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Sun May 28 20:04:55 PDT 2006


tail. Use a small knife to cut them into thin pieces from the larger end
to the tail.  The tail should not be cut from the last piece of meat.
Use spring onions, Chinese pepper, salt, wine, and water to season.
Grind up the head and shell, boil, and filter to make a stock.
Quick-boil the shrimp meal in this stock, till clear. Then add
bamboo-shoot and preserved ginger slices to the stock. Do not use spiced
wine. Do not cook too long.

Comments by Francoise Sabban:
The end of the recipe has to be translated as: <<Cook very quickly into
this having filtered the stock, add sliced bamboo-shoot, slices of
ginger and serve. Don't put spiced wine in the stock>>.  There is
another possibility depending on where you put the punctuation! It could
also be interpreted as: <<if you don't use the stock (to serve with the
shrimps) use spiced wine, but not too much >>.

Drake & Kiriel's Redaction:

6 Large King Prawns (200 grams),
600 ml Water,
3 Spring Onions, sliced thinly,
Pinch of Szechwan Pepper, finely ground and sifted through muslin,
Pinch of Malden Sea Salt,
100ml Mirin,
1/3 Bamboo Shoot, sliced diagonally,
2 Tablespoons of Pickled Ginger (the pink sweet slices you get with
Sushi).

* Head and Shell prawns,
* Boil heads and shells in 600ml water,
* Prepare Prawns by 1 of 3 tried styles:
 (1)  Make 5-6 diagonal cuts on each side of the prawn not quite 1/2 way
      deep.  (this one worked the best)
 (2)  Fillet out the prawns flat and slice into 5-6 thin strips all
joined
      by the tail (fiddly, and didn't look very good)
 (3)  Make 2 slices one on the top and one down the bottom (makes a roll
but
      didn't look as good as (1)).
* Marinate prawns for 30 minutes in Pepper, salt, spring onions, &
Mirin.
* Let the stock boil for 15 minutes, strain out heads and shells.  We
would
  have filtered the stock through a fine cloth but I had none handy so
we
  filtered through paper towel.
* Bring srock back to the boil, add prawns and marinade.
* Simmer for 2 minutes.
* Add ginger and bamboo shoots and simmer for another minute.
* Serve and garnish with some finely sliced spring onion tips.

This was very tasty.  Kiriel did not have much because she can't really
eat shellfish, but she enjoyed what she had.  I loved it and finished my
bowl and ate the bowl I was saving for my flatmate!  The stock was
divine.  Yumbo.


Ark Shell (Cockle)
------------------

Original:
Break open four or five live cockles. Immediately put them in a bowl and
pour their juices over them. Cook in extremely hot wine and cat without
pepper or salt. When trying to break open the cockles, use a big sewing-
needle to pierce them first, and opening will be easier.

Drake & Kiriel's Redaction:

200g Pipies (10),
300ml Mirin.

* Bring Mirin to the boil.
* Loosten pipi shells with a knife.
* Add pipis and cook for 3-5 minutes, until they open.
* Serve.

I'd use cockles instead of pipis as the pipis were tough, more suited to
casseroling then steaming.  Kiriel had a nice idea which was to reduce
the mirin to a syrup and then pour it back over the shellfish, which we
will try next time.

How to Cook Mushrooms
---------------------

Original:
Wash them in water about four times, getting rid of all sand and mud.
Then cook in chicken meat stock (or: chicken or meat stock) till they
expand.
Dried ones here.  This simple recipe is still widespread.

Wang & Anderson Notes:
Gwinner overtranslates as Clavaria pistillarius, but Ni's word is one
that covers any small whitish mushroom, including common market ones.
The last phrase in the recipe seems to imply that we are dealing with
dried ones here.  This imple recipe is still widespread.

Drake & Kiriel's Redaction:

12 Fresh Oyster Mushrooms,
8 Dried Shitake Mushrooms (re-constituted),
375ml Chicken Stock.

*  Add mushrooms to stock,
*  Heat to the simmer and simmer for 5 minutes,
*  Serve.  Garnish with some shallots.

I found these a little bland, Kiriel thought they were quite nice.
Kiriel had the idea of reconstituting the Shitakes in stock rather than
water making them more flavoursome.

Natalie (sorry, her SCA name currently elude's me, Nata'lia I think) did
Yellow Bird Buns, Quick Cooked Meat Stew, & Chicken Wontons (which I
have also done 3 times myself) on Friday night.  I'll onforward the
redactions as soon as I get them.

We are aiming towards a coastal chinese feast out of this source by
about november/december this year...  The menu is...

1st Course:
Honeyed Stuffed Crabs,
Green Shrimp Rolls,
Imitation Scallops made from Fish,
Yellow Bird Buns,
BBQ Pork,
Wheat Noodles in Broth,
Pickled Ginger,
Cooked Radish,
How to cook Mushrooms,
Steamed Rice,
Rice Wine,
Tangerine Flower Tea.

Court and Entertainment...

2nd Course:
Ark Shells (Cockles),
Wonton in Broth,
BBQ Goose,
Quick-cooked meat stew,
Cooked Wheat Gluten,
'Snow Temple' Vegetable,
Pickled Bamboo Shoots,
Fragrant Citron Fry,
Steamed Rice,
Fresh Fruit Platter,
Mung Bean Wine,
Lotus Flower Tea.

Cheers,

Drake.







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