Chinese Food Made Easy

chunxueping · Joined: 24 Jun 2007 Posts: 474 Location: Surrey, UK

I am really impressed with BBC programme "Chinese Food Made Easy" hosted by Ms Ching-He Huang. I think she is most excellent presenter and her sparkling enthusiasm just shine through with her lovely presentational style. She is such a refreshing change from the collection of foul-mouthed male egotists we have been stuck with for so long.

Her receipes tonight had me really involved and I am looking forward to trying out her spiced beef stir fry topped with spring onion and coriander with wasabi mayonnaise.

If you follow this link you can see her in action with lovely big cleaver!

http://www.bbc.co.uk/chinesefoodmadeeasy/recipes/episode_2.shtml

I think she is real credit to Chinese people and I look forward to seeing more of her programmes. Does anyone else enjoy her programme?

ex-VAG · Joined: 13 Dec 2006 Posts: 439

In a word, no.

I find her presenting style irritating and annoying, the way she moves her head with every word and the overuse of the word delicious.
The program itself is also annoying, what's with the grabbing a whitey to help cook. This says to me that Ching herself doesn't have the personality or appeal to reach the wider audience, hence having to get another face in for the appeal factor.

I saw last weeks and all I got from that was that Chinese take away food was bad and unhealthy, I bet all the owners are thanking her right now!

Having said that, it's good to see another Chinese face on TV and hopefully after time her presenting skills will improve and her appeal widen enough so she can carry the program herself.

szeto-chow · Joined: 03 Feb 2008 Posts: 12

I have to agree with ex-vag

I was just waiting for her purple long sleeves to catch fire on the wok- very impractical!

Also I watched the egg fu young which looked a mess- I was too embarrassed to watch anymore.Also it was so unhealthy. Another point is that you have to wait for the wok to heat up before you add the food which she didn;t do or mention.

It is good to have a Chinese presence but it has to be good- she is from Taiwan which perhaps isn't that traditional chinese.

joybetluck · Joined: 25 Aug 2007 Posts: 147

Sadly a low budget production. Unlike Floyd you are not in native China, no local culture and no opinion from Chinese locals about her food. No sexpensive plonk for her to drink. Still you have to start some where, few younger chef have their own TV spot. Virtual cooking is like virtual sex, you feel exhausted without doing it! Embarassed

chunxueping · Joined: 24 Jun 2007 Posts: 474 Location: Surrey, UK

Ahh is just her way. I know lot of Chinese Taipei girl speak that way. Is just way of adding expression to speaking, maybe she is bit nervous. She is much better than guy with face like dried dog-turd swearing at you all the time or the 15 year old hyper-active "mockney" character. It is nice to see happy Chinese face on TV. Nothing wrong with her having white friends on programme. Is better than having "celebrity white chef fly to China and teach Chinese people how to cook" which I have seen before.

I suppose not seeing wok heating up is editing issue. They not want to wait around for wok to heat up. It is common on these programmes to edit out ovens heating up and cakes rising. They put cake mixture in spotless oven and immediately take out perfect one complete with icing.

She is right about takeaways. A lot of UK takeaway food is design for western pallet. Not like our tasty food in China. Spicy beef in UK is just that, poor quality beef, mildly spice. "Proper" Sichuan or Hunan spicy beef take your head off. Even in Newcastle they could not eat.

szeto-chow · Joined: 03 Feb 2008 Posts: 12

yes, but all chinese cooking is important to heat the wok first like Deilia saying preheat the oven.. even though you dont see her doing it as it makes a huge difference to the cooking

chunxueping · Joined: 24 Jun 2007 Posts: 474 Location: Surrey, UK

I have my Mother's 18 inch cast-iron wok she hid from the 红卫兵 during the Great Leap Forward. It is about fifty year old and was buried in our garden for about ten years. Takes ages to heat up.

Is comforting thing to have around the flat when you live on your own. The meat cleaver is handy too.

joybetluck · Joined: 25 Aug 2007 Posts: 147

I have given up! It is outside my comfort zone. She uses more ingredient than salt, pepper, Soy sauce, tomatoes sauce and curry powder!
It's not green to use more than one sauce pan. Too much washing up. Rolling Eyes

ex-VAG · Joined: 13 Dec 2006 Posts: 439

Saw the last one with the egg roll and sweet and sour prawns, with the over emphasis and use of the term 'street food'! is she trying to appeal to a younger audience or something?
The ingredients she uses are too complicated, she chucks loads of various stuff in, might as well just tell people to empty the contents of their cupboards, hardly simplifying Chinese cooking is it?

She is soooooo annoying now, the part in the tofu place was plain embarrassing, "look, I have a really brown bit" yes nice one love, now shove it in your gob and shut up!!

pensggs · Joined: 24 Jan 2007 Posts: 149

At least she got herself on TV. Let's hope she develop in time 'be proud of her heritage' and do not need to be used 'as a pretty looking oriental bird' by those chefs she worked with, to pep up their tired TV slot.

she tries her best to create a fusion/modern presentation of Chinese cuisine, bowever lacks depth and knowledge. However, her enthusiam makes up for it.

She is going on the 'band wagon' of ' all fast food is bad food' especially if it happens to be 'Chinese' or 'Indian'. You know 'we, the modern British chefs, are better than you ignorant, peasant Chinese or Indian chefs who cook unhealthy chinese or oriental foods; even though we do not understand your Cuisine, we are still better at presenting them'.

Ask the question? Why has no crediable chefs like 'Yan' grace our TV cooking programmes? Why is the Chinese cuisine presented by a 'pretty image of Chinese cookery lacking in in depth knowledge of her inheritance'

quietman · Joined: 26 Nov 2007 Posts: 56 Location: Liverpool

I've enjoyed watching Ching's cookery programme - she's very enthusiastic and happy. It's been a long time since we've had a Chinese cookery programme on the BBC.

It was also good to see Gordon Ramsay the other week on the F Word trying to make some dim sum (cheong fan) in a Chinese restaurant. First time I've seen him doing Chinese coking.

ahsams · Joined: 19 Jul 2008 Posts: 2 Location: london/kent

i find her doe-eyed-head-cocked-to-one-side-hellium-enhanced voice so annoying. the food that she claims make 'chinese food easy' is geared to an obviously 'gway lo' audience and after cringing watching the first showing, i cant bring myself to watch another.

instead of cooking up egg fried rice (with tomatoes?!) and chicken chow mein, why not break the ken hom mould and educate other ethics on the good old traditional chinese food that we grew up with? cos i bloody dont remember sweet and sour pork for dinner in my household.

oh and btw (im nearly finished ranting) i didnt agree with her slating chinese takeaways/restaurants, we ALL know that its unhealthy and geared towards the 'westerners', but remember these dishes were created to aid our parents to make an living when they first came here when the the english palate wasnt as refined.

word.

chunxueping · Joined: 24 Jun 2007 Posts: 474 Location: Surrey, UK

Ah that is not fair. Is just her accent, you wanna hear girls from Shaanxi province! As for being "Doe-eyed" well arent most of us?

"Traditional" food would be good TV though. How about receipes for cat, rat, squirrel, various penis receipe, chicken and goose gizards, chicken feet and "Still alive" fish?

LongXiaFong · Joined: 19 Jul 2008 Posts: 1

I for one am really pleased to see a Chinese person on British tv. Most Chinese are crying out for Chinese representation on TV. However it seems that as soon as that happens, you guys are trying to rip her down. People are talking about how she is not cooking Traditional food, HELLO, this is BBC2???!!!!! Obviously the food is geared towards English people, the programme is for England, duh. Its about time Chinese food got some representation on tv. Most English think Chinese is crap and unhealthy and its because of what our parents have served that has given Chinese food a bad name.

p.s. Egg and tomato is a really common dish in China, not all Chinese food is Cantonese food!

ahsams · Joined: 19 Jul 2008 Posts: 2 Location: london/kent

"Traditional" food would be good TV though. How about receipes for cat, rat, squirrel, various penis receipe, chicken and goose gizards, chicken feet and "Still alive" fish?
you and i both know that wasnt what i meant, and if that is traditional food in your household, then why not?

and just because she is a chinese person on telly, it doesnt mean the rest of us has to give her credit for that alone. if i or someone else find her to be annoying then its because i think she is. chinese or not. 'knocking them down' comments has something to do with personal opinion, just like your opinion brings her back up.

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