Recipe(tried): Monk's Delight

Monk's Delight
From: "The Cuisine of Cathay: The Culinary Culture of China"
by Genia Lee (Himes)

Genia was the owner of the best Chinese restaurant in Gainesville when I lived here with my first husband in the 1980s. I worked at the restaurant, Cathay Tea House, as both a hostess and waitress.

After years of requests for recipes, Genia finally self published her cookbook in 1983. It is a beautiful coffee table book, full of color photographs of both recipes in progress and finished dishes. It is also a very technically proficient cookbook, making wokking a delight.

3 to 6 ears baby corn
1/4 cup snow peas (stringed)
3 to 6 cups broccoli florets
3 to 6 slices fried tofu
6 straw mushrooms (from the can or fresh)
1/4 cup fried gluten
2 to 4 medium sized black mushrooms (previously soaked)
1/4 cup sliced water chestnuts
1/4 cup sliced bamboo shoots
1/2 cup green pepper cut into bite sized pieces
1/4 cup Chinese cabbage cut into bite sized pieces
1/4 cup sliced carrots
1 TBS chopped Chinese parsley
3 TBS cooking oil (peanut preferred)
1 tsp chopped ginger root
1 TBS chopped Chinese celery

Sauce mixture:
1 tsp corn starch
1/3 cup mushroom stock (or vegetable stock)
1/4 tsp salt
1 TBS soy sauce
1 dash white pepper

1 tsp toasted sesame oil for garnishing


Stir fry the chopped ginger and Chinese celery in cooking oil at high heat. Toss in the green pepper and stir fry for a few seconds, add snow peas, broccoli, Chinese cabbage and carrots. Continue to stir fry and sprinkle a few drops of water over the vegetables and allow the steam to cook them for a minute or so. Add the rest of the ingredients and cook ntil they are heated throughout. Pour in the sauce mixture, stir gently and cook until the sauce starts to clear.

Garnish with sesame oil and serve.

Genia's notes:

The ingredients listed were used because they happened to be available at the moment. Any other combination of ingredients should delight the monks just as well.

The strict vegetarian diet of Buddhists does not allow the use of members of the onion and garlic family. To add zest to this recipe, Chinese parsley (coriander), Chinese celery and ginger root are used. Additionally, more often than not, Szechuan pepper corn, 5-spice powder or star anise are called upon to add flavor.

Adherence to the strict Buddhist's interpretation of the vegetarian diet is merely to introduce Oriental vegetables to the West. Certainly a teaspoon of chopped garlic or green onions in place of the Chinese celery should not harm the digestive system of the majority.

Pam
"Stressed is desserts spelled backwards!"

E PLURIBUS UNUM

Eventually
Peace Love Unity and Respect Inevitably Blossom
in the Understanding Spirit:
Universal Nexus Underlying the Matrix
A Dh original!

Meddle thee not in the affairs of Dragons, for thou art crunchy and wouldst be tasty with ketchup.