This is the first in a series of zhou-tastic tales from Martin, Changchun's premier and only Foreign Zhou chef in town.

Several years ago Changchun Friends had a book printed called "Changchun Stories" which was a collection of stories from the Changchun Friends community. I entered a piece called "I love zhou" and was surprised and delighted to win second prize. This was even more remarkable when I read the other stories that covered and wide variety of amusing and interesting subjects and all deserving recognition.

Since then I have been asked many times about zhou (rice porridge) and how to make it interesting – so here's an update.