Since I’ve been living at the beach there have been a lot of picnics. A lot, a lot. So many picnics. I mean, when I make a meal I have two options, sit at the table in my apartment staring at the wall, or walk 5 minutes and sit on
I Wouldn’t Expect to Like This But…
There is a secret food in China that people in the south eat almost everyday, yet in other countries it’s virtually impossible to find outside of a dim sum restaurant or Chinatown. That food? The slimy, squishy but amazingly delicious changfen. It comes from Cantonese dim sum food, but it
10 Signs You've Lived in China a Long Time
I’m fast approaching my five year anniversary in China and I find it almost laughable when people ask me if I’m accustomed to life in China. If I wasn’t I should just pack it in at this point! In fact, I take many aspects of life in China, once considered
Eating Sugar Right From the Cane
I’m a candy freak. Super crazy candy freak. Once in college my friend told me he would give me a thousand dollars if I gave up candy for one month. I didn’t even try. So yeah, candy freak. There is a snack in China that seems right up my alley
Making Noodles and Dumplings: A Photo Essay
One of my new classes invited me to their dumpling party to celebrate the New Years. Eating dumplings and noodles is tradition to bring luck to the new year. As students don’t have a kitchen at their disposal they rented one to use at a nearby restaurant. It was my
The Voyage of a Fish in China
I should start by saying I am not a fan of eating fish. But I’m in the clear minority here in China. In almost every restaurant there is a tank, or small cooler filled with fish just waiting to be eaten, and every supermarket has a tank. In fact, when
Pomelo: Totally Worth the Effort
Every year at about this time we see these huge citrusy things showing up on the fruit stands. Some of them have wrappers with the word grapefruit on it, and I’ve never really been interested in trying them. Not a big grapefruit fan. But a few weeks ago I was
Eating History: Peking Duck and Liqun Restaurant
Even for budget travelers like ourselves, you can’t go toBeijing without tasting a little of the local specialty: Peking duck. A good restaurant can set you back several hundred kuai (a small fortune to us) but it’s totally worth it. Our favorite duck restaurant is called Liqun, a
Street Food of Pingyao
You can’t go far in the tiny ancient city of Pingyao without hearing the street cry of a food vendor, and more often then not, Ryan and I would answer that call. Pingyao had some of the most unique street food I had never seen before, much of it bread
Kaifeng's Night Market
Kaifeng has some ancient buildings, historical pagoda’s and astounding sculptures but that the people really come for is the night market. Held in the middle of the city every night the night market is overflowing with skewers of meat, pounded peanut cakes, breads cooked in small charcoal ovens and lots