The fuss is in the flavors: there is a stir-fried-rice dish with escolar and Chinese sausage that is superb; a kind of spring roll — “tiger salad” — that is more Vietnamese than Chinese and so herb-fresh it almost jumps off the plate; and a mind-blowing assortment of pickles and other little savories. There is a spin on chawanmushi, the Japanese egg custard, so perfect and elegant it seems out of place. At the menu’s core is a handful of slow-cooked meat dishes, some of which involve four or five cooking techniques and begin in the smoker, like kung pao corned beef and thrice-cooked bacon tossed with duk (Korean rice cakes), bitter melon and tofu skin. I’m not the first to compare all this to the famed Momofuku in New York.

Make no mistake, though: unlike the Momofukus, which were graceful almost from the start, Mission Chinese Food is, like the creature from “ Alien ,” an unreal exotic that bursts out of a normal skin. The “dining room” is barely changed from the Lung Shan days, and the kitchen is laughable. When I showed up to cook with Bowien, there was almost no way for me to stand next to him.

But we did cook some of the simpler and more approachable dishes — those that didn’t require you to braise oxtail, smoke corned beef over cherrywood or steam, freeze, slice, fry and then stir-fry bacon. The Westlake rice porridge is a mash-up of Westlake soup and jook — a perfectly hearty, deep-flavored dish that belies its (relative) simplicity. Bowien’s salt-and-pepper shrimp, which he begins by making curried pork fat (easy enough, once the shopping is done, and worth it), is the best I’ve made at home. And the pickles, which require time and labor, are exactly as they should be: irresistible.

Photo

Yes, the story is fabulous. The food is even better.

Recipe: Salt-and-Pepper Shrimp With Curried Pork Fat and Fennel

Time: 30 minutes

1 stalk lemongrass

1 inch fresh ginger

1 head garlic, halved

1 tablespoon fennel seeds

5 pieces star anise

2 tablespoons black peppercorns

1 tablespoon white peppercorns

5 bay leaves

1 cinnamon stick

1 cup lard or rendered pork fat

2 cups canola or other neutral oil

3 pounds head-on shrimp

1 onion, cut into 1/2-by-2-inch strips

1 leek, cut into 1/2-by-2-inch strips

Advertisement Continue reading the main story

2 jalapeños, cut into 1/2-by-2-inch strips

1 large fennel bulb, cut into 1/2-by-2-inch strips

1 tablespoon ground turmeric, or more to taste

Salt

2 teaspoons fried garlic or shallot (available in many Asian supermarkets), for garnish.

1. Smash the lemongrass and ginger with the side of a knife. Put the lemongrass, ginger, garlic, fennel seeds, star anise, both kinds of peppercorns, bay leaves and cinnamon stick in a large, dry skillet over high heat and toast until fragrant, 2 to 3 minutes. Add the pork fat; when it melts, cover the pan, turn off the heat and leave on the stovetop for 1 hour. Strain and discard the solids. (The curried pork fat can be made in advance and stored in the refrigerator.)

2. Put the canola oil in a large skillet over high heat. When it’s hot (a piece of onion should bubble immediately when added to the oil), add as many of the shrimp as will fit in a single layer (work in batches if necessary). Cook the shrimp until pink, about 30 seconds to 1 minute per side. Remove and drain on paper towels.

3. Heat a dry cast-iron or stainless-steel skillet over high heat for at least for 3 minutes. Add the onion, leek, jalapeños and fennel to the pan and leave for 30 seconds. Add 1/4 cup of the curried pork fat and cook until the onion has started to soften but hasn’t yet turned clear. Add the shrimp and season with turmeric, salt and more pork fat to taste. Garnish with the fried garlic and serve.

Photo

Yield: 6 to 8 servings.



Recipe: Sichuan Pickles

Time: 2 to 3 days, largely unattended

1 small Napa cabbage, cored and cut into 1-inch pieces

3 tablespoons kosher salt

1/4 cup Shaoxing wine, fino sherry or white wine

3 Kirby cucumbers, cut into 1/2-inch slices

Newsletter Sign Up Continue reading the main story Please verify you're not a robot by clicking the box. Invalid email address. Please re-enter. You must select a newsletter to subscribe to. Sign Up You will receive emails containing news content , updates and promotions from The New York Times. You may opt-out at any time. You agree to receive occasional updates and special offers for The New York Times's products and services. Thank you for subscribing. An error has occurred. Please try again later. View all New York Times newsletters.

2 tablespoons sesame oil

1/2 teaspoon cayenne

11/2 teaspoons toasted and ground Sichuan peppercorns

1 to 3 teaspoons roasted chili paste, or Vietnamese chili-garlic paste to taste

1 fresh jalapeño, sliced

1 tablespoon finely julienned fresh ginger

1/4 cup roasted peanuts, for garnish

2 tablespoons cilantro leaves, for garnish

1 scallion, chopped, for garnish.

1. Toss the cabbage with 2 tablespoons of the salt. Add the wine and mix thoroughly. Put in an airtight container and leave at room temperature for 24 to 72 hours (48 hours is ideal).

Advertisement Continue reading the main story

2. The day before you’re ready to make the pickles, toss the cucumbers with the remaining salt; cover and refrigerate overnight.

3. To make the pickles: heat the sesame oil until it begins to smoke, then pour it over the cayenne; set aside. Drain and discard about half the cabbage liquid. Combine the cabbage and its remaining liquid with the cucumbers and their liquid. Add the Sichuan peppercorns, chili paste, jalapeño and ginger and mix thoroughly. Garnish with the cayenne oil, peanuts, cilantro and scallions, and serve. Store leftovers in a glass jar or other airtight container in the refrigerator for up to a week.

Yield: 6 to 8 servings (4 cups).

Recipe: Rice Porridge With Dungeness Crab, Chicken and Soft-Cooked Egg

Time: 1 hour, plus time to brine the chicken

Photo

1 whole chicken, about 4 pounds, trimmed of excess fat

1/4 cup kosher salt, plus more to taste

1 cup jasmine rice

4 to 8 eggs (1 per serving)

4 teaspoons fish sauce, or more to taste

8 ounces fresh lump Dungeness or other crabmeat, picked over for cartilage, for garnish

4 to 8 teaspoons grated fresh ginger, for garnish

1/4 to 1/2 cup cilantro leaves, for garnish

1/4 to 1/2 cup thinly sliced scallions, for garnish

4 to 8 teaspoons fried garlic or shallot (available in many Asian supermarkets), for garnish.

1. Rub the chicken with 1/4 cup salt, cover and refrigerate overnight.

2. Put the rice in a large dry pot over medium heat and toast, stirring, until fragrant, 1 to 2 minutes. Add 16 cups water and bring to a boil. Add the chicken and bring to a boil again. Reduce the heat to medium. Vent a lid over the pot: place a wooden chopstick on each side of the top of the pot and then place the lid on the chopsticks. Cook for 45 minutes, then transfer the chicken to a plate to cool. Turn the heat up to high and boil the porridge until the rice grains break down almost completely and the liquid is the consistency of heavy cream, another 10 minutes.

Advertisement Continue reading the main story

3. Meanwhile, fill a medium bowl with ice water and bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add a large pinch of salt, then add the eggs using a strainer basket or spoon. Boil over high heat for 6 minutes and 15 seconds, then transfer the eggs to the ice bath. Once the eggs are cooled, peel and set aside.

4. When the rice porridge is done, take it off the heat. Remove the chicken meat from the bones; discard the skin and bones. Shred the meat and add it to the porridge; season with fish sauce and salt.

5. To serve, ladle the porridge into individual bowls and garnish each portion with an egg, some of the crab, 1 teaspoon ginger, 1 tablespoon cilantro, 1 tablespoon scallions and 1 teaspoon fried garlic; the residual heat from the porridge will warm the crab and egg. Serve.

Yield: 4 to 8 servings.