Today marks the 15th and final day of the Lunar New Year. I’m commemorating the occasion with this auspicious Treasure Pot (poon choi or pen cai 盆菜). It’s a one-pot dish containing an overflowing of various ingredients such as abalone, shiitake mushrooms, prawns, sea cucumber, fish maw … all significant foods that carry symbolic meanings during LNY. Traditionally served in wooden, porcelain or metal basins, poon choi was born in Hong Kong during the late Song Dynasty, when the Emperor of China fled to the area around the Guangdong Province and nearby Hong Kong after a Mongol attack. To feed His Majesty and the troops, locals living in the walled villages cooked the best foods then serve these in large wooden washbasins as there weren’t enough serving bowls.
Recently, I thought about my late paternal grandfather. Yeh Yeh was a stern and dignified man who hailed from Guangdong. I feared him and like most Chinese, filial piety—obedience and respect—were virtues to be exercised towards the elderly. Yeh Yeh often regaled us with stories of how he escaped China by boat during World War II when the Japanese invaded. As I arranged the premium ingredients layer by layer, I remembered when Yeh Yeh would buy us cellophane lanterns in different animal shapes to celebrate the Mid-Autumn Festival. He was a proud Cantonese man who rode a scooter religiously to his socks factory every day. How he must have lived during his heyday! I thought of his last days, when he could only walk with the help of his walking stick and finally, couldn’t find the strength to get up from bed without assistance. I was never close to Yeh Yeh because I’ve a poor command of Cantonese. But he loved to eat, so at least, this dish would have make up for our lost years. Scroll below for the recipe!
Serves 6 pax
Ingredients
- 150g dried fish maw, soaked in hot water for 15 minutes till softened
- 60g dried shiitake mushrooms, soaked overnight in hot water till softened (keep the soaking liquid); stems removed
- 500g fresh or dried sea cucumber (if using dried ones, soak them overnight to soften; wash carefully and rinse after then cut into wedges)
- 1 kg tiger prawns, keep shells on but deveined
- 250g fresh or frozen scallops (if frozen, transfer to fridge to thaw for at least 2 hours before)
- 1 kg roast duck meat (alternatively roast pork or chicken)
- 1 can abalone, drained and soaked in cold water overnight, then washed and cleaned carefully with a brush
- 1 can sea asparagus, drained, and soaked in cold water for 1 hour, then rinsed
- 300g broccoli, keep the florets only
- 150g carrot, peeled and sliced thinly
- 500g napa cabbage, cut into chunks
- 500g white daikon radish, head and root removed, sliced into chunks
- Two handfuls of dried black sea moss (fatt choy), soaked in hot water for 15 minutes
- 300g fried yam (optional)
- 1 tbsp toasted sesame oil
- 1 tbsp minced garlic
- 2 litres water (including mushroom soaking liquid)
- 120ml oyster sauce
- 60ml fish sauce
- 1 tbsp dark soy sauce
- 2 tsp sugar
- 60ml Hua Tiao Shao Xing wine
- 4 tbsp cornstarch
- 4 tbsp water, or more if needed (to make cornstarch slurry)
Steps
- Prepare all the dry ingredients in advance, soaking them to soften following the amount of time required.
- A) For the Broth: Heat oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add the garlic and sauté until fragrant, then top up with water, mushroom, fish maw, cabbage, daikon radish, oyster sauce, fish sauce, dark soy sauce and sugar. Cover and bring to boil, then lower the fire to simmer for 30 minutes to an hour.
- B) For the Ingredients: While the broth is simmering, blanch these ingredients in batches, into the same broth: Prawns and scallops (3 minutes); abalone and sea asparagus (2 minutes); broccoli (15-20 seconds); carrots (2-3 minutes); sea cucumber (3 minutes). Remove cooked items then set aside for layering later. Turn off the heat after Step A (above) is done.
- C) Layer your Treasure Pot: Start with the napa cabbage and daikon radish at the bottom layer, followed by the fish maw, sea cucumber and carrots. Finally, arrange the roast meat, prawns, scallops, abalone, mushrooms, broccoli, sea asparagus, and fried yam, at the top layer. The black sea moss (fatt choy) goes into the center of the dish.
- For the Final Broth: Bring the broth in the pot back to boil. Add Hua Tiao Shao Xing wine and boil for 1 minute until fragrant. On the side, mix the cornstarch with water to form a flurry sludge. Slowly pour the mix into the boiling broth and stir well until desired thickness is achieved. Switch off the fire and scoop some broth from the pot then pour over the layered ingredients in the Treasure Pot. I usually use a traditional claypot to serve this dish, so it could be easily reheated over the stove if necessary.
If you made this dish, let me know by tagging @saveurmalaisie on Instagram!
