Stir Fried Bamboo Shoots with Pork 竹筍炒肉絲

竹筍炒肉絲

I am pulling another recipe out of my new Hakka cookbook. Though to be honest the first time I had this rather homely dish was in a Amis aboriginal household. Stir Fried Bamboo Shoots with Pork (竹筍炒肉絲 zhú sǔn chǎo ròu sī, or as it is in called in Hakka zùg sùn càu ngìug) is a pretty common dish and a popular one on our table. It is also really simple and pretty inexpensive, which is probably why it is so common, well, other than it tastes good.

The Amis, or at least the Amis I know, like to leave the bamboo shoots a little on the bitter side, which is not an option if you get yours precooked. And most other recipes I’ve come across call for more salt than this one does (which actually calls for none). If you would prefer you can add a bit of soy sauce to season the dish, but don’t go overboard.

As for bamboo, really you can use whatever bamboo shoots you have, but I really like (and the recipe calls for) 桂竹筍 (guì zhú sǔn) a.k.a. makino bamboo shoots. If you are lucky you can get them precooked and vacuum packed in your local Chinese market. If not I just go with whatever bamboo shoots I can come by. The pork this recipe calls for is hind leg, i.e. picnic shoulder. Which is what I use, because it is cheap, but any lean pork will do.

Recipe:

• 500 g./~1 lb. boiled bamboo shoots 桂竹筍
• 200 g./7 oz. lean pork 後腿肉
• 3 cloves garlic, minced 蒜頭
• 2 green onions, sliced 青蔥
• 1/2 chili pepper, sliced 辣椒
• 20 g. (small knob) ginger, shredded 薑
• 1 T. corn starch mixed with 3 T. water 太白粉水
• 1 t. sugar 砂糖
• dash of white pepper 白胡椒粉
• 1 T. sesame oil 香油
• 1 T. rice wine 米酒
• 1 T. soy sauce 豆醬

marinade

• 1 t. corn starch 太白粉
• 1 t. soy sauce 醬油
• 1 t. sesame oil 香油
• 1 t. rice wine 米酒

Method：

1. Cut the lean pork into thin strips, mix with the marinade ingredients (cornstarch, soy sauce, sesame oil, and rice wine) and let sit for at least 10 minutes.
2. Cut the bamboo shoots into about 2 inch long segments and then roughly cut the segments into strips.
3. Add 1 T. oil to a hot wok. Then add the marinated pork strips and stir fry over high heat until nicely browned.
4. Then add the bamboo shoots stir fry for a minute. Then add the minced garlic, sliced green onions, sliced chili pepper and shredded ginger. Stir fry for another minute or so until fragrant.
5. Then add the soy sauce, sugar, white pepper, sesame oil, and rice wine. Stir to combine then finally add the cornstarch and water mixture. Stir fry for a about 30 seconds until the sauce has thickened and coats the bamboo evenly.
6. Plate and serve.

 

Hakka New Years Dragon, Hakka Cultural Center, Taipei

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