jfw (07/21/82)
This recipe comes from Chinese Regional Cooking, by Kenneth H.C. Lo. ------- -------- ------- 1/4 lb. lean pork (or breast of chicken) 1-2 medium onions 8 medium Chinese dried mushrooms 2-3 stalks golden needles (lily buds: optional) 1-2 cakes bean curd (about 1/2 lb) 2-3 leeks 1 egg 2 Tb soy sauce 4-5 Tb vinegar 1 tsp black pepper 1 Tb Sesame Oil 2 Tb Cornflour blended in 6 Tb water 1 Tb lard 1-1/2 pints chicken or meat stock * 1-1/2 Tb Chinese dried shrimps 2-3 Tb frozen or fresh peas 3 Tb shelled shrimps (frozen or fresh) 1 chicken stock cube 1/2 Tb salt Cut the pork (or chicken) into matchstick sized shreds. Cut the onion into thin slices. Soak the dried mushrooms in 1/3 pint hot water for 30 minutes, retain the water. Remove the stalks and cut the mushrooms into quarters. Cut the lily buds into segments, and the bean curd into small cubes. Clean the leeks and cut them into very short segments. Beat the egg for 10 seconds with a fork. Blend the soy sauce, vinegar, pepper, and sesame oil with the cornflour mixture. Heat the lard in a saucepan. Add the pork and onion, and stir fry together over a medium heat for 4-5 minutes. Pour in the stock. bring to boil and add the dried shrimps, lily buds, mushrooms and mushroom water. Bring to the boil again and simmer for 15 minutes. Add the leeks, peas, bean curd, fresh (or frozen) shrimps, stock cube, and salt. Simmer for a further 10 minutes. Add the cornflour/soya/pepper mixture and stir well. Drip and trail the beaten egg along the prongs of a fork over the surface of the soup. "This could be called a 'junk soup', to which almost anything can be added; but it must retain its essential character, which is that it must be thick (unusual among Chinese soups), dark and strongly flavoured."
jfw (07/21/82)
Part III in the continuing saga of Hot and Sour Soup
These recipes come from An Encyclopedia of Chinese Food and Cooking, by
W. and I. Chang, and -- ------------ -- ------- ---- --- -------
H. and A. Kutscher.
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SWAN LA TONG: PEKING
A. 13.75 oz. can chicken broth I. 1 Tb light soy sauce
B. 4 wood ears (black mushrooms) J. 1 tsp sugar
C. 12 golden needles (lily buds) K. .5-1 tsp pepper
D. 2 Chinese mushrooms L. 2 Tb cornstarch mixed with
E. .25 cup shredded preserved kohlrabi .25 cup water
F. .5 cup shredded pork M. 1 egg, beaten
G. 2 cakes bean curd N. 2 scallions
H. 2 tablespoons vinegar O. sesame oil to taste
PREPARATION:
I. Cover B with hot water and soak 15 to 30 minutes or until soft.
II. Discard water, wash and shred B.
III. Soak C in cold water for 15-20 minutes until soft; discard the hard
tips, cut each into 2 or 3 segments.
IV. Wash D in warm water and soak 15 minutes; shred; save water and add
it to A.
V. Chop white part of N.
VI. Slice and shred G. Mix H, I, J, K.
COOKING:
1. In saucepan, dilute A with 1 can water plus mushroom water; bring to boil.
2. Add B, C, D, E and cook for 8 minutes.
3. Add F, cook 1 minute.
4. Add G and H-K; cook 1/2 minute.
5. Thicken with L.
6. Remove from heat; slowly stir in M.
7. Add N-O; serve hot.
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SWAN LA TONG: Szechuan
A. .25 cup shredded pork G. .25 tsp red pepper sauce
B. .25 cup shredded bamboo shoots (tobasco or hot chili oil)
C. 2 water chestnuts, shredded H. 1.5 tsp light soy sauce
D. 1 to 2 Chinese mushrooms I. 1 tsp cornstarch with 1 Tb water
E. 1 cake bean curd J. 1 egg, beaten
F. 1 Tb vinegar
PREPARATION:
I. Wash and soak D in hot water 15 minutes. Drain, save water, shred.
II. Slice E into thin pieces.
COOKING:
1. Add water to D water to make 1.5 cups, bring to boil.
2. Add A, B, C, D, cook 2 minutes
3. Add E, F, G, H; when mixture boils again, add I, continue stirring
until thick.
4. Turn off heat, stir in J gradually. Serve hot.
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About the ANSI Standard X.257J "unit normal bean curd cake": none of my
cookbooks are entirely clear about what they consider to be a standard
sized cake, but the impression I got from one is that it is roughly 1/4 lb
or so.