33:18:00

I hit 33 minutes and 18 seconds today for my 5k time! My best time in a loooonnngggg time. My goal is to run under 30 minutes. Should be no problem in a week or two. Running is not my favorite thing to do, but today I felt I broke some mental block and really was able to finish the last 1.5k easily. All of this after a terrible weekend of eating a HUGE hamburger at Malone's and cooking a whole leg of lamb for gyros on Sunday. I have lost 15 lbs since I got here, which I realize is now where near Tom's loss, but I feel good about it anyway. the sad part is that with that weight loss I am probably just now to what I should be and what I was a couple of years ago. Oh well. Good thing there are no Krispy Kremes or Skyline here!!! And no Erich, no pictures!

An Online THANKS to My Artistic Friend DIANA TULLIO

A year ago I found out that one of my best friends had an artist inside of her hiding! Julie, Kim, and I found the artist peeking out during a tattooing session in our hotel room during our trip to Monterrey last year. I was fooling around and asked for a tattoo of a bull on the back of my neck. Don't ask how much wine we had before I asked this. Read the whole description of the trip here, but check out the drawing I got on the back of my neck! It took several days to wash away. Then the artist hid again and we didn't hear from her again until the night before I was leaving Dayton. I received a wonderful pencil drawing that Diana had drawn. Well, I got see it electronically as the weather was too bad for Diana to make it in to Julie's that night. It was so good! In case you don't see it well, it is a picture of the Bramers (Tom, Shelly, and Natalie) with the Shanghai skyline in the back. And she had a card as well. The card reads:
Good-Bye... Sigh
Tom and Shelly and Natalie
have decided to leave the country.
They have packed their bags, and checked the nooks and crags
while racing about town frantically.

We have been planning our good-byes
amongst regrets and heartfelt sighs.
Except for some weirdo parent,
the Bramer's will leave with no apparent
need for anything but smiles and dry eyes.

Shelly gave notice at the old salt mine.
Then we drank all of Bill and Jeanne's wine.
A zillion lunches have come and gone, and
We have taken all occasions to "tie one on"!
Who will ever replace Shelly's penchant to dine?!

They will return some day.
We hope to visit them while they are away.
to go to China to live
is an opportunity not many would give,
so we will talk virtually and say...

Have a wonderful time in Shanghai!
We will miss you.
All our love,
5 Sisters

It definitely made me teary-eyed! (we had promised no tears). I finally received my drawings and card in one of the "care packages" that my wonderful friends sent me. Along with the Shanghai picture, Diana also crafted a "Shelma" picture for me based on the Velma character in the Scooby Doo series. Don't ask for an explanation that! I was so touched. I wanted to have them framed so that I could hang them up. I decided to go with over-the-top frames, but frankly I think they turned out beautifully! I am going to hang up the Bears somewhere in the living room. The Shelma will probably need to go in our bedroom. Tom thinks it is a little, well, weird, to have this picture hanging where we can see it in bed, but I think it is fitting! Oh, and besides the beautiful artwork, I also received a book of Haiku that Diana wrote with pictures from our California trip. Very impressive! One of my favorites is:

Big Sur - Part 2
Walk-a-bout rising
Surf and cliffs integrated
Heat, breeze, misty trail


I want to Diana to know how special her gifts are to me. On the occasion that I am having a Shang"low" day, I can look at the pictures and remember the great times I have had with my friends and how many we will have in the future. I have had a lot of opportunity to think about my life as it was up to this point and I more

clearly understand and appreciate

the role I have played with my friends and family up to this point. More importantly, I value the support that you get from a good set of friends, even if the miles

between them are great.

So, enough of my melancholy. A final shout out to Julie, Kim, Diane, and Diana. I love you and I miss you tons, but we are BFF and that is special!

Momma Mia - Natalie's First Musical

Yesterday afternoon we all went to the Shanghai Grande Theatre to see the international production of Momma Mia, the great musical based on ABBA's music. We had decided to take the chance that Natalie would love it. And love it she did. It was a bit loud, but she enjoyed it tremendously. She had some questions about the story. It was rather difficult to explain why Sophia thought she had three fathers, but luckily 4 year-olds accept explanations rather readily. She begged to wear her good dress (purchased last year for her grandparents 50th Wedding Anniversary) and tried it on with her sunglasses. How cool she looks, huh? She felt very grownup and was perfect through the whole show, of course asking a few questions where necessary. Tom and I enjoyed the show too. We had seen it with the US touring troupe in Dayton last year. It was interesting to hear the international troupe using British accents and British words instead of US words. Overall it was very good and I highly recommend you catch it if you have a chance. The theatre was beautiful as well. It seemed very full. It is located right on People's Square. We of course were over-dressed as we usually find we are. I am sure many of the attendees take public transportation to get there. There was a really cute older Chinese couple in front of us and they smiled and clapped through most of the musical numbers. I was sitting there thinking about if they had access to this music when they were younger and if they did, how did they. I know that ABBA music is really popular in the KTV (which is karaoke with video and is very popular here in Asia. There are while bars dedicated to KTV!). I was also interested to see what sort of rules would surround the "No entrance after show start" rule that is enforced stringently in the States, even at the small local theatres like Dayton. I think it is a fair generalization to state that the Chinese are not always the most "timely" when it comes to social activities. They are pretty easy going and it seems that showing up "fashionably late" is very fashionable. So no surprise that there many late entries. Almost through the whole first act. Of course the same problem occurred at the start of Act II. A little distracting, but part of the experience.

After the show was over, it was too early to go to dinner, so we headed home. Natalie has a new problem in that she gets car sick if she reads in the car and looking at the play guide in the car was enough to give her a tummy ache that prevented us from eating out once we got to Pudong. So we headed up to the clubhouse for the Sunday buffet at Ajo Blanco. They have a new menu this is a bit more kid friendly. They also have a new Chef who came out and asked Natalie if she wanted to see the kitchen. So she got to back and see the whole kitchen, the freezer, etc. She was pretty excited when she got back. I included some pics of her and her dad goofing at dinner. Another good day in Shanghai...

On Being a Momma Bird

I believe that my mother would attest that I have always had a pretty active imagination. I can basically imagine an answer for any question you ask me and I can imagine a solution for any problem you have. However, I have learned that my level of activity is no where near a four-year old's level. I had no idea how much effort it takes to sustain playing momma bird with Natalie for more than five minutes. I am good for the few first minutes when she wants fed and then I quickly fade into annoyance! Poor baby bird. Sometimes I want to just throw her out of the nest! Almost every day since I have spent time at home with Natalie she has pretended to be either a baby bird and I have to be the momma bird, or a puppy and I have to be the mommy dog. At first it was cute, but now we have a rule that she has to ask if it is OK to play and do I want to play too. I know that sounds harsh, but trust me, the use of my imagination in this particular game tends to suck all the life out of my head! My theory is that the game allows Natalie to impose a significant amount of dependence on me and my mental state simply breaks down and blocks it! What a tremendous defense capability a human brain can exhibit.

Well, I have to make this a short. I have to go play mommy koala bear...

City Cycling

Before Tom and I decided to take this opportunity in Shanghai, I had decided to treat myself to a new road bike (bicycle, not motorcycle!) at the beginning of 2007. I had a Terry Symmetry all picked out and had even visited the dealer to ensure I could order it locally to ensure a good fit. I have loved cycling for a long time, but 15 years ago I traded my road bike for a mountain bike. I quickly found that riding downhill on single-track was even more fun than riding on the road. But, alas, I found at the age of 40 that mountain biking required a much higher level of physical capability, and I knew that if I was not in good shape and could not meet the demands of a ride, I could get injured. So, back to the road for me!

And then we decided to move. No problem. I still treated myself once I got here! I looked for a month or so and then hooked up with a local bike shop and riding group, SISU. They make custom bikes as well as tuning purchased frames. While I originally wanted a road bike, they talked me into a good mountain bike frame with upgraded components to ride more easily on the roads here. There are a lot of traffic hazards (other bikes, motorcycles, carts, taxis who don't follow any traffic rules, etc.) that require more handling ability on the bikes So, I am now the proud owner of a Giant 790 MTB. Outfitted with disk brakes (these are the bomb!) and good Shimano components. Other than not being able to find any riding clothes that fit me, cycling is awesome. I have learned to appreciate the extra kilometers you can get out of a ride when you have a good pad in your shorts! Ha ha, no jokes about my "available" padding please!

So where to ride? I haven't ventured out for any rides with the SISU group yet. I want to get in shape first. They ride every Sunday to the ocean. It is about a 60k ride. So it takes about 3 hours riding at a good clip. I am riding 2-3 times a week for 0:45-1:30 depending on the day and weather. There is a lot of traffic to navigate through, so sometimes the wrong route can leave you exhausted, but overall it is great out and see Shanghai at a little slower pace than normal. There are many bike paths that run along the canals, and I enjoy the one that SISU takes to the ocean, though I have not ridden the entire way yet. You see the most interesting things in the morning when I ride. Many, many Chinese just stay in their pajamas when they go out for their morning walk to breakfast or shopping. And you see many young men playing pool at outdoor pool tables. When I ride by the canals I get to see fishermen pulling strange looking fish and eel-like things from the water. They place them in little plastic bags and tie them up. Then they lay them down in the basket of their bike and head off. Likely to be heading home to prepare breakfast of river slugs. Yuk. It really is a good way to get a feel for the roads here in Shanghai. I had a heck of a time getting through a section of Century Blvd that was somewhat under construction. I rode down an empty street towards traffic but a traffic control dude made me turn around and head backwards. Not sure why that road was closed other than to help control the flow. I have gotten lost a few times, but luckily there are good tall buildings that serve as good landmarks. Oh, and yes mother, I always wear my helmet!

Hosting Our First Dinner Party

Last night we hosted our first dinner party. The invitees included our Mandarin teacher Sammie, and three of her friends. Her room mate Sarah, Sammie's friend Annie, and Annie's boyfriend Jared. In the picture at the table, from left to right around the table are: Annie, Jared, Natalie, me, Zhong Cai Zhen (our Ayi), Sammie, and Sarah. There were many "firsts" for the Bramer's during this party: the guests brought 95% of the food, the guests did ALL of the cooking, and oh, we were the only native English speakers in attendance! Jared and Annie did all of the cooking for us. All I had to do was provide the drinks and some fruit for dessert. What a deal! They are all from other parts of China other than Shanghai. Sammie and Sarah are from Fujian province and Annie and Jared are from the Sichuan province. Sichuan is home to Szechuan cuisine and since that was the home of our cooks, some of the dishes were a bit spicy (yummy). The menu changed a bit after they arrived as they realized that a few ingredients were missing, but we had a total of 10 dishes! They got to our house around 5 and we ate around 7. So in two hours they did all of the prep and all of the cooking. I had no idea what types of dishes would be needed, but we got by with the few Chinese serving ware I had. I asked the Ayi to come and help and so we invited her to join our meal as well. I think she really enjoyed that! That included some small rice bowls, some Chinese style soup spoons, and lots of serving dishes. Here is the menu:

1. Jing Jiang Rou Si (Pork with Leeks)
2. Tu Dou Niu Rou (Beef with potatoes)
3. Ma Po Dou Fu (Literally translates to Freckled Grandmother To Fu!)
4. Shou Si Juan Xin Cai (Water Spinach with Pork)
5. Hui Guo Rou (Twice cooked pork)
6. Dou Fu Yu Pian (Fish with ToFu)
7. Rou Yuan Tang (Pork Ball soup)
8. Hong Jiao Rou Si (Pork with Peppers)
9. Liang Ban Xi Heng Shi (Tomatoes with Sugar)
10. Qing Jiao Tu Dou Si (Potatoes with Green Peppers)

Everyone had their own favorites. Personally I enjoyed the Jing Jiang Rou Si (Pork with Leeks) and the Qing Jiao Tu Dou Si (Potatoes with Green Peppers). I took the leftover potatoes and fried them up like hash browns this morning. Very spicy and tasty!!! At the end of the meal, I made everyone try my home brewed pijiu (beer) which I am not sure was received with the same enthusiasm as the rest of the dinner. Regardless, a great time was had by all, and no one was hungry! And we had plenty of leftovers Sunday. We also captured some good videos (Natalie did most of the recording so beware of low camera angles!), you can find them on our main china page. Unfortunately I did not complete all of the recipes, but will post as I fine-tune the details with our guests via email.

Making Zongsi with the Ayi

I have really been cooking up a storm these past few weeks, but seem to not be able to find the extra time to put the results out here! So, today I will put a few posts out specifically targeted at the recipes and cooking here in Shanghai.

A few weeks ago was the Chinese Dragon Boat festival which, as most holidays in China, has a rich history associated with it. This festival is in commemoration of Qu Yuan (340-278 BC). Qu Yuan was minister of the State of Chu and one of China's earliest poets. Long story short, he died in a river and people threw Zongzi (pyramid-shaped glutinous rice dumplings wrapped in reed or bamboo leaves) and eggs into the water to divert possible fish or shrimp from attacking his body. So, the Chinese make and consume the Zongzi during the festival. Sort of like making Christmas cookies for Santa I guess! I had never really tried them, so I asked the Ayi to show me how to make them. So we did! The recipe for the dumplings is actually quite straight forward. Note that I didn't really give good measures here, I think it depends a lot on the number you are making. The amounts I listed made the 10 or so that we finished. I uploaded some videos of her wrapping and I think you can see how complicated it is to wrap. It is generally in a shape of a tetrahedron, which means it is a four-faced triangle. For the engineers reading, got take a look and go for it! The Ayi told me that it took many years for her to wrap on her own. She was 30 before she could do well. So, I guess I have to make these for another 18 years until I can do it on my own (she was 12 when she first helped her mother make them!). They actually do taste quite good. There are dessert versions as well, with dates or other dried fruit in them. I didn't like the sweet ones as well as the savory, they seemed too sweet.

Oh, and one final lesson I learned. I learned to use my rice cooker for something other than cooking plain rice! We used it to steam the ZongZi. We placed the Zonzi into the metal bowl where the rice and water usually go and filled it with water. Cool. Also, the Ayi saw that I was going to hard boil an egg and talked me into adding the raw eggs (in the shell) to the cooker too. The eggs were cooked along with the ZongZi and the flavor that the bamboo leaves imparted on the eggs was really good. I recommend everyone trying their rice cooker for more than just rice! I think of it as a Chinese crock pot!

Enjoy!
--------------------------------------------------------------

Pork ZongZi (Steamed Rice Dumplings)

1 1/2 Cup Glutenous Rice (also known as "sticky rice")

1/2 Cup Dark Soy Sauce

1/2 lb Pork (should be something fatty to ensure it is moist when cooked, we used Pork Butt)

1 tsp sugar

1/2 tsp Chicken granules

Bamboo Leaves for wrapping (takes at least four leaves per dumpling)

- Before using bamboo leaves, they will need to be washed 2-3 times. Let them soak in the sink in clean water and use your fingers to wipe off any dirt. After washing, let them dry. You can do this before you start the rest of the recipe to ensure the moisture is dry before folding into ZongZi.

Wash and drain rice well. Add enough soy sauce to ensure that all grains are well coated. Slice the pork into 1/2 inch cubes, distributing the fat! Pour remaining soy sauce onto cubed pork. Let the the rice and pork soak separately in this sauce for a couple of hours. Add sugar to rice and stir. Add chicken stock granules to rice and mix. Pour off excess soy sauce from pork into the rice mixture. Mix rice well. Now for the wrapping...

Not sure what to say here as it was pretty complicated. Start with three leaves placed in overlapping style. Place a fourth leaf directly in the middle. Fold the first corner of the tetrahedral being sure to keep it closed at the point so that the filling does not ooze out. Then place in a tablespoon or so of of the rice mixture into the cup that is formed. Place a piece of pork on top in the middle and then more rice to the top of the rim of the leaves. press down to ensure that it is firm and then fold the leaves over the top and around to complete the tetrahedral. Then use some string to tie it. There. Doesn't that sound easy? Moving on...

Once you have made them you can cook them in a steamer or a rice cooker. We used our rice cooker. She cooked them for about an hour in the "cook" position, turned them over, and then cooked them for another hour in the "cook" position. Then she turned the cooker to "warm" and left them until we were ready to eat. They were very moist and the pork had really cooked perfectly. The taste of the rice was not bland at all which is what I had expected. So, except for the wrapping, I would love to do these again!

How long was Michael Jordan’s retirement?

Ask my golf buddies in Dayton – they will confirm that I had announced my retirement from golf 328 days ago.

But this week I decided to take a vacation day and go golfing with Shelly. Only in China, does one have to take a vacation day on July 4th (actually that would be the case in any country but the U.S.). I didn’t really have the urge to golf. I had a greater curiosity to try out the new golf clubs that Shelly and I purchased about a month ago. Shelly and I each purchased the latest model of Callaway gold clubs - knock-offs for about $150

I had been curious on how they would perform. Would they break? Would they having the same striking capability as my old set?

Well, I am glad to report that they are built very solidly. I know three things for certain; 1. the hosel is strong; 2. the toe of the club head is solid; 3. the shaft can withstand high G-forces.

Shelly and I ended up only playing 9 holes. We really weren’t prepared for the round of golf. First, it was tremendously HOT. Secondly, I didn’t bring any suntan lotion to protect my scalp. Third, we probably didn’t have time to finish 18 holes. Finally, I didn’t have enough golf balls to finish another 9 holes.

I better get to the point before Shelly does but Shelly beat me fair and square. I was even playing from the women’s tees. She out drove me, out hit me on the fairway, but I probably beat her once we got around the green chipping and putting. I was very proud of her game because she hadn’t played in over a year. Matter of fact, with a year’s rust we both walked to the tee-box without going to the driving range or even the practice putting green. Shelly did really well. My game yesterday reminded me why I had retired 328 days previous. But I had fun and I will play again.

As I indicated previously, the next time I will be better prepared. I need to buy some balls, a golf glove, some tees, and bring proper golf attire. They were not going to let me play because I was not wearing the proper golf outfit. The course requires a “golf shirt with a collar and sleeves”. I guess my Tommy Bahama golf shirt was not appropriate. It is odd because a Tommy Bahama golf shirt is probably more formal than a traditional golf shirt. It has a collar and buttons down the front - top to bottom. They told me that I had to change. I argued briefly but they said they would give me a shirt to wear instead. They brought me a long-sleeved turtle neck shirt. I went into the locker room to change. I couldn’t get it over my shoulders. I was ticked so I went back out and said that I wasn’t going to wear the shirt. Told them that I was leaving and to put the clubs in my car. Well, the starter quickly got permission that I could wear my own shirt this time but next time I had to comply. It is funny because not allowing me to play due to my shirt was similar to telling someone that they could not be admitted to a business casual dinner because they wore a jacket and tie. But that is China – rules are rules and you don’t break the rules

I'm back with a short story

A funny thing happened at lunch today.

I mentioned before that employees play ping-pong at lunch. The talent and skill are very good. I never play but I enjoy watching. There are always about 10 players waiting to rotate into the game. The table is right outside my office area. Today I was walking though the playing area and someone slammed the ball towards their opponent in play. The opposing player could not return the slam. I was watching and saw the action develop. The ping-pong ball was flying thru the air heading straight for my head (I was walking about 10 feet behind one of the players). Without breaking stride or showing any expression I calmly reached up with one hand and snagged the ball in mid-flight despite its very high rate of velocity. As I initially grabbed the ball I said to myself that people should be impressed by my skill and coordination. That was a short-lived thought because one-second later – the scenario changed. Oh, I still caught the ball but I also crushed the ball in my hand during the process.

Now there I was with the crushed ball in my hand with everyone looking at me. Yes, they were impressed with my athletic prowess but they also wanted their ball back. I panicked and quickly threw the crushed ball back to them without breaking my original stride.

When the ball landed on the table with a thud (instead of a ping) they all went “uh?” They interpreted my action as a sign of dis-satisfaction and the game quickly disbanded. Well, as of a result of their action I had to stop and apologize. I told them it was an accident and that they could keep playing. I think they understood but I guess they only had one ball – a flat one at that point.

Summer Update

Natalie had summer camp this past week and I am a little embarrassed to report that the break was sorely needed! I think you have to know your limits and while I love being at home with my daughter, it leaves me little time to focus on my own adjustment here in Shanghai. To make it even better, Tom was in India this week, so I cooked what I wanted or ate out if we didn't feel like it. The picture here of Natalie is from the porch at Slice, Natalie and I's favorite resteraunt. So, what did I do with all of that "me" time? Shopped of course! My forays into having custom clothes made at the fabric market left me desiring a simple trip to a store to buy what I wanted. So I headed to the Super Brand Mall (next to to the Pearl Tower) and went to H&M. It is a store, originally established in Sweden, which truly carries western sizes. Sort of like a European Gap. So, I spent $100 US dollars! But I did get two pairs of Capri's, two skirts, and a tank top. Not too bad. I should explain about the bottoms I bought. I know it will be hard for anyone who knows me to believe, but I now own 4 casual skirts and, more surprisingly, I wear them! Outside. Where people can see me. I have found that when I wear my usual shorts here, I attract more attention than I desire. Not because I look so good, but because I look so different. So, I have taken to wearing more "acceptable" clothing such as Capri's and skirts. One thing that has been a benefit of this new style is that I learned how much cooler skirts can be hear during the rainy season. Ya get a nice breeze! Besides the shopping, I did spend some time cooking this week. I blog some recipes separately, but you can check out the new You Tube videos of our Ayi making us Zongzi! How fun!!!

So, enough of me. You are probably wondering how Natalie's camp went. It went a lot better than I thought it would. She was a little "iffy" on the first day, but another girl who knew her from swimming, took her under her wing and she adapted quickly! Of course I am not there during the day, but the teachers assure me she has done well. There are not a lot of younger children at camp, maybe 4-5 her age in the morning, but only 2-3 in the afternoon. Surprisingly, the new friend she talks about the most is Linda, who is 12. She is Asian, but speaks perfect English. She adores Natalie! Linda has a younger sister, but the sister is older than Natalie by a few years. Regardless of what drew them together, the two seem to be pretty inseparable except with they split the older and younger kids for certain activities. They do arts & crafts and a lot of outside sports. One day, Natalie told me her favorite activity was soccer. SURPRISE! She did caveat the statement by telling me that "they only practiced, no game". Natalie last year refused to play in her soccer team's games, though she was perfectly willing to do the drills in practice. For some reason, she doesn't like activities where there is a clear winner and loser. Oh well, I would rather have her that way then the other I guess. She has camp again next week and she is already talking about what they are going to do. So, that has been a success.

For those of you who might be interested, we have booked our flights home for Christmas break. You can check out the calendar here. Natalie and I will be home a month, but Tom can't take as much time. We all fly home December 17 and then Tom heads back on January 4th. Natalie and I are going to be in the States until January 17. Natalie will miss the Christmas parties at school, but we thought that would be no bid deal this year. We already know we will head home for the summer in 2008.

Summer is Here!

HOT... HUMID... MOSQUITOS... EMPTY...

This is the theme of Shanghai in the summer. And it is definately hot and humid. The rainy season is upon us and when it doesn't rain, you sort of find yourself hoping it does rain. That way it justifies the level of humidity you have to live in. But I am definately not complaining. Tom and I have lived in Indiana or Ohio our whole lives. I think we can learn to adjust to different weather, if not, then this trip is probably not going to be successful.

Besides adapting to summer, we have been busy saying goodbye to all of our new friends. We seem to be the only expats here that decided to stay this summer. So why did we stay? Well, it seemed like we just got here and coming home so soon didn't see necessary. That is the story and we are sticking to it! Natalie had a last chance to play with her new friend Jessie, who will be going to kindergarten at the school, Concordia, too. They have a ballet class together and seemed to hit it off well. We went to the Shanghai Children's museum with Jessie, her mom Heidi, and her brother Timmy. We had a good time, as we always do at the museum. This was Natalie's third trip in three months. I think it is safe to say it is her favorite field trip so far! Tonight we are going to have dinner and play cards with the Miller's, some new friends. They are leaving next week. It will be nice to have an evening that is similar to how we spent some of our time in Ohio: grillin' & chillin'. Their two girls, Jamie and Lauren, are very sweet and are very good with Natalie. They are in 4th and 5th grades at Concordia, so Natalie thinks that is totally cool to hang out with older girls from "her school".

My mother is coming on August 3, so I have to get ready for that. I am so excited to have our first visitor! Plus I have lots of projects to help me with while she is here. I want to have some painting done, and some cushions for our patio furniture made. She can help me build some epxertize on selecting fabric and buying items from the fabric market. Plus she is going to bring some things with her that we cannot find here. Like dry mustard and pancake syrup.

Chinese Cooking Class - Crispy Beef

I took a Chinese cooking a few weeks ago at a local Chinese restaurant. Some girlfriends here told me about it. For 100 RMB you get an hour of cooking and 2 hours of eating! Best deal is Shanghai. The restaurant is Hong Qiao Ren Jia Restaurant, and they serve what is known is Shanghaise style food. It is located at 406 Wulumuqi Nan Lu which is way over in the French Concession. In fact, very close to the U.S. Consulate building. The cooking menu was spicy beef and an almond dessert. The dessert was not so good, so I did not even try to cook. It was basically a simple flan with almond flavoring, but they serve it in sprite with fruit floating in it. Weird. But the beef was good. The chef spoke only Chinese so there was a translator who helped those of who are Mandarin-impaired. But again I observed the strange phenomena of many Chinese words (sometimes a couple of minutes worth) being boiled down into a few simple sentences by the translator. This is one of the main reasons I want to learn mandarin: what are all of the extra words for???? Anyway, the cooking was interesting. The lunch they served us afterwards was unbelievable. It was not the best food I have ever had (that award is still with Emeril's Delmonico restaurant in New Orleans!), but there were at least 25 different dishes on our zhuan pan (that lazy susan thing in the middle of the table). I tried some new things: sheep stomach (not good), rice with whole crabs in it (good), sweet and sour water chestnuts (very good) among others. It would have been nice if there was a list of what we ate so I could mark it. Some things I would recognize in a picture menu, but not all. It was a really good way to try to a lot of different things. There were lots of people who knew Chinese food at our table, so they could help me out with what I might be tasting. I tried everything on the table and other then the sheep stomach, all was pretty good.

So, it took me a while, but I finally made the recipe for the spicy beef they made. I couldn't find the bread crumbs they used and that took me a few days. And yes, this is a fried dish, so you wouldn't want to fix it a lot, but it was different and pretty good. The one thing that is a bit hard is the ingredient referred to as the crispy dried Chile. The ingredient that they used in the restaurant came in a small container and they told us that we had to buy it from this restaurant because we would have a hard time buying somewhere else. It is one of their signature dishes and I guess using hard to find ingredients makes is unique! Surprisingly enough, they had a whole box of these containers available for all of us to buy. I think that you can substitute pretty easily with a small mixture I have noted in the notes. Enjoy!
----------------------------------------------------------
Zi Ran Xiang Cui - Crispy Beef with Cumin
1/2 lb Beef Fillet (can use traditional fillet or thigh meat)
3 1/2 Tbs. Breadcrumbs
1 tsp chicken stock granules
2 Tbs crispy Dried Chili (see notes on substitution)
1 Tbs cumin
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
Peanut oil for frying
Marinade:
1 egg white
2 tsp Oyster Sauce
2 tsp corn starch
1 tsp Sugar
1 tsp Black Soy Sauce (this is a lot less saltier!)
1 tsp Chinese Wine (Shoaxing Jiu or similar)

Slice beef into square slices, 1"x 2". Make marinade. Mix beef with marinade and place in fridge for 6 hours or overnight. If using really tender fillet, less time is needed! Heat peanut oil in pan to medium temperature. Coat beef slices with bread crumbs. Deep fry, for 30-45 seconds per side. Do not brown too much! If oil is too warm, cook for less time. Remove beef from oil and drain will on paper. When beef is finished frying, add dried chili, chicken stock, cumin, salt, and pepper to a heated wok or pan. Put heat on medium flame and add beef. Mix beef thoroughly with dry ingredients. Serve warm.

Notes:
If you don't know where to find the "crispy dried chili", and frankly, I can't even find it here, try this simple mix: rice crackers (the pretzel rod slices looking one), sesame seeds, peanuts, chili oil or just olive oil with lots of red pepper. Mix to your liking, you only need a few tablespoons. When I made it for Tom and Natalie, I just mixed in some sesame seeds with a little bit of red pepper, and it was fine. You just will miss the extra crunchiness from the dried chile's. But, if you can find plain dried chile's, try soaking them in some oil (olive would be fine) with the other ingredients. I think this might come close.

As I said, I made a special non-peanut none-spicy for 2/3 of the family. I ate mine with my special spicy stuff on it. It was interesting to take really expensive (well, here it is cheap) meat and deep fry it, but it was pretty good. I served with rice of course!