Amazing Chinese Recipe Resource

I just came across a reference work too amazing not to share. It is Food Plants of China by Shui-ying Hu (2005) Hong Kong: Chinese University Press. Dr. Hu, who died in 2012 at age 102, was affiliated with Hong Kong University, and was an emeritus Senior Research Fellow at Harvard's Arnold Arboretum. For me, this encyclopedic work clarifies many mysteries about ingredients, particularly flowers and herbs. Far from being just a manual with illustrations and scientific terms, this book discusses the processing of plants for culinary uses; for instance, the process of preparing cayenne peppers for la jiao jiang - hot pepper sauce. Dr. Hu's ethnobotanical perspective highlights the significance of various uses of a plant, for instance, the use of red dates in wedding celebrations. Best of all, Dr. Hu shares recipes that have not been available in English. Some of these will be of interest to gardeners and foragers. Most of the recipes include notes about where to find the ingredients in the US, and specifics about how they are labeled. The level of detail about the botanical names of the plants used in the recipes, and specific notes on eliminating toxicity through processing, quell any concerns I might have about tasting unfamiliar plants. I can't wait to try Steamed Wisteria Flowers (Wisteria Sinensis)!

Any clue on where to find Facing Heaven chiles?

JoelF wrote:Any clue on where to find Facing Heaven chiles?

The book should arrive Wednesday. I'll let you know.

Josephine wrote:I just came across a reference work too amazing not to share. It is Food Plants of China by Shui-ying Hu (2005) Hong Kong: Chinese University Press.

Thanks for mentioning Food Plants of China. I've come across references to this book before and even thought about buying it. I'd love to hear more of your thoughts after you've had time to read through it carefully.

JoelF wrote:Any clue on where to find Facing Heaven chiles?

In the last few years these have become quite a bit easier to find around here. You can read a fairly detailed discussion of the cháo tiān jiāo scene in Chicago here and in the following posts. Lots of good information on finding Sichuan ingredients in that "Land of Plenty" thread.