Hand-Pounded Filling
A paste-based foundational ingredient prepared by pounding pork fat, horse fish, chicken breast, and other ingredients. It can be made into green 捶料 or red 捶料.
Ingredients
pork fat (sliced)
to taste
mackerel (skin and bones removed, sliced)
to taste
chicken breast (fat membrane and tendons removed, cut into strips)
to taste
white part of scallion
to taste
ginger (cut into chunks)
to taste
ground pepper
to taste
fine salt
to taste
egg white
to taste
broad bean starch slurry
to taste
rich stock
to taste
Instructions
1
Prepare the Ingredients
Slice the pork fat; skin and debone the mackerel, then slice the flesh; trim the fat membrane and tendons from the chicken breast and cut it into strips. Place each ingredient separately in cold water to soak for 1 hour. Remove, blot dry, and pound evenly with the back of a knife until finely minced with no visible granules. Transfer to a mortar or bowl and set aside.
2
Mix and Aerate
Add scallion-ginger juice, ground pepper, egg white, fine salt, and broad bean starch slurry to the meat paste. Stir continuously by hand, gradually drizzling in more scallion-ginger juice until the paste becomes aerated. The filling is ready when a meatball squeezed from it holds together in clear water without breaking apart or sinking.
3
Color the Filling
Divide the pounded filling into green and red portions. For the green portion, mash spinach leaves, squeeze out the green juice, and mix it into the filling. For the red portion, mash red amaranth, squeeze out the red juice, and mix it into the filling. Do not use mineral dyes to color the filling.
