Squab braised in soy and rose wine

Ingredientsserves 4

Equipment

• A lidded pot the two birds just fit, so the liquid comes over them. In a pot too wide the liquid will not cover, so turn them more often and keep spooning it over
• A probe thermometer
• An oven, only if you want the skin crisp; without one the skin is soft and glossy, which is how many people like it

How the time splits

1. 15 minClean and blanch the birdshands on
2. 5 minBring the sauce to the boilhands on
3. 20 minBraising under the lid, turned by the legs halfwayhands on
4. 10 minGlaze and resthands off

Method

1. Clean the birds thoroughly, the throat and the cavity especially: clear out any blood clots and what is left of the windpipe. Boil a pot of water with two slices of ginger and one spring onion, blanch the birds for two minutes, lift them out and dry them.
2. Fry the rest of the ginger, the spring onion and the star anise in 1 tbsp of oil, then add 500 ml of water, both soys, the rose wine and the rock sugar and bring it to the boil.
3. Lower the birds in breast down; the liquid should cover them. Cover and braise at a bare simmer for twenty minutes, turning them once at ten. Turn them with a chopstick through the legs, never by gripping the breast, which tears the skin. Keep the lid on: boil it hard and uncovered and the liquid reduces and the birds turn salty.
4. A thermometer in the thickest part of the thigh should read 75°C, or push in a skewer and the juice should run clear with no blood. If not, give them five minutes more.
5. Lift the birds out and brush them with the maltose water while hot, then rest them ten minutes. For crisp skin, give them five to ten minutes in a 180°C fan oven.
6. Chop each bird in halves or quarters and spoon a little of the sauce over.

Take care

• Poultry, soy, wheat, alcohol (most of it cooks off, not all). Restaurants sometimes serve squab pink; at home cook it through, to 75°C at the thickest part of the thigh with no pink at the bone.

The story

The restaurant plate that arrives glossy and dark with a saucer of spiced salt, ordered as the table's one showpiece; in the 1970s and 80s the squab restaurants of 沙田 and 石門 turned eating it into a weekend outing. At home it is easier than its reputation, which is why it sits beside the hard ones on this wall: the real work is finding the bird.

Same kind

Crackling roast pork bellyBraised shiitake in oyster sauceConpoy and whole garlic, steamed and turned out

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.