Cooking Class- Geleshan Chicken and Shanghai Fried Noodles

Here is yet another installment of the monthly cooking classes. Every month, I really look forward to these. I often meet new women, and see friends that I don’t connect with at other organizations. We have a great lunch, and take that opportunity to catch up and socialize. We set the menu for the next class, and then some of us drift away after the class and wander home slowly, full of great food and lots of ice tea (read: loads of caffeine!

Geleshan Chicken (a Sichuan speciality)


1 whole chicken, cut into small pieces (for this kind of recipe in China, the bones are not removed and having a huge cleaver is a real bonus)
50 grams of carrot cut into thin strips
50 grams of celery
50 grams of bamboo shoots (cut into strips)
black fungus (soaked)

2 tablespoons of chili sauce
2 tablespoons of minced garlic
1 tablespoon of chicken granules
1 tablespoon of oyster sauce
½ tablespoon of white pepper
minced ginger
corn starch to make a slurry
1large tablespoon of hotpot spice ***


Bring water to a boil in a pot, parboil the vegetables until they are cooked but still crunchy and remove them from the water. Place the chicken in the water and cook until it is done.

Heat oil in wok and sautee ginger and garlic until fragrant. Add oyster and chili sauce and stir. Add hotspot spice, chicken and water, making sure that there is sufficient water to cover the chicken. Then add chicken granules, white pepper. Increase heat and cook for a few minutes. Add cornstarch slurry and thicken to your preference.

** Ok this is the ingredient that makes the dish, but it might be hard to find unless you know what you are looking for- It is found here in a package designed for hotpot Sichuan style- that is with lots of red pepper and numbing spice. If you are serious about doing this recipe, send me an e-mail, I have a photo of the package,

I think that this next recipe is much easier, tastier and more likely to be replicated other than here in Shanghai.

Shanghainese Fried Noodles

150 grams of fresh Shanghai style noodles ( they are round yet thin and kind of like a round linguine in size)
5 grams of bamboo shoots
5 grams of cooked and shredded meat (it was pork for the demonstration, but it could easily be substituted for beef or chicken)
5 grams of mushrooms (dried, reconstituted and sliced Chinese brown mushrooms)

Handful, or two, of Chinese cabbage (like pak choy or bok choy)
1 tablespoon of dark soya sauce
½ tsp of five spice powder
½ tsp of white pepper
½ tsp of chicken granules
2 tablespoons of oil

Bring water to boil in a pot and cook noodles for about 3 minutes. Drain and rinse with very cold water to stop the cooking process. Set aside.

Heat oil in wok, add meat, bamboo, mushrooms and fry until heated through and then add noodles. Add seasoning and sautee briefly. Finally, add the green vegetables and sautée briefly. Serve.