The Shun Lee Cookbook - Michael Tong [27]
2. Bring a large saucepan of water to a boil over high heat. Add the chicken, bamboo shoots, bean curd, tree ears, lilies, and mushrooms, and cook until the chicken turns opaque, about 30 seconds. Drain in a colander. Clean the saucepan.
3. Beat the egg in a small bowl until frothy. Heat the oil in an 8-inch nonstick skillet over medium-low heat. Drizzle in the beaten egg to make a thin, lacy crepe, and cook until set, about 1 minute. Slide the crepe gently out of the skillet onto a cutting board, and slice it into ¼-inch thick shreds about 2 inches long.
4. Bring the stock, soy sauce, and white pepper to a boil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add the drained chicken mixture and return to a boil.
5. Dissolve the cornstarch in ½ cup cold water in a small bowl. Add to the saucepan, and stir gently until the soup thickens, about 30 seconds. Taste the soup, and add more white pepper if you wish. The soup should be spicy, but season it gradually or you may go too far. Transfer the soup to a large serving bowl, and stir in the vinegar and sesame oil. Garnish with the egg strips and scallion, and serve immediately.
THIS FRAGRANT SOUP, a Shun Lee original, is an improvisation on Thai hot and sour shrimp soup. We combined the basics of French bouillabaisse, a seafood-laden soup with lots of shellfish and fish, with Thai flavors. The soup is fast-cooking, and when served with a salad, makes a complete meal. The broth is light, yet complex and tangy. The secret is not to overcook the seafood. Have your fishmonger cut up a live lobster for you, and use it within a few hours of purchase.
Only a small amount of the Tom Yum Hot and Sour Soup Base is used; the rest can be frozen. Makes 4 servings
Hot and Sour Bouillabaisse
Stock
One 1 ½-pound lobster, uncooked: claws chopped in half, and the tail chopped lengthwise and then in half crosswise
8 medium shrimp
2 tablespoons Chinese dried baby shrimp
Two ¼-inch-thick slices galangal, unpeeled and smashed under a cleaver
Two ¼-inch-thick slices peeled fresh ginger, smashed under a cleaver
1 medium red onion, peeled and cut into 6 equal wedges
1 medium white onion, peeled and cut into 6 equal wedges
½ tomato, cut into 4 equal wedges
½ red bell pepper, seeded and cut into thirds
3 Thai or Serrano chilies, seeds and ribs removed, smashed under a cleaver
1 lemongrass stalk, outer peel and tough tops cut off and discarded, tender bulb cut in half lengthwise and smashed
½ teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon sugar
2 tablespoons distilled white vinegar
1 ½ teaspoons Thai Kitchen Tom Yum Hot and Sour Soup Base (see Note)
4 ounces skinless sea bass fillet, cut into 4 pieces, each about 2 inches square and ½ inch thick
8 littleneck clams, scrubbed
2 scallops, each sliced in half horizontally
Juice of ½ lime
8 basil leaves
1. To make the soup stock, bring a large saucepan of water to a boil over high heat. Add the lobster and cook until the shell turns red, 3 to 4 minutes. Drain in a colander and let stand until cool enough to handle. Crack the lobster and remove the meat, saving the shell. Clean the saucepan. Set the meat and shell aside separately.
2. Peel and devein the shrimp, reserving the shells. Refrigerate the cleaned shrimp.
3. Bring 4 cups of water to a boil in the saucepan over high heat. Add the lobster shells and shrimp shells, along with the dried baby shrimp, galangal, ginger, red and white onions, tomato, bell pepper, chilies, lemongrass, and salt. Return to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer, uncovered, for 15 minutes. Strain the stock into a bowl and discard the shells and vegetables.
4. Return the stock to the saucepan. Add the sugar, vinegar, and Tom Yum Hot and Sour Soup Base, and increase the heat to high. Add the shrimp, sea bass, clams, scallops, and lime juice. Cook until the clams open, about 2 minutes. Add the lobster meat and heat for 30 seconds. Discard any unopened clams.