Sang choi bao

Gavin Chan, chef-owner of Happy's Chinese Restaurant in Canberra, shares his classic sang choi bao recipe with Jennifer Wong. After you cut the lettuce cups, refrigerate them, covered with water to allow for maximum crispness and shake dry before using. This recipe is featured in 'Chopsticks or Fork?' The soon-to-be-published cookbook, available in 2024.

Credit: Jiwon Kim

• serves

  4

• prep

  5 minutes

• cook

  10 minutes

• difficulty

  Easy

Ingredients

• 2 tbsp vegetable oil
• 200 g chicken mince
• ½ onion, finely chopped
• ½ carrot, finely chopped
• 2 shiitake mushrooms, finely chopped
• 1 spring onion, finely sliced
• 1 tsp finely chopped garlic
• 1 tsp finely grated ginger
• 1 tbsp oyster sauce
• 1 tbsp soy sauce
• 1 tbsp Shaoxing wine
• 4 large iceberg lettuce leaves

Instructions

1. Heat half the oil in a wok over high heat, then add the chicken and stir fry until it is almost cooked (no longer pink) and then remove to a bowl and set aside.

2. Heat the remaining oil on high heat. Add the onion, carrot, mushroom, spring onion, garlic, ginger and oyster sauce and cook, tossing, until the vegetables soften.

3. Return the chicken to the pan and toss through for 1 minute. Stir through the soy sauce and Shaoxing wine.

4. Divide the filling between lettuce cups and serve immediately.

Note 

Chopsticks or Fork? will be published by Hardie Grant Books in May 2024.

Photography by Jiwon Kim.

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Cook's Notes

Oven temperatures are for conventional; if using fan-forced (convection), reduce the temperature by 20˚C. | We use Australian tablespoons and cups: 1 teaspoon equals 5 ml; 1 tablespoon equals 20 ml; 1 cup equals 250 ml. | All herbs are fresh (unless specified) and cups are lightly packed. | All vegetables are medium size and peeled, unless specified. | All eggs are 55-60 g, unless specified.