Chinese Home Cooking - 1. Crab Meat and Fish Maw Soup

Ingredients (for 4):

• Sand-blasted fish maw - 8 pieces
• Oil - 2 tsp
• Ginger - 30 g
• Shallot - 2 pieces
• Chicken stock - 4.5 cups
• Chinese ham - 30 g
• Blue sea crab - 2 pieces
• White pepper powder - dashes
• Salt - dashes
• Egg - 1
• Chicken stock - 0.5 cup
• Corn starch - 2 tbsp
• Salt - dashes
• Sugar - 0.5 tsp
• White pepper powder - 0.125 tsp
• Sesame oil - 1 tsp

Procedures:

1. Soak the fish maw in water for overnight to ensure it is well-hydrated.

2. Cut the fish maw into strips of 2 cm wide. Then cut into square-shaped pieces.

3. Blanch the fish maw in boiling water for a while. Then drip dry.

4. Steam the blue sea crab and then remove the meat.

5. Season the crab meat with a bit of salt and white pepper powder.

6. Cut about 2 tbsp of Chinese ham to prepare for the sprinkle.

7. Place the remaining of the Chinese ham in a bowl with 0.5 cup of chicken stock, then steam to prepare a ham extract.

8. Heat a pot with oil, then put the ginger and shallot in. 

9. When it is fragrant, remove the ginger and shallot. 

10. Put the fish maw in, and stir-fry. Sprinkle with some Chinese yellow wine.

11. Soak the fish maw with 0.5 cup of chicken stock, cook for a while, then remove the fish maw for later use. 

12. Clean the pot, then put the remaining chicken stock in, and put the ham sprinkle in, saving a little bit for decoration at the end.

13. Bring the soup to a boil, then put the fish maw and ham extract in. When it boils turn the heat to low and allow it to cook for 15 minutes.

14. Mix the thickening, including chicken stock, corn starch, salt, sugar, white pepper powder and sesame oil. 

15. Pour in the thickening while constantly stirring the soup.

16. Add the crab meat and allow to continue to cook for about 5 minutes.

17. Pour in the egg white while constantly stirring the soup.

18. Serve with some ham sprinkles on top. 

Wineshark HK Restaurant Review - Aqua

This contemporary restaurant is located in One Peking, at the top floors of the building, with a really fantastic view looking across the Victoria Harbour. Being a very popular place for locals and tourists, one must make reservations in advance. The restaurant has a row of small tables along the window, which can accommodate two persons. And that view itself is certainly the highlight of the whole meal.

We ordered the Italian tasting menu, prepared by the Italian chef Davide Borin. The first course is Quinoa Salad with Crab, Avocado and Cucumber. The thin slices of cucumber are fresh, with a few fish roes on top to provide a nice salty taste, which is in good harmony with the crab meat and the avocado. The quinoa added a chewy bite to the salad, with a plum tomato on top to supplement the color and flavors. A nice starter indeed.

The second course is Calamarata Pasta 'Liguori', with Mediterranean Mussels, Wild Clams, Datterino and Shrimps. The pasta is home-made, with a great texture and the sauce was very well-prepared, with the tomato and seafood sauce giving an intense palate. The seafood are generally quite good too, where we can readily taste the original flavors of the mussels and clams. The portion is adjusted down allowing us the room to taste the other dishes.

The third course has a choice of fish or beef, with me choosing the Wild Caught Sea Bass with Red Prawn, Semolina Gnocco and Smooth Clams Sauce. The fish is pan-fried nicely, with the skin crispy while the flesh tender, and I particularly like the clams sauce, with a very rich flavors which complements perfectly with the fish. On the other hand, the red prawn was a bit disappointing, with the flesh a bit mushy and giving me the impression that it was not fresh at all. The gnocco got a nice cheese notes, though its size is a bit too big even for a guy like me.

The final course is Visciolata Cheese Cake, with Fresh Cherry Sorbet, Preserve and Amarena Syrup. Beautifully decorated, however the size is honestly quite daunting as by the time we were quite full. The cake is rich with nice sweetness balanced well with the acidity of the cherry jelly on top, and the bottom layer of crust giving a nice contrast in texture too. The sorbet further helps to bring freshness and tartness to the dessert. The preserved cherry pieces also are a good thought to provide a bit of chewy to the overall sensation.

Maybe because we were so distracted by the constant group of people moving to my side to take photos of the nice view, there were not a lot of comfort that I get out from the ambiance. Also, the restaurant is busy and each table is just too close to one another for any sort of privacy. But still the signature HK harbour view is worth a million and nothing can surpass that.

The bill on the night was $2,577 including two sets of the tasting menu, a bottle of still water and a cup of coffee. Quite expensive but again not a surprise considering the view we have throughout the meal.

My overall rating is 68/100.

Ah Sir's Recipe - 29. Bordelaise Sauce

Ingredients (for 4):

• Shallot - 1 tbsp
• Onion - 50 g
• Butter - 1 tbsp
• Mushroom - 50 g
• Tarragon - 1 tsp
• Meat gravy - 100 g
• Red wine - 50 ml
• Salt - 1/2 tsp
• Black pepper finely - 1/4 tsp

Procedures:

1. Chop shallot finely.

2. Chop onion finely.

3. Chop mushroom finely.

4. Saute shallot and onion with butter.

5. Add mushroom and saute till fragrant.

6. Add red wine and meat gravy. 

7. Season with tarragon, salt and black pepper.

Ah Sir's Recipe - 28. Fillet of Pork Wellington

Ingredients (for 4):

• Fillet of pork - 450 g
• Pate de Foie - 45 g
• Mushroom - 100 g
• Garlic - 2 tsp
• Onion - 50 g
• Butter - 1.5 tsp
• Brandy - 1.5 tsp
• Red wine - 1.5 tsp
• Flour - 3 tsp
• Salt - 1/2 tsp
• White pepper powder - 1/2 tsp
• Parma ham - 6 pieces
• Puff pastry - 1 sheet

Procedures:

1. Trim the fillet and remove the fat and tendon, then marinate with salt and white pepper powder.

2. Sear the fillet with oil until both sides turns brown. Remove to cool down.

3. Chop the onion finely.

4. Chop the garlic finely.

5. Chop the mushroom finely.

6. Saute the onion with butter.

7. Add garlic, mushroom and pate de foie, then add brandy and red wine. Remove to cool.

8. Place a plastic wrap on bottom, then put the Parma ham on top. Place the fillet on top of Parma ham and wrapped with the mushroom and foie paste.

9. Wrap the Parma ham tightly on the fillet.

10. Put the meat inside a puff pastry.

11. Coat the pastry with whisked egg. 

12. Bake in pre-heated oven at 220 degree Celsius, until the color turns golden brown.

13. Serve with Bordealise Sauce.

Ah Sir's Recipe - 27. Semolina with Shrimp Dumplings

Ingredients (for 4):

• Shrimps - 5 oz 
• Whipping cream - 1.5 tsp
• Egg white - 1/2
• Lemon juice - a few drops
• White wine - 1/2 tsp
• Salt - 1/4 tsp
• White pepper powder - dashes
• Cooking oil - 1/4 tsp
• Spring onion - 1 tbsp
• Bread crumbs - 0.5 oz
• Lettuce - 2 oz
• Semolina - 1 oz
• Milk - 1 tbsp
• Chicken stock - 32 oz

Procedures:

1. Clean the shrimp and remove the shell. Then remove the intestines.

2. Mince the shrimp.

3. Chop the spring onion finely.

4. Add spring onion, whipping cream, egg white, lemon juice, white wine, salt, white pepper powder and cooking oil to the minced shrimp. Blend well together.

5. Boil a pot of water and use two spoons to scoop the minced shrimp into dumplings, then cook until well done. Remove for later use.

6. Chop the lettuce into strips.

7. Boil a pot of water and blanch the lettuce for a short while. Remove for later use.

8. Add milk to semolina and mix well. 

9. Boil the chicken stock, then scoop the semolina into small pieces and put into the stock to boil for 5 minutes.

10. Add lettuce and shrimp dumplings. season with salt before serving.