地三鲜 (di san xian)

A favorite in northeastern China, di san xian (lit. local three fresh), is a simple but delicious peasant dish made with seasonal vegetables, usually green peppers, eggplant, potatoes and lots of garlic (hence the translation, ratatouille). Disanxian is very quick to prepare and cook (needing 10 minutes total) and provides a substantial alternative to meat-based dishes.

Ingredients (for two)

Sunflower/vegetable oil for deep frying
2 potatoes (100g)
1 Japanese eggplant (long) (100g)
1 green sweet pepper (capsicum) (50g)
6 cloves garlic
1 spring onion (white part)
2 tablespoons soy sauce
½ teaspoon chicken salt
1 teaspoon cornstarch

Method

Peel and cut potatoes into half inch cubes
Cut eggplant in half down the middle and into 1 inch lengths
Cut peppers into 1 inch diamonds
Slice spring onion into thin strips, peel and cut garlic roughly
Heat 1 inch of oil in wok to medium heat
Add potatoes, cook till golden, remove
Add eggplant, cook till golden, remove
Add green pepper, cook briefly (10-20s), remove
Pour out oil, leaving some (about 2 tablespoons)
Add garlic and spring onion, cook till fragrant
Return potatoes, eggplant and peppers to wok
Add soy and chicken salt, turn in wok for a few seconds
Add cornstarch dissolved in about 3 tablespoons water
Mix until sauce thickens and serve

Serve with plain white rice.

When this dish is served it is common for there to be some oil present in the bottom of the dish. Drain vegetables on kitchen paper before returning to wok if this bothers you. To save time, do not remove each vegetable as it is cooked, but instead add potatoes, then after 1 minute add eggplant, then after 2 minutes add peppers and remove together when cooked.

Hong Kong Economic Times 2008/03/11
Qiu Shiwen

Employing a phased issuance of stock, the mainland offering of China Railway Construction Corp A-shares closed 28% higher than their initial public offering price on debut yesterday (March 10th), the lowest first day gain of any mainland stock issue in a year. Markets anticipate a 30% valuation gap between the mainland float and H-share release this Thursday in Hong Kong.

At the Shanghai Stock Exchange yesterday 1.96 billion China Railway Construction A-shares were traded, opening at 11RMB and closing at 11.64RMB, 28.19% higher than its initial public offering price of 9.08 RMB but still 30% below market forecasts. China Railway Construction is employing a phased float strategy that includes a 3.12 trillion RMB cap on A-share initial public offer purchases.

Securities Times analysts believe China Railway Construction A-shares underperformed consensus forecasts primarily due to a large drop in US stocks which caused a slide in the mainland share market. Low market volume and activity disproportionately suppressed China Railway Construction’s large-cap stock. On this ocasion, the rather high issue price also dampened investor enthusiasm.

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HK Government Should Grasp Opportunity to Control Power Plant CO₂ Emissions
Greenpeace HK press release
20/02/2008

On the occasion of the United Nations Global Climate Change Summit in Bali four Greenpeace representatives riding in two boats approached the CLP Coal Power Plant on Green Mountain (Qingshan), climbed to the top of a 30m high smoke stack and abseiled down, unfurling a 15m by 15m banner which read in giant characters “Climate Murder Ongoing Here”. They demanded that the Hong Kong government directly confront climate change at its source by controlling power station CO₂ emissions.

In Hong Kong residents are experiencing an abnormally cold winter. Actually it is the second severest winter since records began; the first one people still remember as if it were only yesterday. Climate change is already influencing the lives of all people, but power stations, which may be regarded as Hong Kong’s largest emitter of claimte disrupting CO₂ gases, are not subject to any controls. On the 20th of February the government will submit a draft to the Legislative Council preparing to amend the “Air Pollution Control Act” legislation which lays down limits, effective from 2010, on air polluting emissions of power stations. But will the government actually take this opportunity to regulate power station CO₂ emissions?

The Special Regional government has always downplayed the dangers of climate change. Power station emissions account for 70% of Hong Kong’s CO₂ and constitute the territory’s principle source of greenhouse gas. However, till now the government has shown no interest in curbing CO₂ emissions. Only in October last year it issued a report which revealed that it had reached a profit control agreement with electric companies without taking the chance to formulate related policies or provisions.

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五彩肚丝 (wucai tusi)

Shredded Tripe with Cilantro, Spring Onion, Wood Ear Mushroom and Carrot

by Huangdi @ www.abang.com

As the saying goes“In heaven they eat dragon, on earth we eat donkey” (in reference to its sublime flavour). Rich in nutrients, every 100g of donkey meat contains 18.6g of protein, carbohydrates, calcium, phosphates, iron and many kinds of amino acids essential to the body. Chinese medicine holds that eating donkey meat has two main benefits, namely, “invigorating vital energy and nourishing the blood” in addition to “nourishing the heart and settling the mind”. Possessing a fresh and smooth texture, one might call “five coloured shredded tripe” the pinnacle of (Chinese) cold dish cuisine.

Ingredients: 250g prepared donkey tripe, bunch cilantro, 2 spring onions, ½ cup dry wood ear mushroom, one carrot

Spices: 6 cloves garlic, 3 Tb mature vinegar, 1 Tb sugar, ½ tsp salt, ½ tsp chicken essence (or chicken salt), 2 tsp sesame oil

Method:

1. First soak wood ears until soft and rinse.

2. Cut donkey tripe into shreds.

3. Cut cilantro into small segments, then cut spring onion lengthways into fine threads, also cutting wood ears and carrot finely.

4. Peel and crush garlic into pulp and mix together with other ingredients.

5. Add salt, sugar, chicken essence, sesame oil and mature vinegar according to taste, or follow proportions suggested above.

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麻辣土豆片 (mala tudou pianr)

Usually made with thin potato slices, this recipe can be used to liven up shoe string fries as well.

Ingredients

Sunflower/vegetable oil for deep frying
4 medium potatoes
1 tablespoon of dry chilli flakes (or to taste) (dried chilli loses much of its heat in frying)
1 teaspoon Sichuan (Szechuen) Pepper
1 spring onion
Salt to taste

Method

Peel and cut potatoes into slices (about 3mm thick) and rinse off starch
Heat oil to just above moderate (i.e. not smoking hot)
Fry potato until light yellow colour
Add Sichuan pepper and chilli flakes to frying potato (in the hot oil) and reduce heat to medium/low
Continue cooking potato slices until golden
Remove with slotted spoon and let drain (fragrant pepper and chilli should cover each slice)

Serve immediately. Garnish with chopped spring onion, add salt to taste.

This dish varies from restaurant to restaurant, so experiment!

Other popular additions include cilantro garnish, coarse black pepper, whole dried chillis, chilli powder and Szechuen peppercorns (花椒粒, Xanthoxylum seeds).

Note: The term mala translates roughly as “numbing and hot". The heat obviously derives from the chillis, but the “numbing” sensation is caused by the Szechuen pepper. English does not have a word for this sensation because no Western culture uses ma spices in its cooking. If you’re curious, corriander seeds give this sensation when eaten, but be careful, the “taste” is very intense!

HK Experts: Jiang Faction Promoting Power of Party “Princes”
New Tang Dynasty Television 08/03/2008
Liang Zhen in HK reporting

According to overseas shortwave news reports, Deng Xiaoping’s son, Deng Pufang and HuYaobang’s son, Hu Deping, may have been made vice-chairmen of the CCPPC (Chinese People’s Consultative Conference) in recent days. There is a long history of the offspring of CCP leaders being promoted to leadership positions at national assemblies. Though analysis suggests Hu Jintao feels indebted to party princes, Hong Kong specialists in Chinese affairs suggest that in fact the power of these princes is being promoted by the Jiang faction.

Following the central political role played by seventeen great party princes last year, many heavyweight princely figures reappeared at the two assemblies of the Political Consultative Conference held this year, including Mao Zedong’s two daughters, Li Min and Li Ne, Mao’s grandson, Mao Xinyu, Zhou Enlai’s niece, Zhou Bingjian, Li Peng’s daughter, Li Xiaolin and others, among whom Deng Xiaoping’s eldest son, Deng Pufang, and HuYaobang’s son, Hu Deping, were recently made assembly vice-chairs.

Though analysis by Reuters suggests the reason for this is Hu Jintao’s wish to repay the patronage of Deng Xiaoping and Hu Yaobang, Hong Kong Open Magazine’s executive editor Cai Yongmei who has made a deep study of the party prince problem suggests that this kind of Communist bloodline, of “old revolutionaries and their children”, has in fact been realized by assiduous maneuvering by the Jiang faction.

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