For Mother’s Day 2006, I received Simple Chinese Cooking by Kylie Kwong. I had heard her interview on ABC radio in Australia and was really impressed, so I added the book to my Mother’s Day wishlist!

I am a very adventurous cook and could never master Chinese cooking like in the restaurants, until now. Simple meals, cooked quickly, giving authentic results!

How many times have you walked into the Asian grocery store, looked at all the brands and had no idea which to buy? Not any more; Kylie tells you her favourite brands she uses, plus many of her own tips and tricks to ensure your meals will be a success

I am a big garlic user, well I thought I was until I got this cook book. That is probably why my meals never tasted as good. You can easily use 4 to 6 cloves of garlic per dish. Hey, Garlic is so good for your health, maybe not your breath though!!

Here are a few negatives:

1. A few recipes are repeated, only with a different meat or vegetable changed.
   
2. Kylie says use beef but does not list which cut of beef. I used porterhouse and rump with brilliant results.
   
3. As you need to get the wok up to a high temperature, cooking inside is not really a great idea if you do not have a really good exhaust system that has a filter.
   
4. Give yourself a good hour to prepare BEFORE cooking. Chopping and dicing does take time.

Hints:

1. Steel woks are so cheap to buy and very easy to clean. Sprinkle the hot wok with bi-carb and then add some white vinegar and watch everything lift off without any scrubbing. Wash as usual and then wipe the dry wok with oil to prevent rusting.
   
2. A long handle may get in the way, so buy one with half circle handles.
   Use steel utensils in your steel wok as plastic do not work as well.
   Cook on an outdoor gas burner if you can, otherwise close-off doors to your kitchen, open every window and turn on ceiling fans!
   
3. Photo-copy the pages you are going to use from the cook book. If you are like me and love books and are a messy cook, you do not want to damage the pages. I then blu-tac the photocopy next to the wok to read as I go seeing everything is happening so quickly at the cooking stage.
   
4. One of my favourite recipes is white chicken, where you make up a special liquid then add the whole chicken, cook for 14 minutes, turn off the heat and then let site for 3 hours to continue the cooking. It has to be the best chicken I have ever eaten.

This is one of my most favourite cookbooks and now when I drive past the Asian restaurants, I am not craving the food anymore as we can have it at home, whenever we like!

You will not be disappointed with this cookbook.

Gayle Wilson
http://stores.ebay.com/ideas-woman

Gold Coast
Australia