Deliciously Good Read

I've just finished this book called The Fortune Cookie Chronicles: Adventures in the World of Chinese Food. Wha?! That's right, I've not only read and finished a book in a week but it's about Chinese food. Author Jennifer 8. Lee (numerology infused into one's name), an American born Chinese writer for The New York Times, writes about the impact of Chinese food in America and how American the Chinese food we have in the States really is. Like the title of the book, a major portion of Lee's quest is to figure out the origins of the fortune cookie after a series of lucky numbers from a fortune garners a lot of Powerball Lottery winners. Other interesting topics in the book include the history of Chinese takeout in New York City, Asian manufacturers' fight to have any soy sauce that is not naturally soy brewed to not be classified as soy sauce, Fold-Pak food pails, Jewish people's connection to Chinese food, why General Tso has chicken named after him like Colonel Sanders, and the lofty task of finding the greatest Chinese restaurant outside of China. The most I got out of it, being a Chinese-American, was the history the restaurant industry and its impact on Chinese culture in America. Much of the Chinese food here in America is all-American because the food is a fusion of Chinese and what Americans like in food. I also realize now that the stuff my grandma's been making for years is probably the real Chinese food. Like they used to say on Reading Rainbow I'll tell you to go to your local library or bookstore and pick up a copy today because it's a great read, but don't take my word for it!

This book also reminded me about an article the Seattle Weekly did about the history of teriyaki restaurants in Seattle. Check it out here.

Visit Lee's blog at the fortunecookiechronicles.com, especially after you've read the book. There are a lot of pictures from her journeys that she wrote about in the book.

Here's an NPR interview with Lee and an excerpt from the book as well.

I don't watch The Colbert Report, but I found out about the book from this interview between Colbert and Lee awhile back while channel surfing: