Fujian Chicken Soup with Sea Clams
Along China's southeastern coast, Fujian's culinary masters have perfected the art of combining land and sea flavors, as exemplified in their signature chicken and sea clam soup.
What is Chicken Soup with Sea Clams?
Chicken Soup with Sea Clams is a classic seafood dish along the Fujian coast, celebrated for its pure, fresh taste.
The essence of this dish lies in blanching at a low temperature and enhancing the flavor with chicken soup, allowing the sea clams to retain their tender and smooth texture while acquiring the mellow and sweet aftertaste of the chicken soup.
The soup of the whole dish is clear and transparent. The taste is delicate and tender. It is full of umami when it enters the mouth, leaving people with a long aftertaste. It is one of the signature seafood dishes for Fujian people when entertaining guests and is also one of the representative Fujian dishes that best embodies the original flavor!
What are the requirements for the chicken soup?
Ingredient Selection
Chicken Breed: The top choice is an old hen over two years old. It has less fat and more umami. A small amount of lean pork can be added to enhance the richness. It is recommended to use 300 grams of chicken with 100 grams of lean pork.
Avoid Using: Stay away from frozen chickens or broilers, which are prone to fishy smell and make the soup cloudy. High - collagen parts such as chicken feet and chicken necks can affect the clarity of the soup.
Stewing Method
Double - boiling: After blanching the chicken, put it into a stewing pot with three times its volume of water. After the water in the outer steamer boils, turn to medium - low heat and simmer for 1-2 hours to ensure the soup is golden and clear.
Seasoning
Only add 2 slices of old ginger to remove fishy smell. Do not add salt or spices. Fish sauce is added at the end of step 3. If the chicken soup is fresh enough, fish sauce can be omitted.
Temperature Control
Before pouring the soup, the chicken soup needs to be kept boiling hot, above about 95°C. High temperature can stimulate the sweetness of the sea clam meat.
When reheating, do not let it boil. Heat it in a water bath until it is slightly boiling to avoid the loss of umami.
Alternative Solution
When there is no old hen, use chicken carcasses and stew them with 3 dried scallops and 5 grams of dried sole fish. The latter is used to enhance the seafood flavor, and the freshness is close to the traditional version.
How to Select Sea Clams?
When choosing live sea clams, first check the shell: those with tightly closed shells or shells that close immediately after a light tap are fresher. Avoid those with cracked or half - open shells.
The meat of fresh sea clams is shiny, translucent with a light pink tint. When gently touched, the tentacles will slightly contract. It should only have a faint smell of seawater, without any fishy or foul odor.
The "Xishi's Tongue" sea clams from Zhanggang, Fujian are the best. They have thin shells and plump meat. If they are not available, large-sized hard clams or cyclina sinensis can be used as alternatives, although the meat quality is slightly inferior.
Be careful to avoid "water - injected clams", which have water injected into the shells to increase their weight. When selecting, gently shake the clams and listen for the sound of water.
After buying, temporarily raise them in a 3% saltwater solution for 2 hours. Add a few drops of oil to prompt them to expel sand. Before cooking, carefully clean the shell crevices with a hard brush.
INGREDIENTS
Main Ingredients
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·400g sea clams (2 pieces)
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·800ml chicken broth
Seasonings
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·10ml fish sauce
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·30ml cooking wine (for marinating)
COOKING STEP
Step 1
Scrub the outer shells of the sea clams clean. Prise open the shells and remove the clam meat, keeping only parts like the clam tips, clam tendons, clam skirts and clam needles.
Step 2
Add 30ml of cooking wine, mix well and marinate for 30 minutes.
Step 3
For the pre - stewed chicken soup, do not over - season it. Just add 10ml of fish sauce to retain the original umami of the chicken.
Step 4
Bring a separate pot of water to 85°C (slightly simmering), put the marinated clam meat in and blanch for 6 seconds. Quickly remove and drain for later use.
Step 5
Pour the boiling chicken soup over the blanched clam meat. The flavor at this moment is the best.
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Secrets to Success
Exquisite and Fresh Ingredients
It is essential to use live sea clams. The meat of dead clams is soft and has a fishy smell. When processing, remove all the tendons and membranes thoroughly, otherwise, it will affect the taste.
Temperature and Timing
The blanching water temperature must be strictly controlled at 85°C (it is most accurate when small bubbles like crab eyes are forming at the bottom of the pot). After putting the clam meat into the water, count to six seconds and immediately remove it. This timing is crucial.
Chicken Soup Base
Stew an old hen and lean pork in a double - boiler for 4 hours. Strain off all the fat and impurities so that the soup is as clear as amber. Fish sauce is only used for enhancing umami. Avoid adding salt or monosodium glutamate as they will destroy the flavor balance.
Heat Collision
The blanched clam meat should be placed in a bowl while it's still hot. Pour the boiling chicken soup over it from a high position. The high temperature instantly causes the clam meat to contract, locking the fresh juice in the fibers and doubling the sweetness of the soup.
Key to the Dining Sequence
It is best to finish eating within 3 minutes after it is served. First, taste a spoonful of the pure soup, then pick up a piece of clam meat and dip it in shrimp oil (a Fuzhou tradition), and finally, put the soup and the meat into your mouth together to experience the progressive layers of umami.
Alternative Options
If there are no live sea clams available, the frozen neck meat of geoduck can be used as a substitute. However, it needs to be sliced thinly after thawing, and the blanching time should be reduced to 4 seconds. The freshness of the chicken soup can be improved by adding two dried scallops.
Consumption Suggestions
Optimal Tasting Moment
Within 10 seconds after blanching the clam meat, it should be poured over with boiling chicken soup, and it is recommended to finish eating within 3 minutes after being served. The umami stimulated by high temperature will volatilize as the temperature drops, and the sweetness and freshness will be halved when it gets cold.
Recommended Combinations
Staple Food: Fuzhou thread noodles (as thin as hair). Pick a small handful and soak them in the soup to soak up all the fresh broth.
Side Dishes: Cold - dressed jellyfish heads or blanched okra. They are fresh and won't overpower the main taste.
Dipping Sauce: Traditionally served with a shrimp oil dipping sauce, or squeeze a little lime juice to brighten the flavor.
Advanced Ways of Eating
First, drink a spoonful of the clear soup to warm your stomach. Then, pick up the clam meat and dip it in the sauce. Finally, stir the remaining soup base into half a bowl of rice, sprinkle with some scallions. The umami will be astonishing.
Avoidance Guide
Avoid adding strong - flavored seasonings such as pepper and coriander.
Don't soak the clam meat in the soup for too long, or the texture will become tough.
The leftover soup base from the previous night is prone to getting fishy. It is recommended to finish it in the same meal.
FAQs:
If you need to prepare in advance, it is recommended to store the components separately. The chicken soup can be stewed in advance and refrigerated. After cleaning the clam meat, seal it and refrigerate it, but do not keep it for more than 6 hours.
If it is blanched for more than 8 seconds, the meat will start to tighten and become rubbery, and the umami will also leak into the soup.
If you are worried about the raw or fishy taste, you can soak the clam meat in ice water for 10 minutes in advance. This can remove impurities and improve the crispness.
Commercially available stocks (such as pork bone soup) will actually overpower the sweetness of the sea clams. If you really don't have chicken soup...
The key is that the soup base should be freshly cooked and poured immediately. Do not use leftover soup from the previous day!
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