Cantonese White Boiled Shrimp Recipe (Bak Cheok Har)
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Souped Up Recipes
White boiled is a popular cooking method in which shrimp is prepared by flash-blanching in boiling water and served with an aromatic soy dipping sauce. It is the best way to enjoy the fresh sweet taste and the perfect tender texture of the shrimp. The best of all, this dish is so easy that even if you are a beginner, you can get in and out of the kitchen in no time.
Ingredients
For poaching the shrimp
- 454g / 1 pound fresh head-on and shell-on shrimp
- 3 liters / 12.5 cups water
- 45g / about 3 scallions, crushed
- 15g / about 5 slices ginger
- 6g / about 4 square inches lemon peel
- 56g / ¼ cup Chinese cooking wine, optional
For making the dipping sauce
- 9g / 1 Tbsp minced garlic
- 4.5g / ½ Tbsp minced ginger
- 6g / about 3 Thai bird’s eye chilies, diced (see page 23)
- 3g / 1 Tbsp diced cilantro
- 20g / 1.5 Tbsps hot vegetable oil
- 42g / 2.5 Tbsps soy sauce
- 2.1g / ½ tsp sugar
Directions
Fill a big pot with water; add the ginger slices, scallions, and lemon peel, and then turn the heat to high. It will take about 10 minutes to come to a boil.
- While waiting, devein the shrimp by sticking a toothpick into the neck underneath the vein and then pulling it out. Once done, rinse the shrimp and drain thoroughly.
- Add the shrimp and Chinese cooking wine to the boiling water and cook for 1 minute. Then turn off the heat and put on the lid. Let the shrimp poach in hot water for 2-3 more minutes, depending on the size. If using peeled shrimp, poach for 1-2 minutes.
- Remove the shrimp from the pot and drain thoroughly. Optionally, trim off the messy shrimp legs and the sharp rostrum using a pair of kitchen sears. You can serve this dish hot or cold, depending on the season. If serving it cold, cool the shrimp in an ice bath for a few minutes.
- To make the dipping sauce, add the minced garlic, ginger, cilantro, and optionally diced Thai bird’s eye chilies into a heat-proof bowl.
- Heat the vegetable oil in a small saucepan until smoking hot and pour it onto the aromatics to activate the fragrance. Add the soy sauce and sugar. Stir thoroughly.
- Serve the shrimp with the dipping sauce. If you're using shell-on shrimp, you or your guests will need to peel them by hand, which can be messy. In Canton, it is customary to provide hot, wet towels alongside this dish.
