Lobster sauce
Encyclopedia
Lobster sauce is a type of sauce used in American-Chinese and Canadian-Chinese cuisine. It is also sometimes found in Polynesian-influenced Chinese food. It is a type of "white sauce" within Chinese cooking, meaning that it is of a mild flavor, and based on meat stock, as opposed to soy sauce. Lobster sauce is most commonly used as a sauce for the dish Shrimp with Lobster Sauce (Chinese: 蝦龍糊).
The sauce itself does not contain any lobster, and may vary in preparation method from place to place or restaurant to restaurant. However, it will typically contain chicken broth, garlic
, ginger
, black beans, and eggs
, and is thickened with cornstarch. Some recipes incorporate ground pork and soy sauce. The color varies from being pale white, to a yellow, mainly depending on how the eggs are incorporated into the sauce; if the eggs are added quickly, the sauce acquires a yellow hue. The exception, lobster sauce in most of New England, where it is a thicker brown sauce.
It may have been named "lobster sauce" due to the fact that it derives from a similar family of sauces used in Cantonese cuisine
that were traditionally poured over stir-fried lobster. Neither the recipe nor the sauce exist in China or in Chinese communities in Asia, and is considered to be an example of "Overseas Chinese food".
The sauce itself does not contain any lobster, and may vary in preparation method from place to place or restaurant to restaurant. However, it will typically contain chicken broth, garlic
Garlic
Allium sativum, commonly known as garlic, is a species in the onion genus, Allium. Its close relatives include the onion, shallot, leek, chive, and rakkyo. Dating back over 6,000 years, garlic is native to central Asia, and has long been a staple in the Mediterranean region, as well as a frequent...
, ginger
Ginger
Ginger is the rhizome of the plant Zingiber officinale, consumed as a delicacy, medicine, or spice. It lends its name to its genus and family . Other notable members of this plant family are turmeric, cardamom, and galangal....
, black beans, and eggs
Egg (food)
Eggs are laid by females of many different species, including birds, reptiles, amphibians, and fish, and have probably been eaten by mankind for millennia. Bird and reptile eggs consist of a protective eggshell, albumen , and vitellus , contained within various thin membranes...
, and is thickened with cornstarch. Some recipes incorporate ground pork and soy sauce. The color varies from being pale white, to a yellow, mainly depending on how the eggs are incorporated into the sauce; if the eggs are added quickly, the sauce acquires a yellow hue. The exception, lobster sauce in most of New England, where it is a thicker brown sauce.
It may have been named "lobster sauce" due to the fact that it derives from a similar family of sauces used in Cantonese cuisine
Cantonese cuisine
Cantonese cuisine comes from Guangdong Province in southern China and is one of 8 superdivisions of Chinese cuisine. Its prominence outside China is due to the great numbers of early emigrants from Guangdong. Cantonese chefs are highly sought after throughout the country...
that were traditionally poured over stir-fried lobster. Neither the recipe nor the sauce exist in China or in Chinese communities in Asia, and is considered to be an example of "Overseas Chinese food".