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Red Stewing or Red Cooking (hung-shu)
Red stewing is uniquely Chinese, similar to ordinary stewing, but here
the food is cooked in large quantities of soy sauce and water rather than
in water alone. It is the soy sauce that makes the dish rich, tasty, and
reddish-brown. It is usually made of pork, beef, ham, chicken, duck, or
carp. When these are prepared without soy sauce, but by the same
technique, the color will always be light.
It is often necessary to brown the meat first
then liquid is
brought to a boil over high heat, which is progressively reduced until
quite low.
Red stewing is used primarily for cooking meats, and if vegetables are to
be included, they should be fresh and added just beŁore the dish is
served, and only in relation to the quantity of stew being served;
reheating leftover vegetables overcooks them. Various condiments are added
to red stewed dishes: wine,
ginger,
scallions, and so on.
An exact cooking time is not critical. Meat may stew one to six hours,
depending on the cut of meat, and may even he cooked a day ahead and
reheated. Some dishes flavor may be enhanced if the stew
is refrigerated. When served cold, vegetables should not be
added. Hung-shu bean cake, squab, and chicken are commonly served cold.
Cooked stew can also be poured into a mold and chilled.
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