Braised Sea Cucumber in Abalone Sauce
A classic Cantonese delicacy featuring premium sea cucumber soaked in rich abalone sauce, offering a tender yet chewy texture and luxurious flavor.
Ingredients
10 items- Rehydrated sea cucumber 4 pieces
- Abalone sauce 200 ml
- Ginger 3 slices
- Scallion 2 stalks
- Cooking wine 1 tbsp
- Oyster sauce 1 tbsp
- Rock sugar 10 g
- Dark soy sauce 1 tsp
- Water starch 2 tsp cornstarch + 2 tbsp water
- Broccoli to taste
Nutrition
Steps （6 steps）
Clean the rehydrated sea cucumbers, score the inner belly in a crosshatch pattern (about 0.5 cm apart) to help absorb flavor. Slice ginger, cut scallions, and blanch broccoli for garnish.
Bring water to a boil, add ginger slices, scallion sections, and 1 tbsp cooking wine. Blanch sea cucumbers for 2 minutes until they slightly curl and the fishy smell disappears, then drain.
In another pot, heat a little oil and sauté ginger and scallion over low heat. Add abalone sauce, oyster sauce, rock sugar, dark soy sauce, and 100 ml broth or water. Bring to a boil, then simmer 5 minutes to blend flavors.
Place sea cucumbers into the sauce, cover, and simmer over low heat for 15 minutes, turning once halfway, until tender and easily pierced with a chopstick.
Carefully remove sea cucumbers and arrange on a plate. Bring the remaining sauce to a boil, drizzle in water starch while stirring until the sauce thickens and coats the back of a spoon.
Pour the thickened sauce evenly over the sea cucumbers, arrange blanched broccoli around them, and serve hot.
Tips
Sea cucumbers should be soaked in cold water for 2-3 days, changing water daily, until no hard core remains. Homemade abalone sauce using chicken broth and dried abalone gives the best flavor. Add water starch gradually for a shiny, lightly thickened sauce.
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