I love the simple dish of steamed scallops with mung bean vermicelli, usually found in Cantonese restaurants that specialise in seafood. Often, though, they use far too much pre-minced garlic ...

MONBETSU, Hokkaido--Scallop aquaculture here is just barely keeping its head above water after being plunged into crisis a year ago when China slapped a blanket ban on Japanese seafood imports.

Scallops accounted for 48.9 billion yen, followed by sea cucumbers at 9.8 billion yen. The impact of the Chinese ban is not limited to domestic businesses.

Soupy rice - cooked rice heated in a light broth - is something my mother fed to my brothers and me when we were ill. It's nutritious but has a mild flavour and so is soothing on the stomach.

These scallops are a perfect starter, best served with a glass of champagne. They also make cute little canapes served on Chinese spoons - place a teaspoon of sauce on a spoon and top with one ...

You can serve these in Chinese style soup-spoons as a canape, just one scallop per portion, although they're also delicious as a starter - a handful of watercress or rocket leaves with six to ...