Lorraine Clissold

　　Lorraine Clissold unlocks the secrets of Chinese cuisine for aspiring chefs from afar

　　By Jason Subler

　　On a Thursday morning in a spacious house in a villa complex on the outskirts of Beijing, nine housewives from around the globe sit around a dining table to watch and learn. Guiding them is Lorraine Clissold, a 43-year-old Englishwoman who for years has been unlocking Chinese cuisine for non-native minds. On the agenda for today are several basic Chinese dishes, including the obligatory gong bao chicken.

　　With her assistant Niu Fengru by her side mincing and dicing, Clissold explains to her guests not only the "how to" of Chinese cooking, but also her passion, the "why." "Everything in Chinese cooking has a reason," she says, laying out the basic concepts of the cuisine. "Every dish and meal is a balance."

　　The participants offer affirmative, somewhat bewildered nods, as they admire the expertise Clissold has amassed. Most have been in China a matter of just weeks or months, and have to make an effort to wrap their minds around such exotic concepts as "cooling" and "warming" foods.

　　It's an old routine now for Clissold, who hosts a couple such classes each week. But she consistently seeks new avenues to explore in her adopted field, and is still as eager to learn as the novice students now sitting before her.

　　It wasn't so long ago, in fact, that she herself was in their shoes, new to this country and astounded by its dizzying array of ingredients and dishes. Back then, in 1995, there was no ready-made class like this one to turn to and little prepackaged information to be conveniently consumed - if she wanted the real scoop on Chinese food, she would have to learn it from scratch.

　　When Clissold first arrived in China, she certainly had no plans of becoming a guru on Chinese food. She was here mainly in the role of a wife and mother, and was just as lost when it came to the local cuisine as the students she's teaching today. "I was so frustrated because I'd go to the market and I didn't recognize the stuff. I'd go out to buy some baozi and didn't know how to ask [about them] or how they served them," she recalls.

　　Instead of letting frustration turn to apathy and resignation, Clissold let her curiosity lead the way and started actively seeking answers to her questions. Her Chinese language lessons began consistently veering back to food, she remembers: "It became a bit of a special topic with [my teacher and me]."