1. Soak bird's nest.

2. Bring stock to a boil. Add soaked bird's nest and simmer, covered, 30 minutes.

3. Meanwhile mince chicken. Mix with sherry and the second quantity of cold stock until smooth; then blend in egg whites.

4. Mince scallion. Blend cornstarch and remaining cold stock to a paste.

5. Add salt to heated stock, then chicken mixture, stirring constantly to blend well.

6. Stir in cornstarch paste to thicken stock. Sprinkle with scallion and serve.

The stock should be clear and rich with no trace of fat. A concentrated stock can be prepared by cooking a 3-pound chicken in 8 cups of water. (The bird may be served as white cut chicken at the same meal.) Variations:

1. In step 3, mince the chicken as in "Chicken Velvet", adding water instead of stock one drop at a time (see recipe). Then add to the cornstarch paste 1 tablespoon sherry. Add the paste after the salt in step 5, and when the soup thickens, remove pan from heat and pour in chicken mixture in a thin stream, stirring gently to blend. Garnish with scallion.

2. Omit the cornstarch paste. After adding the salt in step 5, remove pan from heat and stir in chicken mixture. Return to stove for a moment to reheat. Garnish with scallion.

3. Instead of adding the egg whites in step 3, stir them in after step 5 to thicken the soup. Omit the cornstarch paste.

4. For the minced scallion garnish, substitute 1/4 cup smoked ham, shredded or minced; or 4 snow peas, blanched and shredded.

From <The Thousand Recipe Chinese Cookbook>, Isbn 0-517-65870-4. Downloaded from Glen's Mm Recipe Archive, http://www. Erols. Com/hosey.