Hairy Crab!

It get cold in Shanghai!  When it get cold in Shanghai, everyone know what it means!

Hairy Crab!

True hairy crab come from yangcheng lake in Jiangsu province! But Fat Yu must be careful!  Many crooks fake hairy crab!  Come from other place but say come from Yangcheng lake!  Aiya!

Fat Yu no trust restaurant, so buy my own!  Fat Yu's friend Annie know where to get real Yangcheng lake hairy crab!

If you look close, you can see hairy mittens!  Many hairs on their claws!  Look like mud, la!

Even though Fat Yu no trust restaurant to buy hairy crab, Fat Yu no know how to cook them!  So he ask restaurant to cook them!

Many many crabs!  Very beautiful!  Enough crabs for each person to have two!

But how to choose which one?!  Fat Yu knows bigger not always better!  And, have to pick between male and female crabs!  Eh?!  How to tell?

Male crab have "V" segment on bottom of body, like this!  (Female more round!)

Many people say that female crabs are sweeter, but Fat Yu knows that only true at end of crab season!  In beginning of crab season, males much sweeter!  But is middle of crab season, so Fat Yu has one male and one female!

Just as important as real Yangcheng lake hairy crab is real Shaoxing wine!  Fat Yu's friend bring own bottle of 30 year old Shaoxing wine!  Is very good!

Eating crab can be difficult!  But not for Fat Yu!  Because I am real Shanghai person!

I Am Fat Yu!

Vegetable meal!

Fat Yu's wife says Fat Yu is too fat!  Eh?!  I am Fat Yu!

Doesn't matter!  She is Shanghai wife!  I do what she say!  So I order vegetable lunch from lady!  She cook it special for Fat Yu and deliver to work!

Many many mushrooms, with potatoes and green vegetables!  Even piece of fish!  But is not fish, is vegetable, just look like fish!  Even other vegetables that look like intestine from animal!  But sad for Fat Yu - not animal intestine, just vegetable!

Everything vegetable!  But very dericious!

I Am Fat Yu!

Lao Wai Booze!

Fat Yu important friend bring strong wine from Scotland!  Is very good wine!

He says is very old!  But only 40 and 42 years old!  Fat Yu older than that!

I Am Fat Yu!

Guangzhou Dim Sum!

Eh, they make Fat Yu go to Guangzhou for work!  Guangzhou so dirty!  But they have good dim sum!

Fat Yu stay at fancy lao wai hotel!  Across the street there is dim sum restaurant!  So Fat Yu go for breakfast!

He order four dishes!

First dish come is radish cake!  But is cold and oily!  They must have cooked it long time before!  Aiya!

Second dish that come is shrimp dumpling!  Fat Yu love shrimp dumpling!  But this shrimp dumpling skin is tough and chewy and stick to the bottom of steamer and fall apart!  Eh?!  How can skin be tough but also fall apart?!  Fat Yu don't know!

Ah, finally a dish that is good!  Beef balls!  Tender with good taste and very delicious!  But why they serve with western broccoli?!  Never mind!  Still taste good!

Last dish is steamed rice with chicken inside!  We call it pearl chicken!  But also big pieces of ginger and onions!  Aiyo, big onion and ginger in my pearl chicken?!  Fat Yu no like!

Eh, only one dish out of four is good to eat!  But still I eat it all, because...

I Am Fat Yu!

Yang rou pao mo!

Fat Yu cannot leave Xi'an and not eat yang rou pao mo!  Ah, is famous Xi'an dish!

Very different, they give you empty bowl and two pieces of bread!  You have to break up bread yourself!

Bread must be small small!  Very hard word - Fat Yu work up an appetite!

Aiya!  They come and take Fat Yu's bread!  Just like northwest people, they rob Fat Yu!  But, they say they will bring it back!  While I wait, they bring salted garlic and spicy chili!

Eh, Fat Yu had to wait a long time!  But is worth it - they add lamb soup with bean threads, and it is very delicious!

Xi'an people usually eat yang rou pao mo for lunch!  But Fat Yu eat it after lunch and before dinner, because I am not from Xi'an!  Plus...

I Am Fat Yu!

Muslim people street!

Xi'an have many muslim people!  Muslim people no eat pork - eh, Fat Yu can never be muslim!

But muslim people cook good food too, just no cook pork!  They cook many lamb, lamb on stick, lamb feet, fried pancakes, roasted walnuts, grilled bread on stick, quail egg on stick and and steamed sweet cake on stick!

Eh, that is a lot of food for one person!  But not for me, because...

I Am Fat Yu!

Pomegranate!

Some lao wai think pomegranate brought to China from Persia in Han dynasty!

Persia?!  Ridiculous!

Everyone know Zhang Qian take pomegranate TO Persia - pomegranate is Chinese!  And special to Shaanxi province!  Xi'an has many pomegranate in this season, they are very delicious!

They make juice from pomegranate!  Lao wai pay much money for pomegranate juice - Fat Yu pay 2 kuai!  And is fresh-squeezed!

They even have white pomegranate - Fat Yu never see before!  Is very sweet!

Shaanxi people say pomegranate is good for digestion - help you eat more later!  Perfect for me, because...

I Am Fat Yu!

Rou Jia Mo!

When Fat Yu in Xian, he eat Chinese hamburger, we call it roujiamo!  Xi'an is famous for roujiamo, Fat Yu must try it!

Driver takes us to a food street - many many places!  One place has sign for roujiamo and a long line - that is where Fat Yu wants to go!

But Fat Yu will tell you a secret, he not very like roujiamo...  sometimes bread is too tough!  Eh, sits like a stone in Fat Yu stomach!

Ah, but this time different!  Bread very fresh!  Outside crunchy, inside soft!  Perfect!

Then they chop up pork shoulder!  Very delicious!

They put both together to make a sandwich!

It was very delicious!  Fat Yu like it very much!  He not the only one!  Fat Yu friend Xiao Chen also like it very much!

Xiao Chen says roujiamo very delicious, but very heavy!  He cannot finish!  But I can, because...

I Am Fat Yu!

Shaanxi Lunch Banquet!

Aiya!  Fat Yu has to leave Shanghai to go on trip!  He goes to Xi'an, capital of Shaanxi Province in north-west China!  Xi'an in famous for many things, many universities, terra-cotta warriors and used to be capital of China!  North-west China famous for robbing people!

But Fat Yu don't care about that!  Fat Yu just want to eat!  So Fat Yu's important friends take him to lunch banquet!  He eat many things!  Like chicken feet and special Xi'an pickles!

They also have jellyfish!  Eh?!  Where they get jellyfish?!  Xian so far from ocean!

Fat Yu have many thing he never have before!  Like mushrooms with white walnuts!  Fat Yu thought walnuts only come in one color!

Fat Yu eat many special Shaanxi dishes.  Like Shaanxi pig foot and Shaanxi cow stomach!  And cold chicken with root vegetable!

Fat Yu not done!  He still has to eat special Shaanxi vegetable pancake and special north-west style bread with spicy chili!

Wah, Fat Yu finish eating!  Xi'an hosts thought they order too much food!  They did not know...

I Am Fat Yu!