velveting | Bewitching Kitchen

Oriental-style stir fries are often part of our rotation meals for dinner. Usually chicken or shrimp as the main protein. Shrimp cooks super fast, I usually brine it and incorporate it into the wok, and that does prevent it from getting tough and dry. But if you want the most perfect and succulent texture, look no further: go for the traditional Chinese method of velveting. It can be done in oil or water, I always opt for the latter. Once you have velveted shrimp, it can sit at room temperature for an hour without problems. Just use it in any recipe and be ready to fall in love…

SHRIMP STIR-FRY WITH BROCCOLI AND CASHEWS
(from The Bewitching Kitchen)

for velveting the shrimp:
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons sherry
1 large egg white, whisked briefly
1 + 1/2 Tablespoon cornstarch
1 Tablespoon olive oil

1 pound large shrimp, peeled and de-veined
1 medium head of broccoli florets
1/2 yellow bell pepper, sliced thin
2 stalks celery, cut in 1/4 inch slices
Cashews, lightly toasted
peanut oil, about 3 tablespoons
1 Tablespoon toasted sesame oil
salt and black pepper to taste

finishing sauce:
1/4 cup water
1/4 cup soy sauce or tamari
2 tablespoons rice vinegar
1 tablespoon honey
1 teaspoon Sriracha sauce (or more to taste)
1/2 teaspoon sesame oil
1/2 teaspoon minced ginger
2 teaspoons arrowroot powder

Place the shrimp in a bowl. Sprinkle the salt and sherry, gently mix. Add the egg white, cornstarch and olive oil, stir well but gently. Place in the fridge for 30 minutes.

Bring a pot with water to a gentle boil, add a smidgen of olive oil and then place the shrimp straight from the fridge in the water. Stir gently so they do not stick to each other. Simmer for a couple of minutes and immediately drain in a colander. Rinse very briefly with cold water to stop the cooking, and reserve until time to finish the recipe. You can do this step one hour in advance.

Mix all ingredients for the finishing sauce and reserve. Place the broccoli and a sprinkle of water in a microwave safe bowl, season gently with salt. Microwave for 2 minutes, drain, and reserve.

Heat the peanut oil in a wok, when smoking hot add the celery and yellow bell pepper. Season lightly with salt and pepper. When very fragrant and the veggies are soft, add the broccoli and stir-fry for 2 minutes. Add the velveted shrimp, cook gently for another minute or so. Whisk the prepared finishing sauce and pour into the wok, bring to a boil. Cook until thickened and well combined with the ingredients. Sprinkle toasted cashews on top and serve, adjusting seasoning if so desired.

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

Comments: If you love stir-fries, I urge you to incorporate the velveting step to make your recipe even more special. Phil tasted it and immediately said “You nailed this one!” Indeed, you cannot beat the texture of these babies. You can use any recipe you like, and also do the exact same process (minus the cornstarch) to velvet chicken. I never use oil because I refuse to have to deal with a large amount of leftover oil, particularly if used for seafood. But your kitchen, your rules. I don’t think the oil method will produce a better outcome anyway. We enjoyed it with some brown rice and ate like Royals of The Ming Dynasty! Or so it seemed to us…

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My wok is 18 years old, it was one of the first gifts I received when I moved from France to the US, back in 1995. Thank you, dear friend, you know who you are… 😉 I used it a lot in Oklahoma, even though our stove was not powerful enough to bring the best in stir-frying. The wok patiently waited for me inside a box when we traveled for two sabbaticals, and into the box it went again when we moved to the Little Apple and co-existed with an electric stove that even Benjamin Franklin would consider sub-par. Once Supernova was installed, I went to the basement to retrieve my old friend, apologized for the neglect inflicted upon him, and said his loyalty would be compensated: he would meet a superstar and they would live happily ever after… Happy to report that it was love at first flame!

HOISIN CHICKEN WITH CASHEWS
(inspired by Fine Cooking magazine & Barbara Tropp)

2 Tbs peanut oil
1 medium shallot, sliced
2 Piquillo peppers, sliced
1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into 3/4-inch chunks and velveted
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
6 oz. snow peas, trimmed
Crushed red chile flakes
2 tsp. minced fresh ginger
1/3 cup hoisin sauce diluted with 2 Tbs water
1/3 cup roasted cashews

The day before or a few hours before your meal, velvet the chicken using this method. Heat 1 Tbs. of the oil in a wok over medium-high heat. Add the shallot slices and cook for 2 to 3 min. Add the Piquillo peppers (I buy them jarred) and cook until both the pepper and onion are browned around the edges. Remove the vegetables from the skillet; set aside. Pour the remaining 1 Tbs. oil in the skillet. Sprinkle the chicken with salt and pepper, add it to the oil, and cook, stirring frequently, so that all sides brown, 2 to 3 min. Stir in the snow peas and sprinkle in some red chile flakes. Add the ginger. Reduce the heat to medium low and stir in the thinned hoisin sauce. Simmer for 1 min. to wilt the snow peas and finish cooking the chicken. Sprinkle with the cashews and serve over rice.

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

Comments: Velveting the chicken makes this type of stir-fry so much better that it’s worth investing the small amount of work to do it. Since the chicken can stay in the egg white mixture for up to 24 hours, you could conceivably do it the evening before you intend to make it for dinner. I prefer to do this preparation either when I wake up, or if time allows, at lunch time. Piquillo peppers are from Spain, so their use in this dish qualifies as “fusion-cooking”. In reality, I had an open jar in my fridge and wanted to use it up. So there. 😉

What I love the most about this recipe is the simplicity of the finishing sauce, a mixture of hoisin and water, no cornstarch to deal with. The snow peas barely got in touch with any heat, so they stayed bright green and with a little crunch that was perfect to add that extra something to the dish. A real keeper for a weeknight, there were only three little pieces of chicken left, which made for a super light lunch next day. But, at least I did not have to share…