Unique local snacks, China has a wide variety of snacks with distinct characteristics and unique flavors. These snacks use local ingredients, reflecting the material and social life of the time, and are an indispensable feature of a region, as well as the main object of nostalgia for those who are far from home.
Old Duck and Vermicelli Soup
Old Duck and Vermicelli Soup
Simmering the Old Duck Broth:
Use free-range farm ducks, chop them into pieces and clean them. You can refer to the traditional techniques and secret recipes of Chinese medicine for old duck broth, or add some seasonal ingredients. Place the duck pieces into a large soup pot, bring to a boil over high heat for 10 minutes, then add fresh and sweet spring bamboo shoots. Finally, simmer over low heat for 2-3 hours until the duck meat is tender and falls off the bone. Reserve 1000ml of the broth for later use.
Ingredients:
200g duck blood, 100g duck intestines, 2 duck gizzards, 50g fried tofu skin, a handful of vermicelli, appropriate amount of green onions, ginger, and cilantro, one bowl of broth.
Seasonings:
Vinegar, white pepper, light soy sauce.
Instructions:
1. First, cut the duck blood into 1.5 cm cubes and soak them in salt water for a moment. Cut the duck gizzards into a flower pattern, scrape the fat from the duck intestines, add an appropriate amount of salt to rub and clean them, blanch in boiling water, and remove immediately when the intestines curl up.
2. Heat oil in a wok, sauté the green onions and ginger until fragrant, add one bowl of broth and bring to a boil. Add the duck gizzards first.
3. Next, add the soaked vermicelli and small fried tofu skins.
4. After the soup boils, add the blanched duck intestines.
5. Duck blood cooks very quickly. Add it and cook for 2 minutes, then turn off the heat and ladle into a soup bowl. Add salt, light soy sauce, vinegar, cilantro, white pepper, and chili oil.
Warm Tips
1. The ingredients for duck blood vermicelli soup must be added in order: duck gizzards, fried tofu skin, and vermicelli first. Ingredients that cook quickly should be added last.
2. Duck blood is very tender. Pay attention to the heat when cooking. If cooked for too long, pores will form and it will become tough. Add it last and cook for 2 minutes; turn off the heat immediately once there is no raw blood left inside.
Vegetarian Rice Noodle Rolls
Hong Kong Style Vegetarian Rice Noodle Rolls
Ingredients:
150g rice flour, 30g wheat starch or cornstarch, 1/4 tsp salt, 1 tbsp oil, 500ml water, one spring onion, two garlic cloves, two spoonfuls of dried shrimp, one spoonful of light soy sauce, one spoonful of white sesame seeds, two spoonfuls of sesame paste, two spoonfuls of chili sauce.
Instructions:
1. Heat oil in a pan, sauté the dried shrimp and minced garlic until fragrant, then set aside.
2. Mix the rice flour, starch, salt, oil (adding oil makes the rolls smoother), and water together. Add chopped green onions and the sautéed shrimp and garlic, and stir until smooth and free of lumps. (Using an electric mixer will make the batter finer).
3. Brush a flat plate with a thin layer of oil. Bring water to a boil in a steamer over high heat.
4. Pour one ladle of the batter into the flat plate, shake it evenly to spread it out, and place it in the steamer for 2 minutes over high heat.
5. Each rice noodle roll can be rolled up directly, or you can add shrimp, vegetables, etc. inside. (I steamed nearly ten times in total. If you have a large steamer and a rectangular steaming plate, you can steam it only three or four times until all the batter is used up).
6. Finally, cut the rolled rice noodle rolls into pieces, arrange them on a plate, sprinkle with sesame seeds, and drizzle with light soy sauce or dark soy sauce and chili sauce.
Zhai Chang
Old duck fan soup