I was excited to see what book we’d end up reading especially since our list was a mix of some well-known reads & some more obscure titles. I’ve now put most of them of my own tbr & it looks like many of you agreed from the comments you sent in with the survey. I’m also happy to see folks saying that they’re loving the related poetry & the cookbooks we’re including. To that end, I wanted to share something that happened recently. I had a friend over & we decided we were hungry for some Chinese food. She was shocked when instead of ordering takeout, I whipped some up in just 19 minutes flat. She said that up until then, she always thought NYC take out would be quicker than cooking & also thought I only believed in “authentic” recipes. She’s right in that I do adore highlighting authentic recipes, but there’s also value in recipes that blend the backgrounds of a cook’s native country with their adopted one. It’s just that most people don’t ever check out the authentic recipes so they don’t ever know there’s a difference & that the original is delicious in a unique way. But I appreciate both & hope you do as well.
So as a counterpoint to the authentic Chinese cookbook I included in my last post (Mastering the Art of Chinese Cooking | view on Amazon), here’s the delightful cookbook I let my friend borrow which was written by someone from China who’s since moved to NYC.
The book was specifically created to demystify popular dishes from American Chinese takeout menus & includes quick/easy recipes. Also, since my friend made me promise to send her the recipe for the dish I made which isn’t included in this book, I’ll share that below as well.
But forget about cooking…
WHAT BOOK ARE WE READING?
It was a photo finish for this one with only .39 of a point separating the chosen book from the 2nd place winner! This is why it’s really important that you respond to the survey question that is asked to rate how appealing each book is to you—rather than try & put them in some sort of order marking the one you really want to read as “love” & your 2nd choice as “like”.
"Wildly imaginative, really interesting." - President Barack Obama
“A breakthrough book. A unique blend of scientific and philosophical speculation, politics and history, conspiracy theory and cosmology.” - George R. R. Martin
“The Three-Body Problem is the first chance for English-speaking readers to experience the Hugo Award-winning phenomenon from China.
Set against the backdrop of China's Cultural Revolution, a secret military project sends signals into space to establish contact with aliens. An alien civilization on the brink of destruction captures the signal and plans to invade Earth. Meanwhile, on Earth, different camps start forming, planning to either welcome the superior beings and help them take over a world seen as corrupt, or to fight against the invasion. The result is a science fiction masterpiece of enormous scope and vision.”
(A special thank you to book club member, Caity Greig for the group read suggestion.)
And here’s the recipe I promised above…
Easy Broccoli with Garlic Sauce (4 servings - 19 minutes to make)
Sauce Ingredients
1/2 cup vegetable broth (plain water or water with a bouillon cube also works)
2 TBSP soy sauce
1 TBSP toasted sesame oil
2 TBSP maple syrup
3 garlic cloves, minced
1-2 tsp red pepper flakes depending upon your spice preference
Note: I like my dish saucy so I usually double the sauce ingredients above.
Non-sauce Ingredients
6 cups broccoli florets or 1 (1 lb) bag frozen (You can use other veggies like Japanese eggplant, green beans, or mixed stir fry vegetables if you prefer)
2 tsp cornstarch
1 TBSP oil
Brown Rice
I used to buy minute rice or frozen rice, but now I just make extra any time I cook it & then freeze it flat in bags squeezing out all the air. Easy to store & reheats quickly without thawing. You can heat up the rice in the pan once you’ve added in your sauce, but I use resealable silicone bags which you can take from the freezer to the microwave. I then just open up the bag & heat in 1-minute increments on full power until hot. Here are the bags I use if you’re interested: Stasher Bags on Amazon. Saves money over the single-use plastic Ziploc bags & they’re better for the environment.
Directions
Cook the brown rice according to the directions (or heat up while the sauce is thickening in the last step below). The actual cook time for the dish aside from the rice is only 8-10 minutes so time it so your rice is ready when the dish is.
Mix all the sauce ingredients. Then, set aside 2 TBSP of the sauce in reserve in a separate cup. (If you’re doubling the sauce, then set aside 4 TBSP.)
Heat the oil in a large sauté pan over medium-high heat.
Once the oil’s hot, add the broccoli & sauté until it starts to soften (approx. 5 min.).
Mix all the sauce in with the broccoli except for the reserved sauce you set aside.
Stir the cornstarch into the reserved sauce until smooth & then add to pan.
Cook until the sauce thickens (approx. 3-5 min.)
Serve the broccoli & garlic sauce atop the brown rice. (If saving some for leftovers, store the rice separately so it doesn’t become mushy.)
Happy cooking & reading!