Hot Bean Sauce Shrimp and Mixed Mushroom Fish Balls with Ground Pork, (辣豆辦菇魚蛋蝦豬肉, Laat6 Dau6 Faan6 Gu1 Jyu4 Daan6 Haa1 Zyu1 Juk6)

This recipe uses the classic Chinese combination of seafood and meat to make this tasty dish. The seafood ingredients are shrimp and fish balls, and the meat is ground pork, together in a spicy bean sauce. The amount of sauce in this dish is also important and is more of a gravy than a sauce (i.e. there’s a lot of sauce!). The amount of sauce is a personal preference, so feel free to adjust the amount by adding less or more of the Shiitake mushroom rehydration liquid, but you’re likely on adding more rather than less.

Enjoy!

Ingredients

¾ lb.	375 g.	Prawn or shrimp meat (蝦仁, haa1 jan4)
½ in.	15 mm.	Knob of ginger (薑, goeng1), crushed in a garlic press
1 Tbs.	15 ml.	Corn starch (粟粉, suk1 fan2)
1 Tbs.	15 ml.	Shaoxing rice wine (紹興酒, siu6 hing1 zau2) or dry sherry
½ tsp.	2.5 ml.	Ground white pepper (白胡椒, baak6 wu4 ziu1)
1 tsp.	5 ml.	Sesame oil (麻油, maa4 jau4)
¾ lb.	375 g.	Mixed mushroom fish balls (菇魚蛋, gu1 jyu4 daan6), cut into halves
¾ lb.	375 g.	Ground pork (豬肉, zyu1 juk6)
½ in.	15 mm.	Knob of ginger (薑, goeng1), crushed in a garlic press
2 cloves	2 cloves	Garlic (蒜, syun3), crushed in a garlic press
1 Tbs.	15 ml.	Corn starch (粟粉, suk1 fan2)
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.	Shaoxing rice wine (紹興酒, siu6 hing1 zau2) or dry sherry
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 lb.	500 g.	Sugar snap peas (蜜豆, mat6 dau6)
10	10	Dried Shiitake mushrooms (冬菇, dung1 gu1), rehydrated and cut into square ½-inch (15 mm.) pieces
3 stalks	3 stalks	Green onions (葱, cung1), cut into 1-inch (2.5 cm.) pieces on the diagonal
½ in.	15 mm.	Knob of ginger (薑, goeng1), crushed in a garlic press
2 cloves	2 cloves	Garlic (蒜, syun3), crushed in a garlic press
		Oil for cooking

 

Sauce Ingredients

4+ Tbs.	60+ ml.	Shiitake mushroom rehydration liquid
2 Tbs.	30 ml.	Lian How brand hot bean sauce (辣豆辦醬, laat6 dau6 faan6 zoeng3) or equivalent
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.	Shaoxing rice wine (紹興酒, siu6 hing1 zau2) or dry sherry
½ tsp.	2.5 ml.	Ground white pepper (白胡椒, baak6 wu4 ziu1)
½ Tbs.	7.5 ml.	Sesame oil (麻油, maa4 jau4)
1 Tbs.	15 ml.	Corn starch (粟粉, suk1 fan2)
2 Tbs.	30 ml.	Water

 

Equipment

		Garlic press
14 in.	35.5 cm.	Wok or pan

 

Lian How Brand Hot Bean Sauce
(辣豆辦醬, laat6 dau6 faan6 zoeng3)

Preparation Instructions

1. If using frozen prawn or shrimp, thaw in a covered container overnight in the refrigerator. Take the shrimp out of the refrigerator at least one hour before cooking. Shell and devein the shrimp, and marinate for at least one hour with the ginger crushed in a garlic press, corn starch, Shaoxing rice wine or dry sherry, ground white pepper, and sesame oil. In the USA, the names prawn and shrimp are used interchangeably, with prawn usually meaning a large shrimp; either will work in this dish.
2. Pour boiling water over the dried Shiitake mushrooms in a heat proof bowl and rehydrate the mushrooms for at least one hour.
3. Marinate the ground pork in a covered container for at least one hour or overnight in the refrigerator with the ginger and garlic crushed in a garlic press, corn starch, soy sauce, hoisin sauce, Shaoxing rice wine or dry sherry, ground white pepper, and sesame oil. If marinating the pork overnight, take it out of the refrigerator at least one hour before cooking.
4. Remove the Shiitake mushrooms from the rehydration liquid, remove the stems, and cut them into square ½-inch (15 mm.) pieces. Reserve at least 4 Tbs. (60 ml.) of the rehydration liquid for later use in the sauce.
5. Wash and remove the string from the sugar snap peas by grasping each sugar snap pea in one hand and pulling the tip the length of the sugar snap pea with the other.
6. Crush the ginger and garlic in a garlic press and put into a small bowl.
7. Wash and cut the green onions into 1-inch (2.5 cm.) pieces on the diagonal.
8. Prepare and mix the sauce in a small bowl: add the Lian How brand hot bean sauce or equivalent, soy sauce, hoisin sauce, Shaoxing rice wine or dry sherry, ground white pepper, and sesame oil. In another small bowl, prepare the corn starch slurry by mixing the corn starch and water together.

Cooking Instructions

1. Heat a wok or pan over high heat before adding oil. Add the shrimp to the wok in a single layer on the bottom and stir fry until the shrimp just turn pink. The shrimp should look undercooked. You may have to cook the shrimp in batches, so be sure to reheat the wok over high heat before adding more oil. Transfer the shrimp to a bowl.
2. Reheat the wok over high heat before adding oil. Add the ground pork to the wok in a single layer on the bottom and brown the outside, breaking up any clumps that form. You may have to cook the pork in batches, so be sure to reheat the wok over high heat before adding more oil. Transfer the pork to the bowl with the shrimp.
3. Reheat the wok over high heat before adding oil and then the mixed mushroom fish balls, flat side down. Brown the flat side before turning the fish balls over to brown the spherical parts. Transfer the fish balls to the bowl with the shrimp.
4. Reheat the wok over high heat before adding oil and then the Shiitake mushrooms. Stir fry the mushrooms and then transfer them to the bowl with the shrimp.
5. Reheat the wok over high heat before adding oil and then the sugar snap peas. Stir fry the sugar snap peas to brown them. Add the bowl with the ginger and garlic mixture, and then some oil to the mixture. Quickly stir fry all the ingredients until the ginger and garlic mixture becomes fragrant. Add the green onions and the contents of the bowl with the shrimp back into the wok, and stir fry all the ingredients together.
6. Add the reserved mushroom rehydration liquid and sauce ingredients to the wok, and stir fry the ingredients together. If more sauce is desired, add more of the mushroom rehydration liquid to the wok. Add the corn starch slurry to thicken the sauce and mix all the ingredients together. Put the cooked ingredients into a serving dish and serve with steamed rice.