdam) and was always watched with a suspicious eye by my Indonesian grandmother if i was not raised to Dutch and if i was not to skinny. Every time i entered her house the first thing she did was serve me 3 kinds of snacks and i would not stop eating until i left the house. She did teach me how to prepare a variety of Asian dishes, also Chinese, but your website inspired me to explore more of the Chinese kitchen. Thank you for that and keep on inspiring as many people as possible with your pearls.
Regards,
Milja
Judy says
Thank you, Milja, you’ve hit the nail on the head. That is definitely one of the reasons why we started this blog.
nyflying says
无意中来到这里，很喜欢。：）
Judy says
谢谢您，非常欢迎！
William says
My joy is complete! I found you! Your list of ingredients is a gift from heaven. Your recipes are divine. Your writing is utter delight. Could I ask for anything more? Well, yes, as a matter of fact. If I send a photo now and then of, say, some Chinese vegetable that I don’t recognize, or some unfamiliar but interesting looking sauce or ingredient, would you be willing to help me identify it and maybe provide some hints on how to use it properly? Here in Portland we have several Asian markets and the number is growing. I think they are quite well stocked with a wide range of ingredients. Every time I go shopping at one of the stores I see things that are so tempting, but I haven’t the foggiest notion what sort of dish I would use them in. Sometimes I get lucky. I’ll buy a sauce for example that I know nothing about, but the list of ingredients fascinates me. I taste it. Swoon. Then I come up with my own concoctions– some are tasty; some are edible; others are true abominations. I know my creative endeavors with unfamiliar ingredients would probably cause you to roll on the floor laughing your heads off. But then, laughter is healthy, no? A million thanks for your wonderful blog. You’ve added spice and everything nice to my life and kitchen! Fond regards, William