Sea Cucumber with Shiitake Mushrooms (冬菇海參, Dung1 Gu1 Hoi2 Sam1)

This recipe was updated on 07 Jun 2014. Some instructions and ingredient quantities were changes, and metric measurements added.

Sea cucumber is an ingredient usually reserved for special occasions. I remember eating this dish at every birthday dinner for my maternal Grandparents. Sea cucumber also makes appearances at Lunar New Year’s dinners, so this dish came to mind and seemed appropriate as the first recipe for the Year of the Snake.

The ingredient is not only expensive, but in its dried form takes some time to prepare and after rehydration you have to clean out the intestines before cooking. I used to be able to buy sea cucumber already rehydrated and cleaned at my local Asian market, but no more. It is now available frozen, so it needs to be thawed first before cleaning. Sea cucumber can be black or white in color, with the white version more highly prized and more expensive than the black. Another name for sea cucumber is sea slug, which doesn’t sound very appetizing, and it has a firm, jello-like texture (my brother-in-law calls it, “fish jello”). No matter what you call this ingredient, it really is quite tasteless and acquires the flavor of the other ingredients it’s cooked with and the sauce.

Enjoy!

Ingredients

¾ lb.	375 g.	Frozen black sea cucumber (海參, hoi2 sam1), thawed, cleaned, and cut into ¾-inch (20 mm.) pieces
¾ lb.	375 g.	Frozen white sea cucumber (海參, hoi2 sam1), thawed, cleaned, and cut into ¾-inch (20 mm.) pieces
12	12	Dried Shiitake mushrooms (冬菇, dung1 gu1), rehydrated
3 slices	3 slices	Ginger (薑, goeng1)
2 cloves	2 cloves	Garlic (蒜, syun3), crushed in a garlic press
1 lb.	500 g.	Broccoli florets (sai1 laan4 faa1, 西蘭花), cut into individual florets
		Oil for cooking

 

Sauce Ingredients

2 Tbs.	30 ml.	Oyster sauce (蠔油, hou4 jau4)
2 Tbs.	30 ml.	Soy sauce (豉油, si6 jau4)
1 Tbs.	15 ml.	Hoisin sauce (海鮮醬, hoi2 sin1 zoeng3)
2 Tbs.	30 ml.	Brandy (白蘭地, baak6 laan4 dei6)
½ tsp.	2.5 ml.	Ground white pepper (白胡椒, baak6 wu4 ziu1)
1 tsp.	5 ml.	Sesame oil (麻油, maa4 jau4)
1 cup	250 ml.	Chicken stock or Shiitake mushroom rehydration liquid
1 Tbs.	30 ml.	Corn starch (粟粉, suk1 fan2)
2 Tbs.	60 ml.	Water

 

Preparation Instructions

1. Defrost the frozen black and white sea cucumbers overnight in the refrigerator.
2. Soak the dried Shiitake mushrooms boiling water for at least one hour and remove the stems from the mushrooms. Save the mushroom rehydration liquid for later use in the sauce.
3. Clean the thawed sea cucumbers by first making a single cut on one side the length of the sea cucumber. Remove the intestines by running your finger the length of the sea cucumber. Wash the cleaned sea cucumber under cold running water. Cut the sea cucumber into ¾-inch lengths and set aside.
4. Cut three thin slices of ginger and place into a small bowl. Crush the garlic in a garlic press and place into the bowl with the ginger.
5. Cut and separate the broccoli florets. If you plan to microwave the broccoli, arrange the florets around the circumference of the serving plate with the florets facing outwards. Place any stems and other broccoli pieces in the center of the serving plate, cover with plastic wrap, and microwave on high for 2-3 minutes until the broccoli becomes tender. If you plan to blanch the broccoli, place into boiling water for 1-2 minutes and then cool in cold water before arranging on the serving plate.
6. Prepare the sauce in a small bowl by adding the oyster sauce, hoisin sauce, soy sauce, brandy, ground white pepper, and sesame oil. In another small bowl, mix together the corn starch and water to form a corn starch slurry.

Cooking Instructions

1. Heat a wok or pan over high heat before adding oil and then bowl with the ginger slices and crushed garlic. Stir fry the ginger slices and garlic until fragrant before adding the Shiitake mushrooms. Stir fry the mushrooms for 1-2 minutes before adding the sea cucumber. Mix the ingredients together.
2. Add the contents of the bowl with the sauce to the wok and stir fry the contents together before adding the chicken stock or mushroom rehydration liquid. Mix the ingredients together and boil for at least 5 minutes before adding the corn starch slurry to thicken the sauce.
3. Turn off the heat and place the contents of the wok into the center of the broccoli florets on the serving plate. Serve with steamed rice.