XO Soused

Cheese, like milk, has always been an important part of the Chinese diet . The remnants of China’s artisanal cheese sector are found in China’s western regions - and made by ethnic communities - Rushan [乳扇, rǔshān], Rubing [乳餅, rǔbǐng], are the better known. But Nguri in Hokkien or Niuru in Hanyu [牛乳, niúrǔ], made in Fujian and Guangdong show that artisanal Chinese cheese making was more wid...

Cooking and presenting a whole fish - from nostril to tailfin - is a classic approach in Chinese gastronomy. Meanwhile, in Western kitchens filleting is the usual practice. What difference does it make to the taste and texture of the fish to cook it on the bone and with the head? How does the collagen from the bone keep the flesh moist? What techniques make the best of this and how many ways to co...

A star-player in Chinese nose-to-tail (or beak-to-claw) cooking, chicken feet have been a long-term staple in dim sum restaurants. In what solution do you blanch chicken feet to cleanse them? How does deep-frying improve the falling-off-the-bone quality of the cut and its absorption of steamed aromatics and flavourings? And why does Andrew cook it so infrequently? Why is does the dish have an alte...

What is the difference between Cantonese crispy pork belly and British roast pork belly with crispy crackling? How does a chef achieve the ‘digestive-biscuit-y’ quality of the Cantonese style finish rather than the toothy crunch of the British dish? Should we serve it with infused soy or mustard sauce? Why is the fat in the cut as crucial to Chinese cuisine as the meat? How did pork become so impo...

Andrew is in New Delhi for work in this double-length episode, and oof, is he working through some stuff! How does a British-born Chinese chef contend with the parameters of Chinese food in India, or of Indo-Chinese food? What is the difference between Chinese food in India and Indo-Chinese food? What are the flavour profiles of this hyphenated cuisine? What can these dishes tell us about how Chin...

Soy chicken is Andrew’s favourite dish to cook and eat. And as a poached dish it sits apart from all the other roasted meats of the Chinese roasting kitchen. How does residual heat work to cook this chicken perfectly and how is this different from sous vide ? How did Chinese chefs cook slowly at low temperatures in the past without technologies such as thermostats? How does this boost the dish’s h...

Rice flour is the key ingredient that makes hundreds of different types of dim sum possible . Is it still as important in the Chinese kitchen as it was 2,000 years ago? What happened when wheat flour arrived? What does rice flour do that wheat flour doesn’t? What is the difference between glutinous and non-glutinous rice flour? Find out how to use this ingredient to create a variety of dishes with...

What revolutionises everyday cooking into an effort that is considered gastronomy? How did parts of French cooking and Japanese food culture become elevated into ‘gastronomy’? What factors need to exist for this transformation to happen? This special feature-length episode explores these question by looking at the work that chefs in France, Spain, Japan and other countries do, the ingredients and...

Andrew’s mum always says ‘get the sauce right and the cooking will take care of itself’. What Chinese sauces are available to chefs and home cooks? What are the big differences between Chinese sauces and European sauces? Why are Chinese base stocks different from European versions, and how are they used to lengthen the fermented, umami ingredients at the centre of Chinese sauces? How have Chinese...

Learning to make noodles teaches you about touch, the feel of flour, hydration rates, and fermentation. What is the right flour for noodle making? How much gluten should it contain? Why does Chinese culinary culture place an emphasis on the amount of gluten contained in flour (low, medium and high), rather than its use (bread flour, etc). Why are measurements for dried ingredients such as flour so...

Roast duck is a centrepiece of Chinese gastronomy. Why can it take two decades for specialist roasting chefs to perfecting “Beijing” roast duck? What corners are sometimes cut and what difference does it make? What wood should be used for roasting and what techniques result in a chef being able to take off the crispy skin in one go at the table? Errata: Major apologies for the constant mispronunci...

Chinese New Year is here ! How do people in the Chinese restaurant sector celebrate Chinese New Year? Just how many red envelopes do you have to give out once you’re married and own a business? What kind of dishes are eaten for the special Chinese New Year eve dinner, and what’s the secret to getting a crispy coating on your sweet sticky rice cake? This is a public episode. If you would like to di...

How is dairy used in Chinese cooking? How have minority groups in parts of China turned milk into cheese and what kind? Does ice cream have its origins in China? When did the first few references of iced butter, iced cream and iced yoghurt appear in Chinese history? Has ice cream always been a novelty in China, and what role did missionaries play in popularising condensed milk in Hong Kong and Gua...

‘Puff pastry’ in Chinese cooking is a very different beast . But what is unique about the laminated dough that dim sum chefs make to wrap, cocoon or encase dim sum fillings? What ingredients, ratios and techniques create the pastry of the Hong Kong egg tart or the millefeuille effect of baked dim sum savoury puffs? Was this mastery something that came out of early Chinese dynastic history? Or did...

The recent media interest in Andrew - following the award of 2 Michelin stars to his restaurant A. Wong this week - has caused him to reflect on his identity and position as a British chef of Chinese heritage. In this special episode of XO Soused, Andrew and Mukta grapple with today’s thorny questions. Who has the right to cook what? What is cultural appropriation? What does borrowing from another...

What is har gau [蝦餃] ? What starches make up its sticky texture and clear skin? What techniques are required to create the unique, juicy ‘bounce’ of its prawn filling? How important is a vigorous steam? How far back in Chinese history did the required flours make their appearance? How far did Cantonese millionaires of 19th century South China push local dim sum chefs to create the modern har gau...

What is Char Siu? Directly translated at ‘fork roasted’ what are the origins of this technique in China, and what are the connections to Central Asian roasting techniques? What other ingredients are stuffed with the barbequed neck-end of pork into the fluffy bun? What are the techniques and ingredients to create that texture and finish to the bun itself? How did China develop leavening agents and...

What is steaming? Why does steaming food have such a long history in China? Why is it important to control the velocity and vigour of steam? What does this control mean for cooking meat, fish and dough? How does this affect how you design and cook dim sum? This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit andrewwongandmuktadas...

Introducing XO Soused - a weekly audio newsletter from Chef Andrew Wong and Dr Mukta Das sent out every Tuesday afternoon . Setting the scene, this intro explains the conversational style and previews upcoming episodes - each one based on a specific technique or ingredient. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit and...