Tieguodan, iron pot egg

Soak two dried shiitakes and six dried shrimps in cool water at least three hours, or overnight. Keep the soaking liquid.

Squeeze the shiitakes, snip off the stems and dice both the shiitakes and the shrimps.

Fry the diced shiitake and shrimp, season with half a teaspoon of soy sauce and an eighth of a teaspoon of sugar, and set aside. Any add-in works here, such as marinated pork, shrimp or sea cucumber.

Beat seven eggs with 200ml of the soaking liquid, half a teaspoon of salt, a quarter teaspoon of sugar, an eighth of a teaspoon of white pepper and a quarter teaspoon of chicken bouillon powder, until no stray strands of white remain.

Heat the pot over a high flame, swirl in a tablespoon and a half of lard, and add a third of the egg. Once the edges set, scrape and stir.

Add the second third, stir the same way, then the final third, then the add-ins.

Transfer to an upper rack of an oven preheated to 230 centigrade and bake 12 minutes, until a brown crust forms.

Drizzle a little dark Chinese vinegar around the sides of the pot.