Made it out to PRD today. (Chinatown is the furthest we’ve driven from West LA during the pandemic.) Was glad to see that it was pretty mellow in Far East Plaza (compared to my previous visit where there were hordes of Postmates drivers hanging around waiting for Howlin’ Ray’s).
Finally got to try their wonton mee with char siu. Delicious! The char siu had that nice ratio of fat to meat. Their wonton was delicate and may be the best wonton I’ve ever eaten (apologies to my grandmother).
Their chow fun was still spectacular, both char siu and vegetarian versions. I made sure that everyone in my family had their own order so we didn’t fight over it this time.
I was curious about this, so I looked into Chinese websites about what fried rice / rice dish do Toishanese people in Toishan China eat.
One of the legit preparations of OG Taishan fried rice is this (Tsai Gwor Fan)
It involves the use of locally grown kohlrabi (Tsai Gwor), but also Chinese celery, cilantro, scallion, pork, dried shrimp, Cantonese lap cheung (with 30% fat, 70% lean) and/or preserved duck…some might add mushrooms, carrots, corn. Essentially it looks like a mish mash of whatever ingredients could be procured, but also culturally what the locals there use for a lot of their cooking.
I’m sure over here, this can be subject to interpretation with a California spin and western cooking techniques.
I love the classic flavor combination of clams with black bean sauce + basil but it was super aggressive in seasoning. Clams were aplenty, plump and tasty.
Noodles were soft, but I blame myself on arriving late to pick up as they were sitting and steaming in the container.
These noodles were ridiculous…the qq of them were perfect. Also the PRD team suggests to eat immediately for perfection. Love the meatiness and salinity of the clams! The black bean sauce reminded me of dishes growing up. After 6 bites…it was a touch salty for me, but really delicious.
Bang bang noodles for later. No cooking tonight.
