Chinese cooking: Special ingredients
I have briefly introduced two most classic and expensive Chinese
cooking ingredients (shark fins and bird's nest) in my previous
article. Here I'll continue to introduce some other special
ingredients that are more regularly used in our daily cooking.
They are far more affordable. Not like shark fins and bird's
nest, people can only dream about in China unless you have
plenty of money and don't know where to spend.
Jellyfish Jellyfish is preserved in salt and alum. Large,
thin and translucent ones are especially good served as
appetizer. It is produced in the South Seas and along seaboards
of China, Korea and Japan. The South Seas product is considered
to be of the best quality.
Method of Preparation
Soak jellyfish over night, change water and soak for one more
day.
Roll the jellyfish up and shred
Dip in boiling water for a few seconds and quickly rinse in cold
water and drain.
Season with vinegar, salt and sugar. Serve
Note: There are many other ways to cook jellyfish
Preserved Eggs Duck eggs thickly coated with a mixture of
salt, lime and rice husks are preserved in a cool, dark place
for about three months. The interior becomes brownish black in
color due to fermentation. Remove lime crust and shell, rinse
clean, cut lengthwise into six pieces and serve wit shredded
ginger, vinegar and soy sauce as an appetizer.
Dried B