Whether it’s quick meals that need fitting into a hectic schedule, a colourful and exotic culinary spread to impress friends and family or additional help in maintaining a balanced and healthy diet, Chinese cuisine offers something for anyone’s lifestyle.

Colourful ingredients, aromatic spices and of course the perfect wok are all that’s needed to get you sizzling in the kitchen and now, thanks to celebrity chef Ken Hom, cooking up a simple stir fry really does mean woking your way to good health.

Combining Ken’s culinary expertise with accredited nutritionist Wynnie Chan, the NutriWok is the first all-in-one solution to cooking and eating Chinese food the healthy way and here, armed with over 40 years experience of wok cooking, Ken Hom will be able to talk you through just how Chinese food can be fun, simple and delicious.

Ken Hom joins us live online to discuss Chinese cuisine

For more information visit www.kenhom.com

H: Vicky Letch, host
K: Ken Hom, chef

H: Hello and welcome to the Food and Drink Show, I’m Vicky Letch. Now then when it comes to watching the calories, most of us wouldn’t assume that Chinese food would be the healthiest of options, but actually you’d be wrong. Whether it’s quick meals that need fitting into a hectic schedule, a colourful and exotic culinary spread to impress friends and family or additional help in maintaining a balanced and healthy diet, Chinese cuisine offers something for anyone’s lifestyle. Well one man who knows a thing or two about Chinese cooking and its health benefits is Ken Hom. Thanks for taking the time to chat with me, it’s so lovely to have you here

K: Lovely to meet you

H: Now of course we are live so if you have any questions do pop them in the box on the screen and click submit and we will work very hard at getting them all answered. Welcome. It’s a pleasure to meet you

K: Thank you

H: I adore Chinese food and we’ll talk about that in a little bit more detail, but I have to say if I was to say “Chinese food” to the majority of my friends they would probably think sweet and sour chicken, egg fried rice, prawn crackers but there’s a lot more to it than that isn’t there?

K: Oh absolutely I think people were worried about why Chinese cookery is not healthy is because in this country everybody eats things that are fried. I mean you can just see the take away list, it’s you know aromatic duck which is fried instead of roast duck which is what most Chinese would eat. They would eat steamed fish and not sweet and sour pork

H: Yes

K: Which is fried. They would not order spring rolls except you know when you’re eating Dim Sum, and the thing is, it’s amazing, even when I ran restaurants I could just see the top of my list, you know would be sweet and sour pork

H: Yes

K: Because people are so used to things being battered and fried and when you try to get them to, you know eat a steamed fish or a steamed scallop they go uggh!

H: It’s different, it’s not a flavour we’re used to

K: Exactly

H: I have to confess, I mean I love all of the things you’ve just listed, but perhaps you’re going to enlighten me and I’m sure you’re able to, because haven’t you been cooking for 40 years, some 40 years?

K: Yes about 49 – 49 years

H: That’s incredible, you still don’t look old enough! This is amazing. Now Chinese food of course is part of that beautiful Chinese culture isn’t it, could you just tell us a little bit about that?

K: Well you know it’s a 5000 year old culture, and it’s funny because I just finished a documentary on noodles, and it’s a five hour documentary and it’s very interesting about the long history of Chinese cooking that stretches back quite a few thousand years, and even form the very beginning we start to steam things and make food taste good because –

H: Yes

K: Eating is such a powerful part of our culture, I mean we – it’s – it forms everything that we are

H: Yes absolutely. Now one of the many joys of Chinese food is the cooking of the Chinese food, and something unique to that is the wok!

K: Yes absolutely. And what I try to do is in this country and over the quarter of a century I’ve been around here, I try to get people to cook it the way Chinese would cook it

H: Yes

K: That means getting your wok very, very hot

H: Yes

K: Before you add the oil, and it should be smoking – don’t panic, don’t call 999

H: You see I do that, do you find that we quite often approach our Chinese cooking –

K: Well you know it’s interesting because a lot of – a lot of families it’s the men who do the wok cooking

H: I can believe that, it’s a bit like the outdoor barbecuing isn’t it – it’s manly food, yes I can believe that

K: Straight to a woman’s heart

H: Very true. That and diamonds! So you have obviously created – developed your own wok

K: Yes

H: Do you want to tell us what’s so special about that?

K: Well the thing is you know we’ve had this – almost for 24 years now this line of wok, the Ken Hom wok which is the best selling in this country, but I want people to actually use it – yesterday I was in a public demonstration and this woman, she said I had your wok for 20 years and I still am using it

H: Ah that’s lovely. That’s lovely

K: And she wasn’t even a plant!

H: She was a real bonefide customer. Talk about having a wok for 20 years that my producer said you can’t ask that, that’s not true, and I don’t know if it’s an old wives’ tale but I thought you will be the man who knows. People say when you have a wok that you’re not to wash it, you’re just to wipe it down. Is that true?

K: Well the thing is you don’t really need to wash it, like for instance like a wok like this, what you do is simply put hot water over it and wipe it with a soft cloth

H: Yes

K: And you know people worry about germs, well you know anything that survives this heat deserves to live anyway, so don’t worry about that!

H: Yes, yes

K: And you should keep your wok nice and black. Now this one has a non-stick coating

H: Ok

K: Which is what most people want now because it’s easy care and it’s healthier because you need less oil when you cook, and this is something that is a sign of the times

H: Yes

K: Because when I was starting out I was against non-stick because non-stick at that time was not developed enough for woks. In other words if it got hot you would have trouble, you know with the non-stick coating

H: Right, yes

K: But now you can get it very, very hot and get the results that you need from it

H: Ok. And this is, I mean it’s huge, it’s cavernous, I imagine you could probably feed a family of 6 with that

K: This is the large size which is for, you know a larger family

H: Yes

K: And we have a smaller size. But I think it’s to adapt to how people live today, as you say you know it’s a quick way of eating, it’s healthy for you

H: Yes

K: It’s a great way to get the children to eat veggies, I mean –

H: It is actually because there’s something quite fun about the look of Chinese food, it does look like fun for children to eat. It’s very colourful isn’t it?

K: It’s colourful and not only that, mothers come up to me and kiss me. They say my husband and children never ate vegetables until I stir fried them!

H: Fantastic

K: So I think it’s such a different way to eat vegetables than the traditional British way which is boiling it to you know, death, and I understand why people hated vegetables because they weren’t sexy

H: Yes it’s very true, it’s very true. Now you get the wok, but you also get your –

K: Yes this is a thing that we developed, you know something we’ve always been concerned about for a long time is about health, and many people ask me about why is it healthy, so with the rise of children with diabetes and everything like that

H: Yes

K: I thought this is really something that needs to be addressed and so I thought ok you have your wok, we have a booklet that’s been invented by a certified nutritionist

H: Yes

K: From Hong Kong, she’s Chinese but she used to live here in the UK, now she’s back in Hong Kong with her husband. And I worked with her before on something about the Chinese heart, you know why Chinese have less heart disease because of what they eat

H: Yes

K: And what we’ve included is a DVD as well, so just to get people excited, how you make something

H: Yes

K: And how it can be healthy and a bit of calories is in it, but it’s tasty, that’s the whole thing. It’s – a lot of people think – and it’s not a diet book because I hate that word

H: Yes, yes

K: Because it doesn’t exist in Chinese, that word diet. It’s about eating in a nice, joyful way and having your cake and eat it too so to speak

H: Yes. It’s a lifestyle – more of a lifestyle

K: Absolutely

H: Than a diet plan as it were

K: Everything is about common sense

H: Yes

K: The thing is you have to know what you’re eating. I mean it’s funny how people will investigate whether to buy the latest computer or the latest stereo and things like that, but they will not bother to find out what they’re eating

H: Yes, yes

K: And that’s the most important part

H: Absolutely

K: Because a stereo you can replace, your body you can’t. Well we’re trying to but –

H: You never know, you never know, by the end of the year. We are live of course, just a little reminder for you at home so if you have any questions do send them in and I will field them to Ken, and I’ll give you one of these questions now if that’s ok –

K: Yes

H: This is from Thomas and he says “I’d love to host a cook-off with some friends soon. Would Chinese food lend itself well for this?”

K: A cook-off is perfect for that

H: Is it, yes?

K: In other words they could get this wok and start to – time –

H: Yes

K: It should be a lot of fun actually.

H: Yes

K: You know the thing about Chinese cooking, it’s also very joyous. I mean because you hear not only you smell the food but you hear these crackling sounds, sizzling and things like that, because it’s so hot

H: Yes

K: Which is what really Chinese food is –

H: It’s a very sensory food isn’t it?

K: Very much

H: With all the smells and the sounds and of course the tastes. Another one from Nick – I like this question Nick, thank you very much because I wanted to know this – “what drinks go best with Chinese food?”

K: Well you know people ask me that all, the time, and you know I say you should drink what you like

H: Yes

K: I mean I think you know recently I’ve been serving Rose with Chinese food, and it seems to go very well because it’s light, it’s cool

H: Yes

K: It’s – it’s not as – you know be3casue red wine you need something more meaty

H: Yes

K: And Chinese food is not that meat oriented, and Rose can go with fish and you don’t have to change wines, and it’s becoming very popular in this country as well, so I would say go with Rose or champagne

H: I’m very happy with this information because I adore both of those things, so that’s great. Now again this is a little personal question – whenever I’ve cooked Chinese food at home I sometimes let myself down with the preparation

K: Yes

H: I feel it’s one of those things you have to be prepared

K: Well this is why, you know we did the DVD because a lot of it is to show techniques

H: Yes

K: Like for instance something I like to show – you know preparation of things, it’s not as complicated as you think it is, if you know the technique. So, like this pepper, you know how long it usually takes, pepper, you have to seed it and everything. This is a technique that we use. We cut one end, we cut the other end like that

H: Yes

K: And we stand it up and then sort of parallel with the cutting board we just core the centre

H: Oh wow

K: Like this, see, and –

H: Oh that’s amazing

K: And you put that down, so you have the pepper, all cored and you throw this away, and all these bits you save

H: I’m sorry I’m just laughing because I’m thinking of the state of my peppers when I chop them. They look nothing like that! Oh that’s very impressive

K: So simple. And the thing is it just takes literally seconds to do and again it’s knowing all about techniques

H: Ok

K: And this is why we thought the DVD would be very helpful because people can actually see – you know seeing is believing

H: Absolutely. And so you would say, if you are – say your standard stir fry, you have to have everything chopped and ready to go

K: Right. That’s the only – I mean the preparation is very important because once this gets hot, you better move. No monkeying about!

H: Yes. And it’s the sort of food you have to keep moving, you have to keep –

K: You have to keep moving, you have to keep – because it’s so hot

H: Yes

K: And that’s what provides the flavour, and the thing is you can add all sorts of things you can get at the supermarket like ginger and spring onions and garlic. I call it the Holy Trinity, and if you like chillies, people in this country love spicy food

H: We do, yes

K: And you add some chillies and you can transform anything into something special

H: Yes absolutely. Talking of heat, I’ve got a question here from Julia, thanks Julia. She says “given that woks can get quite hot, is it ok to add water when” – clever – “wokking in the kitchen!”

K: No pun intended

H: No!

K: Well the thing is you know there’s a certain procedure when you’re cooking in the wok. If you’re cooking meat you stir fry the meat first

H: Yes

K: You take it all out, drain it, then you add your veggies and your garlic etc, and then without adding more oil, what you should add is water, and this is why we have a lid, because if you have veggies you add water – a couple tablespoons, that’s all you need

H: Yes

K: You cover it and the veggies steam, and instead of adding more oil, why not with a much healthier product and it’s – you know you can taste the vegetables. It’s really good

H: Ok good, well I’m sold! Laura thank you for your question – Ken, Laura says “I’m your biggest fan.” I don’t know why I have to say that in such an eerie way! “What are the basic ingredients needed for a quick and tasty stir fry?” Excellent question, I’d like to know

K: Well obviously you need some oil

H: Yes

K: And any kind of vegetable oil will do

H: Oh so vegetable oil, not an olive oil or –

K: No not olive oil because olive oil will burn at such a high temperature and it would be a waste

H: Ok

K: Olive oil should be just straight from the bottle onto salad and things like that

H: Right ok

K: You should have things like soy sauce. Now of course soy sauce is high in sodium and people worry about that, but there’s a low sodium soy sauce now, available in all the supermarkets and it’s excellent. It’s made by one of the best soy sauce companies in the world, and it’s really delicious and it does have almost a third less sodium

H: Ok

K: So if you’re watching your sodium that’s perfect. You should have some toasted sesame oil and a vital thing is rice wine. Now rice wine comes in bottles like this, they cost about three quid

H: Right

K: And you will never run out of it because it’s dreadful to drink so if you’re an alcoholic then you really want a drink you will not even drink it because it’s so dry

H: So dry. Oh gosh ok.

K: But you mix that together in a marinade and it makes everything taste good and then of course you just need the basics – garlic, ginger, spring onions and some chillies, and you can transform, you know, any product that you like – if you don’t like peppers use something else, into something magical and very authentically Chinese tasting

H: Well I’m sure Laura will certainly be adding peppers now she’s got her new handy new pepper skills.

K: Yes

H: Elizabeth, I hope that answers your question, Elizabeth was asking about frying and adding salt so I think we’ve probably covered that one. Andrew’s got a question from Andrew Vene – “will a wok work” – that’s quite difficult to say next to each other!

K: Yes

H: Will a wok work even on an electric hob?

K: Well you know this kind of wok, because it’s flattened on the bottom, and it’s flat – it will work on any surface except I don’t know probably an Aga, it wouldn’t work

H: No exactly yes

K: And I’ll tell you why because an Aga is too – not hot enough, that’s it

H: Yes

K: But it will work you know on all surfaces, and I’ve demonstrated on an induction of course on gas but on electric, on ceramic – just remember to get it hot, that’s all

H: Yes ok, that is the key. Hot, hot hot.

K: Hot, hot, hot

H: Now I was going to say you were talking about fish earlier and how much that’s used in Chinese cooking. I adore fish but I do have lots of friends that are very wary about cooking fish. They’re almost scared of cooking fish. You’ve got lots of recipes in your book haven’t you?

K: Yes and I have a salmon recipe that takes 10 minutes to make, from – and you will have all your friends rave about it

H: Ok

K: Simply because it’s so tender and tasteful and it’s so ridiculously easy to do

H: Well it’s so ridiculously easy that we filmed you doing it, so let’s have a look at that now

Video Footage

“Now for this you need one pound of salmon fillets like this, and you just simply rub them all over with a half teaspoon of black pepper, just rub them all over with that. And bring about a pint of water to the boil and turn it down to a simmer, and you simply add the salmon like that in the water, and let it simmer for two or three minutes, covered tightly, and take it off the heat. Take about 6 tablespoons of coarsely chopped spring onion and one tablespoon of finely chopped ginger. Mix this together in a bowl. Take a small pan and mix half a tablespoon of sunflower oil with half a teaspoon of sesame oil. Heat this until it begins to smoke. Now just remove the salmon from the water, arrange it on a platter, and scatter the ginger and spring onion all over it. Now pour the hot oil on top like that and then flavour with 1 ½ tablespoon of low salt soy sauce. Now nothing could be simpler or more delicious and remember salmon is rich in Omega 3 fats and vitamin A which is good for your immune system. And that’s my 10 minute salmon with spring onion sauce.”

H: I have to say that looks absolutely gorgeous! And not only does it look totally scrumptious but it really does look healthy as well

K: Yes and it’s simple to make

H: Yes

K: The vital thing about all these kinds of healthy and tasty recipes that is the ingredients that are used there. In other words we add lots of things like 6 tablespoons of spring onions sounds like a lot, but when you eat it with the salmon, it is heaven

H: Yes I bet. It’s probably quite an interesting contrast of flavours, the salmon and spring onion

K: Yes

H: Now all of this is on your DVD and in your recipe book as well?

K: Absolutely

H: So it’s basically about educating people in what to put into their dishes and –

K: Well it’s a – if you will a complete sort of kit, that’s why we call it the Nutri Wok Kit because it’s about nutrition and it’s about, at the same time having a good time

H: Yes absolutely. Absolutely, yes. We’ve got a question here from Lucy, thanks Lucy. Lucy Kramer says “I’m not that adventurous in the kitchen, where can I start with Chinese cooking?”

K: Well like in this book we have things that are so simple like stir fried spinach with just ginger

H: Yes

K: Now that is as simple –

H: I saw that one

K: As you can get

H: Yes

K: You should start with all the simplest things first and then sort of get onto the ones that have m ore ingredients. That’s the way to start any kind of cookery

H: I must admit my – I danced over a recipe with carrots, it was just carrots and a couple of other ingredients, and I’ve never seen carrots look so appealing before in my life, it looked gorgeous! This one’s from Shelley – “why do Chinese chefs like ginger so much?”

K: Well because ginger is a major component of our sort of taste if you will, you know you have a Chinese taste. And also ginger is very good for you, you know it’s used as medicinal – besides making things taste good

H: Yes

K: It also has a kind of biting, spicy flavour that

H: Yes

K: That really can enhance food without adding any sugar or salt or fat

H: Yes great. Ok we have to say goodbye to you very soon but before we go, just run me through again what I will get, if I get the wok I have the chopsticks which I’m awful with, I’m still working on that!

K: Now the3 kit you will get the wok, and this wok that you can use for anything, and you know the thing is a wok is not just for Chinese cooking you can make chilli con carne, you can stir fry leftover pasta

H: Yes

K: And you get a book which has all the recipes, and my friend Winnie who I worked with, she vetted all the recipes to make sure that they were not only nutritious but low cal and tasty at the same time

H: Ok

K: And these are just ideas to get people started. And of course you get the DVD

H: Yes the DVD and this is – you know was done in my home in South West France so you know it’s to encourage people not only about techniques but how to use things very uncomplicated, and just to give people confidence

H: Yes absolutely. Seeing the master doing what he does best of course. Thank you so much

K: Thank you

H: If anything for the pepper demonstration! I’ve always struggled with peppers so I feel all enlightened. Thank you very much for your time and of course thank you at home for joining us. For more information about Chinese cooking and Ken’s new Nutri Wok Kit please visit kenhom.com and I’ll see you next time. Bye bye

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