Kai lan with stewed mushroom and mini abalone and a conversation with a lonely old lady - Featured in Group Recipes

My Mum and I go to the market together every morning and then after marketing, we will go have our breakfast. A few mornings ago, we went to buy Hong Kong kai lan and some other vegetables. After we finished marketing, we went to our usual hawker center in the market for curry noodles. There, we met this old lady, probably in her eighties, eating her breakfast alone, the fragrant bowl of curry noodles in front of her. I noticed that she was watching me and Mum chatting while we were waiting for our order. Looking at Mum she asked, “Is this your daughter?” My mum answered “Yes, she is my daughter”. The old lady continued to ask, “How many children have you?”. Mum said, “She is my only child and I have a step son.” The old lady, with tears welling up in her eyes, answered “How lucky you are. I have nine children and none of them is with me. I am living alone and they only send me money and come see me once a year.” I could not believe what I heard! This is so sad. It breaks my heart to hear that. This is what is happening to a lot of old folks nowadays. Their children are too busy with their lives and have no time for them. Money is not what our old folks want from us, all they ask is for us to spend a little time with them and let them know we are okay. I can hardly imagine not sharing a meal with my mother. She is the inspiration for this blog, and has been a "foodie" as long as I can remember. I can still recall how, at a very young age, I would accompany her to market and subsequently watch the transformation of fresh ingredients into something irresistable. I can not know all of this lady's, or her chidren's circumstances. However, if what she told us was true, then I know that there are several people who are cheating themselves out of some of the fondest memories a person can have.

Perhaps you might want to try this recipe and prepare a simple meal for your old folks today? I know this will bring them much joy!

Ingredient:

250gm Hong Kong kai lan

1 can 140 gm canned mini abalone (optional)

6 big shitake mushroom

1 ½ tbsp vegetable oil

3 bibs garlic, sliced

2 tbsp oysters sauce

1 tsp dark black sauce

1 tsp light soya sauce (optional)

½ tsp sugar

¾ tsp ground white pepper

1 tsp corn starch

1 tsp water

1 tsp salt

water to boil kai lan

Method:

Wash and soak mushroom in a bowl of warm water for 30 mins. Squeeze dry the mushroom and set aside. Retain the mushroom water. Add salt and ½ ts of vegetable oil in a pot of water and bring it to boil. Add kai lan and cook till the color is dark green. Remove from pot, drain and set aside. Heat 1 tb oil in the wok and sauté the garlic till fragrant. Add mushroom, abalone, oysters sauce, dark black sauce, light soya sauce and sugar and stir fry till mushroom and abalone are well mix with the sauce. Add the mushroom water and turn heat to low and it stew till both mushroom and abalone are soft. Mix in ground white pepper. Dissolve the corn starch in 1 ts water and add into the gravy to thicken it. Lay the kai lan on the serving plate and pour stew over the vegetable and serve.

Stir fry abalone mushroom with ginkgo nuts and wolfberries - featured in Group Recipes

When my mum cooks this dish, I cannot help but eat 2 bowls of rice. I love the combination of flavors and ingredients. Abalone mushroom has little flavor or aroma when they are not cooked. However, when they are cooked with ginkgo nuts and wolfberries, they develop an ‘umami’ of flavors no one can resisit. I love abalone and this mushroom has a texture similar to it. Definitely this is more affordable than abalone and I don't need to think twice or count my pennies when I crave for it.

Ingredients:

350gm abalone mushrooms

100 gm ginkgo nuts (remove shell and skin)

20 gm wolfberries

1 tb vegetable oil

2 tb oysters sauce

2 tb Chinese wine (hua tiao)

1 ts sugar

1 cube bullion chicken stock

½ cup water

½ ts ground white pepper

Method:

Dissolve a cube of bullion chicken stock in ½ cup warm water and set aside. Wash wolfberries and set aside. Soak gingko nuts for 1 hour. Cooks gingko nuts in boiling water till it is soft, drain and set aside. Blanch ablaone mushroom briefly, drain and set aside. Heat oil in wok, saute gingko nuts, add oysters sauce, sugar, chicken stock, and abalone mushrooms. Simmer for 1 min and add wolfberries and simmer for another min. Add Chinese wine and simmer for 30 secs and transfer all to a serving plate.