Braised Abalone with Sea Cucumber

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4.41 from 5 votes

Braised Abalone with Sea Cucumber

Braised Abalone with Sea Cucumber Recipe.

Cook Time15

Inactive Time1

Total Time1 15

Course: Seafood

Cuisine: Chinese Recipes

Keyword: Braised Abalone with Sea Cucumber

Servings: people

Author: Bee Yinn Low

Ingredients

4 dried South African Abalone
2 dried South African Deep Sea Cucumber
1 knob ginger pounded
3 stalks scallion roots removed
8 dried Japanese scallop rinsed with water before using
4 oz (125g) broccoli florets
Cornstarch + water

Supreme Chicken Stock:

1 stewing hen skin removed and chop into big pieces
1 lb (500g) pork spare ribs, cut into riblets
4 oz (125g) Chinese ham (or Virginia ham), cut into pieces
5 quarts water

Instructions

Soak the dried abalone in cold water for 24 hours. The next day, clean it thoroughly and cook in boiling water for 15 minutes. Turn off the heat, cover the pot, and let it sit until the water cools. Clean the abalone again, remove the tail end, discard any impurities, and soak in clean cold water for another 10 hours or overnight.
Meanwhile, soak the sea cucumbers overnight in a clean, oil-free pot. The next day, bring a large pot of water to a boil. Turn off the heat and add the sea cucumbers. Cover the pot and let them sit until the water cools. Repeat this process 3-4 times until the sea cucumbers are relatively soft. At this point, clean each sea cucumber as shown in the pictures.
Bring a pot of water to a boil, preferably in a stainless steel pot. Add the ginger, scallions, and sea cucumbers, and cook on low heat until the sea cucumbers are soft enough for further preparation.
While preparing the dried ingredients, make the Supreme Chicken Stock. Bring water to a boil in a deep stock pot. Add the chicken, ribs, and ham, and return to a boil. Lower the heat and simmer for 8 hours, until the meat falls off the bones and the stock is very flavorful. Discard the solids and save the stock. You can keep it in the fridge.
When you're ready to cook, use a smaller stock pot and add 3-4 cups of Supreme Chicken Stock, along with the abalone, sea cucumbers, and scallops. Bring to a boil, then reduce to low heat and simmer for 10 to 12 hours, until the abalone is tender and absorbs the flavors of the stock.
To check for doneness, use a chopstick to poke the ingredients. Since sea cucumbers cook faster than abalone, check their texture often. Once the sea cucumbers are soft and jiggly, remove them from the pot and set aside. Add them back and reheat just before serving. Do not overcook the sea cucumbers, as they will turn into a gel-like texture.
To serve, quickly blanch the broccoli florets in boiling water. Drain and set aside. Use some of the soup base and thicken it with a bit of cornstarch mixed with water. Arrange the abalone, sea cucumbers, and broccoli on a serving plate, then drizzle the thickened sauce on top. Serve immediately.

Notes

To save some cooking time, you might slice the abalone into slices before cooking. If you do so, make sure you cut the sea cucumbers into bigger pieces so they cook at a similar rate as the abalone slices.

You can keep the remaining Supreme Chicken Stock in the fridge for a week or so. It's great for a variety of Chinese recipes such as stir-fries that calls for water, soups, noodle soup, stews, etc.

Nutrition