Brown Eggs

I grew up helping my mom peel eggs to make this dish but I never paid attention to how she made the broth. Even as an adult she would make it for me when she visited. Because of the pandemic visits have come to a halt. So since I made beef shanks I used the broth to make the eggs for the first time in my life. Now that the BDs like hard boiled eggs, they enjoy these too.
Jan '23 XBD loves this dish.

• 8-12 eggs (whatever fits in the pot)
  
• leftover braising liquid (from braised beef shank, brown chicken, or braised pork)

1. Add eggs to pot in single layer. Add cold water
1. Gas stove: bring to boil
2. Induction stove: use power mode to bring to boil and then continue to boil at reduced heat for 3 min
2. Cover pot and turn off heat. Wait 7 minutes (up to 9 for gas stove, and depending on size of eggs).
3. Immediately drain to prevent further cooking (which leads to stinky, green layer on yolk) and run cold tap water over the eggs. Let cool in cold water bath (optionally with ice cubes).
4. Once cooled, peel the eggs. Place each egg in broth.
5. Soak overnight in fridge. They will get darker and soak up more broth the longer they sit.
6. Enjoy as snack, sliced or as accompaniment to a noodle soup or rice dish.

White Pickled Daikon

This is a quick pickle of daikon that leaves it white, NOT the luo buo gan recipe that leaves it brown and takes longer to make. I tried a random recipe and it had sugar-vinegar ratio opposite to what I expected. So it came out very sweet. I think it could be adjusted to tone down the sugar and increase the tartness. But it was very easy to make - crunchy and delicious.

• 
  1/2 large daikon, peeled (~500 g) 
  
• 1/2 c sugar (try reducing this next time)
• 1 T salt
• 1 T vinegar (try increasing this next time)

1. Cut the daikon in quarters lengthwise. Then slice to desired thickness.
2. Place in a large ziploc and add the remaining ingredients.
3. Massage for a few minutes.
4. Transfer to airtight container, like a leftover pasta sauce jar. Keep in fridge for 24 hours minimum. Flavor will continue to develop the longer it sits.

Beef Shank Noodle Soup

This dish came out delicious and even DBD liked the soup broth. I substituted garlic for onion.
6/11/22 Made this again, this time with MM, delicious as ever.

• 
  1 T oil
  
• 1 carrot, sliced
• 1 garlic, minced
• 1.5 c water
• 1 c beef braising liquid from shank recipe
• 2 T ketchup
• 3-4 servings of wheat noodles (ramen, udon, etc)
• broccoli pieces (or Chinese greens)
• braised beef shank, chopped
• salt
• optional: white pepper, pickled radish, chili oil, cilantro

1. Heat oil in pot over medium-high heat. Cook the carrot for 2 min. Add the garlic. Stir to prevent burning and cook another minute.
2. Add the water, braising liquid, and ketchup. Simmer for 10 min
3. In a separate pot, cook the noodles. When done, rinse with cold water and place into serving bowls.
4. Cook the greens in the same pot for about 1-4 minutes (to desired consistency). Place greens in serving bowls.
5. If the shank is cold, add it to the broth to warm it up for minute.
6. Taste the broth. Add salt and white pepper as needed. Pour into the noodle bowls and add beef pieces and optional toppings.

Stovetop Braised Beef Shank - Jiang Niu Rou

MM found 3 beef shanks at the local grocery store and put me in charge of cooking them. My dad showed me how to braise them Chinese style years ago but I never tried and forgot the details (except about blanching the meat and skimming the water). This recipe skipped the draining part. It turned out delicious - the whole family loved it. And I used the leftover broth to make a beef noodle soup, brown eggs, and enjoying plain.
6/11/22 Made this again and when it was time to eat the meat was still a bit tough. We let the rest sit on the stove to cook another 1 or 2 hours and then it was perfectly soft. This time had the peppercorns and shaoxing wine. Used 5 shanks and increased ratio of ingredients accordingly.
Jan '23 Blanched the beef first and drained before cooking with all the flavors in fresh water. This made skimming it easier. Also used new brand of soybean paste.
Feb '23 Blanched first again. Should try blanching with wine next time.

• 3 beef shanks (next time try more to have more leftovers?)
• 2 T Shaoxing wine (I didn't have this so used sake instead)
• 4 green onions, cut into 2" long pieces
• 1 thumb ginger, sliced
• 1 t Sichuan peppercorns (also did not have this)
• 2 T fermented yellow soybean paste (I used fermented, but maybe not yellow)
• 2 T light soy sauce
• 2 T dark soy sauce
• 3 bay leaves
• 3 cloves (I couldn't find the whole cloves so added a dash of ground cloves)
• 2 star anise
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 1/4 t nutmeg
• dash of cardamom (original asked for 1 black cardamom, optional)
• 1 T sugar
• 1 t salt

1. Blanch the beef: Add the shanks into a pot. Add 4 cups of cold water to cover the beef. Add the onions, ginger, peppercorns and Shaoxing wine. Cook over medium-high heat until it boils. Turn down to medium. Boil for 10 min and skim the foam off regularly.
2. Make the paste: Combine the soybean paste and soy sauces in a bowl. Mix until dissolved into a smooth sauce.
3. Add the paste to the shank pot, along with the rest of the ingredients. Cook over medium-high heat until it simmers. Turn to medium-low and simmer, covered, for 2 hours (until meat is tender). (Range can be 1.5-2.5 hours depending if you want it to fall apart or not).
4. The beef is ready to eat. Store leftover meat and broth in covered container in fridge. Use beef to eat plain (sliced thin, cold), as addition to beef noodle soup, or on top of rice. Use broth to cook vegetables, make a soup, or flavor rice.