168 Better Than Takeout Chinese Recipes - A Cookbook

I have watched Mandy since she started her channel on YouTube. I've printed individual recipes and made notes on Chinese cooking techniques. When this cookbook was announced I assumed it would be a collection of her YouTube videos. I was amazed that the book is far more comprehensive and detailed than I could possibly have imagined. The pictures are abundant, clear, and enticing. The recipes are arranged to be on two facing pages so you do not have to turn pages. Only in a couple of cases for more complicated recipes like Sichuan Spicy Poached Beef is there a third page. Each recipe has prep and cooking time at the top and the number of people that the recipe will serve. The recipes have a QR code that will direct you to the associated video so you wach Mandy prepare the dish. I find that watching a chef prepare the dish always makes it easier to prepare and cook. I have followed numerous YouTube Asian chefs and purchased several cookbooks on Asian cuisine, but I always find myself returning to Mandy's recipes because I have never been disappointed with the results. The instructions are crystal clear and the explanation of techniques allow me to apply concepts to dishes that I compose myself. Apart from the great recipes, this book will help change me from someone who follows recipes to someone who knows how to cook Chinese food. If you make the recipes in this book, you will never order takeout again.

This Book is So Amazing! It is so well written and organized. Every detail in order, great instructions and a picture of every recipe. There are so many recipes. This book is so good I bought 2 more for each of my daughters. The beginning of book details each and every Chinese utensil or appliance that they use and also details every spice and condiment that you will ever need. This is definitely the Only Chinese cookbook you will ever need! You don’t need to look no more this is definitely the Best!!!

Excellent cookbook. Great recipes with step by step color photos. Good for beginners. Book features QR codes to scan for video demonstrations which is extremely helpful. The author also does a great job presenting and explaining the different types of Asian ingredients.

Look no further you’ve found the perfect Chinese cookbook. I’ve bought too many Chinese cookbooks that were good, but not great. This book hits the mark in many ways for me, it’s great. Very thought out book, it makes sense when looking at the index and recipes Recipes are easy to follow Book has all the takeout recipes I could ever want in one place and more to try. Huge plus ** book has QR codes of each recipe, videos to follow which are great to watch should u get stuck*** I’m so happy I finally found the Chinese cookbook I’ve been looking for all these years. A must have for any home cook who likes to cook Chinese food.

The format of this book is very nice with much information about recipes themselves and cooking ingredients. I would have liked a few more recipes but many were presented.

I started watching Mandys' videos on YouTube some time back trying to learn how to make healthier versions of Asian or Chinese take-out food. Lets face it, "Chinese" food you buy at some take-out restaurants can be loaded with sodium and MSG. I'm in my late 60's and my doctor has been on my back about eating healthier. Great Cantonese take-out involves using a carbon steel wok to achieve that ever elusive Asian food flavor "wok hei" that generally only restaurants can achieve. Trust me, as an Southern 'Anglo- file' who grew up on collard greens, black-eyed peas, and fried chicken, learning this cooking technique takes practice, but it has been a lot of fun! Keep reading and I'll tell you how to reach that food nirvana. I already have three different sized carbon steel woks I've been using for years on my indoor gas range burners, but what I DIDN'T have was a high-powered gas wok burner to use outdoors that would get hot enough to recreate those delicious wok-hei flavors. AND not burn my house down. AND avoid setting off all my smoke detectors. So I ordered a dedicated burner online and a small SS cart from Amazon to mount it on and hold a 20# propane bottle. So the heating and cooking vessel problem were solved. Everything set me back about $200 dollars. A quick search and you'll find what you need. The next thing I needed was a good cookbook to teach me how to use it. After buying several that I wasn't too crazy about I finally found the one I needed. This is an outstanding cookbook if you're a Asian food junkie like me, but need something easy to read and understand while experimenting with these new recipes. First impressions when I received it; This is a very robust book with a strong spine that should hold up very well in your kitchen. It's NOT a cheaply made book. I have a bookrack in my kitchen half full of cookbooks with broken spines that didn't hold up very well to constant use. This book should. Yes, I know I could use the internet! I prefer a book for quick reference when I'm cooking. After spending a couple of hours just perusing through the book, reading the intro, and Mandys' personal story - which is eye-opening in itself, then thumbing through the pages, I notice how thoughtfully the book is laid out. Instructions on the left side of the pages and ingredients on the right. Photographs through-out help to illustrate her very well written and concise instructions. Something else I noticed; the ingredients are listed in metric weights AND imperial weights side-by-side at a quick glance without having to refer to a calculator. She also has a section that clearly explains ingredients used in Chinese cooking and possible substitutes. Nice touch! Here's another nice feature, Mandy includes a QR code at the bottom of each page that links to her online videos for you to watch, if you need it! I'm proud to have this cook book! Nice job Mandy!

I bought this book because I had been following Souped Up Recipes on YouTube for quite a while and enjoyed Mandy’s enthusiasm and the look of the recipes. However, I had never felt like I had quite enough confidence to go out and find the right ingredients, nor actually try making anything just from watching a video. I actually bought the book as a way of supporting Mandy and thought that I might try to cook something with it written down. Well, I have to say that I am stunned by the amount of work that went into making this book!!! The pictures are great, the descriptions are great, the index is great. AND, if I want to watch the video to see a technique I just scan the QR code included with the recipe! Not only that, there is a complete section on ingredients and possible substitutes! I was able to go to an Asian market with pictures of some ingredients that had no English written on them and actually know what I was buying!!! I was also able to order a few off of Amazon that I couldn’t find locally. I’ve made some of the recipes and so far they have tasted great, but I have to admit that a couple haven’t been as pretty as the pictures in the book. I’ll have to keep practicing. Thanks for all your hard work in putting this book together, Mandy!

A very well-written, clear, accessible, and thoughtfully designed book that will help anyone, step-by-step, through the challenge of cooking Chinese cuisine. The fact that every recipe has an accompanying video is awesome! Also, the author's guide through the many types of sauces, spices, and other rather obscure (to the non-Asian chef) ingredients is invaluable to anyone who didn't grow up in an Asian household but wishes to enjoy genuine Chinese food at home! "Better than Takeout" is right!