Fun Foods of China

I have had some interesting food experiences here.

Hong Kong Diners
Just now, I took a half an hour and walked to a restaurant down the way which I think is a Hong Kong-style diner.  I saw the menu and I knew it was in English and had lots of choices.  What I really wanted was a cup of hot milk tea and toast with butter and sweetened condensed milk.  I had this a couple times in Hong Kong and I found it strangely comforting and kind of British (but not).

Milk Tea
Hong Kong milk tea is basically strong tea with lots of evaporated milk in it. It's like the masala chai we got in Dubai at Global Village without the sugar and spices.  We had this in Nepal, too, and I have a packet of Nepal tea to make at home.  I like it hot, but it is popular here iced.

Bubble Tea
They really like their bubble tea here - milk tea (or other flavours) with tapioca balls at the bottom. You get a wide straw to suck them up.  There are a few stands near our school.

Food Stands
Also near the school are noodle bars (sesame noodles, ramen, udon), or dumpling stands (beef, pork, or vegetables), or bun steamers (the buns have all sorts of sweet or savoury fillings - red bean, vegetables, meat).  It is all really cheap. The problem is knowing what to ask for or reading the signs in Mandarin.

Tofu
I have had some good tofu.  I didn't really think liked it, but I have found I enjoy the hard tofu - maybe cooked in garlic.  There is a whole tofu section at the supermarket.

Sichwan Pepper
Have you had this before?!?  Wow, it's like anesthetic!  They are little flower buds and smell a bit fruity.  They make your mouth go numb and throbbing.  I ate one without knowing what would happen and was a bit worried.  But since then, I have kind of grown to like it.  Apparently it allows you to eat more chili and spice because you can't feel your mouth at all.  I throw it in with the tofu sometimes (maybe that's why I like the tofu - I can't taste it!).

Bakeries
The Chinese bakeries were a surprise.  I thought they didn't eat much bread.  But these bakeries have nice cake and brioche bread.  I like it for French toast.

Matcha
I had matcha the last time we were in China and I really like it.  It's ground green tea in powder form.  You can have it with milk as a latte at Starbuck's here.  I think in Japan they drink it without milk in their tea ceremonies.  I intend to have it when we are in Japan in January.  Here, they also put it in cookies and cakes and it's really good. I like one Swiss roll matcha cake with matcha mousse in the middle (from the bakery)!

Dim Sum
Well, I've only had it once so far in Hong Kong, but it was good.  You order little steamers of different dumplings or buns. We had BBQ pork buns, shrimp dumplings, and pork and chive dumplings.  I hope to keep trying more dim sum.

Vinegar
They like soy sauce and vinegar in dipping sauces.  The vinegar sure is good with the soy.  I eat in the canteen at work often (for under a dollar for a huge tray of food) and they offer soy and vinegar and chili sauce to put on your food. I don't see the Chinese people using it like I do, but at least it's there. 

So many restaurants
Over at a mall near us, there are lots of restaurants from all countries - Vietnam, Thailand, Korea, India, Japan.  There are pizza and hot pot places, too.  It is pretty overwhelming.  We will have to live here a few years to eat in them all.  I think maybe we should have lunch there every weekend as a start. And I really have no idea of many restaurants around....

Groceries
We are getting our groceries online, from the local supermarket, or from Carrefour, or Aeon (a Japanese grocery store).  So far we are making it work.  The online store allows us to get more that is too heavy to carry and has more Western food.  The Japanese store has sushi, good beef, and baking ingredients.  Carrefore has good bread and some international foods.

Our Kitchen
We have two gas burners and a fridge and sink.  But we have no hot water in the kitchen.  We got a toaster oven, so now we can bake.  We have to get our water delivered in big bottles and it dispenses on a water cooler.  It's not really glamourous, but it works.

I could talk about food all day.  That's one thing I do love about living in other countries.....

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