Oil-Blast Shrimp
Shrimp flash-fried in hot oil until the shells turn crisp and red, in a lightly sweet, savoury glaze.
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Foxnut and River Shrimp
Soft, nutty foxnut seeds tossed with just-cooked river shrimp and a warm osmanthus syrup — a Suzhou late-summer classic. Adapted for a home kitchen from the original ClouChef R&D report — 鸡头米炒河虾, report 40.
Original poster image from clouchef.com (poster: 鸡头米炒河虾_40.jpeg). This is the hero poster only, not a step-by-step photo set.
Prep: 5 minutesCook: 10 minutesTotal: 15 minutesServings: 1–2Difficulty: Easy–MediumRegion: Jiangsu (Suzhou)Flavour: Salty-savoury, lightly sweet, osmanthus-scented
Why this works
Foxnut, also called gorgon fruit, is the ingredient that decides this dish, and the report's rule for it is simple: boil frozen foxnut for at least eight minutes until there is no hard centre left, because undercooked foxnut is chalky in a way no sauce can hide. The shrimp, by contrast, get almost no time at all — velveted, slipped through oil at about one hundred and twenty degrees for fifteen seconds, then returned to the pan for a five-second toss — because the report caps shrimp cooking at twenty seconds before they toughen and weep. The bridge between the two is osmanthus: sweet osmanthus is never scattered raw, as the report forbids, but dissolved in eighty-degree water and tossed through the hot pan for three seconds, so its perfume blooms without any raw garnish risk. The result is soft, bouncy and faintly floral, with the shrimp as a savoury accent rather than the main event, and it should be eaten within minutes of leaving the pan.
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Ingredients
| Ingredient | US | Metric | Substitute / note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Foxnut (frozen gorgon fruit / qian shi) | 2.8 oz | 80 g | Cook from frozen, per the report. Dried foxnut, soaked until soft, is a substitute (adaptation). |
| River shrimp, shelled | 3.5 oz | 100 g | Thaw and pat dry if frozen. |
| Sweet osmanthus | 0.07 oz | 2 g | Dissolve in 20 ml water at 80 °C before adding; never scatter raw, per the report. |
| Salt | ¼ tsp | 1.5 g | 0.5 g for the shrimp marinade, 1 g for the foxnut, per the report. |
| MSG | Pinch | 1 g | Optional; omit if you prefer (adaptation). |
| Cooking wine | 1 tsp | 5 ml | For the shrimp marinade. |
| Corn starch, for velveting | 1 tsp | 3 g | For the shrimp marinade. |
| Salad oil, for slipping | 2 tbsp | 30 ml | — |
| Optional osmanthus dipping syrup | 0.35 oz osmanthus + 50 ml hot water | 10 g osmanthus + 50 ml hot water | Heat to above 60 °C (microwave 30 seconds) and serve warm on the side, per the report. |
Equipment
- Wok or large skillet — no wok required (adaptation)
- Pot for boiling the foxnut
- Small bowl for dissolving the osmanthus
Steps
- Boil the foxnut. Put the frozen foxnut straight into boiling water and boil on high heat for 8 minutes until completely soft with no hard centre. Drain well.
- Velvet the shrimp. Pat the shrimp dry, toss with 0.5 g salt, the cooking wine and the starch, and rest for 3 minutes.
- Slip the shrimp. Heat oil to about 120 °C, slide in the shrimp, stir quickly for 15 seconds until coloured, and lift out at once.
- Toss the foxnut. In the same pan with a little base oil, stir-fry the boiled foxnut over medium heat for 30 seconds and season with 1 g salt and the MSG.
- Combine and perfume. Return the shrimp and toss on high heat for 5 seconds. Turn off the heat, pour in the osmanthus dissolved in 20 ml water at 80 °C, and toss for 3 seconds so it heats through and coats everything.
- Serve. Plate at once, with no raw osmanthus scattered on top. Serve the warm osmanthus syrup on the side if you made it.
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Technique: eight minutes for the seed, fifteen seconds for the shrimp
The two main ingredients want opposite treatments, and the dish works only if you respect both: foxnut boiled until truly soft, shrimp barely kissed by hot oil. If either is wrong — hard foxnut or rubbery shrimp — the other cannot rescue the plate. Dissolving the osmanthus in hot water, rather than scattering it raw, is both a flavour and a food-safety rule in the report.
Variations
- No foxnut: cooked lotus seeds give a similar soft, nutty bite, though the dish is no longer foxnut shrimp (adaptation).
- No osmanthus: omit it; the shrimp and foxnut are still good, just without the floral note (adaptation).
Frequently asked questions
What is foxnut?
The seed of the gorgon plant, a water plant counted among Suzhou's 'eight water delicacies'. It cooks soft and nutty, like a small chestnut.
Why must osmanthus not be scattered raw?
The report forbids raw osmanthus as a garnish for food-safety reasons; dissolving it in 80 °C water heats it and releases its scent.
Can I use fresh shrimp with shells?
Shelled shrimp are the report's ingredient; shell-on shrimp would need peeling at the table and a longer cook (adaptation).
Storage and freezing
Best eaten fresh, within minutes. Leftovers keep 1 day refrigerated; reheat gently until steaming hot — the shrimp will firm further. Do not freeze.
Foxnut and River Shrimp — Recipe Card
Soft foxnut tossed with river shrimp and warm osmanthus syrup.
Prep: 5 minutesCook: 10 minutesTotal: 15 minutesServings: 1–2
Ingredients: 80 g foxnut; 100 g river shrimp; 2 g sweet osmanthus (in 20 ml water at 80 °C); 1.5 g salt; 1 g MSG (optional); 5 ml cooking wine; 3 g starch; 30 ml oil; optional dipping syrup: 10 g osmanthus + 50 ml hot water.
Steps: 1) Boil foxnut 8 minutes. 2) Velvet shrimp 3 minutes. 3) Slip shrimp 15 seconds. 4) Toss foxnut, return shrimp, add hot osmanthus, toss 3 seconds.
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Source note: ingredients, quantities and steps are adapted from the original ClouChef R&D report for 鸡头米炒河虾 (data/reports/40.md). The report's pricing, margin and marketing sections are deliberately omitted here; no B2B cost is presented as a home-cook cost. Home servings (1–2, from one 200 g restaurant portion) and the dried-foxnut substitute are adaptations and are labelled as such. Original poster image: clouchef.com (鸡头米炒河虾_40.jpeg).