Abalone Pasta

* Top bottom was 2nd attempt but bottom photo 1st attempt. Difference in black truffle quality affects the look and aroma of the dish. But the abalone itself won't go wrong. All in all, a great dish to try cooking if you are a fan of abalone.

Ingredients:

Fresh Black Abalone (those from Japan is amazing. But those from Australia also good) - around 600-800g per piece will be a good size.

Chicken and Chinese Ham stock (as the abalone will absorb all the flavour of this stock, make sure you cook this stock yourself instead of buying pre-made ones. see below how to do this) 

Black Truffle 

Black Truffle Oil

Italian parsley - minced

Chicken and Chinese ham stock:

blanch whole chicken, then blanch chinese ham with some puer leaves. Place them in a big pot fill with water, 1 pc of carrot, 1 pc of onion, bring to boil, then remove to medium heat and cook for 3-4 hours. Remove oil on top and filter out cooking ingredients.

Abalone Pasta Sauce:

Stock left in pressure cooker

Additional Chicken and Chinese Ham stock

salt and black pepper

cornflour solution

How to Make:

1. Better reserve fresh abalone from your fishmonger in advance.

2. Prepare your abalone in day in advance of your cooking day. After removing from shell and removing the guts, wash thoroughly under tap water. Can use a toothbrush to clean the side of the abalone to avoid dirt sticking inside.

2.  Pour chicken stock into a pressure cooker and bring it to a boil. Then add the abalone inside, make sure the abalone is under water level. Close the pressure securely, then lower heat to medium low heat and cook for 1.5 hour. If you are cooking 3 pc of more, can cook longer like 2 hours. Pressure cooker cooking time is 3 times of normal cooking. So if normal cooking requires 3 hours, then you only need 1 hour using pressure cooker, etc.

3. After cooking time is up, switch off fire. Turn the pressure cooker cool down itself until it shows you you are ready to release the lid. Don't rush removing the lid or else everything will blast!

4. Once lid is removed, use a skewer to poke inside of abalone to see if it's soft enough for your liking. If it's not tender enough, you will have to add some cooking time again, but make sure you have sufficient stock inside the cooker.

5. If it's tender enough, remove abalone from the stock which should be thickened a bit by now. After cooling down, put abalone in air tight box in fridge. So next day when you do  the dish, it will be much easier to slice it very thin.

6. Save the stock left inside the pressure cooker to make your abalone pasta sauce - the abalone sauce!

7. On the day you cook your dish, take out abalone from fridge and make thin slices.

8. Cook the abalone sauce in a pan, if qty is not enough for your pasta, then add some chicken and ham stock. Bring to boil, check taste and adjust accordingly with salt and pepper. Add cornflour solution to adjust thickness of sauce. Use tongs or a laddle to gentle heat up the thinly sliced abalone in the above abalone pasta sauce. Remove abalone to a plate. 

9. Cook pasta (I prefer using fresh pasta for this dish and cooking time should be 2-3 min only) as per packet's instructions) less 1 min. Put cooked pasta to the abalone sauce and coat the pasta.

10. Place pasta nicely on a serving plate, then put the heated abalone slice on top of the pasta nicely. Drizzle with black truffle oil, then shaved black trufffle on top. Garnish with some minced parsley to add color and flavour.

Enjoy this dish with your fav champagne or white wine!