Cuttlefish soup with pork dumplings

Loaded with vegetables, this soup is light yet savoury and a welcome respite from a spread of heavy festive dishes.

Serves 4 Prep time 15 minutes + 2 hours marinating time
Cook time 20 minutes

cuttlefish paste mix
100g pork loin
1 tbsp good quality soya sauce
1 tsp corn flour
1 tbsp peanut oil

pinch salt and pepper
350g fresh cuttlefish paste (if unavailable, substitute with fish paste)

soup base seasoning
2 tsp shallot oil
1 tsp sesame oil
2 sprigs spring onion stalk
4 cloves garlic
5 whole dried mushrooms, shredded
35g cuttlefish strips
40g fresh black fungus
40g carrot strips
40g white radish strips
10g coriander root
500ml chicken stock
1 tbsp soya sauce
1 tbsp black vinegar
1 tsp sugar
2 whole eggs, beaten
4 tbsp cornstarch, for thickening soup
3 tbsp water, to mix with corn starch dash salt and pepper

garnish
35g coriander leaf
dash shallot oil

• Slice pork loin into 5cm long, 1cm thick strips. Massage pork loin by pounding with blunt side of knife, to soften the tendon. Marinate the pork loin strips with soya sauce, salt, pepper and corn flour for 2 hours.
• Using wet hands, coat the pork strips with cuttlefish paste. Wash your hands at every interval to prevent paste from sticking to your fingers. Boil a pot of water and blanch the cuttlefish paste with pork strips. The meat is cooked when it floats upwards. Set aside.
• Heat up a pot with peanut oil, fry the spring onions and garlic till fragrant.
• Add in the mushrooms, cuttlefish, black fungus, white radish, carrots and coriander root to fry.
• Finally, add in chicken stock, soya sauce, shallot oil, sesame oil, vinegar and sugar. Bring to a boil.
• Season the soup stock to taste with salt and pepper, then stir in the beaten eggs.
• Thicken soup with cornstarch (mix cornstarch with water), then add in cuttlefish meat dumplings.

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