Mary Sia's Chinese Cookbook

Easy-to-follow directions for the preparation of 300 time-tested Chinese dishes, requiring only readily available ingredients, are provided here by Mary Sia, who for 32 years has been conducting classes in the art and science of Chinese cooking, both in China and in Hawaii.

More than a mere recipe book, this volume delves into the cultural, economic, and aesthetic reasons why the Chinese eat what they eat and prepare it as they do. For the amateur as well as the expert, the book provides simple, everyday dishes, as well as elaborate ones for formal entertaining.

In those instances where ingredients are difficult to obtain, Mrs. Sia suggests substitutes. Among the "mysteries" of Chinese cooking which Mrs. Sia reveals are how to heighten the color, retain the original texture, enhance the natural flavor, mask undesirable qualities, and achieve a pleasant uniformity in the size and shape of the ingredients which go into a particular dish. Graphic illustrations supplement the text.

Mary Sia's Chinese Cookbook is seasoned with interesting bits of Oriental lore, and the age-old charm of China is in its pages, tempting the reader to try one enticing recipe after another.