China Kitchen - Gourmet Chinese in Karachi

Please 'like' me on Facebook to keep updated with new posts, tips & tricks, or to ask me any questions: Kay's House of Treats 

I have been wanting to try China Kitchen ever since I found out that they had scallion pancakes on their menu. I remember trying them out for the first time at Tao in New York and I just fell in love with the dish. Simply put, they are similar to our lache kay parathay with sesame oil and scallions (green onions) as the filling served with a ginger dipping sauce. Simplicity personified but oh so delicious!

I finally got to go to China Kitchen last week and the food was AMAZING! It brought back memories of proper Chinese food that I have had abroad and loved because every dish has a unique taste instead of tasting exactly the same!

China Kitchen

Interior & Ambiance:
The first thing that you see when you enter the restaurant is the beautiful courtyard with life size Chinese statues and artifacts. The inside of the restaurant is just as tastefully decorated with Chinese artwork hanging from the walls, oriental style pottery strategically placed around the restaurant and the beautiful red wooden doors.

China Kitchen - The typical Chinese Round Table

Food:
What we ordered or actually I ordered (it was my birthday and I was so excited that my friends just gave me the menu) was the following:

1. Hot & Sour Soup in Chicken
2. Scallion Pancakes
3. Chengdu Chicken
4. Chicken with Chilli & Black Bean Sauce
5. Black Beef Pepper Steak with Ginger & Spring Onions
6. Deep fried Red Snapper with House Special Salsa
7. Singapore Noodles
8. Steamed Rice

The moment the soup arrived, I knew that this was the real deal and we were going to be having some pretty amazing food - this was no red ketchup version but a proper smoky full flavored broth with the proper H&S soup ingredients - bean curd, black mushrooms & bean sprouts along with chicken of course!
From the main courses, the Red Snapper was my favourite dish of the day - delicately cooked snapper in a salsa sauce that surprisingly incorporated apples was both a delight for the eyes and the taste buds. For a person who rarely eats beef, considering I ate two helpings of the beef steak with ginger & spring onions is an indication of how good it was. The Chengdu chicken made with hot bean paste came with a spice warning, and while delicious in its simplicity is not for the faint hearted. Our second chicken entree was the classic chicken in black bean sauce with a delicious salty distinct smooth sauce. The wok-fried Singapore noodles with stir-fried vermicelli were good but a bit neglected considering the uniqueness of the rest of the entrees. 
Unfortunately the thing that I was craving (the aforementioned scallion pancakes) did not measure up to the ones I had abroad - the ones here were just a little bit oily and not as flaky but the rest of the food, especially the hot & sour soup more than made up for it.

China Kitchen - Chicken with Chilli & Black Bean Sauce

China Kitchen - Hot & Sour Soup

China Kitchen - Scallion Pancakes

China Kitchen - Chengdu Chicken

China Kitchen - Red Snapper with House Salsa

China Kitchen - Singapore Noodles

Service:
From start to finish the service was excellent. The waiters were attentive but not annoying. It did take some time for the main course to arrive after the soup & appetizer round but we were enjoying the ambiance & company so much that it wasn't  a concern. The best part was that the waiter knew the menu and guided us properly when I asked him for suggestions on what to order.

Overall Verdict:
China Kitchen stands apart from the other Chinese eateries/delivery places in town as it offers gourmet Chinese cuisine with items on the menu that I have yet to see anywhere else. The prices are a bit high but worth it considering the superior quality & taste along with the fine dining experience. 

Ranking:
Food: 9/10
Price: 8/10
(On average should cost Rs. 1000-1100/head or more depending on the variety of food ordered)
Ambiance: 8.5/10
Service: 8.5/10 

Restaurant Details:
Address: 73/5, Swiss Cottages, Clifton Block 4, Karachi, Pakistan-75500
Phone: +922135860184 , +923332209169
Email chinakitchenpk@gmail.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/chinakitchenkarachi/info

Sweet & Sour Chicken

Chinese Food is one of my favourite cuisines - I love the different mix of flavors - sweet & sour & spicy, its light and yet filling, and best of all its so easy & simple to eat - the chicken is boneless, the vegetables are all chopped up and well, you usually eat it with a fork and a spoon since its either rice or noodles so no mess. But making it at home is well a completely different story - I rarely make it at home because well, there's just too much chopping required and one dish is rarely enough so making the rice then noodles then gravy is not so simple. I have pretty much switched to ordering from outside (review of some of my favourite Chinese outlets coming up soon) but there are some dishes that I love making at home. My quick Hot Garlic Fried Rice is well, the best way to use up leftover rice, and Chicken Chilli Dry & Chicken Chowmein. 

But other than these, another thing that I have to make at home is Sweet & Sour Chicken. I had never had Sweet & Sour Chicken till my cousins introduced it to me - it was one of their favourites and they would always order it at any new chinese restaurant that they tried. Not only did they love having it outside, but my Momani used to make a really really amazing version at home - and the reason that it stood out was that she used pineapple chunks and pineapple juice in the gravy. Most restaurants use sugar for the sweet part and vinegar for the sour part and well, that's not real sweet & sour chicken. You need to have the pineapple in the gravy to give it that tangy flavor - a little bit sour & a little bit sweet making it all taste absolutely delicious. 

Sweet & Sour Chicken

Recipe Credit - My Aunt 

Ingredients

1/2 kg Boneless Chicken - Cubed

Ginger Paste - 1/2 tbsp

Garlic Paste - 1/2 tbsp

Salt - 1 tsp

Egg - 1 

Soya Sauce - 1 tbsp

Vinegar - 1/2 tbsp

Corn Flour - 2 tbsp 

Flour - 2 tbsp 

Oil - as required

Sliced Ginger - 1 tsp

Garlic (chopped finely) - 1 tsp

Chopped Vegetables - 1 onion, 1 carrot, 1 capsicum & 1/4 cup cabbage - you can also add baby corn or tomatoes as per your preference

Pineapple chunks - 1/2 tin (slice the chunks if they are too big)

Salt - 1.5 tsp 

Cornflour - 2 tbsp mixed with water

Chilli Powder - 1 tsp

Chilli Flakes - 1 tsp (optional) 

Sauce - Ingredients
Soya Sauce - 1/4 cup
Vinegar - 1/2 cup
Sugar - 5-6 tbsp
Ketchup - 1/4 cup
Pineapple Juice - juice remaining from tin (start by adding half a tin then adjust for taste)

Marinate with ginger-garlic paste, salt, soya sauce, vinegar & one egg. Leave for 30 minutes, then add cornflour and flour and mix well. Deep fry chicken pieces in oil and keep aside on a paper towel. 

Heat 3 tbsp oil in a deep wok. Add sliced ginger and garlic and saute till it turns light brown. Add chopped vegetables - start with adding onions and saute for 1-2 minutes, then add carrots and saute for a minute then capsicum and then cabbage in the end. After adding the vegetables, add pineapple chunks. Add chicken and mix together than add salt followed by the sauce. Add chilli powder or chilli flakes if you like spicy food. Cook for 2-3 minutes and taste the sauce and adjust seasonings if required. Add cornflour mixed with water to thicken sauce. 

Note: The picture shows the sauce to be a bit thin, but it should be a bit more thick - I realized later when I had taken it out of the pan otherwise 

Ginsoy: Desi-fied Chinese at its best

Have been hearing a lot about Ginsoy ever since it opened but have not been able to go there; just a few weeks I finally managed to make a plan to go there but unfortunately wasn't able to get a table :(. However, the considerable wait time along with the number of people patiently waiting only made me want to find out what the big deal is, so I thought of just ordering it at home. It was a bit difficult to order since we were just 3 people and we wanted to order at least 2-3 things; also, even though Ginsoy is both single & full serving, the single serving is quite expensive (average 400/serving) & the difference between the single and full serving is about Rs.200 which isn't really a major difference. I finally decided to order the following, and this time we wanted to order something different from the typical Manchurian & Schewzan & Chopsuey. 

1. Tom Kam Gai Soup - Single
2. Tom Kam Goong Soup - Single
3. Crispy Beijing Chicken - Single 
4. Hot & Spicy Chicken - Single 

The food came within about 30-40 minutes and it was piping hot and I just loved the Chinese take-out style boxes that it came in; made me wish they had fortune cookies as well, that would have just added to the authentic take-out style food .. 

Absolutely loved the food; it was definitely Desi-fied in terms of the spice level, but still had that authentic Chinese/Thai taste; the Thai soup had lots of lemon grass, galangal and enough of a spice kick to totally clear up my sore throat; for me, an authentic Thai soup is one which is spicy but yet has that balance of flavors which makes you forget about the spiciness; and oh yes, they also gave complimentary fish crackers along with the typical condiments;

The Crispy Beijing Chicken- Loved the texture; very addictive and similar to having pop-corn; stayed crispy when warmed up the next day, and it actually tastes pretty great cold as well. The only issue with ordering this is that its a pretty dry dish so for people who like gravy, they would need to order something else.

Hot & Spicy Chicken -Woahhh, this was so spicy and I would have loved just a bit more gravy so that I can mix it with the rice properly, but this was really good; it was more masala-ish (in terms of texture) but didn't have that ketchupy cornflour taste that makes all Chinese entrees taste similar.

The order came out to be 450/head which is actually a lot but we had leftovers for the next day. I think I would prefer going to Ginsoy rather than ordering; if I do order, I'll make sure there are sufficient people and probably order something other than the typical Manchurian & Chicken Chilli; for that, I'd much rather be ordering from Golden Dragon which has brilliant deals for 3-5 people; but overall its a good addition to the restaurant scene in Karachi. 

I did have one major issue with the order taking, as I had specifically made sure both soups were with chicken and should not have any seafood due to my brother having allergies, however, the Tom Kam Goong soup had prawns; this obviously resulted in me getting pretty upset because I am so careful about it; called them up, lodged a complaint on the phone and online; in response they sent a replacement soup with chicken and also got a message from their customer service department that this matter will be looked into. So really appreciated that. 

Chicken Chowmein

So making full use of my parents being away for the weekend, I decided to do some more experimenting this  Sunday. Spent about all of Saturday evening thinking about what to make and finally settled on Spicy Chowmein & Ginger Wrapped Chicken in Rice (to be discussed in the next blog post). I am not a huge pasta fan (please don't hate me for that) because I think its just a bit too heavy but I absolutely love noodles; egg noodles, chowmein, rice noodles, pad thai, fusion desi noodles of sorts. The noodles turned out really good; loved the style of making the chicken since it cooked really quickly and had that slight crispness which makes it taste non home-madeish (I'm sure this is a made-up word, but I hope it conveys the meaning). However, I would have added a bit of black pepper as I think they just needed a slight kick. 

Hot & Spicy Chowmein

Ingredients
Chicken boneless -  1 cup (thinly sliced)
Salt 1 tsp (For Marinade) + ½ tsp (For Noodles)
Sugar ½ tsp (For Marinade) + ½ tsp (For Noodles)
Corn flour 1 tbsp 

Beaten Egg Half
White pepper ¼ tsp
Cabbage thinly sliced 2 cups
Capsicum 1 sliced
Egg noodles 1 packet (400-450 g) (I don't use the branded egg noodles; i always prefer the Chinese brand egg noodles since they taste better and they also cook much more faster)
Chili sauce 2 tbsp
Soya sauce 2 tbsp
Vinegar 1 tbsp
Crushed garlic 1 tsp
Onion 1 sliced
Carrot 1 thinly sliced
Spring onion leaves 2 inch long strips 1 cup
Oil ¼ cup
Ketchup ¼ cup

Method
Marinate chicken with salt, white pepper, sugar, soya sauce, corn flour 1 tbsp, half beaten egg for 15 minutes.
 Heat ¼ cup oil. Fry crushed garlic till light golden. Add marinated chicken and saute for a few minutes (I personally like to cook chicken longer but 2-3 minutes should be enough). Once the water from the chicken has evaporated, add sliced onion and cook for 1 minute. Add the rest of the vegetables then add chili sauce, soya sauce, ketchup, vinegar,  salt and sugar. Mix well then add boiled noodles. Toss well then taste. In case something is lacking, adjust accordingly. Lastly add spring onion leaves and remove.

Hot Garlic Fried Rice

This is one of my favorite ways of using up leftover rice especially when I am in the mood for something oriental and delicious to eat, but am not in the mood to do like an elaborate meal. I usually add whatever ingredients I have at home, but during the times when I plan out a proper Chinese or Thai menu then I prepare the recipe from scratch. The addition of the garlic and the red chilli flakes makes it a good alternative to the regular chinese fried rice. 

Hot Garlic Fried Rice

Ingredients

Rice - 2 cups

Garlic paste 1 tbsp.

Finely chopped garlic 1 tbsp.

Red Chilli Flakes – 1 tsp (Can be added more according to taste)

Onion, round thin slices - 1 cup

Carrot, finely chopped - 1/4 cup

Capsicum, finely chopped - 1/4 cup

Spring onion – 1/8 cup (for garnish)

Soya sauce- 3 tbsp

Chili Garlic sauce - 1 tbsp

Vinegar – 1 tbsp

Oil - 3 tbsp; Or use sesame oil – 2 tbsp which gives off a beautiful fragrance

Salt - To taste

Method

1.Pick, wash and soak rice for 10 minutes.

2. Boil water, add rice and a little salt. Cook, stirring occasionally, till rice is tender.

3. Drain. Add cold water. Drain again.

4.Keep in an open pot and use only after completely cooled. Using one day old rice is a better method because fresh rice is usually more sticky and it is also a good way of using up leftover rice.

5. Heat the oil in a non-stick pan with high edges. Add the garlic paste, chopped garlic and red chili flakes. Fry lightly.

6. Add the onion, carrot, capsicum, and salt. Stir fry over a high flame for 3 minutes.

7. Add the rice, Soya sauce and chili garlic sauce. Stir fry over a high flame for 3 minutes.

8. Garnish with spring onion

Variation: The recipe above is the way the recipe should be followed; however, I have adapted this recipe based on convenience; 

I start off with whisking 2-3 eggs with salt and red chilli and then making like a scrambled omelette which I then keep aside. Then I follow the above recipe but I always use sesame oil and leftover rice, adding whatever ingredients are at home which are mostly onions and K&N chicken chunks. I add one chicken cube with the soya sauce to give it some added taste and then add the omelette when the rice is hot enough.