Hong Kong Style Street Food Curry Squid

Peel 1/2 white radish with a peeler, cut it into thick slices, and then into uniform small cubes, keeping a suitable thickness to prevent melting when cooked.

Cut the head and tentacles of 1kg water squid, slice the tentacles into 2 to 3 strips, skewer them with bamboo sticks for later use, and cut the harder head into small pieces.

Put 100g garlic into a food processor, add a little water, blend into minced garlic, and then drain the water with a strainer for later use.

In a bowl, add 2tbsp sha cha sauce, 1tbsp chu hou sauce, 1tbsp curry paste, 1tbsp sesame sauce, and 1tbsp oyster sauce, mix well and set aside.

Heat the wok and pour in 3tbsp cooking oil, add 100g drained minced garlic, fry slowly on low heat until the water evaporates, the garlic turns golden and bubbles, then immediately remove from heat and strain out the garlic oil and fried garlic for later use.

Without washing the wok, use the remaining oil to stir-fry 4 slices of ginger and 2 scallions over medium heat until fragrant, splash 1tbsp Shaoxing wine, pour in appropriate water to boil, add the sliced white radish and 1tsp salt, cover and simmer on low heat for 15 minutes until a bamboo skewer easily pierces the center, remove the radish and set aside, keeping the original broth in the wok.

Put the gluten puffs into the original radish broth, boil for about 4 minutes until softened, remove and rinse the surface oil with clean water, then discard the broth in the wok.

Add fresh water and a few slices of ginger to the wok, bring to a boil over high heat, add the prepared water squid to blanch, cook until the water boils again and the squid visibly shrinks and firms up, remove and drain for later use.

Pour out the water in the wok, add a little oil, turn to low heat, pour in the reserved garlic oil and the mixed sauce, and stir-fry continuously on low heat until fragrant.

Splash a little Shaoxing wine into the sautéed sauce, add appropriate water, bring to a boil over high heat, add 20g rock sugar and a little salt to season, and boil until the rock sugar melts into a rich curry base.

Put the softened white radish into the boiling curry sauce to absorb flavors, then add the gluten puffs, add a little cornstarch slurry to thicken, and a little peanut butter for extra aroma, cooking until the sauce is thick and glossy.

Put the blanched water squid into the wok, toss well with the rich curry radish and gluten so the thick sauce coats the squid surface, dish out onto a container lined with oil-absorbing paper, and finally sprinkle with fried garlic to finish.