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Garlic soy

Garlic soy

蒜蓉豉油
TossedSauces and jarsWeekendFor guestsReunion dinnerEasyhands-on 5 min · start to finish 5 min

“Mix your own saucer. It is only right when it suits you.”

Ingredientsserves 1

雜貨舖Light soy sauce2 tbsp (30 ml)
街市Garlic· finely chopped, about 1 tsp; add 1 tsp fried garlic if the sauce table has it1 clove
街市Spring onion / scallion· chopped1 stalk
街市Chilli· sliced into rings½ to 1 bird's-eye chilli
街市Coriander / cilantro· choppeda pinch
雜貨舖Sesame oil3 to 4 drops

Method

  1. Peel the garlic and chop it very fine, about a teaspoon. If raw garlic is too sharp for you, rinse the chopped garlic in clean water and drain it: it softens the bite, and children can eat it.
  2. Put the garlic in your own saucer and pour in two tablespoons of light soy. If the sauce table has fried garlic, add a teaspoon: half the heat of raw garlic and half the fragrance of fried, which Hong Kong calls gold-and-silver garlic.
  3. Add the spring onion, the chilli and the coriander, and finish with three or four drops of sesame oil. Leave out the chilli if you do not eat it hot, and the coriander if you do not like it; everyone mixes their own.
  4. This saucer goes with everything: fish slices, prawns, squid, fish balls, beef balls, dumplings and greens. A teaspoon of oyster sauce thickens it so it clings to shaved beef. If it turns too salty halfway through, loosen it with a spoonful of clear broth.
  5. Chop the garlic, spring onion and coriander on the night and use them that night; whatever is left in the saucer is thrown away, never kept for the next day. Chopsticks that have held raw meat never touch a saucer.

Take care

  • Contains soy and wheat (light soy) and sesame (sesame oil).
  • Wash the spring onion, coriander and chilli under running water before cutting; raw garlic and herbs are cut on the night and used that night, and leftovers are thrown away, never kept overnight. A sauce does not make undercooked food safe: meat and seafood still have to be cooked through.

The story

Garlic soy is the basic saucer of a Hong Kong hotpot: a dish of light soy, with garlic, spring onion, chilli and coriander added to each person's taste. A sauce is there to lift the food, not to bury it, so the saucer everyone uses is also the simplest.

Same kind

Chilli soySha cha and soySha cha with egg yolk

Lo Fo Tong is cultural food-heritage reference, not medical advice. If you are pregnant, unwell or on medication, talk to your doctor or registered practitioner before changing what is in the pot.