Cook's Country

-"Cook's Country" is about more than just getting dinner on the table.

We're also fascinated by the people and stories behind the dishes.

We go inside kitchens in every corner of the country to learn how real people cook.

And we look back through time to see how history influences the way we eat today.

We bring that inspiration back to our test kitchen so we can share it with you.

This is "Cook's Country."

Today on "Cook's Country," Kelly makes Julia Shanghai scallion oil noodles.

I share the story of Grace Young and her work supporting Chinatowns across America.

And Lawman makes Bridget American-style egg rolls.

That's all right here on "Cook's Country."

-Funding for this program has been provided by the following.

-Monument Grills, offering innovative technology and design for the grilling enthusiast, with a lineup of gas grills designed with durability in mind, including the Eminence 605 with LED touch panels and side and rear infrared burners.

Learn more at MonumentGrills.com.

-Teakhaus, inspired by a passion for cooking and respect for our planet.

Each board is handcrafted from sustainably sourced wood designed for every step, from food prep to presentation.

Teakhaus.

-Scallion oil noodles are a well-loved Shanghainese dish, found everywhere from fancy restaurants to street carts to home kitchens.

And today, Kelly is going to show us how to make them.

-That's right, Julia.

These noodles are so savory and carry so much depth, but they're actually really simple to make.

So to start, I like to build the sauce.

And here, I have 1/4 cup of light soy sauce.

So, contrary to its name, light soy sauce doesn't actually mean low sodium soy sauce.

It's actually a Chinese pantry staple that's a little bit thinner and saltier than a regular Japanese soy sauce.

-Okay.

-And to that I like to add 2 tablespoons of dark soy sauce.

This is another Chinese pantry staple.

It's sort of the polar opposite of the light soy sauce.

So it's thicker, a little bit more viscous.

And it has this really strong soy aroma that's really going to come out in the dish and be a distinct characteristic.

-Gotcha.

So you need two soys.

-Yes.

Two soys.

And they're going to come together to form a beautiful sauce.

And here I also have 5 teaspoons of granulated sugar.

And I'm just going to give that a quick stir.

I don't need to dissolve it or anything.

And the sugar is just going to add a subtle sweetness.

It's not going to be too overpowering, but it'll just add some stickiness and shine and help things come together.

And now we're ready to focus on the star of the show, the scallions.

We're actually going to be using them in two different ways.

So I'll start by separating the greens from the white and light green parts.

I have about 15 to 18 scallions.

-Mm-hmm.

-The whites are going to go into the base of our sauce.

They carry a little bit more of the scallion flavor.

-Mm-hmm.

-It's all in the root end.

So to prep the whites, I like to first trim off the roots.

And then because the whites are a little bit more bulbous, I like to halve them lengthwise first.

And then I'm just going to cut them into 1 1/2 inch segments, and that will go into my bowl of already prepped whites.

For the greens, no need to halve lengthwise.

They're hollow on the inside, so, you know, they're ready to go.

And then for these, I also like to cut them in 1 1/2 inch segments.

These are actually going to turn into a crispy topping for us.

And to continue adding to the base of the sauce I'm going to be adding a little bit of fresh ginger.

I'm just going to cut off a 1 inch piece to work with.

So about there.

And because I have a nice large piece, I can peel it really easily.

And then I'm just going to cut the ginger into thin rounds crosswise.

From there, I'm just going to stack these rounds, and I'm just going to slice them thin into matchsticks.

Almost done with prep.

I have four heads of Shanghainese baby bok choy.

-Mm-hmm!

-And for the bok choy, if it has sort of a woody end, I like to just give that a little trim.

But you want to keep the pieces mostly intact.

And then for each of these heads, I just like to cut it lengthwise and give it a nice slice.

And here I'll just set these aside, and we'll blanch them a little later.

-Okay.

-If you're a fan of Chinese cooking, then you should also be a fan of Grace Young.

Young was born and raised in San Francisco.

Her parents are Cantonese and built a life for the family doing business in the city's vibrant Chinatown.

She grew up watching Julia Child and developed an interest in food and cooking.

Today, she's an award winning cookbook author and writer who's made a name for herself in Chinese cuisine and most recently, activism.

In 2020, as the COVID-19 pandemic engulfed the U.S., Young noticed that Chinatowns across the country were taking a particularly hard hit.

Mandatory lockdowns, coupled with xenophobia and misinformation, left many Chinese businesses on the verge of closure.

So Young created a video series that documented the stories of these business owners.

In her view, preserving America's historic Chinatowns was a way of preserving an important piece of American history.

Young also joined forces with the Welcome to Chinatown organization.

They purchased meals from local restaurants and gave them to people in need.

Young's impact has been felt in Chinatowns across the country, and her work has been honored by numerous organizations.

Here at "Cook's Country," we're inspired by Grace Young's example and celebrate Chinese cookery in our recipe for Shanghai scallion oil noodles.

-So here I have 4 quarts of boiling water.

We're going to be using the pot of water for multiple things today.

-Okay.

-First I'm going to start by blanching my bok choy.

This is just going to take about 1 minute.

-Okay.

-Things have turned bright green.

The leaves have completely become tender.

Now I'm just going to transfer them to a paper towel lined sheet to soak up any water.

And you could certainly use tongs for this.

But again, I like to use chopsticks all the way through.

So these are tender, and I'm just going to set them aside for later.

-Okie doke.

That's quite a few noodles you have there.

-I have prepared a selection for you.

So here I have one pound of Chinese fresh wheat noodles.

-Mm-hmm.

-And I like to purchase them fresh because they have a little bit of chew, but you can also buy them dried.

The thickness of these noodles is really important to the success of this dish.

-Gotcha.

-And when I was developing, I particularly enjoyed this thickness in terms of it not sticking and being coated in the sauce.

And a piece of this raw noodle is about the thickness of a piece of cooked spaghetti.

-Okay.

-That's what you want to look for in the store.

This is another fresh wheat noodle.

You'll notice that it's a lot thinner.

-It's a lot thinner.

-And something like this will stick a lot in the wok when you're tossing it later on.

So you want to avoid this thickness.

-Okay.

-So this is the Goldilocks.

-All right.

-Standard.

So we're just going to drop these right in.

This is the same water I used to blanch the bok choy.

And again my chopsticks come in handy.

It's going to separate out those strands.

And since these are fresh, they should only take about 2 to 3 minutes to cook.

-Okay.

-We're looking for the noodles to be slightly puffy, so they're starting to get tender, but they're not blown out or falling apart.

-Okay.

-I do like to give it a taste when I think it's about ready.

Great.

They've got a little bit of chew still.

But they're nice and tender.

-Great.

-So these are cooked so we'll go to the sink.

Give these are quick drain.

And now I'm just going to give these a quick rinse in cold water to stop the cooking.

Gives us some buffer room while we cook other things.

And also we'll be heating it through later.

Those are cooled down so we'll just let them drain and get back to them later.

Now we're ready to start using the wok.

Here I have a 14-inch flat bottom wok.

Now we're going to make a crispy scallion topping.

So here I have 2/3 of a cup of peanut oil that I've already added to the wok.

-Okay.

-I like using peanut oil because it's a Chinese pantry staple.

But you could also use vegetable oil.

And to that I'm adding my prepared scallion greens.

Just adding everything before I turn on the heat.

And I just want these to crisp up so I'm going to cook them on medium high heat.

So I'm just going to toss these to coat.

I'm looking for the scallion greens to become nicely browned and crispy, and that should take about 8 to 10 minutes.

-Okay.

-So things are starting to sizzle, smell good.

And I'm just going to keep everything moving to get an even browning on it.

The scallions have become nice and crisp.

You'll see that they're browned on the edges, but not overly dark.

I've shut off the heat, and I'm just going to transfer these to a bowl with a slotted spoon.

I want to keep that oil underneath because it's super flavorful.

Just like with any fried food, I want to season them when they're hot so that the salt sticks.

So here I have 1/8 of a teaspoon of table salt.

Just give it a little hit of savoriness and give that a nice little toss.

And these we'll set aside for later.

So we're going to continue building on this scallion infused oil.

And now we're going to make the base of the sauce.

To start actually I'm going to add 1 shallot that I've halved and sliced thin.

To that I'm also adding my prepared scallion whites and ginger.

My goal here is to break everything down and slowly infuse the oil with flavor.

So to do that, I'll go really low and slow at medium low heat.

And I just want to stir this often to get an even cook on everything.

That should take about 11 to 13 minutes.

So things are getting slightly browned around the edges.

So now I'm ready to add my soy sauce mixture back into the wok.

-Here you go.

-So I'm going to give that a quick stir just because the sugar sometimes settles on the bottom.

Just pour that right in.

And I'm just looking for things to come to a rapid simmer and to dissolve my sugar.

So this should only take about 1 to 2 minutes.

Great.

So everything is at a rapid simmer.

The sugar has been dissolved.

Now I'm ready to add my noodles and toss them.

And this is when I transfer to using tongs because it just helps me get some more strength with the noodles.

-Oh, that looks good.

-Yeah.

Make sure to scrape the bottom of the wok.

And we're just looking for all the noodles to be coated and for them to be heated through.

You can see that dark soy sauce is really doing the work to color the noodles.

The oil is also keeping the noodles slick.

And there's a saying in Shanghainese cuisine, nong you chi jiang.

And that just means rich with oil and red with sauce.

And that's what you're looking for in a dish.

So now I'm just going to transfer this to a serving platter.

-Oh, it smells delicious.

-So we're almost at the finish line.

But I have one last topping that I want to make.

-Okay.

-So I've given my wok a wipe down, and now we're going to use it to make one of my favorite toppings to put on any dish, a fried egg.

-I love it.

-So this is 1/2 half cup of oil.

You can use peanut or vegetable.

And I just want to heat it until it's super hot.

So 350 degrees.

And the hot oil is going to really help set the egg right away so that the steam rises and it becomes puffy.

So I like to just tilt the wok and test the temperature.

Great.

So the oil is at 350 degrees.

Now we're ready to drop our egg in.

-You cooking them one at a time?

-Yes.

I'm only making two today because there's two of us.

-Makes sense.

-But you could rinse and repeat with as many as you'd like.

-[ Laughs ] -And I'm just basting hot oil over the top of the egg to set the top at the same rate that the bottom is cooking.

So you're essentially shallow frying here, and you can see that the egg is becoming puffy.

That's from all the hot oil immediately making the steam rise.

It should only take 30 to 60 seconds.

I'm just looking for the whites to be opaque and the edges are crisp and brown.

-Mm!

-And you can see that we've gotten a nice frilly edge.

-Mm-hmm.

-I like to shut my heat off just to prevent it from over-cooking.

-All right.

-And at this point, I'm ready to transfer.

I want to carefully skim the bottom.

And let any excess oil just drain off.

And just slide it right over your noodles.

-Yes, please!

-So I'm going to do the same thing with my second egg and maintain my oil at about 325 to 350 degrees.

And now we're ready to add all the other toppings.

So here I have these crispy scallion greens which I'm just going to use my hands to drizzle around.

Lots of textural contrast.

-You can hear how crisp they are.

-And this makes enough to serve four.

So the other half, I'm just going to portion over the remaining noodles.

And now it's time for the bok choy.

-Gorgeous.

First up, got to break the yolk right?

-Exactly.

-Oh, hello.

All right.

These noodles are long.

I wore a brown shirt for the occasion.

I came prepared.

Long life.

-Mm-hmm.

Mmm!

There is so much flavor in that.

The soy sauce is really in the background.

I know you used two types.

Not one overpowers the other.

It's a nice balance.

A little bit of sweetness.

-I love how the fresh wheat noodles really have that perfect balance of chewiness and tenderness.

-The scallion topping, oh, man.

-This is the magic of the wok.

-Yeah.

-The egg is just lacy and adds more of that crunch.

-Oh, Kelly, this is spectacular.

Thank you for showing me how to make it.

-It was my pleasure.

-If you want to make Kelly's scallion oil noodles, start by making a simple sauce using light and dark soy sauce.

Cook the scallion greens and whites separately.

Boil the noodles, finish it all in the wok, and top with a fried egg.

From "Cook's Country," Kelly's very own recipe for Shanghai scallion oil noodles.

I really got to learn how to cook my egg this way.

This is kind of a game changer.

-A, crispy crunchy egg roll is one of the best parts, most iconic parts, of a Chinese-American restaurant menu, but you don't have to wait 'til you go out.

Why not try to make them at home?

And it's a good thing I know Lawman because he's going to show us how to make egg rolls, and you've got some serious thoughts about egg rolls, too.

-I do, Bridget.

Between you and me, I have a love-hate relationship with egg rolls.

I either have one and it's delicious, or I eat one, take a bite, and I'm all set.

-Not good.

-No.

So, in the interest of research, we ate tons of egg rolls and we figured out the difference between an egg roll that's really, really good and one that's "meh" is complementing flavors and textures.

-Okay.

-So, today, we're going to make a really, really good egg roll.

So, to start, I have 12 ounces of fresh ground pork.

You want to use fresh ground pork because it has a higher fat content, but you can use pre-packaged ground pork.

-Okay.

-So, I'm just going to add this to our stand mixer.

And we're going to add 2 tablespoons of lard that's been cut into four pieces.

-Just not enough fat in that pork for you, huh?

-Exactly.

So, the lard is going to add some more richness to the pork.

And we're going to add our paddle attachment.

And we're going to set this to medium, and we're going to whip it for about two minutes until it's lightened in color.

-Okay.

-So, it's lightened in color.

Now, we're going to add some shrimp.

I have 4 ounces of shrimp that's been peeled, deveined, and the tails have been removed.

Now, it doesn't matter what size shrimp as long as it's four ounces.

-Okay.

-And we're just going to chop this up.

We want it just small enough that you have enough shrimp in the egg roll, but it's not going to be big chunks.

-Okay.

-Now, I'm just going to add that to the pork mixture, and I'm just going to wash my hands before we add our seasonings.

-Okay.

-So, my hands are nice and clean.

Now, we're going to add our seasonings.

-Every seasoning in the kitchen.

-Yes.

-[ Laughs ] -I'm going to add 1 tablespoon of soy sauce, 1 tablespoon of oyster sauce.

-That's a powerhouse right there.

-1 tablespoon of granulated sugar, 1 tablespoon of chicken bouillon powder.

Now, this might sound weird to add, but it's going to add some nice, concentrated savoriness to the mixture without adding any liquid.

Next, we're going to add 1 1/2 teaspoons of Shaoxing wine, 1 1/2 teaspoons of sesame oil.

-Toasted, right?

-Yes.

-Got it.

-1 1/2 teaspoons of Chinese white vinegar, 1 teaspoon of table salt, 1/2 teaspoon of white pepper, and last but not least, 1/4 teaspoon of five-spice powder.

So, we're going to set the mixer to medium-low.

We're going to combine this so that it's fully incorporated, for about 30 seconds.

-Okay.

-And now, we're just going to cover this with some plastic wrap, and it's going to sit in the fridge for about 30 minutes so that the flavors can meld.

-Okay, great.

-So, while the pork's marinating, I have 1 1/2 ounces of dried mung bean noodles.

And if you're not familiar with them, they're made from the mung bean starch, and they're great added to soups where they absorb all the flavor and the broth, and they can also go into egg rolls, spring rolls, and even dumplings where they're going to give you a nice, chewy texture.

So, we're just going to add this to 4 cups of hot water, and this is going to rehydrate the noodles so that they're pliable and we can work with them.

-Okay, great.

-So, it's going to sit in there for about 15 minutes.

-That sounds like we have time to do something else.

-We do.

We're going to cook the vegetables that are going to go inside the egg rolls.

-Great.

-So, here, I have a 14-inch flat-bottom wok.

I'm going to crank the heat on high.

We're looking for it to start smoking.

-Great.

-So, as you can see, it's smoking.

Now, I'm going to add 1 teaspoon of vegetable oil, and I'm just going to pour it right around the edge so it cascades down.

It's really smoking, so we know it's really hot.

So, I'm going to turn the heat to medium-high, and I'm going to add 2 cups of chopped green cabbage, one carrot that's been peeled and shredded, 1 tablespoon of soy sauce, and 1 teaspoon of sugar.

You want to cook this for about 2 minutes, moving it constantly so that the vegetables don't steam and they don't burn.

It's been about 2 minutes.

The vegetables are cooked, and I didn't burn them.

-No.

You did a great job.

-So, we're just going to add them to a plate.

You just want to spread this out in an even layer.

So, now, we're just going to put this in the fridge for about 15 minutes.

It's going to stop the vegetables from cooking, and it's going to make the vegetables cool so that we can handle them inside the filling.

-Okay.

-It's been 15 minutes, and as you can see, the noodles are nice and pliable.

-They're noodling.

-They are.

So, we're just going to drain them.

-Okay.

-I want to make sure that there's no excess starch on them, so we're also going to rinse them one more time.

-Okay.

-And we're going to drain the excess water again because no one wants a wet noodle.

-No.

-And now, I'm going to cut the noodles into 1-inch pieces.

Basically, you want them to be bite-sized pieces.

When you're eating the egg roll, you don't want the noodle to stretch out.

You don't want to have, like, a "Lady and the Tramp" situation with your egg roll.

-Speak for yourself.

[ Both laugh ] -And it just needs to be kind of like a rough 1 inch.

It doesn't have to be exact.

As you can see, that's basically bite-size piece.

So, here, I have the pork mixture that's been marinating for 30 minutes.

-Nice and chilled.

-Exactly.

We're going to add our noodles... and our cooled veg.

-Oh, yeah.

-And we're going to add it to the mixer.

So, we're just going to put it on low, and we're going to combine this for about a minute.

Make sure it's thoroughly combined without beating up the ingredients.

-Got it.

-It's thoroughly combined.

Now, it's time to make the egg rolls.

I'm going to make one, and then, hopefully, you'll help me make the rest.

-You got it.

-So, I have 12 7-inch egg roll wrappers.

-Okay.

-And to start, you want to place it so it's kind of like, it looks like a diamond.

And you're going to take 1/4 cup dry measuring cup and take some of the filling, and you're going to add it about 1/3 of the way down, and then you're going to form this into a 4-inch cylinder.

Now, you want to wet your finger and go around the edge.

This is going to help seal the wrapper.

Take the corner that's closest to you, bring it over the filling, then press out any air bubbles.

Then, take the right corner, fold it over.

Left corner, fold it over.

Then, roll it away from you so that the seam is underneath.

-That is beautiful.

-And you're going to add it to your parchment-lined sheet pan.

And then, I have a damp towel here, I'm just going to put it on top... -Okay.

-...so that they don't dry out.

-Alright, you're going to walk me through the next one?

-I'd love to.

-What do you think, boss?

So far, so good?

-So far, so good.

-Alright.

Then, this gets -- goes over... What do you think?

-I'd eat that.

Bridget, now that you're an expert, we're going to keep going until we have all 12 wrapped, and then we'll be ready to fry.

So, our egg rolls are rolled.

We're going to fry them right away.

We're going to cook six at a time.

-Okay.

-You'll notice that our wok is back and we have 2 quarts of oil, this is vegetable oil.

You can also use peanut oil, if you want to get fancy, you could use some duck fat.

-Ooh!

-So, first, we want to make sure the temperature is 350 degrees.

Now, we're going to add our egg rolls.

So, you want to ease them into the oil, seam side down.

You don't want any splashes.

We're going to cook them 4 to 8 minutes, flipping halfway through, until they're nice and golden brown.

So, Bridget, it's been about... let's say 5 minutes, and they're ready to flip.

We're gonna let them go about 2 or 3 more minutes.

-Okay.

-So, Bridget, they're nice and golden brown.

They're ready to come out of the pool.

-Okay.

-So, we're going to add them to our triple-layered paper towel-lined sheet pan.

We want to make sure we get some of that excess fat off the egg roll.

So, now, we're going to cook the second batch.

We just need to return the oil to 350.

We're going to add the rest of the egg rolls and cook, flipping halfway through.

So, Bridget, here are those really, really good egg rolls I promised you.

-Really, really good.

I think they're going to be great.

They look fantastic.

-Thank you.

I'm going to cut one in half so you can see the inside.

-Okay.

Yeah because they look pristinely beautiful on the outside.

Look at that!

Chunks of shrimp.

Mmm, I can smell it as soon as you cut that open.

That's going to be great.

-So, this one's going to be for you.

I have two sauces here -- we have a spicy mustard and we have a plum sauce that you can get the recipe on our website.

-Okay.

So, what do you suggest, dipping?

-We're going to dip.

First, I'm going to try the plum sauce.

-A little hot, a little sweet, a lot of crispy.

Super, super crispy!

That filling -- gorgeous.

Really cohesive.

Mmm!

-The interior, you have the complementing flavors and textures.

The noodles add some chew to this.

You get that rich pork flavor.

-Mm-hmm.

-And the shrimp is nice and tender.

-Everything makes its presence known, but wrapped up together, it's the perfect egg roll.

-Thank you.

-You're the perfect egg roll.

Thanks, Lawman.

Well, if you'd like trying these at home, it starts with the filling.

Beat together lard and pork, add shrimp and flavorful oyster sauce, bouillon powder, and five-spice, precook a cabbage and carrot mixture until softened, and then fry in batches until crisp and golden brown.

So, from "Cook's Country," crispy, savory American-style egg rolls.

You can get this recipe and all the recipes from this season, along with product reviews and select episodes, and you'll find them all on our website, CooksCountry.com/TV.

-Let us help with dinner tonight.

Visit our website anytime for the newest season's rigorously-tested recipes, full episodes, ingredient advice, and equipment reviews.

CooksCountry.com/TV.

-The Complete "Cook's Country" TV show cookbook brings together every recipe, tasting, and test from 18 seasons of the beloved TV show.

With trusted equipment recommendations and insights from the entire cast, this book is your guide to the very best in regional cooking.

The cost is $24.99, $15 off the cover price of $40.

To order, head to our online shop at CooksCountry.com/book.

-Funding for this program has been provided by the following.

-Monument Grills, offering innovative technology and design for the grilling enthusiast, with a lineup of gas grills designed with durability in mind, including the Eminence 605 with LED touch panels and side and rear infrared burners.

Learn more at MonumentGrills.com.

-Teakhaus, inspired by a passion for cooking and respect for our planet.

Each board is handcrafted from sustainably sourced wood designed for every step, from food prep to presentation.

Teakhaus.