Shangki Li Modern Chinese flavours, cooked with British soul

Shangki Li

Modern Chinese flavours, cooked with British soul

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Fierce Heat, Tiny Cabbages: Why Brussels Sprouts Belong in the Wok
Ingredients & Technique

Fierce Heat, Tiny Cabbages: Why Brussels Sprouts Belong in the Wok

Brussels sprouts have spent decades as the roast dinner’s most argued-over side. This is the case for halving them, drying them well and throwing them into a screaming-hot wok with salt, pepper, garlic and chilli — a salt-and-pepper treatment that turns a divisive vegetable into the best thing on the table.
Cold Hands, Hot Chilli Oil: The Christmas Market Stall Worth Queueing For in 2026
Food Culture

Cold Hands, Hot Chilli Oil: The Christmas Market Stall Worth Queueing For in 2026

Between the mulled wine and the mince pies, there is room for bamboo steamers, crisp-bottomed dumplings and a slick of chilli oil. Here is why a Chinese food stall belongs at every British Christmas market this winter — and how to order without causing a queue meltdown.
The Warm Paper Bag: Chinese Bakeries Deserve a Place in Your 2026 Routine
Food Culture

The Warm Paper Bag: Chinese Bakeries Deserve a Place in Your 2026 Routine

Custard tarts, pineapple buns and char siu puffs are not just takeaway treats. They are the high-street bakery counter at its best, and in 2026 they deserve the same weekly ritual status as a loaf from the local bakery.
Frozen, Not Forgotten: The Supermarket Dumpling Bags Worth Your Freezer Space
Ingredients & Technique

Frozen, Not Forgotten: The Supermarket Dumpling Bags Worth Your Freezer Space

Frozen dumplings have quietly become the most dependable route into Chinese cooking at home in Britain. Here’s what separates a good bag from a sad one in 2026 — and how to cook them properly, packet instructions be damned.
The Table Becomes the Kitchen: An Electric Hotpot Night for November
Ingredients & Technique

The Table Becomes the Kitchen: An Electric Hotpot Night for November

A plug-in hotpot turns a chilly November evening into a slow, sociable dinner — no restaurant booking, no takeaway queue. Here is how to set up a small-kitchen hotpot night with British supermarket ingredients, two balanced broths and a dipping station that does the heavy lifting.
The Free Bag Tells You Everything: A 2026 Case for Prawn Crackers
Food Culture

The Free Bag Tells You Everything: A 2026 Case for Prawn Crackers

The bag at the bottom of the takeaway order is Britain’s most mocked Chinese starter — and also its most honest one. In 2026, with every penny counted, the humble prawn cracker deserves a proper look, from krupuk origins to supermarket packets and the air-fryer.
The Noon Bell: How Char Siu Became My Favourite British Lunchbox Filling
Ingredients & Technique

The Noon Bell: How Char Siu Became My Favourite British Lunchbox Filling

A packed lunch does not have to mean limp lettuce and a sad slice of ham. With leftover char siu, a jar of pickles and a little chilli oil, the ordinary British lunchbox becomes something worth waiting until noon for.
Fifteen Quid, Four Bowls: The Corner-Shop Chinese Supper That Works
Ingredients & Technique

Fifteen Quid, Four Bowls: The Corner-Shop Chinese Supper That Works

A proper Chinese dinner for four, built entirely from a British corner shop: freezer dumplings, chicken thighs, bagged greens and a smart trio of condiments. Here is the £15 menu, the shopping list, and where to spend versus where to save.
Rain on the Promenade: The Underrated Joy of a Seaside Chinese Takeaway
Food Culture

Rain on the Promenade: The Underrated Joy of a Seaside Chinese Takeaway

When the British seaside weather turns, the chip shop queue keeps going and the Chinese takeaway across the road starts to glow. This is a flavour-first look at the promenade Chinese box — salt-and-pepper prawns, curry sauce, chips and all — and why it belongs in the story of how Britain eats.
Small Kitchen, Big Heat: Air-Fryer Chinese for Ordinary British Weeknights
Ingredients & Technique

Small Kitchen, Big Heat: Air-Fryer Chinese for Ordinary British Weeknights

Most British kitchens give you a worktop and a half, and a wok is a lot to ask on a Tuesday. Here's how the air fryer earns its place on the shelf — blistered aubergine, salt-and-pepper tofu, revived bao and charred greens, without the extractor fan drama.
Rice on the Shelf: Why Congee Beats a Full English the Morning After
Food Culture

Rice on the Shelf: Why Congee Beats a Full English the Morning After

Britain has the pub, the condiments and the late-night regret. What it doesn't reliably have is a bag of rice on the shelf — and that, argues our case for congee, is the only thing standing between you and the best Sunday morning reset going.
The Fifth Taste on the Sunday Table: MSG for British Cooks
Ingredients & Technique

The Fifth Taste on the Sunday Table: MSG for British Cooks

For years, MSG has been the ingredient British eaters mention in a lowered voice—something to avoid, or something to confess. This is a practical case for keeping a small jar beside the salt, especially when roast potatoes, gravy and greens are on the table.
The Chutney Drawer: British Preserves with Chinese Intent
Food Culture

The Chutney Drawer: British Preserves with Chinese Intent

The British preserve jar is not a compromise in a Chinese kitchen—it is a shortcut. From Branston in a char siu glaze to mint sauce in a cold noodle salad, here is how to make the Sunday chutney drawer work harder.
Black Sesame on the Sponge: Five British Puds Worth a Chinese Accent
Ingredients & Technique

Black Sesame on the Sponge: Five British Puds Worth a Chinese Accent

Sticky toffee, rice pudding and treacle tart are already generous puddings. A little black sesame, red bean or preserved citrus can make them sing without turning dessert into a novelty act. Here is what works, what surprises, and how to spot the crossover on UK menus in 2026.
Forget the Wine List: What British Pubs Pour With Chinese Food
Food Culture

Forget the Wine List: What British Pubs Pour With Chinese Food

A crisp lager does more for dim sum than most white wines. A bitter can handle char siu. Dry cider is the answer to chilli oil. This is a pubgoer's guide to drinking British with Chinese food in 2026, whether you are ordering at home or in a restaurant.
Five Bottles, One Shelf: Matching Soy Sauce to British Cooking in 2026
Ingredients & Technique

Five Bottles, One Shelf: Matching Soy Sauce to British Cooking in 2026

A supermarket soy sauce shelf can look like a wall of near-identical bottles, but each one has a job. This is a practical, flavour-led guide to matching light, dark, seasoned, tamari and mushroom soy to the way we actually cook in Britain.
Salt, Pepper and Curry Sauce: The Chinese Chip Shop at the Heart of British Tea
Food Culture

Salt, Pepper and Curry Sauce: The Chinese Chip Shop at the Heart of British Tea

The British-Chinese takeaway menu is not a watered-down copy of something else. It is a regional British dialect, written in batter, curry sauce and special fried rice — and in 2026 it still tells us who we are.
Teapots, Steamers and Rain: A Dim Sum Brunch Crawl for a British Weekend
Festive Menus

Teapots, Steamers and Rain: A Dim Sum Brunch Crawl for a British Weekend

Dim sum is the ultimate rainy-weekend brunch, provided you order in waves and keep the tea coming. A practical, slightly opinionated guide to building a balanced table, drinking beyond jasmine, and enjoying the slow rhythm of a British-Chinese brunch.
Crackling, Gravy and Char Siu: A Cantonese Sunday Roast for 2026
Ingredients & Technique

Crackling, Gravy and Char Siu: A Cantonese Sunday Roast for 2026

The British Sunday roast and Cantonese roast meats are closer than they look: crackling, gravy, soy and star anise all point to the same pleasure. This is an argument for putting roast duck, char siu and Yorkshire puddings on the same table — and passing the gravy both ways.
The Wok Doesn't Ask for a Passport: Five British Ingredients Worth Cooking Chinese
Ingredients & Technique

The Wok Doesn't Ask for a Passport: Five British Ingredients Worth Cooking Chinese

A wok is a heat tool, not a nationality. Heritage carrots, leeks, brown crab, forced rhubarb and smoked bacon all behave the way a Chinese kitchen wants them to — if you treat them right. Five pairings, with the technique, seasoning and texture that make each one work.