Fujian Fo Tiao Qiang (Buddha Jumps Over the Wall)

Ingredients

• 2 (medium) Abalone, live or premium canned; cleaned
• 200 g Sea cucumber, fully reconstituted over 3–5 days, cut into large pieces
• 150 g Fish maw, soaked, cleaned, and blanched to remove fishy smell
• 100 g Dried scallops (conpoy), soaked in cold water until softened
• 400 g Pork knuckle, cut into large joints, blanched
• 400 g Whole chicken pieces, bone-in; blanched
• 150 g Chinese cured ham (Jinhua or similar), sliced thick
• 250 ml Shaoxing wine, the dominant flavour agent
• 60 ml Oyster sauce
• 30 ml Soy sauce, light
• 1 litre Superior stock, rich pork or chicken; enough to nearly cover all layers

Method

1. 1
   Reconstitute the sea cucumber: soak in cold water for 3–5 days, changing the water daily, until fully soft and free of any hardness at the centre. Separately, soak the fish maw in cold water until pliable, then blanch in fresh boiling water and rinse well; it should carry no residual fishy smell.
2. 2
   Blanch the pork knuckle joints and chicken pieces separately in boiling water for several minutes, skimming thoroughly. Drain and pat dry. Each protein is prepared alone so that no ingredient contaminates another before assembly.
3. 3
   Layer the ingredients in a large sealed ceramic pot in strict order: the densest, richest items — pork knuckle, cured ham — on the bottom; chicken on the next layer; then abalone, sea cucumber, and fish maw; dried scallops last on top. Layering order governs the distribution of rendered fat and gelatin as they descend during cooking.
4. 4
   Combine the Shaoxing wine, oyster sauce, and soy sauce; pour over the assembled layers. Add the superior stock until the liquid nearly covers all ingredients. Seal the pot — traditionally with a luting of dough or a tight-fitting lid weighted down — so that no steam can escape during the initial cooking period. This is where the dish lives or dies: a broken seal loses the accumulated fragrance and concentrated vapour that define Fo Tiao Qiang; do not open the pot until the prescribed time has elapsed.
5. 5
   Cook the sealed pot over a very low, steady heat — or in a low oven — for several hours on the first day. Allow to rest, then repeat the slow simmer over a second and, ideally, third day. The total cooking spans multiple sessions across days; rushing at any stage collapses the depth of flavour the dish requires.
6. 6
   Break the seal only when the full cooking time is complete. The cloud of rising steam should carry a dense, multilayered fragrance of wine, seafood, and long-rendered meat fat simultaneously — the aroma that gives the dish its name. The abalone should yield to gentle pressure; the sea cucumber should be soft throughout with no firm core; the broth should be deep amber, glossy, and viscous.