Stir fried crystal shrimps 清炒水晶虾仁 is often also found in the Shanghainese restaurants that serve xiao long bao 小籠包. It is called crystal 水晶 shrimps for their near translucent appearance. When I was in Toronto a few months ago we ordered this dish. Ever since returning to the Pacific Northwest I have been wanting to recreate this dish. The challenge is finding shrimps with just the right size.
While grocery shopping I spotted these small farmed shrimps that are pre-peeled and deveined. I thought they are likely would work well for this dish, so I grabbed a pound to try.
this was the stir fried crystal shrimps 清炒水晶虾仁 we had in Toronto; it was at a Shanghainese restaurant in a strip mall and their food are very good and reasonably priced compared to Din Tai Fung 鼎泰豐
these pre-peeled shrimps are just the right size for this dish
as you never know how pre-peeled shrimps would taste like I did a test sample of one, and then three shrimps
I tested the samples for mouth feel, texture, and salinity
Once I tested the samples I proceed to stir fry a single serving.
a single person serving of stir fried crystal shrimps 清炒水晶虾仁; the dark condiment is vinegar
Today I was in the shopping mall where the newly opened Din Tai Fung 鼎泰豐 is. I stopped by to check it out. It certainly has the appearance of upscale decor that P.F. Chang's can only envy. Like all their locations across the globe this one also has the candid prep area where the xiao long baos 小籠包 are made. It is right up front as it is the best promotion to entice you in. I watched with all the intension to 偷師 secretly learn from the master. I was very surprised to see first hand how small the dough pieces are. There is no substitute for watch the techniques of rolling the wrappers and forming the baos (buns).
I watched how they filled the wrappers and forming the xiao long baos 小籠包. It is so much clear now for me of the delicate handwork.
this was a second iteration; this time I used more oil so the shrimps got to be cooked more evenly; I then drained the excess oil with a copper wire basket strainer; there was about 5 oz of shrimps
That one pound of shrimps gave me 3 servings. I took the opportunity to perfect my techniques. This is a very simple dish, and the most important attribute for presentation is there should only be nothing but the smallish pinkish translucent shrimps. There are a few things behind the scene that help cut the fishiness of the shrimps. These are white pepper powder, Chinese cooking wine, and a few slices of ginger. I seasoned the shrimps with a bit of salt, a small dash of light soy sauce, and some yellow cooking wine. I used the wine to dissolve some corn starch which improves the appearance.
The stir frying was done with generous amount of oil. When the shrimps is cooked I used a strainer to drain out the excess oil and plate them. For final presentation I fished out the few slices of ginger which already done their job. These little shrimps taste the best if you drizzle in some rice vinegar. As it is next to impossible to find good Chinese vinegar I use red wine vinegar which is perfectly fine.
here the slices of ginger were still in the plate but I fished them out before the final presentation
this third serving was the best and I have the technique down the pad
No sooner than I bothered to give some background of this dish I came across this article on SCMP (South China Morning Post). This is one prime reason so many ethnic cuisines are badly represented. And this is one most trusted paper in Hong Kong where nearly every city's dweller can be a foodie.
And in case you wonder what I mean by ethnic. Anything that is not your tribal dishes are ethnic. So if you are German, Spanish cuisine is ethnic. BTW, I am shocked but not surprised P.F. Changs has infested Germany and Montreal. At least Toronto and Vancouver are save for now.
so wrong to mess with this dish and I don't care who you are; it looks like shit!
these pre-peeled shrimps are just the right size for this dish
as you never know how pre-peeled shrimps would taste like I did a test sample of one, and then three shrimps
I tested the samples for mouth feel, texture, and salinity
Once I tested the samples I proceed to stir fry a single serving.
a single person serving of stir fried crystal shrimps 清炒水晶虾仁; the dark condiment is vinegar
Today I was in the shopping mall where the newly opened Din Tai Fung 鼎泰豐 is. I stopped by to check it out. It certainly has the appearance of upscale decor that P.F. Chang's can only envy. Like all their locations across the globe this one also has the candid prep area where the xiao long baos 小籠包 are made. It is right up front as it is the best promotion to entice you in. I watched with all the intension to 偷師 secretly learn from the master. I was very surprised to see first hand how small the dough pieces are. There is no substitute for watch the techniques of rolling the wrappers and forming the baos (buns).
I watched how they filled the wrappers and forming the xiao long baos 小籠包. It is so much clear now for me of the delicate handwork.
this was a second iteration; this time I used more oil so the shrimps got to be cooked more evenly; I then drained the excess oil with a copper wire basket strainer; there was about 5 oz of shrimps
That one pound of shrimps gave me 3 servings. I took the opportunity to perfect my techniques. This is a very simple dish, and the most important attribute for presentation is there should only be nothing but the smallish pinkish translucent shrimps. There are a few things behind the scene that help cut the fishiness of the shrimps. These are white pepper powder, Chinese cooking wine, and a few slices of ginger. I seasoned the shrimps with a bit of salt, a small dash of light soy sauce, and some yellow cooking wine. I used the wine to dissolve some corn starch which improves the appearance.
The stir frying was done with generous amount of oil. When the shrimps is cooked I used a strainer to drain out the excess oil and plate them. For final presentation I fished out the few slices of ginger which already done their job. These little shrimps taste the best if you drizzle in some rice vinegar. As it is next to impossible to find good Chinese vinegar I use red wine vinegar which is perfectly fine.
here the slices of ginger were still in the plate but I fished them out before the final presentation
this third serving was the best and I have the technique down the pad
No sooner than I bothered to give some background of this dish I came across this article on SCMP (South China Morning Post). This is one prime reason so many ethnic cuisines are badly represented. And this is one most trusted paper in Hong Kong where nearly every city's dweller can be a foodie.
And in case you wonder what I mean by ethnic. Anything that is not your tribal dishes are ethnic. So if you are German, Spanish cuisine is ethnic. BTW, I am shocked but not surprised P.F. Changs has infested Germany and Montreal. At least Toronto and Vancouver are save for now.
so wrong to mess with this dish and I don't care who you are; it looks like shit!
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