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Chinese Cooking Techniques

Chinese cooking is resourceful cooking. Steaming, stir-frying, braising, roasting – each technique brings out the best flavor and texture of foods. We'll guide you through cooking techniques that help you develop your own cooking style. Incorporating a variety of Kikkoman sauces will ensure you prepare an impressive array of flavorful foods.

Braising:
Braising browns ingredients in oil quickly, then cooks them over low heat, covered, in a heavy pan with a little liquid to keep foods moist. This is a great way to cook tougher cuts of meat (such as roasts), sturdier vegetables (such as potatoes or other root vegetables) or poultry. Kikkoman Stir-Fry Sauce and Kikkoman Teriyaki Marinade & Sauce add rich flavor to braised dishes.

Deep-frying:
In Chinese deep-frying, ingredients may be marinated first, then coated in a batter or dredged in cornstarch. Oil is added to a wok or skillet to enable the food to be covered in the oil. For most ingredients oil temperature should be at 365°F. Use a frying thermometer to test the heat. Fry a few pieces of food at a time to keep the heat of the oil constant. Drain fried foods on a rack or on paper towels.

To avoid spatters, make sure the ingredients are dry before submerging them in the oil. For some fried food, such as egg rolls, you can fry partially until light golden, then refrigerate and refry just before serving. Kikkoman Sweet & Sour Sauce's perfect balance of flavor makes an excellent dipping sauce for fried foods.

Red-Cooking:
Cooking whole poultry, and large cuts or cut-up pieces of meat, in a soy sauce infused liquid gives dishes a mahogany or "red" coloring. Brown ingredients in oil quickly, then cook over low heat, covered, in a heavy pan with enough liquid to make a sauce. And, leftover red-cooked dishes can taste better days later. The sauce can be reused over and over with fresh cuts of meat to create a richer "master sauce." Kikkoman Soy Sauce is an essential ingredient for the deep color and flavor provided by this technique.

Roasting:
This method cooks foods in the oven using dry heat. Usually, roasted foods are marinated before roasting or brushed with sauce during roasting. Kikkoman Soy Sauce, Kikkoman Teriyaki Marinade & Sauce and Kikkoman Stir-Fry Sauce are easy ways to add the perfect seasoning to this technique.

Steaming:
When foods are cooked by steaming instead of boiling, water-soluble nutrients are retained. To steam, put food in a steamer basket and put the basket into a wok with boiling water below the basket level. Or use a collapsible metal steamer in an ordinary pot. Cover the wok or pot to keep the steam from escaping. Kikkoman Lite Soy Sauce is the perfect addition to the delicate flavors of steamed dishes.

Stir-frying:
In this cooking method, cut-up foods are tossed briskly over high heat. Because the action is quick, all foods must be prepped and sauce ingredients measured before the actual cooking begins. Heat oil in a wok or large skillet. Add ingredients and toss vigorously. The hot oil seals in the juices. Add a little liquid toward the end.

To keep some food from overcooking while others are underdone, cook in batches with ingredients of similar density cooked together. Start with the items that take longer to cook, then add ones that cook quicker so everything is done at the same time. Be sure to use a wok or skillet that's large enough so ingredients aren't too crowded, which results in steaming instead of sizzling. Kikkoman Stir-Fry Sauce, Kikkoman Soy Sauce, and Kikkoman Teriyaki Marinade & Sauce are excellent choices for stir-fried foods.