Seafood Treasure Pot 海鲜一品锅

This not to be confused with Pen Cai 盆菜 (Literal meaning "basin-vegetable") which has a lot more ingredients.

I'm experimenting with Chinese New Year and thought this would be a nice dish for the occassion.  Although there are some preparation work to be done, it's still relatively simple and easy to prepare this.

So, do you think this is good enough to serve on Chinese New Year Reunion Dinner?

Ingredients:

• 100g Broccoli, cut into florets
• 6 Fresh Shitake Mushroom, clean with damp cloth and stems removed
• 100g Fish Maw 鱼鳔, soak to soften
• 80g Bamboo Pith aka Bamboo Mushroom 竹笙, soak to soften
• 6 Large Prawns, shelled and deveined
• 4 Dried Large Scallops, soak for at least 30mins; retain water
• 4 Dried Oyster,, soak for 30 mins
• 10g Moss 发菜, soak to soften, drained and set aside
• 1 teaspoon Sugar
• Cornflour Mixture as Thickener
• a dash of Sesame Oil

Seasonings:

• 1 tablespoon Abalone Sauce
• 1 tablespoon Oyster Sauce
• 1 tablespoon Chinese Cooking Wine
• 600ml Water, including water used to soak Dried Scallops
• 1/3 teaspoon Sugar or to taste
• Salt to taste
• a few drops Dark Soy Sauce for colour

How to do it:

1. Clean prawn and add 1 teaspoon sugar.
2. Marinade and coat prawns well with sugar.
3. Refrigerate for 20 mins. Cover the prawns so it will not dry up.
4. Drain fish maw and bamboo pith from water.
5. Blanch for 1 min, drain and set aside.
6. Add fish maw, bamboo pith, dried scallop, dried oyster and mushroom into a pot.
7. Add seasonings except sugar, dark soy sauce and sesame oil.
8. Bring to as boil then reduce heat to a simmer for 30 mins.
9. Meanwhile, blanch Broccoli for 5 mins or till tender.
10. Drain and set aside.
11. Blanch prawn for 30 seconds or just cooked.
12. Drain and set aside.
13. Add the remaining seasonings to the simmering pot.
14. Add in dried moss, blanched broccoli and prawns.
15. Simmer for a min.
16. Gradually stir-in cornflour mixture to your desired consistency.
17. Serve immediately.

Note:

• You can replace prawns with fresh scallops if you like.
• When choosing fresh shitake mushrooms, look for those that dry and firm on touch.
• Add a bit more (hot) water if you find the sauce drying up during simmering.