Inspired by this article from NY Times: https://www.nytimes.com/2019/12/24/up…
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Interesting piece. I live in an area where most of the Chinese restaurants are ‘American Chinese’, so it strikes home. I favors other regional Chinese cuisines but there’s always room for some good Mongolian Beef or Orange Chicken in my life. It’s a matter of managed expectations.
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The pay day for cooking what so many enjoy is encapsulated at the end of the film – “surviving to thrive”. Thriving for a good portion of those surviving means that their kids are now working just as hard as teachers, code hammerers, pharmacists, architects, investment analysts, or even . . . (of course) doctors . . . or . . .
Most of those dishes really are classics to us, because their appeal has earned them a prominent place in American culture. That’s as authentic as it gets . . . a good product as fuel that propels families to better themselves and the world around them.
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I enjoyed that.
I loved how open minded they were and, in trying some American Chinese dishes, how much they liked them!
Confession - I love shrimp in lobster sauce, it’s one of the first “adult” dishes my dad, a new york jew, taught me, a midwestern jew, to make. So seeing their joy in a dish I liked? Pretty fun.
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I remember Pu pu platters for 16 th birthdays someplace in New York (Hawaii Kai?), but it was the shrimp toast I think I’m going to have to try to make that again.
Also, fromm.j ny NTC in the 6]'s and 7’s, the spare ribs, with the mustard that made my dad’s nose run, jayve brought home in those foil lined bags. Those were precious, and now that I can afford, I can’t find them! Was that an "outer boroughs " thing?
My Dad was a new yorker who traveled much, was open but also stayed true to his roots.
The spare ribs he adored, I now know as “St. Louis Style Ribs.”
Here’s a sample recipe -
When he could not get the chinese mustard that made his nose run, he’d get powdered Colman’s mustard, and mix it up fresh, as a substitute.
Oy vey iz mir; the typos! Thank you for understanding.
Yayy! I love that cut! And I do mix my mustard from dried. Interesting that it only “works” for awhile.
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And there is a link to a shrimp toast recipe in the same story!
Have you, or anyone else here made these? Where it says " I like to start them on a rack set in a baking sheet covered with aluminum foil to prevent excessive moisture loss, then finish them by removing the foil, cranking up the heat,", that means the foil goes on top of the ribs, not lining the pan, right?
Actually - he does both. He lines the pan with foil (otherwise clean up is a BEAR, my dad could tell you that) and then more foil on top, to prevent moisture loss. Don’t seal the foil, or you’ll be steaming them.
Did not see the shrimp toast recipe, will look for it!
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That’s what I was thinking!
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Most of their children don’t want to continue run their chinese restaurant food business thats the bad side and the good side about chineses restaurant they bring it around the globe.
One of my friends is an older, born and raised in Hong Kong gal. Now lives in LA. In addition to being smart and heaps of fun, she is an amazing food resource. She invited me to try out a new chinese restaurant in our area that offered dim sum. (For real dim sum we have to drive at least 20 minutes, this place was five minutes. Yes, I know, it’s not a hardship to drive for less than an hour for good food but she still wanted to check it out.)
She looked at the menu and was so sad. “This is American Chinese. Not Chinese.”
And unfortunately, their dim sum was not very good. But? Her response to the black bean chicken that I ordered? “This good! This is actually good!”
So yes to what the Fung Bros discovered - that folks can make “American Chinese food” that still calls back to it’s origins - and is pretty darn good.
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Wow! Those look awesome! (I hope they tasted as good as they look.)
And I’ll bet you were extra happy about the foil lined pan : )
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SOOO happy! Making another "serving " tonight,
Okay so, the taste matched your memories? Seems like you liked it! : ) 
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Yes, and I liked it a lot.
My memory was of never having enough. I think I may have had enough.
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