Typhoon shelter shrimp
Garlic, garlic and more garlic — and crispy garlic at that. :D This recipe is definitely a pure Hong Kong dish. It was originally cooked by fishermen who lived on their boats in the harbours used as shelters during typhoons. In particular, the largest of them at the time: the Causeway Bay typhoon shelter. A real subculture developed in these shelters, somewhat cut off from the rest of Hong Kong society. They lived on their boats, the children went to floating schools, and they developed their own rituals, songs, superstitions and, of course, cuisine. Today, the culture of the typhoon shelters is fading as many fishermen have moved ashore, but you can still find plenty of boat-restaurants serving the local specialties, including the famous "typhoon shelter shrimp". This recipe can also be made with prawns (which is actually the version I prepared), crab or even mantis shrimp.
Ingredients
- 400 g shrimp (large, or even prawns)
- 30 cloves garlic (yes: 30, or more if you have the courage ^_^)
- 3 dried chillies
- 1 tbsp fermented black soybeans (DouChi *)
- 1 tbsp ginger (fresh)
- 2 spring onions
- 1 tbsp rice wine (Shaoxing)
- 0,5 tsp sugar
- 250 ml vegetable oil≈ 250 g
- salt
- white pepper
- 1 sprig coriander (fresh)
Method
- 1Cut the spring onions and the dried chillies into roughly 2 cm sticks. Soak the chillies in hot water to rehydrate. Set aside.
- 2Lightly crush the white part of the spring onions with the handle of the knife. Set aside, separate from the green part.
- 3Prepare the shrimp *: using sharp scissors, make an incision along the back of the shrimp, then with the tip of a small knife or a toothpick gently remove the dark vein. Snip off the legs, the sharp hard parts of the head and the antennae. Do not remove the shell, the rest of the head or the tail. Rinse, pat dry and set aside.
- 4Peel the garlic cloves and remove the germ. Use a food processor to mince finely (10 to 12 pulses). Set aside.
- 5Rinse the fermented soybeans in a bowl of water. Drain on kitchen paper. Mince finely. Set aside.
- 6Mince the ginger finely. Set aside.
- 7Heat the oil over medium heat. When the oil is hot, add the minced garlic and cook, stirring, until it turns lightly golden *. Strain. Set the oil aside on one side and the garlic on kitchen paper.
- 8Return the oil to medium heat. When the oil is hot, add the minced ginger and cook, stirring, until it turns lightly golden *. Strain. Set the oil aside on one side and the ginger on kitchen paper.
- 9Return the oil to medium-high heat this time. When the oil is hot (150 degrees), add the shrimp in batches and cook for 1 minute on each side. Strain. Set the flavoured oil aside on one side * and the shrimp on the other.
- 10Pour 3 tbsp of flavoured oil into a pan over medium heat. Add the chillies, the fermented soybeans and the white part of the spring onions. Cook, stirring, until fragrant (1 minute).
- 11Add the shrimp and the rice wine. Cook for 30 seconds. Season with salt and pepper, add the sugar. Stir.
- 12Add the crispy garlic and ginger along with the green part of the spring onions. Toss. Serve garnished with a little fresh coriander.
Notes
I personally use homemade pickled chillies, because I love them and have them on hand. In Hong Kong, cooks tend to use dried chillies (rehydrated or not). To rehydrate chillies, you can soak them in cold water overnight, in warm water for 30 minutes, or simply, as suggested in step 1, in hot water at the start of the preparation. You can also use fresh chillies in addition to, or instead of, dried ones. Here is my pickled chilli recipe: https://cuisinedepascal.com/2022/02/01/piment-marine-pao-la-jiao/ Fermented black soybeans come as small, salty, semi-dried black seeds. If needed, replace with a teaspoon of "black bean sauce", "sweet bean sauce" or even both. With this preparation and by frying the shrimp (and thus making them crispier), you'll have the option of eating them whole without having to peel them (if you like that, and if, unlike me, you haven't made the prawn version — their shells stay a bit tougher). Cooking the garlic is an important step: we want crispy garlic, but not bitter. Cooking will continue from the residual heat even after straining the oil. So the garlic must be removed before it has taken on too much colour (about 10 minutes) and before it starts to darken too much, or it will turn bitter. Constantly stirring the oil and monitoring the temperature also helps with even cooking. The same principle obviously applies to cooking the ginger. The oil flavoured with garlic, shrimp and ginger is to be kept preciously. Do not throw it away. It will be wonderful with ramen, noodle soups, fried rice and many other dishes. You may even end up cooking shrimp just to top up your oil stash (laughs). The two secrets of this recipe lie in the cooking of the garlic and ginger, which must be crispy but not burnt, and in the cooking of the shrimp, first fried for crispness then stir-fried with aromatics for flavour. Also be careful not to overcook the shrimp, so they don't turn rubbery. In Hong Kong, this dish is served with a mountain of crispy garlic that literally covers the shrimp.
