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swallow nest


Kim WB

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I'm watching the EGG battle on Iron chef..challenger used swallow's nest for a dessert, judges were chattering that it was a strange way to use it? What is Swallow nest? I've seen it as an ingredient, but never questioned it before. Thanks.

Edited by Kim WB (log)
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Its the nest of a swallow. Which is made from stuff that swallows regurgitate. Apparently, its kind of gelatinous in texture.

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I'm watching the EGG battle on Iron chef..challenger used swallow's nest for a dessert, judges were chattering that it was a strange way to use it? What is Swallow nest? I've seen it as an ingredient, but never questioned it before. Thanks.

Usually translated as bird's nest, this ingredient is an excretion of a particular variety of swallow that lives on cliffs in the vicinity of the South China Sea. It is actually used as a type of gum to hold the nest's twigs together. The nests are gathered and processed to remove the substance which is most often used as the eponymous ingredient in a chicken stock based bird's nest soup. It is rare and because it is so difficult to obtain very expensive. Many healthful benefits are attributed to consuming it.

Use of it in a sweet would be considered unusual.

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..... It is rare and because it is so difficult to obtain very expensive. Many healthful benefits are attributed to consuming it.

Expensive !!! How about >1000 HKD for the basics and going as high as 1300 HKD, just like having ablone soup over 1000HKD

anil

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Use of it in a sweet would be considered unusual.

It is not at all unusual to use it as a sweet. In Singapore, HK et al, it is most commonly cooked as a dessert, usually as a double-boiled sweet soup (tong-sui) with rock sugar. Sometimes it is used in puddings and combined with custard filling in egg tarts. Bottled bird's nest soup is available in retail outlets.

It is very expensive, a comb of the uncooked nest is about USD30 for a medium-grade nest; in restaurants the price is easily tripled. A little goes a long way.

The birds nest in caves in the mountains, and it is a dangerous job to harvest them- people actually build makeshift wooden scaffolding and climb with ropes, ladders and minimal safety equipment to pick off the nests by hand.

It is popular among females, it is believed to render the complexion smooth and fair. Pregnant women consume even more of the stuff as (it is believed) the good effects will even get to the unborn baby.

Edited by tonkichi (log)
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Use of it in a sweet would be considered unusual.

It is not at all unusual to use it as a sweet. In Singapore, HK et al, it is most commonly cooked as a dessert, usually as a double-boiled sweet soup (tong-sui) with rock sugar.

tonkichi -- I agree that bird's nest is at least as commonly cooked as a sweet item than as a savory item. :hmmm:

There is a not uncommon savory preparation involving, typically, chicken soup/bouillon. However, the sweet preparation is at least as common in people's homes and clearly *more* prevalent in restaurants. I believe that's the case, with respect to restaurants in both Asia and North America.

I subjectively prefer the savory version, when the chicken soup is well made. But then I generally do not focus on desserts in any meal.

One has to be careful when ordering this item at restaurants. Like shark's fin, there are imitation versions. Also, as previously mentioned, there are very large differences in grade. Fook Lam Moon in Hong Kong is a good place to get the sweet version.

Your description of the "tong sui" typical preparation is accurate. Another typical preparation is to use a small amount of coconut milk in the tong sui-like sweet concoction.

One of the most sought-after versions is roughly translated as "blood bird's nest". It seems to have bits of reddish/orangish color in parts of it.

On whether a little goes a long way, it depends on whether one is savoring it for the gastronomic value, in which case one needs a lot in a bowl to achieve the appropriate density of texture impact in the mouth (the intrinsic product is not at all dense when it's been rehydrated), or whether one believes there are health benefits, in which it is generally believed that a little goes a long way. :wink:

Edited by cabrales (log)
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as previously mentioned, the grade is an important factor. Currently I have three types of bird's nest at home, as I eat the stuff at least once a month. Now you can guess I am female!!

All are the whitish type; apparently the red in blood nest comes from the swallow's blood so that puts me off slightly. The first is about USD20 per comb, which I bought for myself. The second is a higher grade specimen which husband bought for me at USD 34 per comb. The third is somewhere in between in terms of price and quality.

Appearance wise, it is difficult to tell which type is better. The more expensive one came in a nice package, and appeared cleaner. Colour ranged from light brown to pale cream. Experts talk about how closely packed the weave is- apparently if a comb looks pristine white and has a nice uniform weave, it is probably a fake specimen.

All are prepared in the double-boiled style:one comb per serving. each comb is soaked for an hour, and double-boil with rock sugar and maybe a chinese red date for 3-4 hours. Served hot or cold. Occasionally add a little ginseng for a more herbal taste, this step apparently also ups the restorative and medicinal quality.

The difference comes through with the cooked nest. The expensive ones seem not to require much soaking and has a smooth velvety texture, the strips are almost melted but still has a nice bite. The soup is also noticeably more fragrant and complex. The cheapest ones require more soaking, and even with prolonged soaking, the strands give a harder bite, reminding me of agar strips. The soup is slightly flat, tasting sweet but with only a hint of the nest aroma. All these are still better than the bottled versions- here I have doubts that real nest is used, as there is only a handful of strands and the sweet soup is too metallic tasting.

Edited by tonkichi (log)
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At least some of the higher quality birds' nest specimens have little blackish/greyish feather/hair-like segments in them that have to be removed from the utilized material through picking by hand (e.g., using dedicated-used Tweezermans). This picking is done during the rehydration process for the birds' nest. That is work best left to others, for it strains one's eyes and can be time-consuming.

Do you use a little ceramic jar for your birds' nest preparations? I like the look of those things.

Also, I wonder how the blood from the sparrow gets embedded into the nest. Presumably, the blood is not already in the saliva when the nest is being constructed, so it appears as the nest is utilized? :wacko:

Edited by cabrales (log)
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The first is about USD20 per comb, which I bought for myself. The second is a higher grade specimen which husband bought for me at USD 34 per comb. The third is somewhere in between  in terms of price and quality.

Ouch !!!! an Excellent soup in Hyatt Grand; HKG was x6 times this year ('03) -- So do they add one comb ? Am I getting cheated if we order for two ? orDo I get two combs ? Could you shed some light ?

anil

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The first is about USD20 per comb, which I bought for myself. The second is a higher grade specimen which husband bought for me at USD 34 per comb. The third is somewhere in between  in terms of price and quality.

Ouch !!!! an Excellent soup in Hyatt Grand; HKG was x6 times this year ('03) -- So do they add one comb ? Am I getting cheated if we order for two ? orDo I get two combs ? Could you shed some light ?

Edited by tonkichi (log)
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Reminds me of my mum's advice when eating out, especially at Cantonese restaurants:

1. steer clear of live fish dishes or anything quoted at "market" price, their market seems to be more expensive than your neighbourhood ones

2. don't bother with those dishes you can duplicate at home,

3. if the dish looks like good value it probably isn't if luxury ingredient is involved, because they can substitute lesser grades, i.e. you get what you pay for.

All very true cross culturally - However, many of the locals in HKG pefer to entertain qweilos and others alike in restaurants, rather than at home :sad:

Thanks for the clarification on the comb. Much appreciated.

anil

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