Foods with their origins in China, the first of which arrived nearly two centuries ago during the Gold Rush, are incredibly popular and prevalent in America. Eateries serving some variation of Chinese food outnumber McDonald’s, Burger King and Wendy’s shops combined.
But Chinese food isn’t monolithic, even in the diaspora. It’s all about flavors and characters. And at a tiny Szechuan restaurant peeking out of the ground floor of an office building in McLean, you get large helpings of both.
(Hector Emanuel for The Washington Post)
(Hector Emanuel for The Washington Post)
(Hector Emanuel for The Washington Post)
Fahrenheit Asian is steeped in the Szechuan traditions that owner and chef Lilly Qin grew up with in her parents’ restaurant in Chantilly. But she is also charting a new path, constantly experimenting with new riffs on classic dishes.
Her pot stickers — a dozen to an order (because that’s the number traditionally served in China), their paper-thin skin blistered from pan searing — are a comfort food with universal appeal.
And her mapo tofu — cubes of the jiggly soybean curd bathed in spicy sauce dotted with ground pork — are an homage to her mother’s cooking.
“I know you’ll laugh at this, but some Fahrenheit dishes truly come from people’s dreams,” Qin says as she explains how customer-suggested mashups of ingredients that traditionally didn’t go together have crept onto her menu and become favorites.
Catering to customer demands, and in the process making new alterations and improvements to traditions that are centuries old, that flexibility is central to the innovation that has made so many immigrant restaurants across America successful.
Jason Rezaian: What are the challenges of being an immigrant restaurant owner?
Lilly Qin: I remember in the 1990s or early 2000, there were lots of really tiny restaurants — real mom-and-pop, where the ethnic population ate. They went out of business. And some were incredible. But they only had very limited clientele.
Things have changed a lot. When I was growing up, the choices were very limited. In 1995, Fahrenheit Asian could only have been serving a Chinese or a Korean population, not the broader market. Now it’s very different. Traveling has made a big difference — everyone is well-traveled now. And also the internet has made a big difference. Now everyone can see what’s good food.
Is there an aroma or dish that takes you back home?
I think mapo tofu represents the heart of Szechuan culture. It seems like a very simple dish — it’s just like tofu and meat, right? How hard could it be? Everyone thinks they can cook it. They go to the grocery store and buy mapo tofu sauce and just dump it in there. We’ve all tried it. But it’s awful. So you go on Amazon, thinking “Let me try another one.” And oh my gosh, it’s awful too!
Mapo tofu is one of the hardest dishes in Szechuan cooking. In Szechuan culinary school, to become a master chef, the first thing they test you on is mapo tofu. It’s one of those dishes that combines so many different elements of Szechuan cooking. It’s not easy. It’s very deceptive.
Do you remember your first food memory?
I think of my mom cooking rice. Oh, and also buns! She cooks the best pork buns. That’s something I don’t do because I think I’m not very good at it. That’s the one thing I’d like to improve. That smell of pork bun when it comes out — that smell always reminds me of mom.
Also, hot sauce! When you’re six months old, Szechuan parents give you hot sauce. Even before you can speak, they give you hot sauce. Hot sauce is ingrained in the Szechuan culture. When they put some rice or oatmeal in front of you — they pair it with hot sauce.
What are the ingredients you need to make your dishes that aren’t readily available here? And are there ingredients that you have discovered here that have changed and reshaped your cooking?
Authenticity to me is very important. But at the same time, you can’t hold to 100 percent authenticity, because you’re not going to be able to get all the ingredients. But as close as you possibly can — that’s what I’m trying to do. I try to find something that’s as close to a substitute here. Even sauces — I try do everything here in the States.
A lot of people tend to use peppers from China, whether it’s dried ones or preserved ones. I used to be maybe 50 percent dependent [on imported ingredients]. I’ve gotten to the point where I’m probably now 20 percent dependent. My hope is to be zero percent dependent.
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How do these two worlds — your old world and the new world — come together?
The reason for doing Fahrenheit Asian is to preserve Szechuan cuisine. And that’s important to me because I think Szechuan cooking is such a rare art. What really sets Szechuan food apart is how particular the people are about their food. Just because you have the good ingredients, the good peppers, the good seasoning — it’s not going to get you good Szechuan food. You have to combine the seasonings, the flavors, the technical know-how — you’re almost like an artist. You have to, on your palette, be able to know how to combine all these ingredients and get everything in sequence.
But I would rather make my food be American Szechuan. The traditions continue, but the product itself — I want it to be an American tradition with a Szechuan continuation. It’s not so much about sourcing everything overseas. It’s more about using everything we have here.
That’s how I view authenticity. A lot of times people ask me, “Why is your sauce very different?” Well, everything is sourced here. Even our hot pot sauce. I don’t use the preservatives and all the other stuff that goes into Chinese hot pot sauces that they have over there. I want everything to be fresh. You have to use local resources. You have to have somebody grow things for you. The peppers can be flown in from somewhere like North Dakota. You’re not going to somewhere in China for this stuff. That has to happen for any kind of food to flourish in America.
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The map shows the distribution of Chinese restaurants in the D.C. metro area.
Chinese restaurants in the D.C. metro area
Fahrenheit Asian
Source: Yelp
Chinese restaurants in the D.C. metro area
Fahrenheit Asian
Source: Yelp
Chinese restaurants in the D.C. metro area
Fahrenheit Asian
Source: Yelp
Fahrenheit Asian
1313 Dolley Madison Boulevard, McLean, Va. (703) 646-8968. fahrenheitasian.com
Hours: 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. and 4 p.m. to 9 p.m. Monday to Saturday. Closed on Sunday.
Post Opinions wants to know: What are the foods and ingredients that take you back to your own childhood and where you grew up? Share your thoughts with us.
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