Recipe - Deep-Fried Shrimp Balls With Celery Sauce

1 pound Shrimp
2 Slices, thin ginger, fresh
1 cl Garlic
1 Stalk, goodsized celery,
Very crisp and fresh
1 teaspoon Light soy sauce
1 tablespoon Oyster sauce
1 tablespoon Vodka
3 tablespoon Chicken broth
1 tablespoon Cornstarch
1 teaspoon Salt
1 tablespoon Cornstarch
2 cup Oil, for deepfrying
Lettuce leaves

Devein the shrimp. Chop the shrimp very finely, almost into a paste. Mince
the ginger and garlic; keep them separate. Peel the tough strings from the
celery stock; slice it at angle into pieces about 1/4inch thick.

In a small bowl, combine the soy sauce, oyster sauce, vodka, chicken broth,
and 1 tablespoon of the cornstarch. Reserve this mixture.

In another mixing bowl, combine the shrimp with half of the minced ginger
and half of the minced garlic; add the salt and the remaining tablespoon of
cornstarch. Mix well, and with lightly moistened hands form this mixture
into balls about 1inch in diameter.

Heat the oil to 350 degree F and deepfry the shrimp balls 6 at a time.
Drain the balls on paper towels and them keep warm. Put 1 tablespoon of the
hot oil from the deepfry pan in a wok and stirfry the remaining ginger
and garlic until it turns golden; add the celery and stirfry quickly for
about for about a half a minute. Add the reserved sauce mixture and stir
until it thickens.

On a plate, make a bed of lettuce leaves and arrange the shrimp balls on
it, pour the sauce over the shrimp balls and serve hot. Makes 6 to 8
appetizer servings. Recipe: "Chinese Appetizers" by Verdi
Published by Irene Chalmers Cookbooks, 1981