Rating: 
Summary: No Pictures of Dishes!
Review: To be honest, ever since I bought this book, I haven't cooked a single dish from this book yet because since there were no pictures of the dishes, I didn't know what the results of each recipe looked like. This has prevented me from taking the time to actually choose and cook a dish from the book. I much prefer the "Wei Chuan" series of cookbooks ... they have photos with each recipe, clear instructions, and they are authentic Chinese cookbooks published in Asia. I come from Hong Kong, and I find that the recipes inside the Wei Chuan books are really good; they are really the type of food that you can find in nice restaurants in Hong Kong, yet the dishes can be cooked easily and quickly!
Rating: 
Summary: Entwined Chinese Food with Its People:Past/Present
Review: What this superb cookbook exhibits is Chinese food's entwinement with its culture. Their mythology, tradition, folklore, history and ancestral worship is all caught up in this fascinating cuisine.
This passionate Chinese born cook seeks to maintain and pass on its purity and health concerns. So there is much on how to prepare and serve correctly according to the techniques handed down. She hopes as well to correct much of what she believes has been incorrectly passed off as authentic Chinese cooking.
There is a fascinating and necessary chapter on the Chinese Larder with descriptive and preparation tips along with the Chinese for each so that one may go to Chinese market and show this to be assured of getting the real thing.
As well there is a great chapter of Chinese wines,teas and exhaustive sections on techniques such as wok, steaming, rice, etc. Responding to our case of American-Chinese food, which hides true Chinese cuisine. This developed by necessity of Chinese workers immigrating to America where they began to cook, influenced by cuisine and ingredients in this country. Thus a chapter of Transplating Chinese Food in the West, showing dishes that are true Chines originals transplanted here, e.g. Egg Drop Soup, Sweet and Sour Pork.
Exploring but a few of its recipe offerings, thus far am enchanted with the likes of "Cook and Sell Dumplings"; "Eight-Treasure Glutinous Rice Cake"; "Chicken Stir-Fried with Bosc Pears"; and "Curried Crab with Bean Thread Noodles."
One has to read, learn and carefully shop for right ingredients and then prepare with slowness and newness to all this which reaps delightful, healthy balanced dining.
This is such a great book to explore and develop a sense for this ancient, healthy, balanced world cuisine.
Rating:
Summary: I learned about chinese cooking but hardly cook any!
Review: When you make these wonderful dishes, you will know what Chinese food really tastes like, not the brown garlic-ginger tasting stuff you get at a take-out place around the corner. This cuisine has everything going for it - a heavy reliance on vegetables, using meat in a supporting role, and healthful cooking techniques like stir frying and steaming.The author has very thoughtfully created a glossary with the names of culinary exotica in both English and Chinese characters, so that I can make a copy of the page, point like an idiot at the words for my friends at the Asian market and they will show it to me. The recipes ALL WORK. I cannot tell you how satisfying it is to pick up a cookbook, place my time and ingredients and trust in the author's hands and have a wonderful meal to show for it. Trust this author. She will teach you, entertain you, and you will know how marvelous real Chinese food is. It would take an active campaign of sabotage to ruin one of her recipes, they are so easy to follow. (but then again, I really like cooking.) This is a cookbook that I will simply never part with, and I will use until its pages are stained with soy sauce and fall out. The recipe alone for Mah Gu Gai Pin is worth the price of the book.
Rating:
Summary: This is what Chinese food REALLY tastes like
Review: When you make these wonderful dishes, you will know what Chinese food really tastes like, not the brown garlic-ginger tasting stuff you get at a take-out place around the corner. This cuisine has everything going for it - a heavy reliance on vegetables, using meat in a supporting role, and healthful cooking techniques like stir frying and steaming. The author has very thoughtfully created a glossary with the names of culinary exotica in both English and Chinese characters, so that I can make a copy of the page, point like an idiot at the words for my friends at the Asian market and they will show it to me. The recipes ALL WORK. I cannot tell you how satisfying it is to pick up a cookbook, place my time and ingredients and trust in the author's hands and have a wonderful meal to show for it. Trust this author. She will teach you, entertain you, and you will know how marvelous real Chinese food is. It would take an active campaign of sabotage to ruin one of her recipes, they are so easy to follow. (but then again, I really like cooking.) This is a cookbook that I will simply never part with, and I will use until its pages are stained with soy sauce and fall out. The recipe alone for Mah Gu Gai Pin is worth the price of the book.
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