Attention Chinese food enthusiasts! Two words: Han Dynasty. Many of you already know about Han Dynasty because it is simply one of the best Chinese restaurants a food lover could hope to dine at. But if you’ve been living under a rock much like I had been, then maybe you still haven’t heard that Han Dynasty, named by CNN as one of the top 50 Chinese restaurants in the United States, has six locations in the region and another one in New York City.
After many recommendations from foodie friends, I finally crawled out from under my rock and ventured out to see what all the fuss was about on Valentine’s Day. What do you think a single thirty-something, beer-writing food enthusiast does on Valentine’s Day anyway? He gets takeout food and drinks beers, of course! My plan was simple: order a number of menu items for takeout and then pair them as best I could with the beers I had in stock. Here’s a look at my four-course Han Dynasty exBEERience:
First Course:
Spicy Crispy Cucumber with Victory Dirt Wolf DIPA
I’m generally neither here nor there with cucumbers, but two fellow Town Dishers were adamant that the spicy crispy cucumbers are an absolute must when eating at Han Dynasty. Served cold, they are an appetizer-sized item that can also be a side dish to other menu options. I chose Victory Brewing Co.’s DirtWolf as a pairing here, figuring that the fruity hops would play well with the delicate cucumber-y flavor while the booziness and warming finish would likely stand up to the heat of the spicy red chili oil. The cucumbers were wonderfully fresh and crispy and had a significant heat that tingles the lips and warms the throat, leaving a lingering hot chili flavor. The DirtWolf opened up with juicy grapefruit and pineapple notes that perfectly restrain some sweet stone fruits and spicy hop notes before finishing with a long-lasting boozy warmth and firm bitterness.
This turned out to be a very nice pairing. Much as I had anticipated, the delicate fruity notes in the DirtWolf played well with the fresh cucumber, while the bitterness and carbonation washed away the tingle on the lips and the warm, boozy finish temporarily masked that hot chili oil finish. Nailed it. If you don’t have DirtWolf on hand or want to try a different beer, any fruity and pale-colored DIPA should do the trick.
Second Course:
Wontons in Chili Oil with Left Hand Nitro Milk Stout
Unsure of what to expect of these wontons due to the chili oil preparation, I chose the Left Hand Nitro Milk Stout simply because of past experiences with wontons in which savory flavors of pork, soy sauce, ginger, sesame and garlic were the dominant flavors. It seemed a safe bet that the roasty malts of a stout would be an acceptable pairing here.
I’ll start by saying the wontons were awesome! The chili oil was definitely present, but I didn’t find them to be as fiery as the spicy, crispy cucumbers from my first course. Slightly sweet up front, the wontons are quickly dominated by a delectable blend of tangy ginger and garlic that allows just a bit of chili to creep in. Then, they finish with a light heat on the lips and a savory, roasty and minerally brown sauce that richly clings to the palate, waiting to be cleansed away with the proper beer pairing.
The Left Hand Nitro Milk Stout is a fairly straightforward stout showing roastiness that is neither excessively sweet nor bitter as well as a bit of restrained chocolate. These flavors worked well with that sweet and tangy ginger garlic sauce and did a fair job of cleansing the palate of delicious savory wonton goodness without leaving too great a mark of its own. While I can’t say this was a perfect pairing, it was certainly a nice one considering it was the only roasty, malty brew in my refrigerator at the moment. Now having tried the wontons, I’d probably plan to pair them with something equally as malty but a bit more lively than the Nitro Milk Stout, such as Dogfish Indian Brown Ale. I’m confident that any decent brown ale, porter or stout could pair well provided they weren’t too boozy or heavy.
Third Course:
Shrimp in Garlic Sauce and Dan Dan Noodles with Tired Hands’ You Are The Emptiness
The shrimp in garlic sauce, rated a 3 out of 10 on the heat scale by Han Dynasty, had a description that made it impossible for me to pass up. “Sweet, sour and spicy. Stir fried with ginger, garlic, bamboo, wood ear mushrooms and bell peppers.” This seemed tailor-made for me, each of those flavors and ingredients being exactly what I like in a Chinese dish.
I have to admit to having some trouble with this beer pairing. Glaring at my beer choices, I quickly realized that I was overloaded with saisons and sour ales, none of which seemed an adequate dance partner for this course. So I simply chose a bottle that I had been wanting to drink for awhile: Tired Hands’ You Are The Emptiness, a barrel-aged saison conditioned on locally grown peaches.
While I enjoyed every course of the evening, the shrimp in garlic sauce was most definitely my favorite. It had a perfect blend of sweet, sour and chili notes, while garlic was ever-present from beginning to end but never too aggressive. The shrimp were wonderfully tender and seemed to be the perfect vehicle for carrying that heavenly garlic sauce. While the heat level was merely a 3, these did have a very mild and welcomed sweet heat that lingered subtly. I could have eaten about four tons of these. They should change the name to shrimp with awesome sauce.
My beer pairing here…fail! That’s not to say that the beer wasn’t enjoyable—quite the contrary! It was delicately and beautifully balanced between sweet and tart peach and clean, dry oak. It was light-bodied and finished very dry, leaving great earthy, oaky notes and faint peaches lingering.
So what does one do when they have a great meal and a great beer that don’t seem to match? Eat the food first and then enjoy the beer afterwards! While I don’t regret enjoying this glorious beer, it would have been better served before or after my dinner. Had I planned ahead, I think a Yards Brawler, Fuller’s ESB or a Blue Point Toasted Lager might have suited this course well.
Fourth Course:
Chicken Dry Pot with Heady Topper
Having sampled the low end of the Han Dynasty heat scale with the previous course, I boldly decided to venture all the way to the top and order an item that was a 10 out of 10. The dry pot style is “served in a sizzling mini wok and cooked in a spicy hot pot with black mushrooms, bamboo shoots, bell peppers and Sichuan peppercorns.” After perusing the meat choices available (chicken, pork, beef, fish, pork intestine, lamb and shrimp), I ordered up the chicken dry pot and hoped I could handle the heat.
Fearful that the dry pot might have my mouth on fire, I wanted a beer loaded with fruity hop notes that would not only complement the spicy flavors but also temporarily douse the flames. I wanted something juicy, bitter and crushable. What better choice to fit those criteria than Alchemist’s masterpiece, Heady Topper? The chicken dry pot was hot on so many levels, none unpleasant but pushing right up against my threshold for heat. The chicken tasted somewhat like a spicy chili, black peppery chicken sausage, while the black mushrooms added a nice earthy, umami flavor right before a heavy Sichuan peppercorn burn. The chili and peppercorns made their presence known immediately and throughout the dish. Chicken dry pot was that food that is so spicy that it burns just shy of intolerable but tastes so delicious that you simply can’t stop eating it.
Heady Topper provided the brief respite from heat between bites that I had hoped it would. Not only did Heady Topper help to put out the fire, but it also combined with the Sichuan peppercorn finish to leave a lingering pineapple-y chili heat. I’d have to say the Heady Topper was a solid pairing here, but knowing that not many of us have regular access to Heady, I’d counsel you to try your favorite juicy IPA and take caution—the dry pot brings some serious fire and spicy flavor!
To host your own Han Dynasty food and beer pairing, head over to one of the greater Philadelphia region locations in Exton (260 N Pottstown Pike), Royersford (70 Buckwalter Rd.), Manayunk (4356 Main St.), Old City (123 Chestnut St.) and University City (3711 Market St.).
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