Though cooking a stir-fry dish takes minutes, there’s more to it than meets the eye. In this post, we’re sharing our need-to-know tips on how to make Asian stir-fry dishes (like the char kway teow in the featured image of this post) the right way, no matter what ingredients you’re using. And all in one […]
How to Cook Tapioca Pearls
In recent years, tapioca pearls have become a favorite in bubble tea, shaved ice desserts, and sweet dessert soups across Asia and in Asian communities in the West. But what if you want to cook your own tapioca pearls at home? Some store-bought tapioca pearls can be cooked in a matter of minutes, but dried […]
The ONLY Technique You Need to Keep Food From Sticking to a Wok or Pan
We’ve all dealt with terrible messes from food sticking to a pan or wok. Maybe it’s a pan-fried fish that ends up skinless, a crusty coating of rice or noodles that’s impossible to scrub off, a fried egg that gets unceremoniously scrambled because it just wouldn’t come off the pan, or bits of meat that […]
How to Use Cornstarch in Chinese Cooking
Cornstarch is often used in Chinese cooking––in fact, it’s one of our suggested 10 essential ingredients for stocking your Chinese pantry. Though it’s virtually flavorless, it easily one of the most vital ingredients in a Chinese kitchen, with multiple uses. In this post, we’ll uncover everything you need to get authentic results with Chinese recipes […]
How to Prepare Beef for Stir-fry
We have a lot of beef recipes in our archives here at The Woks of Life, so we wanted to show everyone how to prepare beef for stir-fry. We’ll recommend our favorite cuts of beef to use and show you how to properly cut and marinate beef just like it’s done in Chinese restaurants. We […]
Chinese Stir-Fry Sauce: For Any Meat/Vegetables!
This is an easy stir-fry sauce recipe to quickly make homemade stir-fries with whatever meat or vegetables you have! Of all the recipes here on the Woks of Life, you may find yourself coming back to this one the most often for both versatility AND taste. Over the years working and cooking in Chinese restaurants, […]
How to Use a Bamboo Steamer
While there are many different ways to steam food, using a bamboo steamer is our preferred method for steaming just about anything! In this article, we provide step-by-step instructions on how to use a bamboo steamer, so you can start taking advantage of this useful cooking tool! What is a Bamboo Steamer? Bamboo steamers consist […]
Chinese Hot Mustard
Chinese Hot Mustard is one of those condiments you might not think of making yourself, but it’s quick and easy to prepare at home. Many of you have probably seen Chinese mustard served alongside sweet duck sauce in Chinese restaurants with crunchy fried noodles as an appetizer. Admittedly, general hot sauce mania means that hot […]
