Shallot Sauce Green Bean Shrimp (紅蔥醬青豆角蝦, Hung4 Cung1 Zoeng3 Ceng1 Dau6 Gok3 Haa1)

I finally realized that I’ve been using peeled shrimp or prawn in my previous recipes. While peeled shrimp makes for easy eating, it’s not the only way to make a shrimp dish. Shrimp dishes are also made with unpeeled shrimp, and there’s a lot of flavor in the shells that makes its way into dish. The downside to using unpeeled shrimp is that the shells must be removed before eating, unless you’re strange like me and eat shrimp with the shells on. So preparation is easy for this dish, since you don’t have to shell the shrimp (you also leave the little feet on!). If leaving the shells on shrimp doesn’t appeal to you, just remove them and cook the dish that way.

Enjoy!

Ingredients

¾ lb.	375 g.	Unpeeled prawn or shrimp (蝦, haa1)
1 tsp.	5 ml.	Baking soda (蘇打粉, sou1 daa2 fan2)
½ in.	15 mm.	Knob of ginger (薑, goeng1), crushed in a garlic press
1 Tbs.	15 ml.	Tapioca starch (木薯澱粉, muk6 syu4 din6 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)
1 lb.	500 g.	Green string beans (青豆角, ceng1 dau6 gok3), cut into 2-inch (5 cm.) pieces
8 oz.	227 g.	One package Kimbo brand Shredded Spice Tofu (五香豆腐絲, ng5 hoeng1 dau6 fu6 si1) or equivalent, cut into 2-inch (5 cm.) pieces
6 oz.	170 g.	One package fresh cloud ear fungus (雲耳, wan4 ji5)
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

2 Tbs.	30 ml.	Bull Head brand Shallot Sauce (紅蔥醬, hung4 cung1 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)
1 Tbs.	15 ml.	Sesame oil (麻油, maa4 jau4)
2 tsp.	10 ml.	Corn starch (粟粉, suk1 fan2)
4 tsp.	20 ml.	Water

Equipment

		Garlic press
14 in.	35.5 cm.	Wok or pan

Preparation Instructions

Kimbo Brand Shredded Spice Tofu
(五香豆腐絲, ng5 hoeng1 dau6 fu6 si1)

1. If using frozen shelled prawn or shrimp, thaw in a covered container overnight in the refrigerator. Submerge the shrimp with water and some ice, and add the baking soda for 30 minutes. Discard the water and wash the baking soda from the shrimp.
2. Marinate the shrimp overnight with the ginger crushed in a garlic press, tapioca 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. Take the shrimp out of the refrigerator at least one hour before cooking.
3. Wash and cut the long beans into 2-inch (5 cm.) pieces.
4. Open the Kimbo brand Shredded Spice Tofu package, or equivalent, and discard any liquid. Roughly cut the tofu into 2-inch (5 cm.) 

   

   Bull Head Brand Shallot Sauce
   (紅蔥醬, hung4 cung1 zoeng3)

   pieces.
5. Open the package, wash, and remove any hard pieces from the cloud ear fungus.
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 Bull Head brand Shallot 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 and then the cloud ear fungus. Stir fry the fungus and then transfer to the bowl with the shrimp.
3. Reheat the wok over high heat before adding oil and then the shredded tofu. Stir fry the shredded tofu and then transfer to the bowl with the shrimp.
4. Reheat the wok over high heat before adding oil and then the green string beans. Stir fry to brown the green string beans. Add the bowl with the ginger and garlic mixture to the wok, and then some oil to the mixture. Quickly stir fry all the ingredients until the ginger and garlic become 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.
5. Add the sauce ingredients to the wok and stir fry the ingredients together. If more sauce is desired, add some liquid (stock or water) 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.