Lao Sze Chuan

Name: Lao Sze Chuan
Address: 2172 S Archer Ave, Chicago, IL, 60616, US
Telephone: 312-326-5040
Price range: $$

Mon-Thu 10:45am-9:30pm; Fri-Sun 10:45am-midnight

Fried rice: Day-old rice stir-fried with egg, scallion and whatever the kitchen adds. Yangzhou (Yang Chow) style means shrimp, char siu and peas, and is the version most menus mean by "house special". Good fried rice is dry and separate-grained, never wet. On this menu as: Fried Rice with Egg.
Mapo tofu: Soft tofu in a glossy red sauce of fermented broad-bean paste (doubanjiang), chili and ground Sichuan peppercorn, traditionally with a little minced beef or pork. The name honors the pockmarked (ma) old woman (po) said to have invented it in Chengdu; a vegetarian version is common. On this menu as: Mapo Tofu.
Twice-cooked pork: Pork belly simmered whole, sliced thin, then stir-fried until the edges curl and crisp with leeks or cabbage, fermented bean paste and sweet bean sauce. A Sichuan home-cooking classic: rich, salty and only moderately spicy. On this menu as: Twice-Cooked Pork.
Orange chicken: Fried chicken (or crispy beef) in a sticky citrus glaze. Sichuan "orange-peel" (chen pi) beef uses dried tangerine peel for a bitter-aromatic edge; the American fast-casual version is sweeter and uses orange juice and zest. On this menu as: Orange Chicken.
Tofu (bean curd): Pressed soybean curd, from custard-soft (for mapo tofu and soups) to firm (for stir-fries and braises). Fried tofu puffs soak up sauce; tofu skin (yuba) is the sheet lifted off simmering soy milk, rolled and braised or fried as a "vegetarian duck". On this menu as: Mapo Tofu.

Menu