Article 77: Analysis of Famous Sichuan Dishes (Dishes 36-40): Spinach Dumplings with Chicken Cake, Garlic Scallops, Steamed Turtle Skirt, Steamed River Catfish, and Home-Style Sea Cucumber

36. Spinach Dumplings and Chicken Cake

Ingredients: Main ingredients: 150g minced chicken, 300g flour, 500g spinach, 150g three-ingredient dumpling filling, 750g milk broth. Side ingredients: 250g Chinese cabbage hearts, 50g egg whites, 150g tomatoes. Seasonings: 15g salt, 10g cooking wine, 10g pepper, 25g rendered pork fat, 20g cornstarch, 75g chicken broth.

Preparation: (1) Chop the spinach and squeeze out the juice. Add it to the flour and knead into a dough (light green). Put the minced chicken in a bowl, add fresh broth and stir. Then add salt, MSG, cooking wine, egg white and cornstarch and stir well. Pour it into a lunchbox and steam for 10 minutes. Remove it to make chicken cake.

(3) Roll the kneaded dough into strips, pinch off small pieces, roll them into wrappers, fill them with the three-delicacy filling, shape them into dumplings, put them into a pot of boiling water to cook and take them out; cut the steamed chicken cake into thin slices, arrange them neatly in a bowl, add milk soup, steam for 2 minutes, take them out, and scrape off the soup.

(4) Heat the wok over high heat, add lard and heat it up. Add shredded scallions and ginger and stir-fry until fragrant. Add milk broth, salt, MSG and pepper. After boiling, blanch the cabbage hearts, remove them and squeeze out the water. Place them on the chicken cake and then turn the chicken cake over and place it in the middle of the plate. Put the cooked spinach dumplings into the soup pot to blanch them thoroughly. Remove them and place them around the chicken cake.

(5) Bring the milk broth in the pot to a boil, add the sliced ​​tomatoes, bring to a boil again, remove the tomato slices and place them on top of the chicken cake, thicken the original broth with cornstarch, and pour it over the chicken cake and spinach dumplings.

Quality standards: The spinach dumplings are light green, uniform in size, with thin skin and fresh filling, soft and tender chicken cake, neat and beautiful shape, and thin and glossy sauce with a light and delicate flavor.

Key points of operation: This dish is a decorative dish consisting of spinach dumplings and chicken paste cake. The spinach dumplings are made with dough made from spinach juice, and the method is the same as making ordinary dumplings. The main points to note are that the shape and size are consistent and the preparation of the three-delicacy filling. When making chicken paste cake, the main points to note are the consistency of the chicken paste and the steaming temperature. The chicken paste should first be broken up with clear broth, and then egg whites should be gradually added and stirred into a thin porridge. Finally, salt and cornstarch should be added. The lunch box used to steam the chicken cake should be greased with a layer of cooked lard before pouring in the chicken paste.

When steaming, use high heat, full steam, and short time until fully cooked. The chicken cake slices should be cut into thin, even slices and arranged in a "bridge" shape before being placed in the bowl. For the tomato slices used for garnish, only the skin and flesh should be used, and they should be cut into small peach-shaped pieces.

37. Garlic and Dried Scallops

Ingredients: Main ingredient: 150g dried scallops. Side ingredient: 125g single-clove garlic. Seasonings: 2g Sichuan salt, 10g Shaoxing wine, 20g cornstarch, 300g chicken broth, 10g ginger, 5g scallion segments, 3g sesame oil, 200g lard (approximately 40g used).

Preparation: (1) Wash the dried scallops, put them in a bowl, add chicken broth (100g) and Shaoxing wine (5g), and steam them thoroughly.

Peel and wash the single-clove garlic, fry it briefly in lard heated to 50% of its maximum temperature, remove it, place it in a bowl, and steam it thoroughly.

Crush the ginger and scallions.

(2) Place a wok over high heat, add 20g of rendered pork fat and heat to 50% heat. Add scallions and ginger and stir-fry until fragrant. Add chicken broth and bring to a boil to release the flavor. Remove the scallions and ginger, add dried scallops and garlic, add Sichuan salt and Shaoxing wine and cook for a short while. First, remove the garlic and place it on the outer edge of the plate. Add MSG and wet starch to the wok to thicken into a thin sauce, drizzle with sesame oil, and then remove from the wok and place on the plate to serve.

Quality standards: The color is yellow and white, the sauce is clear and bright, the garlic is soft and fragrant, and the dried scallops are crisp and fresh.

Key points for preparation: When making this dish, be sure to use high heat when steaming the dried scallops, and remove them from the pot when they can be crushed with your fingers; use medium heat to fry the garlic slowly, and remove it when the outside turns light yellow; when thickening the sauce, skim off any foam first, and then thicken it.

38. Steamed Turtle Skirt

Ingredients: Main ingredient: 250g cleaned chicken skirt. Side ingredients: 75g cooked chicken, 75g cooked ham, 75g rehydrated shiitake mushrooms, 50g dried scallops. Seasonings: 3g Sichuan salt, 10g scallion segments, 10g ginger, 1g white pepper powder, 650g clear broth, 15g Shaoxing wine, 1 small dish of ginger and vinegar dipping sauce.

Preparation: (1) Slice the chicken, ham and shiitake mushrooms.

Scrape the skirt clean, put it in a steaming bowl and add chicken, ham, shiitake mushrooms, dried scallops, ginger (crushed), scallions, Shaoxing wine, Sichuan salt, pepper, and clear broth (250g). Seal the bowl with parchment paper, put it in a steamer and steam over high heat until the skirt is cooked and soft. Then take it out and turn it over into a concave plate. Remove the ginger and scallions.

(2) Place a wok over high heat, pour in the original juice from the steamed skirt, add clear broth and bring to a boil. Pour into a plate and serve with a dipping sauce of ginger and vinegar.

Quality standards: The skirt hem is soft and does not break, the soup is clear and flavorful, retaining its original taste and is not greasy.

Key to the operation: The most important thing in making this dish is the selection of ingredients and the initial cooking process. The ingredients must be fresh, as dried ingredients do not taste as good.

The initial cooking process requires blanching the meat, scraping off the black membrane, cutting it into pieces, adding scallions, ginger, cooking wine, and clear broth, and simmering it twice to remove any fishy smell. When steaming, use high heat and seal the steaming bowl to keep the skirt soft, intact, and retain its original flavor.

39. Steamed River Catfish

Ingredients: Main ingredient: 1 catfish (approximately 1000g). Side ingredients: 50g cooked ham, 50g rehydrated shiitake mushrooms, 50g winter bamboo shoots, 150g chicken paste, 50g egg pancake, 50g green peas. Seasonings: 20g each of scallions and ginger, appropriate amounts of salt, MSG, and pepper.

Preparation: (1) Blanch the catfish in boiling water, then rinse it in cold water to remove the mucus from the skin. Make diagonal cuts on both sides, marinate with salt, cooking wine, scallions and ginger for 30 minutes, then insert ham slices and bamboo shoot slices into the cuts on the fish and cover with a layer of caul fat.

(2) Divide the chicken paste into 12 small molds, decorate them with egg skin and green peas to form flower shapes, steam them until cooked and unmold them.

(3) Steam the marinated fish over medium heat for 30 minutes, then pour the broth into a pot, remove the scallions and caul fat, and then place the steamed chicken fritters on both sides of the fish.

(4) Add some clear broth to the steamed fish soup and bring it to a boil. Adjust the taste, skim off the foam, and pour it over the fish and chicken broth.

It is served with a dipping sauce made of ginger, vinegar, salt, and sesame oil.

Quality standards: The fish meat is tender, the soup is clear and flavorful, and the fish is beautifully shaped like a hundred flowers on a river catfish.

Key points of operation: The purpose of scalding the catfish with boiling water is to remove the mucus and black membrane on the skin. Be careful not to scald for too long to avoid breaking the skin. When scalding, the fish should be placed in a slotted spoon and put into the pot together. When marinating with seasonings, make sure to rub the fish evenly inside and out. When steaming, always keep the heat at medium and do not steam for too long. Just cook until it is just done. If you steam it for too long, the fish will become tough.

40. Homemade Sea Cucumber

Ingredients: Main ingredient: 500g rehydrated sea cucumber. Side ingredients: 125g lean and fatty pork, 150g soybean sprouts. Seasonings: 30g Pixian chili bean paste, 20g pickled red chili peppers, 25g dark soy sauce, 15g Shaoxing wine, 3g Sichuan salt, 30g ginger, 75g scallions, 3g MSG, 50g green garlic shoots, 10g cornstarch, 750g meat broth, 250g clear broth, 15g sesame oil, 170g lard.

Preparation: (1) Wash the soaked sea cucumber and slice it into thin slices with a thicker top and a thinner bottom.

Chop the pork into small pieces.

Cut the green garlic shoots into thick pieces, and remove the roots from the soybean sprouts and wash them.

Crush the ginger and scallions.

(2) Place a wok over high heat, add lard (15g), heat to 50% heat, add ginger (10g) and scallions (25g) and stir-fry until fragrant, then add clear broth (250g), Shaoxing wine (5g) and Sichuan salt (1g), add the sea cucumber and cook for a while, then remove and discard the broth.

Then, feed the sea cucumbers a second time using the same method to enhance their flavor, and then remove and drain them.

(3) Place a wok over high heat, add lard (50g), heat to 60% heat, add meat pieces and stir-fry, add Shaoxing wine (5g) and Sichuan salt (1g), stir-fry the meat until crispy and fragrant, remove from the wok and put into a bowl for later use.

Heat 50g of lard in a wok until it reaches 50% of its maximum temperature. Add finely chopped Pixian chili bean paste and chili peppers and stir-fry until fragrant. When the oil turns bright red, add clear broth and bring to a boil. Remove the bean paste residue. Then add sea cucumber, diced meat, and dark soy sauce and cook until the oil is glossy. Thicken with a cornstarch slurry, then add sesame oil, garlic sprouts, and MSG and stir well.

In a separate wok, heat 25g of lard to medium heat, add soybean sprouts and stir-fry until fragrant. Add Sichuan salt (1g) and stir-fry until just cooked. Remove from the wok and place on a plate as a base.

Then pour the sea cucumber and its juice over the soybean sprouts and it's ready to serve.

Quality standards: The color is reddish-brown, the taste is crispy, fragrant and slightly spicy, the sea cucumber is tender and smooth, the ingredients are well-balanced, and the soup is clear and glossy.

Key to operation: "Home-style flavor" is one of the unique flavor profiles of Sichuan cuisine. It is characterized by mild spiciness, a slightly sweet aftertaste, and a vinegar aroma. Essential seasonings include Pixian Doubanjiang (Pixian chili bean paste) and Xinfan pickled chili peppers.

To prepare this dish, firstly, you need a high-quality clear broth to cook the sea cucumber three times to make it tender and flavorful; secondly, in the final step of thickening, you must first skim off any foam to ensure that the sauce is smooth and glossy.