After entering the dog days of summer, have you clearly felt the scorching sun? Your body feels sticky since the morning, and you have no appetite for steaming white porridge or big meat buns. Just stepping outside, the sun at seven or eight in the morning is blinding. After a short walk, your face and arms are all sunburned, with large beads of sweat falling incessantly like free-flowing pearls. Ah, enduring the dog days is truly tough.
As we all know, this year’s dog days will last until mid-August, followed by the late summer heat, and we still have a considerable period of tough days ahead. It is advised to maintain an optimistic attitude in the face of such living conditions, cultivate habits of heatstroke prevention and cooling down. Pay more attention to your diet, eat less watermelon, and consume more of the 6 appetizers to easily and safely pass the summer.
（1）Radish Cake
①Take a large radish, cut off the ends, wash the radish thoroughly. Drain the water, cut the radish into small pieces. Use a kitchen towel to pat dry the surface water of the radish.
②Heat oil in a pot, when the oil reaches about 70% hot, add the diced radish to fry. Fry until the radish is slightly cooked, then remove and drain the oil.
③Leave a little oil in the pot, add light soy sauce, salt, then toss in the radish dices to stir-fry for a while, add pork floss, mix well, then transfer to a large bowl for consumption.
（2）Stir-fried Beef with Bean Sprouts
①Clean 200g of bean sprouts, soak them in lightly salted water for 10 minutes, rinse well. Bring water to a boil in a pot, blanch the bean sprouts. After about 30 seconds, remove them, rinse in cold water, and drain.
②Take 100g of beef tenderloin, wash it, slice thinly against the grain, and place in a bowl. Add some light soy sauce, cornstarch, ginger water, stir clockwise, then add 1 tablespoon of cooking oil to prevent sticking.
③Heat oil in the pot, add the beef to stir-fry. Once the beef changes color, add garlic, chili, ginger slices for flavor, then add the bean sprouts and stir-fry on high heat.
④When the bean sprouts are slightly cooked, season with some salt, light soy sauce, stir well, then add a little water and cornstarch, stir-fry briefly before serving.
（3）Cold Tossed Fern Root Starch
①Soak 200g of fern root starch in water, rinse twice. Bring water to a boil in a pot, add the starch and cook for 30 seconds. Remove the starch, rinse in cold water, drain, then transfer to a large bowl.
②Add minced garlic, chopped chili, add 1 tablespoon of hot oil to release the aroma. Pour in 2 tablespoons of light soy sauce, 1 tablespoon of vinegar, 1 tablespoon of sesame oil, a little salt, and MSG, mix well, then place in the center of a dish.
③Take 1 cucumber, cut off the ends. Rub the cucumber skin with flour and rinse well. Slice the cucumber, arrange it around the fern root starch, and serve.
（4）Hot and Sour Tofu Soup
①Soak tofu in lightly salted water for 30 minutes to remove the bean smell. Drain the tofu, cut it into small pieces.
②Add a little lard to the pot, fry 80g of pickled mustard greens. Once fragrant, add pickled pepper, light soy sauce, dried chili, green onions, then pour in 2 tablespoons of sour soup and 1 bowl of water. Bring to a boil.
③Add tofu, cook until the tofu surface is porous, add a little salt, stir well, then it’s ready to serve.
（5）Braised Pork Ribs with Bok Choy
①Cut 300g of pork ribs into small pieces, soak in warm water for 30 minutes. Wash thoroughly to remove excess salt. Rinse the ribs, drain.
②Add a little lard to the pot, sauté until fragrant, then add the ribs to stir-fry. Once the porky aroma is released, add ginger slices, garlic, green onions to remove the gaminess, then pour in a large bowl of water. Bring to a boil, skim off any foam, then simmer over low heat.
③Take 1 corn and 200g of bok choy, wash them clean, chop into small pieces. Once the ribs are partially cooked, add the corn and bok choy to the pot, simmer over low heat.
④When the bok choy is tender, season with a little salt, MSG, cook for 1 minute, then it’s ready to serve.
（6）Braised Prawns
①Take 400g of large prawns, remove the digestive tract from the third joint using a toothpick. Place the prawns in a large bowl, add 1 tablespoon of flour, rinse a few times, drain.
②Add cooking oil to the pot, sauté ginger slices, chili, green onions until fragrant. Add the prawns, stir-fry over high heat.
③When the prawns turn slightly red, season with a bit of light soy sauce, salt, stir well. Sprinkle with chopped green onions, stir-fry briefly, then transfer to a serving plate.
