Longjing Tea Shrimp (Longjing Xia Ren)
The Hangzhou canon's most elegant wok and the tea's own finest savoury argument: the river shrimp's sweet, tender curls stirred at the wok's speed with the Longjing tea's brewed leaves — the dish where the famous green tea crosses from the cup to the pan, its grassy sweetness the shrimp's own perfect frame. The longjing xia ren is the West Lake table's classic beside the vinegar fish's (#80's) master, and the technique is the tea's double argument — the brew's splash and the leaves' tender toss — the five-minute wok's gentlest expression.
Quantities live in the recipe card.
The shrimp
- or the 150-count shrimp's honest substitute), peeled or shell-on by the school's argument
- the shrimp's brief whisper
The tea's double
- the brew's gentle law, steeped 5 minutes; the leaves strained and held, the liquor reserved
The wok's frame
- The tea's brew at its gentle law: the 4 g of Longjing steeped 5 minutes at the 80 °C water (the green tea's own temperature — the boiling water's brew the bitter tannin's own accident) — the pale-gold liquor and the unfurled leaves held separately. The leaves are the dish's own vegetable: the brewed leaf's tenderness the toss's texture, and the liquor the wok's savoury splash.
Checkpoint — the brewed liquor runs the palest gold and the leaves have unfurled to their full, tender flats — the 80 °C law's proof at the cup (the dark amber's brew the bitter argument already made), and the two arguments held at the separate bowls' discipline for the wok's two moments.
- The shrimp's whisper and its brief clock: the shrimp tossed with the salt, wine and cornstarch, and rested 20 minutes — the shell-on school's own sweetness argument (the shell's protection at the wok's heat) against the peeled school's easier eating; the record's honesty runs the peeled at the home table, the shell-on at the purist's.
Doneness & Quality Checkpoints
- The tea: the 80 °C brew, the 5-minute steep, the leaves and liquor held separate.
- The shrimp: the 60-second fry's curl, the translucent's last whisper pull.
- The marriage: the medium's gentleness, the leaves' tender toss, the liquor's splash.
Finish & Plate
The shrimp piled to the small plate with the brewed leaves' green through the pink curls, the spring onion's scatter — the dish served at the moment's heat, the remaining Longjing tea poured at the cup's side, the same leaf's two services the Hangzhou table's own tradition.
Longjing Tea Shrimp (Longjing Xia Ren)
Prep: 25 minutes, plus 20 minutes marinating · Cook: 5 minutes · Total: About 50 minutes · Serves 2–3
Ingredients
The shrimp
- 500 g small shell-on shrimp (the river shrimp's traditional size — or the 150-count shrimp's honest substitute), peeled or shell-on by the school's argument
- ½ tsp (2 g) salt, 1 tbsp (15 ml) Shaoxing wine, 1 tsp (5 g) cornstarch — the shrimp's brief whisper
- 1 egg white's spoonful, optional at the velveted school
The tea's double
- 4 g Longjing (Dragon Well) green tea — the pan-fired first flush's honest 4 g
- 100 ml hot water at 80 °C — the brew's gentle law, steeped 5 minutes; the leaves strained and held, the liquor reserved
The wok's frame
- 2 tbsp (30 ml) neutral oil
- 3 slices ginger, julienned fine; 2 spring onions, whites only
- 1 tbsp (15 ml) Shaoxing wine; ½ tsp (2 g) salt, or to the brew's own sweetness
- 1 tsp (5 ml) of the reserved tea liquor, extra; the spring onion greens, sliced, to finish
Instructions
- The shrimp's fast fry — 60 seconds at the fierce flame. The oil at the wok's smoke's threshold, the ginger and spring onion whites' 15-second perfume, and the shrimp spread to the single layer — 40 seconds to the first curl's pink, the single flip, and 20 seconds more, the shrimp pulled at the translucent's last whisper to the plate. Checkpoint — the shrimp have curled to the pink's first full turn with the tails' faint glass at the thickest — the over-cooked shrimp's 30-seconds-past its own rubber's end, and the fast fry's pull the whole clock.
- The tea's marriage — 90 seconds. The wok's remaining warmth, the shrimp returned with the brewed Longjing leaves (the strained, tender leaves themselves) tossed through, the reserved liquor's splash and the wine's down the side — the 60-second toss at the medium flame's gentleness (the tea's delicate perfume the fierce heat's own casualty), the salt's whisper and the spring onion greens' fold. Checkpoint — the eating test: the shrimp's sweet, barely-set tenderness carrying the Longjing's grassy, chestnut-sweet perfume in every curl, the brewed leaf's own tender presence at the bite — the tea's savoury argument complete, the greenest frame the sweetest shellfish.
Troubleshooting
| Symptom | Cause | Fix |
|---|---|---|
| Shrimp rubbery at the curl | The fry's clock past the whisper | The 40-20's pull; the plate's waiting pause |
| Tea's perfume absent | The boiling brew's tannin, or the fierce toss | The 80 °C law; the medium's gentleness at the marriage |
| Dish watery at the plate | The liquor over-poured, or the shrimp's crowd | The teaspoon's splash; the small batch's speed |
Storage, Make-Ahead & Variations
- The dish serves the wok's moment — the shrimp's clock and the perfume's volatility same-minute arguments; the leftover's re-heat the rubber's apology refused. The brewed tea's extra liquor is the cup's own dividend. - The Hangzhou canon's kin runs the West Lake vinegar fish's (#80) master and the dragon-well's own cup beside; the shrimp's other tea argument (the iron-infused oolong's richer brew) the different school. The tea egg's (#78) brewed-leaf thrift and this record's savoury leaves the tea canon's two honest kitchens. - The canon's seat: the Hangzhou tea canon's savoury master — the brewed leaf's toss and the gentlest wok — at the West Lake table's elegant first rank.