Charmaine Ferrara's The Wok Way to Healthy Chinese Cooking

OneCoffeePleaseOneCoffeePlease: Like most folks lately, I am trying to get my family to eat more healthful meals. I gravitate toward anything that is richly flavorful so that my food is not a chore to eat. This book hits all the right notes.

For the most part, all the ingredients were already in my pantry. If you are brand new to Chinese cooking, you might need to buy a few ingredients, but they are all pretty mainstream in most grocery stores. The book begins by teaching several combination sauces used throughout the book such as: All-purpose Stir-Fry Sauce, Sweet and Sour Sauce, Brown Sauce, and Basic Sambal (chile) Sauce.

I especially like the array of vegetable and tofu dishes. However, there is also a very nice variety of proteins, dumplings, noodles, and rice.

As some reviewers have noted, there could be more finished product photos. However, the existing photos are well arranged and mouthwatering.

Overall, I am very happy with my purchase. This book is simple yet eloquent. The recipes are quick to make and relatively easy to prepare. 5 stars for sure

UPDATE 9/15/2023: I’ve updated this review to include a picture of the “Happy Family” recipe my family and I...

United States on Sep 12, 2023

Maryland Lady: Great recipes and a nice addition to my cookbook library.

United States on Jun 19, 2023

Rizalina C. Galicinao: Book is poorly printed. I am having problems reading. This is the same reason I am returning a previously ordered book -
The Trlyh Hesalthy Vegtsarian.

United States on Mar 14, 2023

Joseph J.: I love the cookbook as it has some fantastic recipes within. However I paid $36.97 for the book only to find on the back cover that the original price was $17.99

United States on Jan 21, 2023

Judy L.: This cookbook starts out, as most do with a descriptions of ingredients used, the types of woks available, and useful tools to have. The recipes use ingredients that are readily available in grocery stores or on-line, and the instructions for recipes are very easy to follow. Many of the recipes have the same names as those you would find on a Chinese restaurant menu, so this makes it a bit easier to try recipes you might like. I have found quite a few recipes we like, but you have to choose them by dish names you are familiar with or ingredients you know you like. Since this book contains no pictures of the finished dishes, you need to choose by dish name or ingredients. Even so, depending on your tastes, I don't think you would be disappointed with any of these recipes.

Cooking a new cuisine is an adventure, and this book is a great start to start your adventure in Chinese cooking. For the beginner in Chinese cooking, the recipes in this book are so easy to follow and help to ensure your success in creating each dish that is much better than anything you could order from Chinese takeout.

I hope this review was helpful for you.

United States on Jun 28, 2022

Michael Lewington: The paper quality is poor. I do not know why so much time is given to soups. Many of the recipes require some pre-made sauces which involve home-made chicken stock, whilst also including Knorr chicken stock granules in some recipes.

United Kingdom on Apr 04, 2022

Marius B.: Die Rezepte selbst hauen mich nicht überwältigend vom Hocker, sind jedoch solide.

Der durchaus lesenwerte Teil darüber was die chinesische Wokküche ausmacht gleicht das mehr als nur aus. Wer ein umfassendes, englischsprachiges Wokeinsteigerbuch sucht, ist hier genau richtig. Insbesondere die Tipps zum Richten "einbrennen" des Woks haben mir gefallen - das lassen so viele Bücher weg, dabei ist es so wichtig. Klar - bei den Pflegetipps muss man ein wenig schmunzeln, denn kaum einer zieht das so im Detail durch; aber es ist dennoch gut mal Schwarz auf Weiß zu lesen, wie eine perfekte Wokpflege aussehen kann.

Germany on Apr 17, 2018

Rjb1: Good guide for Chinese cooking

United Kingdom on Dec 22, 2017

John Barker: Nothing special

Canada on Dec 16, 2017

YamYam: I gave this to my cooking lady and she makes amazing dishes!

Canada on Sep 11, 2017