Blanching is the quick, easy way to cook wild bird’s nest fern. At about NT$35 for 300 g at the market it is very good value, and that is enough for a large plate. The shallot dressing is my not-so-secret weapon here: the ingredients are easy to find and it is simple to make, and what matters is the fern tips coated in it — crisp, with a real sweetness underneath.


Shallot dressing
For the dressing:
Water 1 1/2 cups (about 300 ml), soy sauce 1/4 cup (about 50 ml), potato starch 1 tbsp (or a little less), red rock sugar 1 tbsp
Sweet chilli sauce 2 tbsp, Cheng Chi fried shallots about 4–5 tbsp, plain or red yeast fermented bean curd half a cube
To make the dressing:
Put one cup of water in a pan with the fermented bean curd and red rock sugar and whisk until the sugar dissolves, then bring to the boil. Mix the remaining half cup of water with the potato starch and stir it in to thicken. Add the soy sauce and sweet chilli sauce — good for the colour and for a slight warmth — then stir in the fried shallots, bring back to the boil, and it is done.

Keep the tender fern tips and trim off the tougher stems; if the stem snaps when you bend it, it is still young enough. Rinse and set aside. Bring a pan of water to a fast boil, add a little oil and salt, blanch the fern, then drain and spoon over the dressing. That is it — crisp, sweet bird’s nest fern with shallot dressing.