The Shun Lee Cookbook - Michael Tong [28]
5. Place the basil leaves in a serving bowl. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the seafood to the serving bowl. Strain the broth through a wire fine-mesh strainer over the seafood. Serve immediately.
Note: Thai Kitchen Tom Yum Hot and Sour Soup Base, which is an excellent blend of many Thai ingredients, can be ordered from www.pacificrim-gourmet.com.
A BOWL OF PLUMP WONTONS FLOATING IN BROTH is the single most popular snack throughout China. It can be eaten as a complete meal for breakfast or lunch, as a child’s after-school snack, or as a late-night repast. It is also a very common street food, sold at outdoor stands from early morning to midnight. Our Shanghai Wonton Soup is an exceptionally pretty rendition, with shreds of a lacy egg crepe, seaweed, and some optional bok choy adrift in the broth.
Makes 4 servings
Shanghai Wonton Soup
Wontons
¾ cup (2 ounces) coarsely chopped baby bok choy or Napa cabbage
2 ounces boneless, skinless chicken breast, coarsely chopped
5 ounces pork butt, coarsely chopped
2 ounces medium shrimp, peeled and deveined, coarsely chopped
1 scallion, trimmed, white and green parts separated, and minced
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 teaspoon dark sesame oil
½ teaspoon salt
1 large egg white
Cornstarch, for the waxed paper
20 wonton skins
Soup
1 large egg
1 tablespoon vegetable oil 1 sheet roasted seaweed (nori)
1 tablespoon (½ ounce) minced Sichuan preserved vegetable, rinsed and drained
4 cups Chicken Stock (page 70) or canned chicken broth
½ teaspoon salt
1. To make the wonton filling, pulse the bok choy in a food processor until minced. Transfer to a bowl. Separately pulse the chicken, pork, and shrimp in the food processor until minced, and add to the bok choy. Add the white part of the scallion, oil, sesame oil, and salt, and mix well.
2. Beat the egg white in a small bowl until frothy. Line a baking sheet with waxed paper and dust it with cornstarch. Using a knife or a teaspoon, place a teaspoonful of the chicken mixture in the middle of a wonton skin. Dip your finger in the egg white, and moisten the edges of the skin. Fold the wonton skin in half, from top to bottom, and seal the edges with egg white. Bring the sides of the wrapper toward you, and overlap the bottom corners by about ½ inch. Pinch the wrapper so that the corners adhere to each other, and seal with egg white. Place on the baking sheet. Repeat with the remaining filling and wonton skins. (The uncooked wontons can be made up to 1 day ahead, covered, and refrigerated. Or freeze them for up to 2 weeks. To freeze, place them in a single layer in a plastic storage container or plastic storage bag, arranged so that the wontons don’t touch one another. When you are ready to cook them, the frozen wontons will be easy to remove, one by one.)
3. To make the soup, beat the egg in a small bowl until frothy. Heat the oil in an 8-inch nonstick skillet over medium heat. Drizzle in the egg to make a thin, lacy crepe and cook until set, about 1 minute. Slide it gently onto a cutting board, let it cool, and cut it into shreds.
4. Tear the roasted seaweed into rough-edged 2-inch squares. Place the egg strips, seaweed, green part of the scallion, and preserved vegetable in a big serving bowl. Bring the stock and salt to a boil in a large saucepan over high heat; then turn the heat to low.
5. Bring 8 cups of water to a boil in a large pot over high heat. Add the wontons and return to a boil. Add ½ cup cold water, and return to a boil again. Add a final ½ cup cold water, and return to a boil once more. (Adding the water slows the cooking, helping the wontons to keep their shape.)
6. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the wontons to the serving bowl. Pour the hot stock over the wontons, and serve immediately.
WHEN A CHINESE WOMAN has to feed her family and doesn’t have much food in the house, she cracks open some eggs, adds some broth, steams the mixture, and produces a delicate custard-like soup. We have embellished this dish by adding clams, mushrooms, tomatoes, and peas. It can