Chinese cleaver comes in 3 weights: big, medium and small.
It is composed of a think blade of carbon steel with wooden-handle.
The most popular size, medium in weight, is about 4-inch in height
and 10-inch in blade width. It works great for many purposes such
as slicing, shredding, chopping and mincing ingredients. Cleaver
blades come in different types of steels. Carbon steel is the
easiest to sharpen. To sharpen cleaver, hold the blade with both
hands at about a 20-degree angle over a whetstone. Sharpen the
entire length of blade in a circular motion. Whetstones are
available in any asian grocery stores.
Chinese Wok
The earliest woks weren't woks
at all, but cast-iron pans with sloping sides great for tossing and
stirring a lot of food easily. Developed as a result of the frugal use
of fuel, historians also think that there's a connection between the
helmuts and shields of the invading Mongols and woks. Modern woks are
very versatile. They can be used for almost any type of cooking: stir-
frying, deep frying, steaming, stewing and even baking a cake. A wide
variety of different materials, sizes and shapes are available nowadays.
When selecting a wok you must consider the type of range you have. If
you have a gas range, you may use either a round-bottom or flat-botton
wok. If you have an electric range, the flat-bottom style is the best
choice. By selecting your wok appropriately, you will eliminate the
need of a ring stand. Most Woks range in sizes from 10" to 16", the 14"
is the most preferable size which is adequate for the preparation of
most dishes in the cookbook. Although Woks are available in many
different types of materials, the tradition wok made from uncoated
carbon steel is the most popular one. This material conducts heat well
and is the most economical to purchase.
Caring For and Storing The Wok
A properly seasoned wok should not be scoured with abrasive
material such as steel wool. After cooking foods in the wok, it is best
to run very hot water into it and clean the surface of the wok with a
bamboo brush or plastic scour. Dry the wok thoroughly with a paper
towel and store for future use. Some gourmets will place a small amount
of oil on their fingertips to re-coat their woks to keep them in top
cooking condition. Eventually through repeated usage, a dark brown
film will develop in the wok. The wok is now truly seasoned. This film
is essentially carbon and is not harmful to one's health. Each time
that one has to scour out the wok with abrasive material, then one
should re-season the wok. Stainless stell woks sometimes stick when
used to cook omelettes or for sir-frying meats. To overcome this
problem, one can spend five minutes to "season" the wok before use or
spray a coating of lecithin on the surface of the wok to allow for
easy gliding of the foods. Lecithin is sold commercially under
several brand names as "non-stick" cooking aids.
Chinese Chopsticks
A Must in Chinese Eating!!!
Who Invent Chopsticks?
It is not known when chopsticks first began to be used,
although it is fairly certain that they were invented in China, where they have been traced back at least
as far as the 3rd century BC.There are those who say that the philosopher Confucius who lived over 200
years earlier, influenced the development of chopsticks with his non-violent teachings. Thus, knives,
with all their associations with war and death, were not brought to the dinner table, as they were in the
West. Today, chopsticks are used in Japan, Korea and Vietnam, as well as China, making them the world's
second most popular method of conveying food to mouth, the most popular being fingers.
What are Chopsticks Made of?
Chopsticks are most often made of utilitarian bamboo or other wood, but they can also be treated as
decorative objects. Especially in Japan, they are made of laquered wood and are gold plated which are
sometimes elaborately painted and personalized for their owners.
Chopsticks In China
In China, chopsticks are usually made of bamboo or other wood. They are called k'uai-tzu, meaning
"something fast". This phrase is said to have originated among boatmen, who renamed the utensils,
originally called chu ("help"), because the word sounded so much like their word for a slow or becalmed
ship, and this struck them as particularly inappropriate for such an effiicient tool. The word with which
we are all familiar came into being during the 19th century, when the Chinese was translated by traders
into Pidgin English. The word "chop" means fast-as in the phrase "chop chops"!
Chopsticks in Japan
The Japanese word for chopsticks, hashi, means "bridge". Unlike Chinese chopsticks, which are squared-off
and blunt at the end, the Japanese utensils are rounded and tapered to a point. It has been suggested
that this is in order to facilitate the removal of bones from fish, which makes up a great part of the
Japanese diet.
Taboos on Chopsticks
There are several taboos regarding the handling of chopsticks at the table, mostly derived from associations
with the use of chopsticks in Buddhist funeral rites. Passing food to another person using your chopsticks
resembles a ritual in which bone fragments from the cremated body are removed from the pyre and passed from
chopsticks to chopsticks among the mourners. It is also important not to leave the chopsticks sticking
upright in the rice bowl. A dead family member's personal pair is often positioned this way in an offering
bowl of uncooked rice placed at the family altar.
