There used to be a restaurant in Golders Green which was called the Dimsun House, which served the most delicious Chinese food and strangely enough, it did not really tickle the taste buds of the dining public, including the gourmet amongst us. Thus, the restaurant closed after only a couple of years.
In those two years, we would normally go and dine on the most delicious menu almost once a week; sometimes twice.
Our special favourite was the lobsters or crab. We used to have a little corner in the restaurant where we would sit and giggle through trying to get every meat from the lobster or crab with some miniature paraphernalia the restaurant provided. Crab and lobster are divine to eat but would often challenge one’s dining etiquette. It is a deliciously messy experience!
We are really sad that the Dimsun House closed.
Below is a recipe for the lobster
Chinese Lobster with Ginger & Spring Onion/h2>
Ingredients:
1 lobster (700g)
groundnut or corn oil for deep-frying
+ 2 tbsp groundnut or corn oil
50g ginger, peeled, cut into thin slices
6 stalks of spring onions, cut into inches length. (Separate the white parts from the green bits)
1 1/2 tbsp Chinese rice wine or brandy (dry sherry will also be suitable)
1 cup chicken stock or 1 chicken bouillon cube like Oxo
1 tsp cornflour
4 tbsp water
1 tsp light soy sauce
1 1/2 tbsp oyster sauce
Method of Preparation:
First make a sauce by mixing the cornflour, with the 4 tablespoons of water, light soy sauce and oyster sauce. Give this a thorough stir to minimise any lumps. Set this sauce aside for the moment.
Wash and cut the lobster. You might need a fairly robust knife such as cleaver to chop the lobster into pieces. But first of, cut the lobster in half from the back to the tail. Remove the pouch of grit found on the head and also the dark gut running through the body. Crack the claws in various points to make getting into the meat easier.
Put separately the claws and head into one bowl and the body into another bowl. Using a paper kitchen towels, pat dry all the pieces, otherwise there will be mayhem in deep-frying them. 😉
Half fill a wok with groundnut or corn oil. Heat until it reaches 180 degrees centigrade. (temperature test: drop a cube of bread into the oil, if it browns in a minute the oil is ready) Carefully lower down the head and the claw pieces into the oil. Let these bathe into the oil for 30 seconds. Remove carefully using a slotted ladle.
Ensure that the oil is still at the same temperature of 180 degrees centigrade. This time lower down the body pieces and let these sizzle into the oil for 10 seconds. Take the body pieces out and
Empty the oil into a suitable heat-resistant container; the oil can still be used for other recipes.
Clean the wok and proceed with the rest of the recipe.
Heat the wok into a high heat until smoke rises.
Add 2 tbsp groundnut or corn oil.
Add the ginger and stir until it releases its aroma.
Add the white parts of the spring onions and stir.
Return all the lobster pieces into the wok and stir vigorously to ensure that the pieces are heated up thoroughly.
Splash in the wine or brandy and continue stirring.
Pour the chicken stock, cover and cook for 2 minutes.
Add the sauce that was set aside, stir. Add the green parts of the spring onions.
Stir and toss until the sauce had thicken.
Transfer the lot into a large serving plate and enjoy immediately.
As an option, have some pre-cooked noodles to serve as a bed for the cooked lobsters. Pour the sizzling lobster and its juices onto the cooked noodles. The juice would trickle into the noodles and it would be just fantastic. A complete meal.