Bottled Blood Bird’s Nest (With A Tweak)

Blood Bird’s Nest (燕窝) – “the caviar of the East” – is one of the most luxurious and expensive but also most controversial delicacies in Chinese cuisine. The shallow cup-shaped nest that hangs from the sides of caves takes the cave-dwelling Swiftlet bird over 30 days to build – made by the forming strands of its own gummy saliva which hardens when exposed to air. For hundreds of years, Blood Bird’s Nest has been prized for its long list of health benefits, especially maintaining youth and increasing libido.

Chinese began consuming Blood Bird’s Nest during the Ming Dynasty and it’s believed tat Zhen He (鄭和), who was a Chinese explorer, diplomat and fleet admiral, was the first person in Chinese history to eat Blood Bird’s Nest. The nests have been used in Chinese cooking for over 400 years, most often as Blood Bird’s Nest. According to the Qing Dynasty manual of gastronomy, the Suiyuan Shidan, Blood Bird’s Nest is a delicate ingredient that must not be strongly flavored or cooked with oil.
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The Blood Bird’s Nest is graded by its color- namely Red, Yellow and White. The Red Blood Bird’s Nest is known in Chinese as the “Blood Bird’s Nest (血燕)” – which is the rarest. The belief that the Blood Red Blood Bird’s Nest is made from the Swiftlet’s blood is not true at all. The “blood red” color is due to the Swiftlets different diet and contained more mineral and different kind of nutrition.

Bottled Blood Bird’s Nest (With A Tweak)

Swiftlets nests are harvested from high up in coastal caves of Southeast Asia, mostly in countries like Indonesia, Malaysia, and Thailand. Harvesters face a considerable amount of danger in having to climb the high cave walls in the dark with harnesses, ropes and ladders to get the nests. One false move could be lethal. On top of that, a lot of effort goes into cleaning them and removing any impurities in order to make them fit for consumption. That would explain why cave Blood Bird’s Nests, are so incredibly expensive – a lot of work goes into getting them onto your dining table. Check out this video below to see all the nitty-gritty behind harvesting the cave nests and U’ll certainly starts to appreciate the astronomical price of this delicacy.
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Fortunately for all of us, there are numerous brands of pre-prepared bottled Blood Bird’s Nest. While the authenticity or quality is questionable (just The VianD’s two cents, no intention of inviting any trouble), there are much cheaper and also without having to go thru the hassle of preparing the raw ones. Now, U can obviously take this straight from the bottle but The VianD like to spruce them a little, sort of giving them a little more flavors as Blood Bird’s Nest should be..😉. A cheaper and lazy alternate way to enjoy a bowl of aromatic Blood Bird’s Nest, if U like – even though U may not have as much Blood Bird’s Nest as U would like..😂. –
For the price paid, one might expect the most incredibly gastronomic experience, ya??? Welll.., in fact, the Blood Bird’s Nest has very little flavor on it’s own, and its gelatinous texture might even be forgettable. But then again, what you’re paying for – is the rarity of the product and centuries of traditional culture, belief and perhaps superstition.
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Now, let’s elaborate a little on how to enrich a pre-prepared bottled Blood Bird’s Nest. The VianD was led to believe that the bottled stuff is rather bland and really does not taste very good. Here’s what The VianD did – get a few Red Dates (Jujube), a few slices of thinly sliced Ginger and a couple of block rock sugar (preference of sweetness). Bring some water to boil, add all the three Ingredients, turn heat low to simmer and render down to make a syrup – this will allow the Jujube and Ginger to diffused its natural mild flavors and aroma. Really, it has to be of syrup consistency so that U do not further dilute the already watery bottled stuff..😁. Mix the bottled Blood Bird’s Nest with the syrup in a serving bowl and steam for about a min or two – just to warm it up. U really do not want to steam any longer than that as a further introduction of heat to the already processed bottled stuff will further disintegrate/dilute the relatively small amount of Blood Bird’s Nest.
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If U do the above, U’ll be rewarded with a bowl of aromatic and sweet Blood Bird’s Nest dessert (barring a relatively small amount of Blood Bird’s Nest). Here’s The VianD’s rendition of “Bottled Blood Bird’s Nest (With A Tweak)” – done in less than 10 minutes.
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IngredientS

• Bottled Blood Bird’s Nest.
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• A few Red Dates (Jujube), a few slices of thinly sliced Ginger and a couple of block rock sugar (preference of sweetness).

MethoD

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• Making the syrup – Start by bringing some water (just abt an inch covering above the Jujube) to boil, add all the three Ingredients, turn heat low to simmer and render down to make a syrup – this will allow the Jujube and Ginger to diffused its natural flavors and aroma. Set aside.
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• Steaming the Blood Bird’s Nest – Mix the bottled Blood Bird’s Nest with the syrup in a serving bowl and steam for about a min or two – just to warm it up. U really do not want to steam any longer than that as a further introduction of heat to the already processed bottled stuff will further disintegrate/dilute the relatively small amount of Blood Bird’s Nest. Viola, ur bowl of aromatic and sweet “Blood Bird’s Nest” dessert (barring a relatively small amount of Blood Bird’s Nest) is ready to be served hot.