300g clams, 1 green pepper, 1 red chili pepper, 2T fermented black beans, some garlic, 2T oil, some salt.
SEASONINGS:
1T Shaoxing wine, 1T soy sauce, 1/2t sugar, some ground black pepper, 3T water.
PREPARATION :
1. Soak clams in salty water for 3 hours so that they spit out the sand; Rinse in running water; Scrub the shells thoroughly; Blanch in boiling water till the shells have opened slighlty; Remove and drain.
2. Rinse, seed and cut green pepper into pieces; Rinse, seed and cut red chili pepper into sections; Rinse fermented black beans.
3. Heat a wok with 2T oil over a high heat; Stir-fry garlic, red chili pepper and fermented black beans over a high heat till fragrant; Add green pepper and the clams; Stir-fry over a high heat briefly; Add seasonings; Stir-fry over a high heat till the sauce has dried up a bit. Ready to serve.
COOKING TIPS:
1. To make clams free of sand, it is important to keep clams in salty water for about 3 hours to allow them to spit out the sand, rinse thoroughly and scrub the shells with a brush.
2. To seal in the clams' flavors, it is better to blanch in boiling water briefly before cooking in your preferred seasoning. If clams did not open their shells after blancing, they should be discarded as they must not be fresh.
3. If dried salted black beans are used, after rinsing, they have to be soaked in water briefly but not too long so as to keep the flavors. If wet salted black beans are used, they only have to be rinsed.
