The Jewish-Chinese Fusion Question
It's a fusion tradition that ain't on swanky menus but is very rooted in America's melting pot culture. Just think of cream cheese wontons (right), Soy Vay products, and how many Peking Dragons are open on Christmas. This dude [video] knows what I'm talking about. It's a curious overlap, but this post on the New York Times City Room blog went where few other Jewish-Chinese fusions have gone before.
Pastrami egg rolls and Chinese hot dogs, available at Eden Wok on 34th Street in Manhattan.
It's as if Second Avenue Deli woke up one very twisted morning on Canal Street. Writer Jennifer 8. Lee has identified herself as the fortune cookie anthropologist over the last few years, studying Chinatowns in America and all over the globe for her upcoming book The Fortune Cookie Chronicles. Her corresponding blog documents everything from highly useful fortune cookie knick-knacks to the eternal Chow Mein as the Chosen Food of the Chosen People topic (one of her favorites). Former New York Times food critic Mimi Sheraton also loved to observe the longstanding love affair Jews have had with Chinese food, "particularly the slightly overcooked, mild-flavored Cantonese specialties," she noted.
So if pastrami egg rolls can exist, what other funky Jew-nese fusions we got up our sleeves? Sweet and Sour Matzo Balls? Watercress latkes? Chopped liver-mein? Kung Pow Reuben? Yes, we went there. Eden Wok, if you're reading, hire a recipe developer and get on this.
About the author: Erin Zimmer, Serious Eats's Washington, D.C., correspondent, is a just-graduated Georgetown gal following her nose about town as Washingtonian magazine's Dining intern and Best Bites blogger. She got her start as the Hoya campus paper's food columnist, and since entering "real person-hood" has ached for her dining hall's omelet station.
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9 Comments:
Apparently (before I moved here) there used to be a restaurant in Toronto called Ginsberg & Wong, which was a deli/Chinese restaurant. Anyone reading who lived here then? What was it like?
wellred at 5:55PM on 12/18/07
I've been wondering this, about the apparent Jewish-Chinese cultural kinship. Example: Mahjong, the Chinese tiles game. It seems like the only people who play mahjong are either Chinese or Jewish. How did this happen?
Keely at 6:12PM on 12/18/07
i know there used to be a few kosher chinese restaurants in the garment district of nyc... not sure if they're still there though. china shalom is on the upper west side though!
cook eat FRET at 12:15AM on 12/19/07
"Chinese Food For Christmas" (You Tube) aside;
Baltimore has a large Orthodox Jewish community and one positive aspect are several kosher Chinese restaurants. The most popular being David Chu's and Kosher Bite. Pretty good as kosher Chinese goes. A side story: Many years ago an Orthodox cousin of mine married a Chinese lady who converted to Judaism. Her father, being a chef at Benihana at the time, made kosher corned-beef egg rolls as well as other modified Chinese dishes. You really don't need pork and shellfish for great Chinese! As far as the Chinese Jewish connection goes I guess both Jews and Chinese don't celebrate Christmas as a rule so what could be more natural? As far as mah-jongg goes, well that's for another blog!
RichardCrystal at 8:26AM on 12/19/07
In the late 80s, there was a kosher Chinese restaurant in L.A. called Genghis Cohen that did a booming business. Although I cannot imagine Chinese food without pork, crab, etc...
And then there's the Kung Pao Kosher Comedy folks here in SF: They take over a Chinese restaurant on Christmas.
anitaepler at 10:06AM on 12/19/07
Chinese restaurants are open on Christian holidays and we Jews like to go out to eat on holidays off that aren't our own. Also, they spring up in a lot of areas because It's easy, it's inexpensive, and it pleases a lot of people.
There are a ton of Jewish/Asian places in the five boroughs and the NY metropolitan area. Eden Wok, though I have been there several times, isn't even close to being the best of the kosher/Asian ilk. Haikara is good for meat, and Buddha Bodai is AWESOME for the vegetarians. Estihana is good if you know what to order (the sushi pretty much sucks—avoid).
Stufsocker at 1:24PM on 12/19/07
There's actually an academic paper online that explains the Jewish affinity for Chinese food, and a lot of it has to do with chicken soup.
Here it is.
wellred at 6:24PM on 12/19/07
i was raised "kosher style", which meant we didn't mix meat and dairy in the same meal, but not everything in our pantry was labeled "kosher".
I don't know about you, but other than crab rangoons, i've NEVER seen anything dairy at a chinese menu. if you avoid the pork,chinese is as close to Kosher as you're going to get at a non-Kosher restaurant, and you'll never have to tell the waiter "can you make my meal with out cheese/bacon please?".
and chinese places are open on Christmas and Easter, when there is nothing else to do, and i don't want to sit home and watch christmas or easter movies on TV. don't tell my mom, but i've discovered the wonderous amazingness that is sweet & sour pork.
redhead at 4:54PM on 12/20/07
I wish Indians were more a part of the Jew-Chinese xmas celebrations- south indian food is kosher, and most vegetarian indian food without cream and paneer is also kosher. actually, in nyc this year, it looks like the Jews and Chinese will be celebrating with the Indians at this cool thing:
http://flavorpill.com/newyork/events/2007/12/24/jdub-records-presents-jewltide-5-feat-dj-rekha
free chinese food, wet hot american summer, and bhangra music. I wish I could be there to join as an Indian Hindu who never has anything to do on Xmas.
traderjanki at 9:47PM on 12/22/07