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Eating is sensory, however it’s the distinction of textures and temperature I discover most alluring. Searing-hot prawns marinated in fish sauce, garlic and ginger dance upon a spicy but cooling nuoc cham-inspired dressing, served with crunchy peanuts on a tender mattress of noodles and herbs. In my san choy bau, crisp, chilly lettuce leaves embrace piping-hot pork with daring Chinese language seasonings. Each dishes invite the child inside us to eat with our fingers: peeling tails and heads off prawns and feeling the juice of san choy bau on our fingers, prepared for unashamed licking after each chunk.
San choy bau (pictured above)
There are as some ways to spell san choy bau (生菜包), which interprets to “lettuce wrap” in Cantonese, as there are to make it. Its recognition in Chinese language-Australian eating places is famous and it’s a fixture on menus there. Make the additional effort to soak the spring onion garnish and lettuce leaves in ice-cold water, which crisps up the leaves and makes the spring onions go curly.
Prep 25 min
Soak 30 min
Prepare dinner 20 min
Makes 12 cups, to serve 6
1 iceberg lettuce
6 spring onions, 4 thinly sliced on the diagonal, the opposite 2 julienned
Impartial oil (corresponding to sunflower), for cooking
500g pork mince
3 banana shallots (100g), peeled and thinly sliced
100g brown mushrooms, thinly sliced
2 carrots, peeled and julienned
2 garlic cloves, peeled and crushed
15g (3cm) ginger, peeled and grated
2 tbsp Shaoxing rice wine
2 tbsp gentle soy sauce
140g water chestnuts, chopped (I exploit the canned Kingfisher brand)
60ml oyster sauce
½ tbsp caster sugar
½ tbsp toasted sesame oil
To remove the lettuce core, seize the lettuce in your hand and smash it core facet down on a piece floor. The core ought to loosen sufficient to allow you to wiggle it out. Run the lettuce underneath chilly water to separate the leaves – you’ll want 12 smaller ones for this dish, in regards to the measurement of your hand, or trim them down.
Fill each a big and a small bowl with ice-cold water and soak the lettuce leaves and julienned spring onions for half-hour. Drain, cowl with a fabric and preserve within the fridge till prepared to make use of.
Warmth a tablespoon of oil in a big frying pan or wok on a excessive warmth. Add half the pork and cook dinner, transferring it across the pan so it cooks evenly, for about six minutes, till browned throughout. Take away and put aside, then wipe out the pan. Add one other tablespoon of oil and repeat with the remaining pork.
Wipe out the pan, add one other tablespoon of oil and placed on a medium-high warmth. Add the shallots and mushrooms, and cook dinner, stirring regularly, for 2 minutes. Add the carrots, stir-fry for a minute, then add the garlic and ginger and cook dinner for a minute extra.
Add the rice wine and soy sauce, and cook dinner for about two minutes, till the liquid evaporates. Return the pork to the pan with the water chestnuts and thinly sliced spring onions, stir the whole lot collectively, then add the oyster sauce, sugar and sesame oil, stir to mix and cook dinner till the whole lot is warmed by.
To serve, scoop two dessertspoonfuls of the combination into every lettuce cup and prime with the curly spring onions.
Seared prawns with hot-and-sour salad
Marinating prawns in garlic, ginger and fish sauce was a revelation for me, enhancing the candy, meatiness of the prawn whereas caramelising it within the pan. It’s now my go-to marinade each time I’m craving prawns. It’s a wonderful dish for internet hosting, rewarding preparation with simple, last-minute meeting by searing the prawns and dressing the salad simply earlier than serving. Purchase good-quality prawns within the shell – each contemporary or frozen will work right here.
Prep 45 min
Prepare dinner 10 min
Serves 6-8
200g ½cm-wide flat rice noodles
Impartial oil (corresponding to sunflower), for cooking and tossing
7 tbsp (105ml) fish sauce
20g ginger, peeled and grated (ie, from a 4cm piece)
8 garlic cloves, peeled and crushed
24 sustainably-sourced uncooked, black tiger prawns (680g unpeeled weight; or uncooked medium-sized prawns), peeled and deveined, however leaving the heads and tails intact
175g child corn, halved lengthways
150g mangetouts
2 lengthy purple chillies, finely chopped
2 lemongrass, woody stems eliminated, relaxation finely chopped
4 banana shallots (130g), peeled and thinly sliced
4 tbsp (60g) caster sugar
4 tbsp lime juice (ie, from 3-4 limes)
6 tbsp (35g) fried shallots, shop-bought or selfmade
100g roasted, salted peanuts, roughly chopped
30g bunch Thai basil, picked
30g bunch mint, picked
30g bunch coriander, leaves picked and stems chopped
Soak the rice noodles in boiling water based on the packet directions, then drain, rinse underneath chilly water and toss with just a little oil to forestall them from sticking collectively.
In a bigger bowl, combine a tablespoon of fish sauce, half the ginger and half the crushed garlic. Add the prawns, toss to mix, then put aside to marinate at room temperature whilst you put together the opposite substances.
Warmth a tablespoon of oil in a big frying pan or wok on a excessive warmth, then add the corn, cut back the warmth to medium-high and fry for 2 minutes, so they start to char. Add the mangetouts, stir-fry for a minute or two, till they only start to melt and go a vibrant inexperienced, then tip out right into a bowl, depart to chill and wipe out the pan.
For the dressing, put the remaining crushed garlic and ginger in a bowl with the chillies, lemongrass, sliced shallots, sugar, lime juice and 6 tablespoons of fish sauce, stir to mix, then style and alter the seasoning, if want be, and put aside.
Put two tablespoons of oil within the pan or wok, set it over a excessive warmth and add half the prawns (you may additionally cook dinner them on a barbecue sizzling plate). Prepare dinner for 2 minutes on one facet, then, because the prawns curl right into a C-shape, flip them over and cook dinner for an extra minute on the opposite facet, till they’re opaque and pink throughout. Take away and wipe out the pan, add one other two tablespoons of oil and repeat with the remaining prawns.
To assemble, put the drained noodles on a big platter or vast, shallow bowl. Add the corn, mangetouts, fried shallots, peanuts, herbs and two-thirds of the dressing, and toss to mix. Lay the prawns on prime, drizzle over the remaining dressing and serve instantly.
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