Now, this may seem a little vulgar. But I beg your patience. I’m here to talk up the pleasures of burping. As the father of a new baby, it’s a proud moment when I bash a burp out of her, especially a good dry one; there are no marks for puking the baby. But I’m here to talk here about the pleasure of the adult burp. You see, food that “repeats” is my kind of food; garlic or jiucai (韭菜) may only be a one-dimensional reminder of a good meal well had, but...

You are reading this in English. I can therefore assume that, unless you have some aversion to carbs, you have found your solution to the problem of bread.Personally, I have a bread maker from Midea which cost less than ￥400 and makes bread as well as, say, a Panasonic or a Russel Hobbs. I also make a pick-up whenever passing a good baker or even an Aldi. I often scoff the whole stick to claim its full freshness. Unless this is your first year here, your solution to bread is probably...

It’s pomelo season in Jiangnan. That pleases me. Even if you don’t know its (obscure) English name, you know the fruit. It hangs, moon-like, from trees in parks and campuses everywhere. You can eat the windfalls, but they’re a little too sour. Thankfully, bigger, more-user-friendly versions of these yellow globes appear in stores. Open them up to find segments each as big and tactile as a Nokia phone. These segments are red (slightly more expensive) or “yellow” (cheaper and just as good), partitioned by a tough white pith. Unlike, say,...

In the West, specialist sellers choose to distribute themselves evenly across the city, trying to become someone’s “local”. But, here in Asia, different sellers; direct competitors, often choose to huddle together in a street or market renowned throughout the city. Buying tea in China, I feel like I’m the king, or at least riding the wave of a buyer’s market. I enter one of these markets, then “kick some tyres” talking to sellers, getting some idea of prices. Maybe I taste a bit, but I don’t buy; you see, I’ve promised...