My Shanghai

January 18, 2021
Blogger Liu debuts with an impressive collection of Shanghainese recipes inspired by her family’s cooking. Following the cuisine’s tradition, Liu organizes chapters by season, with stews and citrus in winter and chilled dishes and green teas in summer. Liu celebrates regional preferences for seafood and pork in dishes such as scallion-roasted fish and pork-stuffed fried dough (whose sauced exterior she describes as “wrinkly like a soaked cloth”), and champions buns and dumplings as well. Common among many of the recipes are techniques of steaming, braising, and saucing with a glaze of soy sauce, wine, and sugar. Her cooking tips (such as preserving the color of bright purple eggplant by soaking it in vinegar before cooking) prove valuable for making fare that’s both gorgeous and delicious. Woven among the recipes and photos are tales from her cooking adventures, such as foraging for wild bamboo near the city of Hangzhou for her oil-braised spring bamboo recipe. This handsome work is perfect for lovers of Chinese cuisine and for home cooks of all stripes.

February 15, 2021
Shanghainese cuisine has become much better known in the U.S., thanks to the popularity of one of its iconic dishes: xiao long bao, those magical steamed dumplings filled with soup. As a port city, Shanghai has had centuries of influence from a host of foreign cultures as well as from the rest of China. Liu, whose popular food blog has done much to promote Shanghai's cooking, offers her take on the city's food by categorizing its many dishes into the year's seasons. Based in Boston, Liu has relied on the dishes her mother prepared. Wontons are a particular favorite, which Liu presents in several sizes and guises. Much of the book focuses on red-braised dishes, whether a sea bass or the author's sentimental favorite, red-braised pork belly. Bright color photographs of finished dishes and step-by-step illustrations of techniques for complex forming of dumplings make recipes even more attractive. Access to a full range of fresh and preserved ingredients is a requirement, but Liu adeptly inventories and explains items and procedures.

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March 1, 2021

While the spicy foods of Szechuan and Xi'an have received attention recently, there is a broad range of Chinese cooking, including the more subtle flavors of Jiangnan cuisine, which focuses on the natural flavors of ingredients, with the emphasis on fish, rice, and vegetables as well as flavors such as soy and vinegar. My Shanghai is an homage to Liu's family's cooking and the culinary history of the Shanghai region. This is Liu's first book, which sprang from her blog, bettysliu.com, which explores her interests in recipes and photography. Arranged by season, as befits Jiangnan cuisine, this collection includes recipes for all kinds of meals and snacks, including stir-fries, dumplings, noodles, and soups. In addition, there is a good explanation of the Shanghainese pantry. Many recipes call for ingredients, such as winter bamboo and celtuce, that will require a trip to an Asian market, but that is a part of the fun. VERDICT Photography of both the food and region is gorgeous and another way to travel without leaving home, and the clear recipes in this rich collection will delight home cooks looking to explore flavors and cooking styles.--Devon Thomas, Chelsea, MI

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