Log 55: Baking 101

Chinese people don't bake. 

They fry.  They steam.  They roast.  They boil.....there are dishes that involve combinations of these various cooking techniques, but they don't EVER bake.  The reason for this was a little bit of a mystery to me until it dawned on me that the activity of baking is predominantly a "wheat culture" activity.  In culturally traditional "corn cultures" as can be found in the Americas, and the "rice cultures" of East and SE Asia you just don't see a long history of baking.

However, if you make your way west from here to Central Asia and South Asia, you don't have to go too far before you start to find cultures that make excellent unleavened breads.  The Uyghur people in Xinjiang, China's westernmost province bake delicious sesame flavored flat-breads in big vase shaped ovens.  They also make the most delectable lamb-filled baked bread (called "san sams" in their language) that they bake by wetting the dough with water and then sticking them to the inside walls of the ovens.  Continue further west from here and you'll find that the art of baking continues to elevate in complexity until it reaches its apogee in Europe.  To say that "the Europeans can bake" would be a gross understatement.  Breads, cakes, pies, cookies.... flans, tarts, tortes, (which I only recently realized were NOT the same thing) etc., etc.  The things that the people there do with ground wheat (aka flour) and an oven are mind boggling.  Anytime that a friend of ours goes to Beijing, we coerce them to make a stop at the German bread bakery there, in order for them to bring us back a loaf or two of their delicious breads (of the at least 15 different varieties that are available).

This isn't to say that you can't buy bread or cake in Chengdu.  They're available pretty much everywhere and at all times of the day.  However, the sad fact of the matter is that the baked goods that we can get here are not very pleasing to our western palates.  Breads tend to be soft, white, and sweet.  Bakers also tend to add stuff that we wouldn't necessarily choose to add to our bread:  sweet red-beans, black sesame paste, and this stuff called "meat floss" which is made from dried pork that has been finely shredded. 

The cakes here always tend to be a huge disappointment as well.  They're wonderfully decorated, gorgeous works of art that are so bland and flavorless that you often have to read the tag to figure out what type of cake you're eating.  The Chinese palate has a comparatively low tolerance for sugar and the desserts here are adjusted accordingly.  The other "off" thing about many of the cakes here is that there are usually cherry tomatoes on them.  The majority of the cakes are decorated with shiny sugar-glazed fruit, and cherry tomatoes are used to add a bit of glistening red to the orange of oranges and the green of kiwi.  Because cherry tomatoes are considered a fruit here (and technically speaking, from a botanical standpoint, they actually ARE a fruit), it isn't unusual to see them added among the watermelon, orange, and apple slices in an "end of the meal" fruit plate, or as one of the fruits in a fruit tart.  Our friend Shirley told us of a time when she had special ordered a carrot cake decorated with the Peace Corps logo on it.  They were extremely happy with the final outcome........ that is until they realized that the red part of the logo was done in..... you guessed it!  Ketchup!!!  ugh.

Needless to say, Chris and I realized pretty quickly that if we wanted a truly satisfying baked dessert, we were going to have to make it ourselves.  Over the course of the last couple of years we've rediscovered our interests in baking.  While our skills have improved significantly, breads are still a little out of our league.... and who's got the time or patience for that anyways?  Cakes, pies, and cookies however are not a problem.  Many of the ingredients (and viable substitutes) are widely available here and while our "oven" is actually little more than a glorified toaster oven (especially by American standards) it is perfectly adequate for doing the job, and over the last couple of years we've been really good about sharing our baked desserts with our Chinese friends.  In fact, pretty much every time that there is an office celebration we have brought in something baked to share, and every time that we've brought visiting guests into the office to meet the staff, they've always baked their own specialties to share with them (Gloria made cookies, Mary made pie, and Begonia made flan).

While a couple of folks complained that our desserts were a little on the sweet side, most of them had that "aha" moment where they looked at us, smiled and said, "So this is what chocolate cake is supposed to taste like?”, which is always quickly followed by, "Will you show us how to make this please?!?”, to which I have always replied, "Sure, sure."

So with my time here dwindling down to mere weeks, last weekend I finally decided to hold a baking class for the Peace Corps staff who had indicated an interest in learning how to bake.  Though none of the six of them had ever baked before, they were enthusiastic to learn about the process.  Their knowledge was minimal to non-existent, and ingredients like nutmeg, baking soda, and vanilla were completely foreign to them.  Most of them didn't even have ovens, their decision as to whether or not to purchase one resting on whether or not their experience in my class was a positive one.

In planning for the class, I conducted a brief needs assessment.  From their responses I identified three recipes that were consistent favorites that we would all make together:  pumpkin pie, lemon cake, and fruit and nut muffins (aka "morning glory muffins").  With Chris as my able-bodied sous chef, we presented our own cooking show, demonstrating the processes and involving the class, giving them hands-on experience in the process of baking desserts, covering things like:  how to use measuring spoons and measuring cups, greasing and flouring a pan, and testing for doneness with a toothpick.  It was all very interesting to them, and best of all..... it was FUN!  We all had a blast and our class discovered that baking desserts is not the intimidating intricate process that they had thought it to be.  Quite the opposite, they found it to be easy and enjoyable and they were thrilled when everything that they made themselves that day came out perfectly delicious.  Their favorite was the lemon cake, a recipe that was given to me by my friend Sueko, who got the recipe from her mom.  I love that about recipes; how they have a
history and how you can share that history with the people that you pass them on to.

At the end of the day everyone left excited (and full!).  As they were leaving they talked about plans for sharing their new skills with friends and baking homemade desserts for their children.   Some have since purchased ovens and have asked for additional recipes..... recipes of which I'm sure they'll decrease the amount of sugar by at least half!

We've had a lot of interesting cross cultural experiences here in China, and I have say that this baking class ranks right up there as one of the best.  Many people who serve in the Peace Corps will say something along the lines of "I gained much more than I ever gave", in an effort to describe how overwhelmingly enriching the experience of living in these cultures is, and how extremely giving the people that we serve are toward us while we are there.  It can sometimes make our best efforts seem quite small and insignificant.  What we often realize later on is that the seemingly insignificant things that we do often have the biggest positive impact.  In this case, I'm pretty sure that teaching the staff how to bake cakes isn't going to change the world, but I do know for sure that taking our Sunday afternoon to teach them a new skill made them very happy and very excited.  The experience will be a shared memory for both us and them of several laughs (especially when we made them wear silly aprons!), an exchange of ideas, new English words for them, new Chinese words for us and a few more pounds around the waistline from all those sweets!

Comments

[Ralph]

OK, Charles, what's with the tall guy next to Chris? I mean, the story about cooking class is fun reading and all, but it's kind of pushed aside by the sight of a guy wearing what appears to be a naked-man apron.

[Way-Ting]

Sounds like a great time -- the class that is. Great idea!

I DO have to take issue with a couple of things -- I LOVE Chinese/Asian desserts. Instead of the sickeningly sweet American desserts, I just need/want a little light something. And an angel-food light cake with cream and fruit filling is just the thing.

AND, I will add, I grew up on dry shredded pork, and it is delicious! Goes well with toast/pastry and mayo. Or, even better, in a bowl of congee with a yummy thousand year old egg!

I guess you can tell I grew up eating Chinese...