Buddha Jumps Over the Wall The author writes quot This is perhaps the ultimate feast This great dish hails from Fuzhou in Fujian province nbsp It requires an enormous amount of effort is best made over a period of two days and can contain as many as thirty different ingredients quot Day 1 1 4 pound shark s fin 2 tablespoons white vinegar 1 cup stock 1 4 cup Shao-Hsing wine or dry sherry 2 ounces lard or peanut oil One 1 2-inch-thick slice fresh ginger lightly smashed 3 scallions white parts only 4 whole abalone 1 cup stock 2 tablespoons Shao-Hsing wine or dry sherry 4 dry scallops each 1 inch in diameter 2 tablespoons Shao-Hsing wine or dry sherry for scallops 12 quail eggs 3 small fresh bamboo shoots 1 1 2 pounds 1 quart cold water for bamboo shoots One 4-pound chicken 1 4 cup salt 1 1 2 pounds pork feet 3 halves each half cut into 4 pieces by butcher 2 pounds lamb filet 2 1 2 pounds pork fresh ham 1 pound Smithfield ham 2 quarts cold water for Smithfield ham 12 Chinese black mushrooms Day 2 2 1 2 pounds Chinese turnips peeeled both ends discarded cut into 4 pieces lengthwise then into 1-inch pieces 1 pound carrots 3 large peeled cut into 1-inch sections Four 3-inch-long cinnamon sticks 4 pieces eight-star anise 6 scallions trimmed and cut into thirds 5 cups Shao-Hsing wine or dry sherry 7 cups chicken stock 6 ounces rock sugar rock candy - you can substitute granulated sugar 1 2 cup plus 3 tablespoons double dark soy sauce regular dark soy sauce or mushroom soy sauce 1 cup chicken stock 4 bamboo leaves soaked in hot water for 20 minutes until softened and washed 1 large lotus leaf soaked in hot water for 20 minutes until softened washed and dried 3 1 2 cups peanut oil for deep-frying and stir-frying Directions Day 1 To prepare the shark s fin the night before soak the fins in a bowl of water with the white vinegar for a least 4 to 6 hours rinse and drain Place the soaked shark s fins in a steamproof dish with the stock wine lard ginger and scallions and steam for 30 minutes Turn off the heat discard the ginger and scallions strain off and discard the liquid and reserve overnight refrigerated To prepare the abalone the night before at the same time you soak the shark s fins wash the abalone place in a pot with 3 quarts water bring to a boil over medium heat lower the heat and simmer for 10 minutes Turn off the heat and allow to rest in the liquid in the pot overnight Place the abalone in a steamproof dish with the stock and wine and steam for 1 1 2 to 2 hours until softened Discard the liquid and reserve the abalone overnight refrigerated To prepare the scallops place the scallops and wine in a steamproof dish and steam for 20 minutes until softened Turn off the heat discard the liquid and reserve the scallops overnight refrigerated To prepare the quail eggs cook them in boiling water for about 7 minutes until hard boiled Remove from the pot and cool Shell and reserve overnight refrigerated Remove from the refrigerator and allow to come to room temperature on Day 2 To prepare the bamboo shoots remove all outer husks down to the tender cream-white core Place the whole shoots in a pot with the water cover and bring to a boil over high heat If very tender simmer for 7 minutes if a bit tough simmer for 20 minutes Turn off the heat run cold water into the pot and drain Allow to cool cut each shoot lengthwise into 4 pieces and reserve overnight refrigerated To prepare the chicken wash and remove the fat and membranes Rinse under cold running water and drain Sprinkle the outside with the salt and rub in well Rinse drain and dry Cut the chicken into 12 pieces and reserve overnight refrigerated To prepare the duck prepare precisely as the chicken in the preceeding step To prepare the pork feet cut up the pork feet if necessary and reserve overnight refrigerated To prepare the lamb and pork cut the lamb into 12 equal pieces and reserve refrigerated overnight Cut the pork into 12 equal pieces and reserve refrigerated overnight To prepare the Smithfield ham place the ham and water in a pot cover and bring to a boil over medium heat Lower the heat to medium and simmer for 30 minutes Turn off the heat allow to rest in the liquid and return to room temperature Remove discard the liquid cut into 12 equal pieces and reserve refrigerated overnight To prepare the mushrooms soak the mushrooms in hot water for 30 minutes until softened Wash drain remove the stems and reserve overnight refrigerated nbsp Day 2 Heat a wok over high heat for 1 minute Add the peanut oil and heat to 350 degrees F Place the turnips in a Chinese strainer and lower into the oil Blanch for 2 minutes remove drain over a bowl and reserve Bring the oil back to 350 degrees F blanch the carrots and bamboo shoots similarly for 3 minutes remove and drain and reserve Bring the oil again to 350 degrees F add the quail eggs to the wok and deep-fry for 2 minutes or until the eggs brown lightly Remove strain and reserve Remove all but 2 tablespoons of the oil from the wok and set aside Heat the wok over high heat for 20 seconds When a wisp of white smoke appears add 2 cinnamon sticks 2 pieces of star anise and half the scallions Stir-fry until the fragrance is released about 1 minute Add the reserved chicken and duck stir and cook for 5 minutes Turn off the heat remove the entire contents of the wok to a bowl and reserve Wash the wok and spatula Heat the wok over high heat for 1 minute Add the 3 tablespoons of the reserved peanut oil and coat the wok with it using a spatula When a wisp of white smoke appears add the remaining cinnamon anise and scallions and stir for 1 minute Add the pork feet lamb and pork and cook stirring for 5 minutes Turn off the heat Place the contents of the wok into a large pot Add the wine chicken stock and rock sugar and stir Cover and bring to a boil over medium heat Add 1 2 cup of the soy sauce and stir well Lower the heat and simmer for 30 minutes Raise the heat to high add the reserved chicken an duck and the contents of the bowl and simmer for 15 minutes Turn off the heat Allow all the contents of the pot to rest in the liquid for 10 minutes Empty the contents into a bowl including the cooking liquid discard the scallions and allow to cool sufficiently to handle While all the meats are cooking place the reserved blanched turnips carrots and bamboo shoots in a wok Add the stock Raise the heat to high mix well stirring and bring to a boil Add the remaining 3 tablespoons soy sauce and stir Lower the heat and simmer for 5 minutes Turn off the heat strain and reserve Reserve the liquid for another use Wrap the reserved shark s fin abalone scallops and Smithfield ham in cheesecloth Sew or tie to close For this final step a large pot about 3-gallon capacity should be used Pour 2 cups of reserved cooking liquid from the bowl into the pot Place a rack on the bottom and cover with bamboo leaves trimmed to fit the shape of the rack Begin layering ingredients Place the pork feet in a single layer on the bamboo leaf-lined rack Place a single layer of lamb atop the pork feet Place a single layer of chicken atop the lamb Place a single layer of duck atop the chicken Place a single layer of pork atop the duck Place the cheesecloth bundle atop the pork Ladle 1 quart of cooking liquid over the layers Place the mushrooms over the bundle Layer the turnips carrots and bamboo shoots over the mushrooms Pour the remaining liquid including the spices over the top Lay the lotus leaf over the top of the pot Place the pot cover on the leaf to seal the pot Over low heat allow the contents of the pot to simmer for 1 1 4 to 1 1 2 hours Turn off the heat and allow the pot to rest for 10 minutes Remove all the foods from the pot to a large heated serving platter Garnish the platter with the quail eggs Place the liquid now a rich broth in a heated tureen Remove the cheesecloth bundle to another heated plate discard the cheesecloth remove the contents slice the abalone thinly and arrange it with the other ingredients as an accompaniment Serve in the Chinese manner the meats and vegetables together with some of the broth poured over them the rest of the broth divided into bowls to drink Note This recipe is reprinted with permission from quot The Chinese Kitchen Recipes Techniques Ingredients History and Memories from America s Leading Authority on Chinese Cooking quot by Eileen Yin-Fei Lo reprinted courtesy of Morrow Publishing Want to know how Buddha Jumps Over the Wall came by its unusual name Find out the history behind this and other Chinese recipes with intriguing names here nbsp Printer friendly version of Buddha Jumps Over the Wall Return to Main Recipe Index