Napa Cabbage

For a colorful presentation, serve the salad in red cabbage leaves.

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

An Asian treatment of chestnuts that will be right at home with all your side dishes.

Cabbage, cucumbers, carrots, and lots of fresh mint accent the salad. Offer chilled beer or a fruity white wine alongside.

When we were children, shrimp dumplings were our favorite dim sum dish. The classic filling is shrimp and bamboo shoots. The dough is not difficult to make, but it is very important that the water be boiling hot. If it is not hot enough, the wheat starch will not cook and the dough will not work. Wheat starch _(dung fun)_is only available in Chinatown; regular white flour is not a substitute. The tortilla press used here is excellent for making the dough into thin, uniform rounds, but you can also make the dumplings by hand: Roll the dough into scant 1-inch balls. Place one ball between your lightly floured hands and press to form a circle. Press the dough evenly with your fingertips to make it as thin as possible, about 3 inches in diameter and a scant 1/8-inch thick.

There are many different kinds of pork dumplings, and siu mai are one of the most popular, typically served in dim sum restaurants. When homemade, the dumplings are unsurpassed, if they are made with an equal amount of fresh water chestnuts to ground pork, Chinese mushrooms, cilantro, and scallions. Siu mai are distinctly different from other dumplings, because they are made with round won ton skins, not the typical square-shaped skins. Each brand has a different thickness of dough, but the thinner the better; the dumplings will be more delicate. If round won ton skins are not available, I cut square wrappers into 3-inch-wide circles. This recipe makes about 3 1/2 dozen siu mai. Steam as many as you need, or cover in plastic wrap, refrigerate, and steam within two to three hours.

The recipe below is excerpted from restaurateur Jenny Kwak's book, Dok Suni: Recipes from My Mother's Korean Kitchen.

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less but requires additional unattended time.

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

This recipe can be made vegetarian by substituting either soy sauce or Bragg Liquid Aminos for the Nuoc Nam, a Vietnamese fish sauce made from anchovies which is used as a salty seasoning. The flavor will not be quite the same, but it will be equally satisfying.

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less but requires additional unattended time.

In a traditional Seder meal, bitter herbs — sometimes including parsley — represent the bitter experience of slavery. Active time: 15 min Start to finish: 15 min

Just add steamed rice for a complete family-style Chinese dinner.

Leftover roasted chicken or turkey makes this rendition of a popular salad a snap to prepare. It's made spicy by combining chilies with linguine, green onions, snow peas, cilantro and a peanut dressing.