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Any chinese mothers out there???

460 replies

blossom2 · 05/01/2005 20:51

I was just wondering

DH is english and DD is a wonderful mix of both of us. people say she looks english/white when out with Dh and chinese when she's out with me!!!

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gingerbear · 09/02/2005 15:32

maomao, yep, will have to try dumplings. DH and I are having baked fish with ginger, chilli and spring onions, DD not keen on fish or spicy food, so little dumplings sound right up her street.

maomao · 09/02/2005 16:28

mmmm, gingerbear! That sounds really good. Will you pass on the recipe, please?

csa · 09/02/2005 16:41

gong xi fa chai to all! yingers, was also debating whether to bring ds to v&a this saturday. do you think it is worth it? and would it be terribly crowded? thought of combining the trip with a dim sum in chinatown. any recommendations? it's been such a long time since i have been there and i'm no longer sure what is good. any restaurants doing the trolley thing still?

pam, lost you on another thread awhile ago. couldn't remember which it was and never found it again . hope you are having a good time in m'sia and the steamboat was good. yummy!

blossom, got back from paris yesterday. tried to go to the le petel restaurant but unfortunately, it is closed on sundays and mondays. didn't find the other one tho'. nevertheless, the weather was superb and we managed to stuff ourselves silly!

gingerbear · 10/02/2005 11:45

Fish was lovely!

Used whole trout, but any fish would be OK.

2 x fish, gutted and de-scaled
3 spring onions chopped
1 red, 1 green chilli, chopped
1" pce of ginger, thinly sliced
2 cloves of garlic, crushed
2 dessert spoons sesame oil
1 tablespoon light soya sauce
1 tablespoon lime juice
salt and pepper

cut diagonally across fish three or four times on both sides.

Make a tin foil prcel big enough to cover the fish, place fish in tin foil.

Mix together rest of ingredients and pour over fish, making sure it goes into cuts in the flesh.

wrap foil tightly and place in oven for 15 - 20 mins at 180 deg C

gingerbear · 10/02/2005 11:45

Fish was lovely!

Used whole trout, but any fish would be OK.

2 x fish, gutted and de-scaled
3 spring onions chopped
1 red, 1 green chilli, chopped
1" pce of ginger, thinly sliced
2 cloves of garlic, crushed
2 dessert spoons sesame oil
1 tablespoon light soya sauce
1 tablespoon lime juice
salt and pepper

cut diagonally across fish three or four times on both sides.

Make a tin foil prcel big enough to cover the fish, place fish in tin foil.

Mix together rest of ingredients and pour over fish, making sure it goes into cuts in the flesh.

wrap foil tightly and place in oven for 15 - 20 mins at 180 deg C

gingerbear · 10/02/2005 11:45

so good I cooked it twice!!

gingerbear · 10/02/2005 11:47

cheated on the dim sum though - bought from market!!

suzywong · 10/02/2005 11:47

Hello everyone

Gingerbear, nice to see you here, us Red Haired Ghosts get on quite well here

gingerbear · 10/02/2005 11:49

Is that what we farangs are known as?

suzywong · 10/02/2005 11:54

Yes
That is what we whities translate as (I am being highly presumptious about your ethnic origins here BG), other races have different nicknames but we are Red Haired Ghosts in my DH's dialect at least

gingerbear · 10/02/2005 12:44

I am deffo a red haired ghost - well, more of a mousy auburn really... part scottish part Yorkie heritage.

yingers74 · 10/02/2005 14:28

Can't help on the restaurants in china town as i have not been since I have had dd, although am pretty sure that there aren't any trolley places anymore which is such a shame as I like to look before i buy, that's the best thing about dim sum in HK!

I had dim sum yesterday although i got mine from hoo hing hence a lot cheaper. DD would not eat any of it! She likes plain rice best! She will learn!

In cantonese, non chinese are just ghosts while those of born overseas are often called half ghosts or chinese with soul/attitude of a ghost, lovely!

Am probably going to give the V&A a go on sat but will avoid the large crowds in china town. Anyway am saving my money for the big meal blow out when my mum and nan return from HK .

Ginger - your cooking exploits make me hungry, must get myself some fresh whole fish. I only get this at my mums or nan's now!

Pam70 · 12/02/2005 14:40

CSA - hello!!!

Yes having a great time in Malaysia but it is HOT HOT HOT - I think it's been about 36C the last week and humid of course.

DS has learnt the chorus to that CNY song - you know? the one that goes "Gong Xi Gong Xi Gong Xi Nie Yah"? Not sure if he learnt it from preschool or from walking round the mall too often!

Suzy - I'm guessing your DH's dialect is Hokkien cos that's about the only one which translates "white man" into red haired ghosts?

ok DS is whining here - too much festive cheer and late nights, I suspect

snowmoon · 17/02/2005 15:44

Hi all. I'm Chinese and my DS is 6 1/2 months. I was born in Hong Kong but have been in the UK since 1985. My boyfriend is English. DS looks very Chinese when asleep, otherwise people can't really tell he has Chinese blood.

ps: New World Restaurant in China Town serves dim sum on trollies.

bea · 17/02/2005 15:58

hello snowmoon... welcome to the thread!!!

... and a belated happy new year - gung hey fat choi to all...

sent dd and ds off in all the chinese gear i could muster... i.e. lots of silk and padded jackets... and stuffed myself silly with dim sum and prawn crackers....!

snowmoon · 17/02/2005 16:25

Have just read more of the thread so can contribute a bit more...

My English boyfriend loves oriental food and will give anything a try. Not the type to look at something and claim it's disgusting. I'm lucky that way. A Chinese friend of mine has to cook her husband separate food every night!!! To me that's such a shame, because to us Chinese food is all about sharing.

Congee... I love it. I can easily live on congee for the rest of my life It's spooky because I am just about to cook some congee for my DS for the first time today. He loves his food and so far has not rejected anything.

Speaking of food, anyone knows when/how to train little ones to use chopsticks?

As for NY traditions, the thing I miss the most is my father letting off firecrackers when we were kids. And of course going round nearby houses with 'choi sun' (money god) written on red paper - neighbours would take the choi sun and give us pocket money.

csa · 18/02/2005 09:07

good question snowmoon. i have been wondering myself about the chopstick question. ds (3yo) is starting to show interest so maybe i should start encouraging it. problem is we tend to eat more pasta and casseroles so that might be interesting

and yup, did go to new world last sunday. yummy. my fav? fried carrot cakes! and best of all? no one else likes it so i ended up having the lot all to myself

SofiaAmes · 18/02/2005 21:38

My children (2 and 4) can eat with chopsticks and we're not even chinese . Well really, it's the kiddie version of chopsticks.. whenever we eat chinese or japanese we get chopsticks and do them up with a rubber band and chopstick paper on end which turns them into tongs and the kids love it and can eat perfectly well with them. I've found that most chinese/japanese restaurants are used to doing this for kids.

Just ate at the New World the other day. It's fun to have the trolley's but their food really isn't as good as nyc or san francisco dim sum. I have been getting dim sum stuff at the hoo hing, but am having a hard time finding things that don't have MSG. I'm sure they used to have a brand that did the char sui buns without it, but couldn't find them when I went last week. Any suggestions?

Original poster
blossom2 · 20/02/2005 18:57

Hello everyone and a belated Happy New Year!! (parents don't have a computer yet).

Back in Paris now. Sorry about Le Petel, didn't realised it would be closed. Hope you had a great time anyway CSA.

How is everyone ???

London was fantastic. I took DD out to chinatown on sunday (after CNY) for the dragon dance. It was great and would definitely try and do it next year. Especially as they had chinese firecrackers and fireworks at 2.00pm. It really felt like proper CNY!!!! We went quite early and got there around 11.30am so the big crowds had not started, although there were still lots of people. Obviously stocked up on lots of chinese goodies and toys. DD has some lovely chinese clothes now - i've just got to find the time & place for her to wear them.
The family feast was also fantastic. My eldest brother arrived late but brought with him a huge sponge cake - U know the ones from chinatown with loads of sponage, fresh cream and fruit. It was wonderful to say the least.

OP posts:
yingers74 · 22/02/2005 09:36

blossom - that sounds yummy!

we still have not really celebrated CNY, mum and gran are back now so we will be doing a joint CNY and birthday celebration for my dd on sunday. she will be two! time goes so fast. having a party for her friends this thursday, i am terrified at the prospect.

snow - live off congee? i like it too but living off it is probably too much for me, lol, would miss everything else too much.

csa · 22/02/2005 13:19

did your ds like the congee snow?

snowmoon · 24/02/2005 14:26

Yes DS liked the congee, so it'll be a good excuse to make it more often.

Yingers, living on congee for the rest of my life was probably a bit of an exaggeration I tend to say that about everything I like eating.

Original poster
blossom2 · 28/02/2005 20:10

Has our thread died?!?!?!

How is everyone???

Still cold in Paris but at least its sunny which makes the flat very warm. Not looking forward to summer though.

OP posts:
Pam70 · 04/03/2005 09:32

Hello all - I'm still in Malaysia so not getting on the net as often as when I'm back in the UK.

Have just introduced congee to DD (6 months) yesterday - just vegetables, haven't introduced meat yet. DS (3 1/2) won't eat congee so am determined to start DD early so she won't reject it.

csa - your diet of pasta and casseroles sounds like mine in the UK - it's just that I'm so bad at cooking Chinese, I would often prefer to eat out Chinese and make simple pasta and stews at home.

If anyone's looking to start a restaurant - there's a dearth of good Chinese restaurants in Belfast!

Also - this system of running 2 menus in Chinese restaurants - one Chinese and one English really frustrates me as I can't read Chinese and am always consigned to the English menu where the choices are limited!

cheers

Pam

yingers74 · 04/03/2005 18:02

everyone, hello and sorry, have been busy this last few weeks with dd b-day and my family's late NY celebs. And of course busy with ttcing for those who know my history. The good news is that I have recently found out I am pregnant again which is nice although I am trying not to be too excited as am frightened that it may end in m/c again. Anyway not telling anyone in RL just mumnetters!!

Pam, am also not a great chinese cook, although dh thinks everything i make is amazing - bless! I have recently got a wok cook book so hopefully things will improve. Thought about getting my mum to show me but I know what she is like, she will insist I go do something else and let her just get on with it!