Cook: How to prepare sea cucumber from dried form

Sea cucumber is one of chinese delicacy and it can be purchased from dried goods shop or traditional medicine hall. It is sold in dried form and will expand after soaking and boiling. Instead of soaking one or two pieces as and when needed, I usually soaked a few pieces at one time and then freeze them because the soaking process takes a week. When I needed to cook, I just need to remove it from freezer and defrost.

METHODS: 

This is the size of sea cucumber before soaking, Day 1

It's internal organ that needs to be cleaned after the sea cucumber expanded 

1. Place the dried sea cucumber into a pot of water after washing them gently over running water. Ensure that the water fully covered the dried sea cucumber.

Place in pot and bring to boil

2. Bring the water in the pot to boil and let it boil for 5 minutes.

3. Remove from heat and let the pot of water with sea cucumber to cool down to room temperature.

4. After the water cool down, remove the sea cucumber from the pot, wash them and place them into a tupperware. Cover the sea cucumber with water and then place them into the fridge.

5. On Day 2 and Day 3, change the water and place them back into the fridge.

6. On Day 4, remove the sea cucumber from the tupperware, place them into a pot with water and boil again for 5 minutes (same as Day 1)

By Day 4, the size should have expanded quite a bit  (around twice its initial size)

7. After the water cool down, wash and place the sea cucumber into tupperware. Cover with water and place them into the fridge again.

8. On Day 5 and 6, change the water again as per Day 2 and Day 3. 

9. On Day 5 or 6, the sea cucumber should expand quite significantly and the intestine can be removed easily. Remove all intestine and clean the inside of the sea cucumber under running water.

10. On Day 7, my sea cucumber expanded to about 2.5 its size and did not seems to be expanding much signifiant, so when that happen, remove the water and give the sea cucumber a wash.

11. Place the sea cucumber into freezer and use them as and when required. 

Note: If the sea cucumber continue to expand, can soak them for a few more days, changing water each day.

Size on Day 7