Visiting the Chinese Wall in Tel Aviv

The Chinese Wall (Hachoma Hasinit)

Lots and lots of people on social media have asked me and many of the foodies in my group, where does one get authentic Chinese food? As a kosher food eater, the options are quite limited. When I was growing up in Jerusalem, there was an amazing Chinese restaurant called Yosi Peking(for those of you who remember), and they were as close to authentic kosher Chinese food could find in Israel. Sadly, they shut down (please come back one day!) and my life went on without knowing that there was a hidden gem in Tel Aviv that serves authentic Chinese food! Once I heard about it, I had to go!

Welcome Hasinit (Kosher Rabbanute Tel Aviv) opened up in 1996 and has been run by the same Chinese family that immigrated to Tel Aviv ever since. The restaurant is located on a side street in the heart of Tel Aviv not far from the Central bus station, the restaurant doesn’t have a sign outside. Although, you can tell it’s a Chinese restaurant from a mile away!

I went there with my good friend Andrew, who is a foodie at heart and we both had no idea what to expect. We were greeted very
politely by the owner who was super nice, and brought us a hot-pot of Chinese tea. I’m not a big fan of tea, or a hot drink on a hot day, but the owner told us it was good for us so we had some of the tea and it was quite delightful. Then we looked at the menu and I have been craving wonton soup ever since Yosi Pekin had shut down, and there it was, the first thing on the menu! I was already so excited, but then it got better, the owner said that the wontons’ and the egg noodles in the soup were hand-made! Now I was ecstatic!

With the soup we ordered the business menu that comes with 2 types of dumplings and a main course, but the soup is all we really wanted.

After a few minutes they served up two types of piping hot dumplings with a soy dipping sauce. One was a potsticker filled with chicken and fries the dough until it was crispy, and the other dim sum filled with chicken and was steamed. Both of them made by hand and not bought made all the difference. The crispy dim sum (potsticker) was crunchy and filled with chopped chicken, not mushed chicken. That’s where you can tell the difference. The steamed dim sum melted in our mouths it was so good. The soy and chili dipping sauce was a nice addition but the dim sum had enough flavor it didn’t need it.

Then we were served the soup. Let me tell you, the soup is definitely worth the trip, it’s massive, full of fresh ingredients and steaming hot! The broth is made in-house from chicken bones  the wontons are full of fresh chicken and melt in your mouth. The homemade noodles have great texture and add a ton to the soup. Then to top it off they put in glass noodle, fresh coriander, carrots and sprouts for a nice crunchy texture. The perfect bite for a wonton soup. It brought back great childhood memories, let me tell you.

At this point we were practically full, but we had already ordered the main course with business lunch. The main course of the business lunch was ok, but there wasn’t anything special about it. The sweet and sour chicken was nice, as the stir fried vegetables and the rice, but it felt like cafeteria food. Next time I go, I order only off the menu.

I felt that everything that they make in-house is really delicious and worth trying, unlike the disappointing business lunch. If you find yourself in Tel Aviv and looking for a great kosher authentic Chinese restaurant, there is only one place to go and that’s the Choma Hasinit.

 

 

Orange Soy Chicken Stir Fry

 

Winter is here and going out for chinese food isn’t really an option where I live. So, I made myself a Stir fry with a twist.

Ingredients:

• 1 Kilo Chicken Breasts, sliced into 1 cm strips
• 2 Sweet Peppers cut into 2 cm Strips sideways
• 1 White Onion sliced
• 6 Broccoli florets
• 1 can Baby corn cut into chunks
• 5 Mushrooms sliced
• 1 Carrot sliced
• 3 cloves Garlic crushed
• 1 tsp fresh Ginger diced
• 1 /2 tsp salt
• A handful of Bean sprouts
• Coriander leaves for decoration and flavor
• Vegetable and sesame oil for frying

For the Orange Soy sauce:

• 1/2 cup Orange Juice
• 1/2 cup Chicken broth
• 3 tbls Soy sauce
• 1 tbls Teriyaki sauce
• 2 tbls Cornstarch to thicken

Recipe

1. Slice the chicken breast in slices and place in bowl. Let a kettle of hot water boil and pour over the chicken breasts until you see no more pink on the chicken. Drain. Put aside.
2. Combine all the ingredients except the corn starch for the sauce in a pot and let boil. once boiled add the cornstarch and put aside to cool.
3. Prepare all the vegetables for the stir fry in a separate bowl.
4. Add some vegetable oil to your frying pan and a couple of dashes of sesame oil too. First add the  garlic and let it brown. Then add the rest of the vegetables except the bean sprouts and fry until Al-dente. Add the chicken and salt and fry until the flavors combine.
5. Pour on the sauce and let cook for 2 minutes until the sauce get absorbed. then add the bean sprouts, and take off the fire.
6. Decorate with fresh coriander and serve on a bed of rice of your choice.

Enjoy!

 

 

 

 

My Surprising Lunch at Chooka

Yesterday I had the pleasure to go out and have lunch with my wife. For a long time now I had been wanting and craving Asian style fast food. As we all know, sadly in Israel, they never understood the concept of Asian fast food. The Israeli weren’t able to differentiate between: Chinese, Thai, Japanese and so forth. So after living here for almost 20 years, I have come to peace with it, and  tried to enjoy it as much as I can.

Lately, for the past couple of years, the flavors in these fast food places have been amped up by so much MSG, that the taste of the food is purely based on soy and MSG. But, I have found a place that actually uses spices in their food, and not just MSG. The take out place is called Chooka (mychooka.co.il).  It is located  in the Hadar mall in Jerusalem. Their menu is split up into 3 categories: Stir fries, Sushi and beef or chicken dishes with a side of noodles or rice.

What is great about this specific take out is a couple of things: They call themselves an Asian Kitchen, so you know what to expect and not get disappointed They have an online takeout menu that you can order from! No more phone ordering!; They use fresh ingredients! They have an open kitchen so you can actually see what goes in your food.; The portions are HUGE! I needed to share a main course with my wife the portion was so big; The have a 10 shekel menu appetizer menu if you order a main course.

So what did we order? The business lunch for 50 shekels, plus an appetizer for another 10. We ordered Lemon Chicken strips that were battered and glazed beautifully, wit a side of Pad Kavu stir fried noodles that were just excellent. For a starter I asked for wings because I love deep fried anything. They also threw in for us a eggplant pancake that was just delicious. I know it’s just take out fast food but they really hit the nail on the head with their Asian flavor profile.

We didn’t order sushi but the menu looked really good and so did the sushi that they rolled out for other customers.

All in all, if you are looking for a decent priced Asian style take out, this is a great choice.

And remember, ” eat well, so you don’t get food poisoning”.