Reviews for Yan-Kit's Classic Chinese Cookbook: A Complete Guide to the Equipment, Ingredients, Recipes and Techniques

The average rating for Yan-Kit's Classic Chinese Cookbook: A Complete Guide to the Equipment, Ingredients, Recipes and Techniques based on 2 reviews is 4 stars.

Review # 1 was written on 2013-06-21 00:00:00 Ariel Rieken For the best part of thirty years a Chinese recipe book in a British household meant either one by Yan-kit So or by Ken Hom. Yan-Kit was arguably the less popular (Hom's numerous TV appearances led him to become more of a celebrity on these shores than in his native USA) but more scholarly of the pair. It's a mark not only of her scholarliness but of the practicality and ease of use of this, her first book, that it remains in print 29 years after publication. In that time, too, it has received sustained critical praise - winning the prestigious Andr� Simon Food Award on publication and being named in The Observer's '50 Best Cookbooks of All Time' in 2010. As you'd expect of a Dorling Kindersley book it's lavishly illustrated, an approach which makes it feel thoroughly modern (although, to my eyes, some of the photo's seem a little washed out - no doubt the effect of getting used to books having their images digitally manipulated!). An introductory section introduces Chinese ingredients that may be unfamiliar to Westerners (it's already hard to believe that this includes mange-tout!), equipment and techniques as well as a more general brief segment on Chinese cuisine and the author's background. All of these ingredients and techniques are well illustrated with colour photographs. Another short section at the end of the book outlines the differences between regional cuisines in China and suggests menus reflecting them. In between, the bulk of the book is made up of recipes which are easy to follow and are usually accompanied by a photograph of the finished dish. The recipes are of the banqueting (and frequently Cantonese) style familiar to most Westerners from Chinese restaurants and takeaways - indeed, spring rolls, sweet & sour pork and Peking duck are all included here. Perhaps, then, this isn't the kind of food you'd want to cook every day but if you do want to prepare these kind of dishes then you really can't do much better than this book.

Review # 2 was written on 2016-01-28 00:00:00 Matthew Graves This cookbook has many of the "famous" Chinese dishes in it, in what looks like reasonably authentic styles (more actual Chinese than American-Chinese). It also has even more enticing dishes that are not as common in the West. I am on a personal quest for a reasonably easy yet delicious hot-and-sour soup, and while I have a number of Chinese cookbooks of varying styles and authenticities, this is the one I'm starting with. And while perusing it, I've found a bunch more recipes I want to try... The directions are very clear and well-described. Most have good photos. There is an excellent section in the beginning that not only lists things like the vegetables called for, but shows pictures of them to make them easier to identify in the wild. It's not as comprehensive as Tropp's, but it's more accessible and has lots of delicious ideas!