Chinese Sizzling Rice Soup

East Garden, Stockton Calif

3~4 Ounce baby shrimp

3~4 Ounce chicken breast (skinless and boneless) (cut into thin slices)

1 egg white, beaten

2 Tablespoon cornstarch

1 Cup peanut oil (for frying)

1 Quart of homemade chicken bone stock made with onions, carrots, celery, ginger, and scallions

1 Ounce sliced cremini mushrooms, sautéed

1 Tablespoon water sliced chestnuts

1 Tablespoon sliced red radishes

1/3 Cup fresh snow peas

½ Large carrot, sliced thinly on diagonal, blanched

1/2 Teaspoon salt

1 Tablespoon Shaohsing wine

1 Tablespoon Marin wine

2 Crispy oven-dried jasmine rice cakes¹, fried

Mix the shrimp, chicken, egg white, and cornstarch. Let rest 10 minutes.

Bring chicken stock to a low simmer. In a very hot wok, quickly stir fry shrimp and chicken for 2 minutes. Remove and drain on paper towels.

Preheat a cup of peanut oil to 375 F in a pot, in preparation for frying the rice cakes.

Quickly stir fry mushroom, water chestnuts, snow peas, peas, carrots, Marin, salt and Shaohsing wine. Add cooked vegetables and shrimp/chicken to stock, simmer on low. Correct seasonings.

Fry two oven-dried rice cakes quickly on both sides in very hot peanut oil. These will puff up and cook in 10 seconds a side. Drain on paper towels, then, in the company of your diners, add rice to soup while still piping hot and sizzling.  Garnish with a bit of soy, diagonally-sliced scallion greens or garlic chives and chopped cilantro. Serve immediately,

Notes:

Rice cakes can be made weeks in advance and store in plastic bags until needed, Make steamed rice as normal, except use less water. Store rice in an open tray for an hour in the refrigerator, then collect and store in a covered bowl overnight. Roll out some rice ¼ thick on parchment paper. Use a wet inverted rice bowl to stamp out “rounds”. Dry these on parchment paper on a cookie sheet for an hour at 300 F in a convection oven. They must be "bone dry" before go into plastic else the will mildew. If you don't think they are dry enough, reduce the heat to 170 F and leave in oven another 30 minutes. Let air dry for 20 minutes before bagging.