Beijing: Kosher by the Great Wall

A long time ago, in a wave of post-Bat Mitzvah religiosity, I decided
that I didn't eat pork or cheeseburgers. I had grown up without ham
in the house, and it was no great issue to give up bacon (this was in
the pre-pork belly days).

I made it through Italy peeling proscuitto off my pizza and skipped
all the jamon in Spain. Bacon became a thing to be scorned, and
Christmas hams were akin to footballs.

Then, in a dingy noodle shop in New York (either Ollie's or Joe's), I
had my first soup dumpling (Xiao Long Bao), and an exception was born.

My favorite explanation for Kashrut laws from my previous incarnation
as a religion major was Mary Douglass' theory of purity and pollution.
Douglass posited that dietary laws labeled things impure that defied
category definitions (Apologies to Professors Ackerman, Ohnuma, Green
and Reinhardt for the theoretical butchering that is about to occur).
For example, shellfish were not kosher because things that lived in
the water were supposed to swim, not hang out on rocks. Similarly,
pigs were treif because they had the wrong types of hoofs and stomachs
(at least compared to their ruminant barnyard neighbors).

However, if you create a new category of kosher that allows us to eat
things that are truly delicious, Xiao Long Bao, and by extension, all
chinese food, would be a-okay.

Thus, for this trip, I am going to define pork as "Kosher by the Great
Wall" (hat tip to H. for the phrasing.

Bring on the pig!

Beijing food diary:

Thursday:

Gourmet Food Street, Wafujing shopping street
-Our first real chinese food was in an underground shopping mall,
where 120 RMB bought us piles of greasy fried rice in banana leaves,
simple dumplings and veggie pancakes. Filling after a tough morning
of baking in the morning sun.

Hua's restaurant, location unknown
-BBQ short ribs
-Chicken dish
-Chive dumplings
-Chop suey buns
-Bamboo shoots
-Greens

Friday:

Great Wall food stand
-Banana chocolate pancake. Basically a Chinese crepe

Da Dong, Chaoyang
-Peking Duck. XLL was right – best I've had and a must-visit in
Beijing. The duck is lean and not too fatty, served with all the
fanfare and little extras – hoisin sauce, pancakes, sesame pockets,
assorted veggies. They make a point of giving you the ducks head,
which none of us ate, and the duck stock made from the bones, which is
a milky, salty soup that a few sips of finish the meal perfectly.
-Fried eggplant – sublime slices of eggplant roasted with garlic and oil
-Chicken and cashews
-Sauteed greens
-Corn-dotted fried rice
-Grapes on dry ice
-Mangosteen (??) iced sorbet

Saturday

Three Guizho men, Chaoyang
-Braised beef short ribs in spicy sauce – melt-in-your mouth ribs
braised to perfection and served with smoked chilies. Bonus because it
meant I could avoid pork for a meal.
-Spicy chicken
-Spicy glass noodles
-Tofu balls
-Mashed potatoes
-Vegetable fried rice

Sunday

Dim Sum by Lama Temple
-Dumplings (Soup, Chive, Shumai, etc)
-Spicy Beef noodles
-Vegetable pancakes
-Other assorted Dim Sum dishes (no chicken feet)