Chicken Mousse with Fish Maw
A prestigious Hubei banquet dish: the minced chicken is snow-white and savory, and the fish maw is soft and fluffy with a brocade-like texture.
Ingredients
Fish maw (oil-puffed, soaked until soft, deoiled and sliced)
to taste
Chicken breast (tendons and skin removed, washed and pounded into puree)
to taste
Refined salt
4 g
MSG (monosodium glutamate)
1 g
Egg white
to taste
Wet starch slurry
to taste
Shiitake mushrooms (stems removed, washed and cubed)
to taste
Egg skin (chopped into fine pieces)
to taste
Rendered lard
50 g
Minced ginger
to taste
Chicken broth
to taste
Chopped scallions
to taste
Cooked minced egg
to taste
White pepper powder
to taste
Instructions
1
Prepare the fish maw
Puff the fish maw in oil first, then transfer it to a bowl. Soak in warm water for 15 minutes, cover and weigh down to prevent the fish maw from floating on the surface. Once softened, place it in warm water with an appropriate amount of food-grade baking soda, squeeze and rub by hand to remove excess grease. Remove, replace with fresh warm water, and squeeze repeatedly until the fish maw turns white and is as soft as a sponge. Squeeze out all moisture, slice diagonally into pieces measuring 4.5 cm long, 3.3 cm wide, and 0.33 cm thick, then place in a bowl of clean water to soak until needed.
2
Prepare the chicken puree
Remove tendons and skin from the chicken breast, wash thoroughly, and pound into a fine puree. Place in a bowl, add 2 g of refined salt, 0.5 g of MSG, egg white, 100 g of water, and wet starch slurry, then stir evenly to form a smooth paste. Remove stems from shiitake mushrooms, wash, and cut into 2.5 cm cubes. Chop the egg skin into fine pieces.
3
Simmer and finish the dish
Place a wok over high heat, add 50 g of rendered lard and heat until hot. Add minced ginger and stir-fry until fragrant, then pour in chicken broth. Add the fish maw and shiitake mushrooms, stir to combine. Add 2 g of refined salt and 0.5 g of MSG, then simmer for 3 minutes. When the fish maw is fully infused with flavor, thicken the sauce with a glass-thin starch slurry. Slowly pour the chicken puree into the wok, stirring gently as you add it. When the sauce becomes thick and creamy, add additional rendered lard, then transfer to a serving plate. Top with chopped scallions, white pepper powder, and cooked minced egg before serving.
