Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1901-08-17
CHINESE COOKERY.
A Few Hints to Americans Who Want
to Sample 1t.

A
to Sample 1t.
Chinese cookery is becoming a de-
cided fad in greater New York SAYS the
Brooklyn Eagle. There used To be few. ii
any Chinese restaurants outside New
forks Chinatown; now there are hun
! dreds of them scattered all over town.
indeed. ii is unusual TO find a square
half mile of the crowded parts of town
in which there is not at least one of
these places.
At first the Chinese restaurants in
Chinatown catered exclusively to Chi
| nese guests. Nowadays they have more
white visitors than yellow in the eve
nings. The uptown restauranteurs minis
ter exclusively to white people
The dish usually favored by the white
patrons of these restaurants Is Chop
Suey Some months later they may dare
70 make further experiment as far rs
Ho-She-kiang-soup made from dried
oysters-but they are apt to be decidedly
doubtful about the origin of the things
they lind in that. Chop-Suey, the Wis
itor's favorite, is very well cooked hash
of pork. smothered in a tasty brown
long sprouts OF beans (Which the Chinese
break off and eat as soon as they begin
to shoot,. with dried mushrooms cooked
from fresh ones, chopped celery and
onions.
\ heaping bowl of this stew is sold in
the regular Chinese restaurants for
| twenty-five cents. 1t is a very pleasant
dish. indeed. but at the same time one
full Of surprises The Chinese arc an
economical people and when they kill
| a pig they expect to put to culinary
| uses every. part of that pig but the
bristles and the squeal. In Chop-SueI
| you will be likely to find bits of pigs that
you don't quite recognize. but if you dill
| il in the gravy two or three times and
take it on trust YOU will find it quite
paiatable.
Every thing that the Chinese use in
cooking, except the fresh pork and
| fresh vegetables has been imported from
| China. All the things come in DRIED
shape. but the Chinese are such skllliui
cooks that they can deceive even the
most knowing into believing that they
| are eating fresh duck. mushrooms.
oysters and :" on. Even dried pork Is
| Chinaman has an incradiCabe prcJudlce
| in favor OF the products al his owr
country.
| Pcoplc who 20 to Chinese restaurant
| for the first time ar. usually in great fear
| that they will be SurrcptltiouSiy served
! with rat stew. fried cat. fricasseed dog
| or some other delicacy of a kind sup
| posed to be peculiarly Chinese Ihey
| need not worry. The difficulty of obtain
| ing either money or food in China com
peS the Chimes" tn eat everything that
has flesh upon its bones. Dogs ana rats
| are easily attainahlc with trap ana q
| little agility and they 60 Ntsy tar toward
keeping the native family alive.
| When the Chinese come to TINS Cuun-
| try they find conditions entirely differ
ent. Work of the kind they effect is
obtainable either from their own pcopie
3" into business for themselves ami
make money. Provisions OF all kinds
are cheap. The much prizcd pork, a dish
! of which costs a weeks work in China
is to he obtained-so il seems to the
Chinaman-almost for the asking. There
are MASTER things than dogs. rats ana
snakes TO he obtained here and the newly
arrived Chinaman turns to them with
avidity.
1t is very seldom indeed that a
| Chinaman in this country eats any other
| animal than those found in American
! butcher shops. He never thinks of S"rv
ing slch things to restaurant visitor,
| II he ever. in this country eats strange
! food himself, il is because lie ias be,u
| forced to it by starvation.
! Many of the ways of the Chinese cooks
are strange to American eyes. but the re-
that cannot be gainsaid. For instance.
no butter at all is used by Chinese cooks.
either In the making Of pastry or for any
other purpose, It's place is taken BY
which the Chinaman imports from his
own country.
About peanut oil there fingers the
| faint odor Of the peanut but this is not
at all apparent to the taste. II is
rich yellow in color and seems to readily
answer every purpose to which butter can
he put. The Chinaman. however, uses it
| for many other purposes. 1t furnishes
him with light. for it will burn in "A lamp
| and gives a clear yellow flame that Is
absolutely smokefess. 1t is also one of
| the hottest of flames. He uses ii for
lhairdressing purposes. as a lubricant. as
salad oil. as furniture polish and as
| skin food II seems to be very cheap
oil for the Chinese will sell pint bottle
in this country of the valuable oil which
full for 5 cents-if they know their Gus
the peanut Yields. This country has the
toner To the casual white man price,
are apt to be alarmingy high and elastic.
1t seems strange that so little is known
reputation of being the chief producer Of
peanuts, yet no oil seems TO be expressed
from them in the South. according to the
books. 1t seems not improbable that the
Chinese import American peanuts into
their own country. extract the oil AMI
then export a considerable quantity of
the product to the Chinese residents of
this country.
Great cleanliness characterizes Chi
ncse cookery. The idea that a Chnaman
is filthy in all his ways is erroneous If
in Chinatown. ask the proprietor. when
Won have finished your dinner, to show
you through the kitchen If he hap
pens to like your looks-and, above all,
il he has approved Of your table man
ners-he will probably do so. and YOU
will see the cleanest and neatest kitchen
Won have ever visited. The floor. as
rule. will have been scrubbed. and after
ward worked over with sand and heavy
store until il is smooth and white as
paper Everything will seem to be in its
place, even If YOU have been taken III
right in the middle of the rush hour
There is no litter. no garbage; nothing
in sight that could offend the most fas-
tidions person. Every uteEsil made of
metal. has been scrubbed and polished
until it shines. The Chinese kitchen. i'm
fact. can rival any Dutch kitchen as far
The one thing that the visitor will
notice is the total lack Of table linen.
Your chinaman knows NV" fabrics-i:lk
:,n,l cotton lie has some coarse kinds
In ,t- lDh