SCOTTSDALE, Ariz.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--P.F. Chang’s is celebrating the launch of a new public television mini-series, The Kitchen Wisdom of Cecilia Chiang. The six-part series launches this month on PBS stations nationwide (check local listings). P.F. Chang’s is the lead sponsor of the series, which was produced by Frappé Inc. and is presented and distributed by American Public Television. Additional clips and details are available by contacting P.F. Chang’s directly.
Cecilia Chiang is the mother of P.F. Chang’s co-founder, Philip Chiang. She introduced Americans to authentic northern Chinese cuisine in 1961 with her San Francisco-based restaurant the Mandarin and is widely recognized as the ‘Julia Child of Chinese Cooking.’ Before launching P.F. Chang’s, Philip worked with Cecilia at the Mandarin restaurant. Her experiences, point of view and commitment to quality heavily influenced Philip’s development of the P.F. Chang’s experience.
In honor of Cecilia, P.F. Chang’s is renaming potstickers, its most popular dim sum, “Cecilia’s Dumplings.” All of P.F. Chang’s dim sum is hand folded and made fresh daily in each restaurant, just as Cecilia made them at the Mandarin.
“From the day we opened our doors, we have been celebrating Cecilia’s kitchen wisdom,” said Dwayne Chambers, P.F. Chang’s chief marketing officer. “We continue to believe that simple, clean, wholesome ingredients, scratch cooked by our chefs in every restaurant every day makes for a truly great dish and an excellent guest experience.”
Throughout the cooking series, Cecilia demonstrates her classic Chinese cooking techniques and shares the history of some of her legendary dishes including: beggars chicken, a whole, stuffed chicken wrapped in lotus leaves and clay; the original pot sticker; crispy Szechuan duck; squab in lettuce cups; and glacéed bananas. Known as a mentor and friend of restaurateurs throughout the Bay area, Cecilia also spends time cooking alongside top local chefs, including—Corey Lee, chef and owner of Benu; Nancy Oakes, chef/owner of Boulevard; Belinda Leong, chef, co-owner and creator of b.patisserie; Laurence Jossel the chef and owner of Nopa and Nopalita; Gary Danko, chef/owner of Restaurant Gary Danko; and Keiko Takahashi, chef/owner of Keiko on Nob Hill.
“Cecilia’s influence on Asian food in America is unsurpassed,” said Michael Osanloo, CEO of P.F. Chang’s. “We are honored to support The Kitchen Wisdom of Cecilia Chiang series, and to continue celebrating her legacy in our kitchens across the globe.”
About Cecilia Chiang
Cecilia Chiang was born in China, immigrated to San Francisco, and without ever cooking a day in her life, opened the legendary Mandarin restaurant in 1961, which introduced Americans to authentic Chinese cuisine. Cecilia befriended the icons of America’s food world including Julia Child, James Beard, Chuck Williams, the founder of Williams-Sonoma, and a young Alice Waters before her Chez Panisse fame. She is widely regarded as one of the nation’s first purveyors of authentic northern Chinese cuisine and is one of a handful of women who led the way to more progressive, interesting, and ingredient-driven cooking in the U.S.
P.F. Chang’s
Founded in 1993 by Philip Chiang and Paul Fleming, P.F. Chang’s is the first multi-unit restaurant concept in the U.S. to honor and celebrate the 2,000-year-old tradition of wok cooking as the center of the guest experience. Since inception, P.F. Chang’s chefs have been hand-rolling dim sum, hand chopping and slicing all vegetables and meats, scratch cooking every sauce and wok-cooking every dish, every day in every restaurant. P.F. Chang’s new Farm to WokTM menu highlights its wholesome, scratch-only approach to cooking and introduces new dishes and drinks for lunch, happy hour and dinner. Today, P.F. Chang’s has 214 U.S. restaurants, including three airport locations, plus 66 international locations. For more P.F. Chang’s news, promotions and store openings, or to make reservations, visit www.pfchangs.com and follow us on Facebook and Twitter @PFChangs.
