Poon Choy盆菜

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Poon Choi aka Pen Cai (盆菜) is an Auspicious one-pot dish served in a very big pot during festive peiods, especially Chinese New Year.

Poon Choi is usually crowded with overflowing of ingredients to signify abundance of wealth and prospertity. The choice of ingredients to be added is endless. Usually includes  Roast meat, dried mushroom, prawns, abalone, fish maw, broccoli, yam, etc…

Poon Choi is widely available in most Chinese restaurants to signify prosperity. We all know the dish can get very expensive, so why not make it yourself this year with this lavish Poon Choi recipe?

I made this Poon Choi to celebrate "Chap Goh Meh元宵节". Simple yet very festive dishes.

With this Poon Choi recipe, you can play around with the ingredients and come up with your desired pot of abundance and prosperity! Have fun making, and  🏮 "Happy Chap Goh Meh!" 🏮












Abundance & Prosperity Poon Choi (盆菜)

Ingredients:
Some Dried Fish Maw (Soaked and Soften)
5-6  Dried Mushroom (Soaked and Soften - reserve soaking liquid)
Sea Cucumber (Pre-soaked and soften if using dried ones)
8 pcs Prawns
10 pcs Fresh Scallop
Roast Meat (Roast pork, Duck, Chicken or mixture)
1 can Abalone
Broccoli 
Carrot (Peeled & Sliced)
Napa Cabbage (Cut into Chunks)
White Radish (Cut into Chunks)
Fried Yam (if using)

The Broth:
1 Tbsp  Oil
1 Tbsp Chopped Garlic
2 litres of water (including reserved mushroom soaking liquid and blanching vegetables water)
3 tbsps  Oyster Sauce
1 tbsp stock of scallop extract
1 tsp  Dark Soy Sauce
1 tsp  Sugar
A dash of whie pepper

Finishing and Thickening of Broth:
3 tbsps  Hua Tiao Jiu
2 tbsps  Corn Flour
4 tbsps  Water

Preparation:
  1. Soak and prepare all ingredients in advance and base on the time required.

Blanching:
  1. Boil the water, add in few slices of ginger, scallion stalks(white part), a bit of oil and salt.
  2. Cook and blanch the radish, carrot, cabbage, broccoli, mushroom, fish maw, scallops, prawns and sea cucumber. Remove from the pot when done and set aside for layering later. 
  3. Keep the water after blanching.

Priparing the bloth:
  1. Heat the oil over medium heat
  2. Add chopped garlic and saute until fragrance
  3. Add in the water( from used for blanching ).
  4. Bring it to boil over medium high heat then lower the fire to simmer for 15 mins.

Layering the Auspicious Pot:
  1. Start with cabbage, radish, carrot and fried yam.
  2. Then start arranging the rest of the ingredients in section or based on your creativity.

Finishing and Thickening of Broth:
  1. Bring the broth back to boil.
  2. Add Hua Tiao Wine and allow it to boil for a min.
  3. Mix the corn flour and water in a small bowl. Slowly pour in the corn flour mixture into the boiling broth and stir while adding.
  4. Ladle the broth over the pot of layered ingredients
  5. Bring the whole pot of poon choi back to the stove and bring it to boil or just serve over induction hotplate.

Notes:
1.Soaking time of ingredients very much depends on the type and quality you purchased. Please check with seller or instruction on packaging. Prepare all in advance.

2. Amount and choice of ingredients can be change according to your preference. Other optional ingredients which you can add to poon choi: Dried Scallop, Pork Knuckles, etc...

Happy Making!

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