I just went into the kitchen to play with faking Chinkiang black vinegar. I get closest with mostly a good sherry vinegar, and some traditional balsamic vinegar. It doesn't take much balsamic to match the color, and too much brings in too much sweetness. With these ingredients, one loses the harshness that Chinkiang vinegar shares with white vinegar, but why not.
I've been cooking out of the British edition. She notes that deep frying is a restaurant technique and not everyday home technique. I was taught that one originally used rendered animal fat. Certainly, the extraction process for many vegetable oils don't reward contemplation, and require the resources of a factory. I often using organic palm shortening in place of lard. Mine isn't kosher but kosher is ailable. Compared to vegetable oil, and more so than lard (for which lard is famous), palm shortening can he dramatic effects on texture. I learned about it from my Thai teacher, who would use it more if it didn't cost so much. It does introduce a coconut note.
I make many of these substitutions not because I keep kosher but to spare myself some wretched tastes. I've never in my life found a Shaoxing wine that could compete with a good sherry; most I want to spit out. Rather than looking for exact matches, use related ingredients to discover flor balances that please you?