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Apr 20, 2016

Yangchow Fried Rice and Chinese Jamaican Stir-Fried Chicken with Chayote for Wok Wednesdays

This week I am bringing you two Wok Wednesday dishes, Yangchow Fried Rice and Chinese Jamaican Stir-Fried Chicken with Chayote. 

Yangchow Fried Rice

Yangchow Fried Rice is a simple yet flavorful dish to make. It is a classic dish served at a Chinese banquet toward the end of the meal and it's an amazingly simple dish to prepare. There are only five ingredients (eight if you count the oil, salt, and pepper). No garlic, no ginger, and no soy sauce.


Yangchow Fried Rice

It begins with stir frying shrimp in a small amount of oil, and then adding cooked long grain rice, peas, ham, scallions, salt, and white pepper. It's so tasty, and makes a great side dish or main dish. Make the rice the day before with just rice and water, fluff it, and put in the refrigerator.

Chinese Jamaican Stir-Fried Chicken with Chayote

Chinese Jamaican Stir-Fried Chicken with Chayote is an example of how Chinese migrants adapted local ingredients and flavors to their traditional way of cooking. Chayote is a member if the squash family. It has a mild flavor that is sort of a cross between a cucumber and zucchini... but not quite. It is a native plant from central America, and has found it's way into the cooking traditions of many cultures. I was able to find them in abundance at my local Vietnamese superstore. Peeled and cut into pieces, they look like sliced green apples.


Yangchow Fried Rice and Chinese Jamaican Stir-Fried Chicken with Chayote for Wok Wednesdays
Another key ingredient to this dish is Pickapeppa Sauce, also known as Jamaican ketchup. It's very vinegary (in a good way) and reminds me of A-1 Sauce, only a little sweeter and more complex. It's not at all hot. It would be hard to use a substitute in this dish. Fortunately, my local Ralph's supermarket carries it! I can't wait to experiment with it.

The final key ingredient is dark soy sauce, which gives this dish its gorgeous color. It is thicker and tastes less salty than "regular" soy sauce. Look for Pearl River Bridge with the pink label. 









This dish also includes chicken thighs, garlic, ketchup, and yellow onions. It has a rich sweet flavor, and is perfect with plain white rice. 

Chinese Jamaican Stir-Fried Chicken with Chayote

Wok Wednesdays is a Facebook group that is stir frying it's way through Grace Young's amazing book, Stir Frying to the Sky's Edge. Those of us who blog have agreed not to include the recipes. We want you to get the book!!

However, you can get the rice recipe on Fine Cooking

Guess what? We only have nine more stir fries from the book! The group started in May, 2012. I joined in March, 2013 and have only missed a couple of recipes since then. It's been so much fun and I've "met" some amazing (like Cathy from My Culinary Mission, whose mis en place for these stir fries is spectacular), and hilarious (I mean you Bob) people along the way. I've also developed a strong appreciation for "wokking," a fridge full of a ridiculous amount of Asian condiments, and some decent stir fry skills. 

In fact, I have another chile sauce for Chinese Jamaican Beef and Carrot Stir-Fry

Would you like to comment?

  1. Karen, I can't believe we only have nine recipes left to go!! It certainly has been a fun ride (that needs to continue with Breath!!)As I was doing my write-up for the choyote recipe, I kept thinking the finished product looked like sautéed apples - ha ha. Both your recipes look fabulous. Btw, your stir-fry skills are over the top.

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  2. I love Wok Wednesdays - haven't participated as much as I would have liked in the more recent years, but once a stir-frier .... Love your posts on our recipes.

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    1. Thanks so much Laura. I totally get it, especially since we can't post the recipes.

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  3. Karen, You're way too modest. You have Wok Warrior stir-fry skills and you're a gifted food photographer. We're so lucky to have you as a member of Wok Weds. Belated happy 3rd anniversary.

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    1. Thanks Grace! My kitchen is looking less like a hurricane hit it when I'm done!

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  4. These both look terrific Karen! especially the chicken - great depth of flavor and color

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    1. Thanks so much. I probably should have lead with the chicken =)

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  5. Well done! Sir frying totally intimidates me so I envy your skills. Being a vegetarian also seems to complicate stir frying because recipes invariable say "add oyster sauce" Or some sort of fish sauce. Really need to take hold of bok choy and get stir frying!

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    1. There are so many veggie recipes in this book that are totally vegetarian!

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  6. Hello Karen, I love all of them, except shrimp or seafood that I cannot touch I am allergic to it ,I just wanted to ask you another question while I'm writing this what can I use if I don't have 0% flour four pizzas, I just got the new book from Ken folk (The Elements of Pizza) " happy " happy " ,can you please get back to me and let me know and also if you have a moment can you go and see my post, thank you Karen again.

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    1. Hi Rosa. I think All purpose flour would be fine. I'll check out your post. PS I just got that book too

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    2. I just love he's pizza book , wow! Yours came too, I am glad for you Karen and and thank you...P.S. I can't wait to start making the delicious pizzas.

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