Hey guys, a few notes: 1. Ok, so I wanted to have a brief aside on… “how to use this stuff”, but ultimately it would end up turning into a whole ‘how to make Chinese shaokao’ thing. The good shaokao joints are good for a reason - there’s actually a number of moving pieces. So below I’ll list out three things: (1) the marinade (2) the oil and (3) the sauce. Note that just like the spice mixes… there’s a ton of diversity here, too. It’s just to get started… so that if you just wanted to use the spice mixes in the Western style (given that we don’t have accompanying videos/tested recipes for the following), that would likely be delicious as well. 2. Marinade: For every 150g of meat… use 1/2 tbsp oil, ½ tbsp spice mix, ½ tsp soy sauce, ½ tsp liaojiu a.k.a. Shaoxing wine, ¼ tsp salt, ¼ tsp sugar. Mix well, and sprinkle a bit of cornstarch (~1/4 tsp) if the marinade’s not sticking very well to the meat. 3. Oils: While I have seen some places brush on plain peanut oil, much better is to use garlic or scallion oil. Scallion oil would be a good choice, I think. To make it, use ~12 large scallion whites and a quarter of an onion (julienned) and cooked with peanut oil over medium heat for ~8 minutes. We have instructions on how to making it in our Char Siu Bao video here: kzfaq.info/get/bejne/otBleq2BxM-ZZaM.html 4. Seasoning sauce: Fry ~3 smashed garlic cloves, ~1 inch of smashed ginger, ~2 scallion whites, and ~1/6 of an onion (chunks) in ~2 tbsp or so of peanut oil. Once golden, add 4 tbsp water, 1 tbsp light soy, 1 tbsp liaojiu a.k.a. Shaoxing, an optional 1 tbsp sweet bean paste or Cantonese mianchi (or Japanese red miso), 1 tbsp sugar, ¼ tsp salt, ¼ tsp MSG. Reduce by about one third. Strain and remove the aromatics. 5. To grill: marinate the meat - a half hour or so is fine. Skewer, toss on grill. Thoroughly brush both sides with the scallion oil. Whenever it looks a bit dry, brush on more oil. About halfway through cooking, brush on the sauce. Near the end of grilling, add the seasoning mixes. Ok! So I’m sure there’s more stuff to get to, but I gotta run to a quick zoom call with the family :)

Hands down the most culturally sensitive cooking channel for Chinese cuisine! I really appreciate this channel's contribution to the scene.

That backdrop at the end. There’s nothing like being out on the town, eating outdoors in open air environments. Street food and ice cold beer. Can’t wait to be able to travel safely again. I really appreciate your guys’ videos!

Oh my goodness! Thank you so much for this!! I lived in Changchun (NE China) for 4 years and have missed the BBQ ever since coming home ... It made me sad to think that the foods I knew and loved so much in China would never grace my lips and tastebuds ever again, but now I can relive the many good times and 3am chuar sessions. Legend!!

the best chinese cooking channel ever ....years later still loving it !!!

I use to live in Beijing and use to eat these for dinner all the time. When we moved back to the United States I was so sad because all I could figure out was that it was cumin. It's such a blast to the past-your videos are amazing, keep up the good work!

I love food from China and not many channels show the recipe as good as you ♥️

I always wondering what on earth is "sand ginger" is and i thought is something like chinese native plant or only found in China Turns out it sits on my pantry all the time (I came from Indonesia and we also called that "Kencur") Thanks for the informations. Now i have no need to stockpile my Galangal

I miss Tsingtao. Memories of my old home in SE Asia. Thank you for the recipe! I just got the charcoal grill out of my garage, so it'll work out great.

at work today I saw liaojiu in the client’s fridge and my rodent brain immediately went ‘aka shiaoxing wine’. it’s strange, what you pick up from KZfaq videos.

It's always nice that you upload in a time where I cannot sleep and need soothing distraction :)

I traveled all over China and the best shao khao is in Xiamen. It's amazing.

One of my favourite restaurants in the world is this really small joint in Shanghai(right next to them Maglev station) ;where I would normally have Xi'an style food. I used to have lamb skewers, biang biang noodles and this steamed rice rolls(kind of close to cheung fun but a bit firmer). My point is, this channel has given me recipes that come 98% close to the original that I used to have. Thank you guys so much. You have no idea what it means to me to have food I used as a kid. Love you both

The taste of bbq in China is the best in the world.

Omg that white rabbit shirt, i need one. I havent had that candy in decades.

Hi guys, I love your channel, makes me so homesick for the food back when I lived in Shanghai. I ate street bbq all the time, in particular I frequented the guys that came from Xinjiang because they had the best stuff in my opinion. One thing that I loved in particular that is still a mystery to me to this day is a delicious tofu on skewers that only the Xinjiang bbq guys had. My Mandarin was limited but even with the help of local friends I could never get an answer as to what it was exactly, the answer was always simply "xinjiang tofu." It was a thicker/denser than most tofu and was itself flavored in some way (I've tried it with and without the spice mix they sprinkle on top) and had some kind of seeds IN the tofu. I've tried tirelessly to find any mention of it online but always arrive at a dead end. Have you guys ever encountered anything like I'm describing? Could you potentially "demystify" this special tofu?

two years ago I was in Liaoning and I never had such amazing BBQs (we had a Welcome BBQ and a Good Bye BBQ). it was so good. I never thought that I would fall in love with chicken neck. but going to use those mixes next time I have a BBQ

Omg thank u I have been looking EVERYWHERE for these recipes!

OMG! You made this video!! I asked you previously for tips on this and SO APPRECIATE this video! Thank you, my partner is going to be super stoked. None of these restaurants exist anymore in SF.

This is one of my favorite street foods!! They're so delicious 😋😋

Inspiring video as always,I'm actually on a diet and this is killing me...back at my grandma's house we always have Shaokao in backyard,and we actually have some kind of family secret for spices,instead of using powder we soak them in light soy sauce overnight(except cumin and chili of course)along with some ginger,green onion and garlic,and brush that soy sauce on whatever we're grilling.This method is also oven friendly because spice powder may require direct heat from fire to get rid of that earthy smell and let out the aroma.

Please do a winter melon recipe, I’d love to see you guy’s take on this quintessentially chinese produce 🤗

Cumin seasoning is so so good on lamb skewers.. one of my favs

Some of those intro shots reminded me of getting street satay in Singapore and I miss it so much! Hopefully it won't be too long until I can visit my parents again

This is a whole new world of Chinese cooking for me. Would like to see more videos on this, thanks!

I made some skewers tonight over charcoal after watching this, the cumin seasoning on lamb is hands down one of the best flavour combinations I have ever had. It was just absolutely f***ing sensational. The 1st chilli one on chicken was good, super tasty, I'd love to be able to get the chillis you use, but had to settle for ground chilli powder I have on hand. But, the lamb was mucking refarkable.

You guys really went for the laowai nostalgia spot there ;) wonderful video as always!

HI STEPH AND CHRIS! 👋👋 Quick catch up~ I still have a little bit of the lovely spices you sent me. The sand ginger was the biggest surprise. You were right! It certainly doesn't resemble ginger! Galangal is indeed somewhat close in flavour but not close enough to substitute IMO. And that BBQ spice!! LOVED it! And of course 5 spice goes great in a lot of dishes savory and sweet. We very much enjoyed them. TY Again. We're fine~our unfortunate spike in cases is starting to flatline, but that means more time for us in almost total isolation. We are both diabetic and I'm very immunocompromised, so still haven't ventured outside. Hubby does small shops and we are experimenting a lot with recipes. We're in an historical heat wave ~ it's been higher than 40C at times! We're breaking heat records daily ~sometimes several in one day. So cooking is at a bare minimum or not at all for over a week. Masks in stores are mandatory here in Kingston and hubby says almost everyone outside are wearing them too. Let's hope this summer proceeds toward defeating this virus. But honestly Steph and Chris? I think this is here for the long run. So we'll learn to live and love in a different way for the foreseeable future. I'm actually closer to my tribe or my "bunch" as I call them as we text everyday to check in. My daughters, sons-in-law, niece and our three grandest of the grands all check in. Used to be we'd check in maybe two times/week. But for now it's every day. Stay safe my Friends. Stay well. Jenn 🇨🇦 👋 PS: a couple cold dishes would be lovely to see. But keep doing what you're doing. It's all good!

I've saved these three spice blends for a cook up on the weekend, cheers for the great tips.

You have to remember to put the battery in the starter button. It’s not thick steel but it’s ok for what I spent. Wanted a Weber but not willing to pay $1000 for it. Crazy. This works fine and is good enough, it’s not going to last forever but it’s fine for now.

I love u guys!! Amazing ! I am really big fan of chinese food but every recipe I see in KZfaq is in chinese language and no subtitles but then I found your channel. Thanks alot for all detailed recipe

It is so wonderful to enjoy the shaokao and the cold beer with friends after daytime work in the hot summer.worthy. even gain weight .

Just a mention about sand ginger, it is powdered dried galangal Sa Keong ........ keep the cool videos coming guys

The closing scene had a great background :) just like you would expect from a futuristic movie based in Asia.

This was the best food I ate in China.. I miss it soo much..

Highly beneficial to foreigners who are residents of china. Specifically the ones who are stuck abroad

OKAY THANK GOD I FOUND THIS CHANNEL! Time to impress my dad

I love Steph's White Rabbit t-shirt!

I just found this channel and am super happy I did! Amazing recipes!

Me watching this while stuck at home knowing it’s gonna be a long time before I’m brave enough to go shopping 👁👄👁

I've been looking for this for so long good thing you did get in touch with Chinese BBQ!!!

Didn’t even know I needed this in my life. Looks delicious. Thank you!

Thank you for posting!! I'm going to be buying a spice grinder- that's it I'm tired of making excuses. I'm so excited, thanks for the inspiration.

Topless ‘dudes’ in restaurant? Yeah, I suspect guys in dive bars in the Delta here in America will blush upon seeing this class act.

I’m drooling & missing shao kao nights in Beijing! Thank you for sharing - def going to try!

There was a shaokao joint under my apartment in shanghai that was one of my favourite places in the city. They did an aubergine/eggplant thing that was so so good and I cannot find a recipe in English anywhere!

Need that White Rabbit shirt!!!

White Rabbit candies - my CBC children favourite

That cumin seasoning should be classified as a drug.... Also, to whomever is reading this, sending lots of love to all you foodies! Take care and be safe! Just started my own food/travel channel. Any feedback would be highly appreciated!

Thanks for the great recipes and videos

I'd like to suggest an electric grill! The big famous one in the U.S. is called a "George Foreman Grill". There is no substitute for a charcoal grill, but it's better than not eating bites of heaven on a stick! I absolutely love mine! I've worn two of them out over the years.

Spices must flow! That is Shaokao!

OMG I love Steph’s Big White Rabbit Milk Candy (大白兔奶糖) shirt

OMG FINALLY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I rarely do grill on coals but i'm going to turn to that spice rub the next time i grill because who wouldn't want extra seasonings? no one :D.

I been trying to find this on google forever but didnt know what it was called. Will definately try this!

Very useful spice mixes.

Nice! Going to stock my cabinet with more spice mixes!

I don't have an electric grill. I've always wanted to do Shao Kao at home and I guess this is the kick on the butt that I needed. We're full of korean BBQ joints and there's only one shaokao in the city. We just had about +/- 2500 positive covid cases yesterday so I'm not risking it for now.

Ive always wanted to try shaokao I live but have never gotten too far. I remember the spice flavours to be a craving of mine since childhood because I never got it in Europe and had to wait for family visits in China. Thank you for this video! I will def try it!!

Thank you I have been looking for this for agggggessss

Thanks for the great videos.

I’m so happy that you’ve done this video. I miss the shao kao terribly bb

Found y'all last night by recommendation. I am home. :3

Wholesome information! Thanks!

Love the White Rabbit T恤

Nothing beats barbecue bats with a side of covid salad

串 is life.

Well, I am excited to try all three of these. Those peppers look amazing. I am obsessed with growing all kinds of hot peppers in my Zone 5 Canadian Zone. Any chance that you guys already have a video explaining the different chilis and their scoville rating? I don't recall one. I have such a hard time knowing what heat rating many of the peppers used in China have. That would be a great video. I know, I know, there are all kinds of them out there. If you made a video series about them, you could include how drying or pickling affects the heat rating etc. I would be glued to that series and glean of it all I could! : )

Another great vlog. Cheers

I'm still waiting for the Chinese barbecue 101 😭

Oooh ! I had no idea that sand ginger is the same as what we call kentjoer in the Netherlands ! The more you know.

Just when I thought Shao Kao was a Mortal Kombat character, it came out as a magic seasoning for my summer bbq

A young Spike Spiegel just taught me how to make spices. Unbelievable

To keep R low but to keep our sanity, friends are having barbecues a lot here at the moment. I considered bringing Xinjiang cumin lamb and nang, now I think I shall have to!

Ah btw the reason why many 烧烤摊 only open at night is because or else they would get a huge fine because of not paying taxes But that also applies to many breakfast sellers But now seriously, even the chengguans eat breakfast and also dinner at such places which they normally trash over work time

Where can I get a White Rabbit shirt like Steph is wearing? (Also, you guys should do a video on Chinese candies.)

i like your white rabbit shirt.

😋😋😋😋😋😋I love spicy food, anyone like Szechuan food？ like garlic crawfish!

definitely need to try these!

Dabaitu t-shirt. Yes

FYI, AFAIK In American English - Stuff on sticks smoldering over charcoal as shown at the start of the video is called grilling. BBQ is slow-cooking > 8hrs in low heat. In British English BBQ is putting meat on a grill (like at the start of the video). This makes things confusing because if someone says "Hey, I know this awesome BBQ place" then someone who's been taught BBQ = slow cooked is then expecting succulent tender slow cooked BBQ, something you usually don't get at home since it's so much effort and if they get to the restaurant and it turns out to just be grilled meats then it's seriously disappointing 😅 That said, I love chinese grilled meats

Oh man no matter where you are in China, the BBQ tastes almost exactly the same in my experience. Even once in Bangkok it had that flavor.

I love north east yang rou chuang

If you a fatty piece meat like lamb leg or brisket. You can render the fat and brush it or dip your skewer into it with the melted fat while or before grilling.

Awesome this looks easy! Hot summer nights at bbq joints in China 👌🙏. I would love a recipe video for kao yu aka Sichuan bbq fish aka Sichuan boiled fish aka mala boiled fish lol

is this the lamb seasoning they use for xin jiang lamb skewers? I've been trying to replicate it for quite some time now, but its always off. I feel like they add something else as well.

I love how MSG is making a comeback. Back in the 90's MSG was a taboo. Now its like fcuk it, as long as its good, toss it in...YOLO! I love it!!!

yes ❤️

Thanks for great video! Ever thought about a video around Chinese beer/alcohol (apart from shaoxing wine)?

Malcolm Reed vs CCD....BBQ rub cook off challenge!

What's up with the Don King microphone she is holding? Nice video explaining how to make the spice mixtures. Thanks!

Nice spice my guy 👍👍

Your videos are the best, I love how you are passionate about cooking and always start from scratch. But honestly, the music at the end of your videos is really awesome, any possibility to access this?

I'm all over that cumin. Now you really have me wanting to BBQ at 9am here.

Do you guys also marinate other chuan staples like jiu cai, squid, etc..? Or just hit em with the spice mix? Thanks so much for the vids, they're always go-tos for me when experimenting with Chinese dishes I loved while I was over there.

Nice

Hi Chinese Cooking Demystify team. Is there any link to purchase this readymade mix online.

In the northeast I lived in heilongjiang province and they have a peanut powder seasoning that’s mixed with spices does anyone know what this is called? Typically after you receive you shao kao skewers you could dip the skewers into it it’s almost similar to that dukkah seasoning

Can you use it as dipping ?