HOME   • TECHNIQUE   • TIPS & METHODS - MISE ON PLACE   • SELECTING INGREDIENTS Christopher Hirsheimer RELATED TOPICS    RECIPES    ARTICLES   Stir-Fried Chinese Cabbage with Ham Steamed Sea Bass Stir-Fried Scallops Spareribs Steamed Chicken Broth How Hong Kong Cooks Hong Kong Home Cooking   EMAIL       FAVORITES      PRINT  Real Chinese Rice Wine   Experienced cooks never cook with a wine they wouldn't drink, an adage that applies across all cuisines. When preparing a Chinese meal, look for real Chinese rice wine—which is richer and darker than sake, rather like a dry sherry—and not the "cooking wine" that's sold in Asian markets, which is dosed with salt so that it qualifies as a food product, not a wine. Buy the real thing in liquor stores, especially in Chinatowns. We like Nuehong, bottled in jade-colored ceramic jugs. Aged Hau Tiao is good, too—and the younger, less complex Pagoda Brand Shao Xing Rice Wine is just fine.   This article was first published in Saveur in Issue #6