Cooked long and slow in a rich oyster sauce, our Braised Abalone with Mushrooms is the BEST way to celebrate any special occasion with your family. The beauty of it is it’s simple enough to make on any weekday and definitely fancy enough to serve at a banquet!
A pot full of treasure
Whenever I eat Grandma’s Braised Abalone with Mushrooms, it always feels like I’m digging into a pot of gold. Not only are all the ingredients slow cooked until beautifully bronzed, but I know someone would have forked out extra from their paycheck.
That’s why we usually save seafood classics for special occasions!
The cooking style of this dish is similar to what we’ve done in our Braised Chicken, Mushrooms and Bean Curd recipes. But when you use premium ingredients, you get premium results.
With a little patience, your dining experience will be complete with succulent and juicy seafood deeply infused in oyster sauce. Then soak your rice with the rich glossy gravy exploding with pure umami for an ultimate otherworldly adventure!
Everything you need to know about abalone
What it is
Abalone, pronounced bao yu (鮑魚) in Cantonese, is a large single-shelled sea snail that can be found along many coastlines, including those in Australia, New Zealand and Japan.
It is considered a culinary delicacy in Chinese cuisine, which makes it a highly sought after ingredient. In Australia, you could be paying around $100/kg!
When you see them at seafood markets, they will appear to be stuck against whichever surface they are resting on. This is because their muscles are designed to cling onto large rocks in the ocean.
Taste
Abalone is one of those ingredients that doesn’t have much flavor but is reknowned for its texture. When cooked in sauces, it will take on the essence of the sauce with an extra hint of saltiness.
They’re firm to the bite but with enough chew for it to be enjoyable!
Health Benefits
Omega 3, anti-inflammatory properties and skin benefits are the some of the reasons why this seafood is such a popular menu item. It’s often paired with other Chinese delicacies (such as sea cucumber) that are said to be highly nutritious.
Some might eat this dish for its nutrition, but we love its firm bite and classic Cantonese taste!
Why this recipe works
- Adding fried aromatics gives the dish a robust flavor kick.
- Using rehydrated mushrooms means you’ll get a higher umami concentration.
- Slow cooking the dish helps to soften the seafood so it’s not chewy.
What you’ll need
About the seafood
You can get fresh abalone from the fish monger. Ask for them to clean and deshell each one for you, then give it a second clean at home (like how we did in our Buddha Jumps Over The Wall Soup).
For this recipe, we used frozen abalone from the fish market.
How to make this recipe
Pour the oil into a wok or saucepan on high heat. When hot, turn the heat to medium and add the garlic and ginger in to cook for 30 seconds or until fragrant.
Turn the heat back up to high and add the mushrooms in. Stir fry them for 2 minutes.
Add the abalone in and stir fry for another 2 minutes.
Pour in the oyster sauce, salt, sugar and chicken bouillon powder.
Mix and cook all the ingredients for 2 minutes, then stir in the Shaoxing rice wine.
Pour the water in, give it a quick stir and bring to a boil.
When boiling, turn the heat down to low-medium and simmer for 5 hours.
FAQs
You can use a heavy flat tool (like a cleaver or meat mallet) to pound at the flatter side of the flesh. Give it a squeeze every few pounds to see if the meat has tenderized.
We get ours from the seafood markets. They’re priced individually and come with the shell on.
Yes, you certainly can! I would suggest cooking it for an hour and a half instead of the full 5 hours.
Tips for the best results
- Use chicken stock as the liquid base. Not only will this complement the seafood flavor, but it will add a gentle sweetness to the dish.
- Simmer for longer. The longer it cooks on low heat, the softer the abalone will become. If you’re using fresh abalone, 1 hour will be enough.
- Make sure all the ingredients are submerged in liquid the entire braising time. This will prevent drying out and keep everything moist and juicy. Add more water if needed.
Celebrate with these festive dishes!
- Start your banquet with freshly fried Seafood Rolls and Taiwanese Pork Belly Baos (Gua Bao).
- Warm up your bodies with a soothing Fish Maw Soup.
- Fill the table with classics, including Salted Egg Prawns (牛油黃金虾), Chinese Steamed Fish with Ginger and Shallots and Four Cup Chicken (四杯雞).
- Crispy Egg Noodles with Seafood (海鲜炒面) will get everyone excited!
- No feast is complete without a gorgeously balanced dessert like our Black Sesame Soup (芝麻糊).
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Braised Abalone with Mushrooms (红烧鲍菇)
Ingredients
- 1 kg abalone
- 100 g / 0.22 lb shiitake mushrooms (rehydrated)
- 4 cloves garlic (finely chopped)
- 10 g / 0.02 lb ginger (finely sliced)
- 7 tbsp oyster sauce
- 1 tbsp Shaoxing rice wine (or dry sherry)
- 4 tbsp cooking oil
- 2 tsp salt (or to taste)
- 1 1/2 tbsp sugar (or to taste)
- 1 tbsp chicken bouillon powder
- 1 L / 4 1/4 US cup water (or to preference)
Instructions
- Pour the oil into a wok or saucepan on high heat. When hot, turn the heat to medium and add the garlic and ginger in to cook for 30 seconds or until fragrant.
- Turn the heat back up to high and add the mushrooms in. Stir fry them for 2 minutes.
- Add the abalone in and stir fry for another 2 minutes.
- Pour in the oyster sauce, salt, sugar and chicken bouillon powder.
- Mix and cook all the ingredients for 2 minutes, then stir in the Shaoxing rice wine.
- Pour the water in, give it a quick stir and bring to a boil.
- When boiling, turn the heat down to low-medium and simmer for 5 hours.
Notes
- Use chicken stock as the liquid base. Not only will this complement the seafood flavor, but it will add a gentle sweetness to the dish.
- Simmer for longer. The longer it cooks on low heat, the softer the abalone will become. If you're using fresh abalone, 1 hour will be enough.
- Make sure all the ingredients are submerged in liquid the entire braising time. This will prevent drying out and keep everything moist and juicy. Add more water if needed.
- You can get fresh abalone from the fish monger. Ask for them to clean and deshell each one for you, then give it a second clean at home (like how we did in our Buddha Jumps Over The Wall Soup).
- For this recipe, we used frozen abalone from the fish market.
Yum! This looks so tasty and delicious! I can’t wait to give this a try!
It certainly is, Beth! Enjoy!
Looks so yummy! Thanks for this recipe
You’re very welcome, Abi!
This looks incredible. So many awesome flavors in it.
Thanks, Katherine! It definitely has deep flavors!
Oh wow! Looks delicious 👌 I have all the ingredients can’t wait to try it.
Thanks, Soniya! I hope you enjoy it as much as we do!
Is the 100g rehydrated mushrooms the weight after it’s rehydrated?
When it’s dehydrated 🙂
Thanks. So, it’s 100g dried mushrooms?
Yes, that’s 100g dried mushrooms 🙂
Did you defrost the abalone or cook it while frozen ?
I defrosted the abalone 🙂
I made this with pinto abalone and simmered while covered for 3.5 hrs then simmered reducing liquid more for the final 1.5 hrs. Wonderful. Thank you for sharing this recipe.
That sounds delicious! You’re very welcome!
Is the calories stated for the whole dish or per serve?
For the whole dish 🙂
Delicious! Thanks for sharing the recipe! I was just trialling it so only used a 150gm of Green Lip abalone. It came out tender and the balance of flavours is perfect. Will definitely use this recipe again.
That’s so wonderful to hear, Pip! I’m so glad you enjoyed it!
Yummy! Do you pound out the abalone, if fresh, before you cook the abalone in the first step?
Thanks! Nope, I just keep them whole and let the simmering soften them down 😀
Can you simmer in slow cooker for 5 hours instead of on the stove?
You can! Just see if it’s cooked enough after the 5 hours and if it’s still tough you can keep it in the slow cooker for longer, checking every 30 minutes at a time.
Hello,
How long will I have to braise the abalone if its already cooked? I slow cooked it for 8 hrs. Thank you.
Hi, Kathy! I would say for 30-60 minutes but test the abalones for their texture and taste as it cooks. If it needs more time, leave it in for longer.
Looks yummy and I am just defrosting frozen fresh abalone to try it. You say you used fresh abalone but say to cook 5 hours in the recipe. Is this a misprint and should be 1 hour for fresh Paua. Pete
Hi, Pete! The abalone will cook in about an hour, but to get it tender you will need to braise it for longer. I would suggest testing it every hour or so to see if it has reached your preferred texture, then serve it hot as is.
Hello. I intend to cook this wonderful dish for CNY. Some questions and I hope u will reply.
I’ll be using canned abalones and I understand they turn hard like rocks when cooked with salt. So I’m taken aback when u added oyster sauce which is already salty plus salt.
Hi, Susan! I used fresh abalone for this recipe and haven’t tried cooking it with the canned version. You can try cooking it with less oyster sauce and salt if you’re worried about it turning hard. For the fresh version, they’re tough but soften after they’ve been cooked down for a few hours. I’m not sure if this applies to canned abalone, but you can always try that out. Hope it helps!
Hi , I have tried to cook this abalone dish .
In the slow cooker for 5 hours apparently still very chewy n I put in the pressure cooker for 1/2 hours n check it turned out still very chewy what did I done wrong? Please advise thank . Lily
Hi, Lily! I’m sorry to hear that the abalone’s still tough. What you can try next time is to tenderize it by using a meat mallet to pound it a few times. Also make sure that there’s enough liquid in there to cover the abalones as they cook, otherwise it can get dry and tough. Sometimes slow cookers also cook quite slowly (depending on the setting), so it might need more time. I hope that helps!
Can this be precooked before the festive day?
Hi, Yoshi! You certainly can, but just make sure to reheat it until just hot enough to prevent it from being overcooked.
Hi,
Can check if the braised abalone can be cooked using thermal pot?
Will it soften?
Hi, Angela! I’ve never made it in a thermal pot before, but so long as it’s cooked for long enough, it’ll soften.
Hi, wonderful recipe!
Are you able to use canned or dried abalone for this dish or is it not advisable?
Hi, Justin! You can certainly used canned or dried abalone, but just keep in mind that the cooking time will be different.
How can you incorporate sea cucumber into this recipe??
Hi, Stephanie! You can find out how to prepare the sea cucumber here: https://www.wokandkin.com/braised-sea-cucumber-with-mushrooms/
Then about an hour before the abalone cooking time is up, you can add the prepared sea cucumber in to simmer with the abalone. I hope that helps!
Thank you so much for this recipe, Jeannette! Made it for my family last night and they loved it.
Hi, Daryn! You’re most welcome! So glad it worked out for you and you could share it with you family. Happy Lunar New Year!
What is a good side dish to serve with the Abalone?
Hi, Bill! We typically serve braised abalone during the Lunar New Year season, so it’s often paired with dishes like Fish Maw Soup, Steamed Fish with Ginger and Shallots and XO Claypot Crab with Vermcelli.
Although if you’re just having it for a weeknight side dish, then dishes with simple flavors would work well. Vegetable dishes such as Chinese Broccoli with Oyster Sauce or Stir Fried Pea Shoots with Garlic would pair nicely.
I hope that helps!