Get Lucky: Making Hoe See Fat Choy (Dried Oysters and Black Moss)

Hoe See Fat Choy

In my last post, I made dried oysters. Let's put them to good use and make us a little luck.  We're going to make Hoe See Fat Choy to celebrate the Chinese New Year, which starts Fri., Jan. 31.

Ingredients for Hoe See Fat Choy:
dried oysters, dried black mushrooms, black moss,
stock, oyster sauce, sugar, sesame oil, cornstarch

Here's what you'll need:
12 dried oysters
8 dried black mushrooms
small handful of black moss (fat choi)
1/2 c. superior (or chicken) stock
2T oyster sauce
1t sugar
1t sesame oil
1t cornstarch mixed in 1T water

While I was shopping for the ingredients, I ran into a bit of a speed bump. The recipe calls for black moss (the "fat choi" of Fat Choy). The problem is that Fat Choy grows naturally in Mongolia, and like so many other ingredients, over harvesting has had some serious environmental impacts. So, the Chinese government has limited its harvesting. I had to order the Fat Choy from my Asian Grocer, who gave me hairy dried seaweed. Not quite the same thing, but I'm going with it.

Step 1

Reconstitute the dried oysters, dried mushrooms and black moss in a small dish of cold water. Let sit for about an hour.

Reconstitute the dried oysters, dried moss and dried mushrooms.

Step 2

Rinse the moss and oysters to remove sand or grit. Drain the mushrooms, reserving the liquid.

Step 3

Briefly stir fry the soaked oysters.  Add the mushrooms, chicken stock, oyster sauce, sugar, mushroom soaking water and black moss. Simmer until the mushrooms are soft. Add in the cornstarch water and sesame oil, stir until slick.

Briefly stirfry all of the ingredients together.

Step 4

Plate the dish making sure each bite includes the black moss, mushrooms and one oyster. I used HEART OYSTER individual spoons from our own Harbor Island Oyster Co.

And the final bite? I gotta be honest. I was surprised. It was really good!

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Good luck getting lucky. And if the Hoe See Fat Choi doesn't work, maybe a fun new oyster present will. Buy any new oyster knife from Harbor Island Oyster Co., and get a super cute oyster pendant for free. Offer good through Valentine's Day (Feb. 14, 2014). One free oyster pendant per customer.

How to Dry Oysters

Friday, Jan. 31 marks the first day of the Chinese New Year celebration and we're shaking things up a bit this week.  We're drying our own oysters and learning to make Hoe See Fat Choy - [Hoe See (oysters) + Fat Choy (hair seaweed) sounds like good business and wealth.] You'll need a couple of days to dry your oysters, so today's post will show you how to make the dried oysters. Friday, we'll learn to make the traditional Cantonese new year's dish.  

Step 1

Start with fresh oysters.  I used Topsail Sound oysters caught fresh the previous day. You could probably use already shucked oysters, but I like to start with the freshest oysters I can find. Plump, juicy oysters work best.

Step 2

Shuck the oysters.  I shucked eight oysters.

Step 3

Let the oysters drain for a minute. Do not rinse the oysters.

Step 4

Place a cooling rack on top of a baking sheet. The rack will allow air to circulate and the tray will catch the liquid as it dries.

Step 5

Place the shucked oysters on the cooling rack/tray.

Step 6

Place the oysters by a sunny window

Step 7

Leave the oysters by the window for 1-3 days.  I think they were ready after just one day, but I left them for two days. Depending on the time of year and how much sun you get, you may have to adjust the time.  (Optional: You may want to spray the cooling rack with non-stick spray. The oysters were a little difficult to pry off.)

Dried Topsail Sound Oysters after Two Days in the Sun

RESULTS

I gotta be honest. The whole experiment was, and is, gross. Leaving oysters out in the open left me a little skittish. My family did not appreciate the "boogers" left out in the middle of the kitchen and the dried product at the end looks downright nasty. But when I decided to write this post, I decided I was going to go for it. I actually ate one of the oysters today. How did it taste? Really salty. Texture, um, chewy?

Perhaps the dried oysters will be better in a dish. Friday, we'll learn how to make Hoe See Fat Choy.

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It's the year of the horse. Are you a Horse?  

Year of the Horse:

Feb. 11, 1918 - Jan. 31, 1919

Jan. 30, 1930 - Feb. 16, 1931

Feb. 15, 1942 - Feb. 4, 1943

Feb. 3, 1954 - Jan. 23, 1955

Jan. 21, 1966 - Feb. 8, 1967

Feb. 7, 1978 - Jan. 27, 1979

Jan. 27, 1990 - Feb. 14, 1991

Feb. 12, 2002 - Jan. 31, 2003

Jan. 31, 2014 - Feb. 18, 2015

People born in the year of the horse are clever and great communicators. They are also impatient and don't like to follow the rules.

Chinese New Year: Eat Your Luck

Happy Chinese New Year!  Are you a snake?

Snake birthdates:

• Feb. 10 1929 - Jan. 29, 1930
• Jan. 27, 1941 - Feb. 14 1942
• Feb. 14, 1953 - Feb. 2, 1954
• Feb. 2, 1965 - Jan. 20, 1966
• Feb. 18, 1977 - Feb. 6, 1978
• Feb. 6, 1989 - Jan. 26, 1990
• Jan. 23, 2001 - Feb. 11, 2002
• Feb. 10, 2013 - Jan. 30, 2014

People born in the year of the snake are known to be thoughtful and wise, clever and cunning, logical, proud, and can be lucky with finances.  They tend to be scientists, spiritual leaders, investigators, and ... magicians!?

What does this have to do with oysters?  It just so happens that dried oysters are lucky ... and luck is what the Chinese New Year is all about.  During the Chinese New Year, markets stock up on dried oysters to use in traditional new year's dishes.

Dried oysters in the Sheung Wan market in Hong Kong.
Picture courtesy of CNN Travel

First things first.  How do you dry an oyster?
My kids' Japanese origami teacher told me to place freshly shucked oysters on a cookie sheet. Sprinkle both sides with a lot of pickling salt and place the oysters in a bright, sunny window for about three days.  Make sure to flip the oysters at least once a day.  After they dry, store oysters in a plastic container and keep in a cool, dry place for up to six months.  (Disclaimer: I have no idea if this actually works.  It may result in severe stomach reactions ... or worse.  I will try this - as soon as I figure out how to keep my cat away - and post the results.)  

Hoe See Fat Choy or Ho Si Fat Choi (Dried Oysters with Hair Seaweed)
Lucky food makes a very lucky dish.  Ho Si Fat Choi is a popular Chinese New Year dish made with dried oysters and black moss.  It's kind of like eating black-eyed peas and collard greens on New Year's Day.  My new friend ATBOTH (http://atthebackofthehill.blogspot.com) gave me his blessing to use his recipe for restaurant-style Ho Si Fat Choi.  I adapted it a little.

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HOE SEE FAT CHOY 
12 dried oysters
8 black mushrooms
small handful of black moss (fat choi)
1/2 c. superior stock
2 T oyster sauce
1 t sugar
1 t sesame oil
1 t cornstarch mixed in 1 T water

Soak the black moss, dried oysters and mushrooms separately for one hour in water.  Rinse the black moss and the oysters to remove sand or grit.  Drain the mushrooms, reserving the liquid.  Briefly stirfry the soaked oysters, add the mushrooms, chicken stock, oyster sauce, sugar, mushroom soaking water and black moss.  Simmer until the mushrooms are soft.  Add in the cornstarch water and sesame oil, stir until slick.  Garnish with cilantro or spring onion.

ATBOTH also posted a similar recipe that involves pigs feet.  Yum!?

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Wishing your family a very Happy Chinese New Year.  May it be filled with happiness, good fortune, lots of luck ... and plenty of oysters.