Lobster fried with Soya Bean And Green Pepper

Preamble

"Hong Kong was the last stop-over for the group I conducted on my recent 'cook's tour' around the world and it was here that we were given a demonstration of typically Cantonese food.

Famous chef Leunz Sze, of the Mandarin Hotel, took time off to show us some interesting dishes, which included minced pigeon with lettuce, grill supreme lemon chicken and lobster with soya bean and green pepper.

Of the three, I am giving you only the lobster, which I have since cooked on my own stove.

The other two I will pass on at some future date when I've been able to find a substitute for pigeon and have further experimented with the grill supreme lemon chicken to adapt it for our use.

We cannot use native pigeon, which is protected in Victoria.

All the ingredients for the lobster with soya bean and green pepper are available at Chinese food stores.

Chinese wine, unlike our local wine, is based on rice and has a high alcoholic content. As this is rather expensive, a Chinese friend suggested that sherry, brandy or whiskey could be used with success.

Sweet and sour, although probably considered authentic Chinese, really orignated in the Chinatown area of America. Chop suey and dim sims are typical of the recipes devised to appeal to the American palate.

However, both recipes given today - sweet and sour veal and mandarin chicken - have the oriental influence but as in America, they have been adapted for us.

Just a tip - do remember to cook, dry and chill the rice the previous day before preparing the fried rice to be served with the sweet and sour veal."

Ingredients
1 large Lobster cooked
Plain Flour
Pepper
6 oz Green Pepper
Peanut Oil for deep frying
2 oz Black Soya Bean
2 oz Garlic
1 teaspoon Sugar
2 tablespoons Chinese Wine or Sherry Brandy or Whiskey
Pinch Monosodium Glutamate
1/2 teaspoon Black Pepper
1 teaspoons Cornflour

Method

Remove the head and tail from the lobster - put aside for garnishing. Chop the lobster meat into 1 1/2 inch pieces and roll in the flour and pepper.

Deep fry the lobster pieces with the slices of green pepper for a few minutes and drain off the oil.

Heat two tablespoons of oil in a frying pan, add the crushed soya bean, garlic, green pepper and lobster pieces in the pan and saute for two minutes. Then add the sugar, Chinese wine, monosodium glutamate, and thickening, made of cornflour blended with a little stock before adding.

Serve garnished with the lobster head and tail.