St. Landry democrat. (Opelousas, La.) 1878-1894, 1891-09-26
CHINESE EDIBLES.
WHAT CELESTIAL EPICUEES
DELIGHT IN.
MANY Peculiar and Strange Dishes
A Summary Of th2 Leading Ar
tlcles on a Monaghan E.slu.

publication and is a ve!i:ahic roster OF
almost everything OF TINS m"n4anc
sphere that walks, crccp5, file, swlths or
remains stationary. 1t has varied al
fractions both for the student Of cnto-
moIogy aud the botanist. From q scho-
lastic noint of view il is intrl :,tlnG, but
the cpicurc with the least bit. OF senti-
mcnt in his character would f2gATd It
with well grounded prejudice. in his
diet the Monaghan has uivcstc.l himself
of all sllpcrStitious ideas, an': has cvi-
IDENTIFY contisratcI everything !" reach
for conversion into n palatADlu dish. IN
youthful days "bird'S nest soap" was
credited with being u horrible e' iJeHce
of Chinese barbarism, but it Is nothing
worse than Irish moss, and it is Ia .lost
Dalatablc Of all Chinese conc ctions Cor
the table. The cpicurean taste which
shows its exalted cultivation By l-tlshlng
''ripc' game and poultry IS totally
ccIipscd by the Chinese gnurmand, VINO
would scorn the idea Of even looking at
the capon that WAS not in q f&.., way Of
attaining the end arrived ct by all flesh
The absorbing ambition Of the Mon
colian is to be a thigh livcr,' and to
rank Us SUCH ilC iilltHb lit''1INt ~ 'i'N Va
the worlds 'suppcr ten in q financial
sense to crafty his object IN i.f;.
Chinese delicacy stores, which strlk-
inrly compare in attractvcn"ss with a
we'll stocked museum, number tuil
score in the Monaghan quarter o. as
city. Among the first eNhl its spread
on narrow trays so tempting 10 Chinese
eyes are large black beetles thoroughly
dried. They are considered great dcs-
sert dclicacy, and are rctailed 60 Gus
toners at ) cents per beetle.
Small cakes Of bean curd wrapped in
yellow coverings and bearing Chinese m
scriptiOns are other alurcn%"Js winch
greet the vision of the heather eNlcUre.
They are small rhcescs made from mix
curd and the pulp of bo..cd beans
pressed into cakes Dried ducks spit
down the back. pressed flat and ano'ntcd
with oil to render them imporylous to
the air. are sight that generally lhclteS
purchase if the customer has the re
ousite 10 cents. Dressed sha.N inns are
relish for which the Mongolian displays
marked liking. He must pay $1.'5
pound if he desires to crafty his appc-
titc at such expense.
A can, from which arises vile and
offensive odor, contains Qnantlty OF
small birds, about the size OF swallows,
preserved in oil. Duck eggs ar, another
delicacv preserved III a similar manner.
Chinese tOmalcs are composed OF duck
eggs AMI pork, combined WITH rice and
wrapped in plautain leaves. The Chinese
way of adding to the attractlvencss OF
the oyster is to string score or more OF
the bivalvcs on a small wisp of bamboo
and allow them to dry and u:scoIor at
leisure They are disposed Of i: fifty
cents Il pound Shrimps are skewcred
bv two wisns of bamboo and foFtOon the
windows of almost every first rate deli
cacy store.
"Hong zee" is the trade name of
species of Goldfish, caught IN Mexican
waters, which IS dried and shipped IN
large quantities to this city and is high
" esteemed. Duck eggs are imported
from China. In order to provide against .
the inroads of decompOsiticl, which
would render them unstable except In
political times. they are first vanished
with oil and packed in black and for
bidding mess of mud.
"Guy- na-po' is q peculiarly shaped
fish imported from China which makes
a favortc soup for Celestial location.
Strings of dark and ma odorous sausagcs
line the walls and festOon the shelves OF
these dclicacy stores. They are credited
with being imported. 1t is claimed that !
pork enters largely into their compo-
sition. but, like the American article.
faith in the sausage makers honesty
must Danish all doubts. Imported pork
achops hanging on strings and smeared
with nut oil are forbidding In the eyes
of an American, but the Chinese consider
them toothsome, and pay - cents l.
pound for them.
"Hoy sum- is peculiarly shaped
molusk gathered from dcep-sca sound
ings, which the Chinese hold in high re-
gard as imparting a savory flavor to
SOUPS. Beans boiled down to the CON
sistency of paste, hand drawn INTO mar
row strips and afterward dried on sticks
are the Chinese substitute for mac,roni.
Imported cuttlelish are dclicacy highly
priced by the Monaghan. They lar a
resemblance to elongated onions with
tendrils, and sell for thirty five cents
pound.
Mushrooms are ruined when they fali
| into Chinese hands. They are divcstcd
of their delicate flavor by being dried
and ground into powdered state.
Picked bamboo sprouts and ginger are
the only relishes of an acid nature t.
which the Chinese taste is addicted.
Beans, after being well sprouted in water
and then dried, are employed i'll eolps
| and sauces.
Dried watermelon seeds are a dessert
delicacy much favored by Mongolians.
They are eaten like pine nuts. The meat
of the abalone is extracted and S1ln dried
| into hardened black Jumps, which bear
| a resemblance to nothing SO much as
lot of discarded boot heels. These are
much affected by Chinese, and abalone
soup or chowder, when properly pre-
pared, Is dish not to be despised even
by white man.
While the Chinese favor vegetables of
common use in this country, they have
| on sale several varieties Of their peculiar
| cultivation. They have a white radish
which measures fully eight inches in
length and is from one and ht'f to two
inches in diameter. \ small radish, with
| a disproportonate growth of top, is an
other vegetable fancy Of >iongolian
growth. The leaves are converted inLo
q salad with duck fat or pork dfippings.
The Chinese pumpkin is melcn shaped
and of light-green color, ribbed with
stripes of darker hue. The orange
grown in China is less than halt the size
of the California fruit. 1t is finely
! favored and the peel emits an aromatic
odor when rubbed or presse,. Their
lime too, is of peculiar shape and has