Fried Fish Cake and Ground Pork with Bean Sauce (豆瓣魚片豬肉, Dau6 Faan6 Jyu4 Pin3 Zyu1 Juk6)

Fried fish cake, sometimes labeled as fried fish tempura, is available already prepared in the refrigerated section of your local Asian market. Purchasing already prepared is the easiest way to make this dish, rather than frying the fish cakes yourself. The fish cakes are paired with ground pork, which is a classic preparation in Chinese cooking. The contrast in texture comes from the cloud ear fungus, which is slightly crunchy. In this particular case, strips of the fungus were used, but whole can also be substituted. As usual, red chili peppers are optional, but they add some color to the dish and some spiciness.

Enjoy!

Ingredients

1 lb.	500 g.	Fried fish cake (魚片, jyu4 pin3)
½ lb.	250 g.	Ground pork (豬肉, zyu1 juk6)
½ in.	15 mm.	Knob of ginger (薑, goeng1), crushed in a garlic press
2 cloves	2 cloves	Garlic (蒜, syun3), crushed in a garlic press
1 Tbs.	15 ml.	Corn starch (粟粉, suk1 fan2)
2 Tbs.	30 ml.	Soy sauce (豉油, si6 jau4)
1 Tbs.	15 ml.	Hoisin sauce (海鮮醬, hoi2 sin1 zoeng3)
2 Tbs.	30 ml.	Shaoxing rice wine (紹興酒, siu6 hing1 zau2) or dry sherry
½ tsp.	2.5 ml.	Ground white pepper (白胡椒, baak6 wu4 ziu1)
1 tsp.	5 ml.	Sesame oil (麻油, maa4 jau4)
1 lb.	500 g.	Fuzzy melon (節瓜, zit3 gwaa1), quartered and cut into ½-inch (15 mm.) pieces
1 oz.	1 oz.	Dried cloud ear fungus (雲耳, wan4 ji5), rehydrated – strips or whole
1	1	Small onion (洋蔥, joeng4 cung1), cut into ½-inch (15 mm.) pieces
3	3	Red serrano chili peppers (紅番椒, hung4 faan1 ziu1) – to taste
½ in.	15 mm.	Knob of ginger (薑, goeng1), crushed in a garlic press
2 cloves	2 cloves	Garlic (蒜, syun3), crushed in a garlic press
		Oil for cooking

 

Sauce Ingredients

2 Tbs.	30 ml.	Lian How brand bean sauce (豆瓣醬, dau6 faan6 zoeng3) or equivalent
2 Tbs.	30 ml.	Soy sauce (豉油, si6 jau4)
1 Tbs.	15 ml.	Hoisin sauce (海鮮醬, hoi2 sin1 zoeng3)
2 Tbs.	30 ml.	Shaoxing rice wine (紹興酒, siu6 hing1 zau2) or dry sherry
½ tsp.	2.5 ml.	Ground white pepper (白胡椒, baak6 wu4 ziu1)
1 tsp.	5 ml.	Sesame oil (麻油, maa4 jau4)
½ Tbs.	15 ml.	Corn starch (粟粉, suk1 fan2)
1 Tbs.	30 ml.	Water

 

Equipment

14 in.	35.5 cm.	Wok or pan

 

Preparation Instructions

Lian How Brand Bean Sauce

1. Pour boiling water over the dried cloud ear fungus (strips or whole) in a heat proof bowl and rehydrate the fungus for at least one hour. Remove the cloud ear fungus from the rehydration liquid and discard the liquid.
2. Marinate the ground pork for at least one hour or overnight in the refrigerator with the ginger and garlic crushed in a garlic press, corn starch, soy sauce, hoisin sauce, Shaoxing rice wine or dry sherry, ground white pepper, and sesame oil. If marinating the pork overnight, take it out of the refrigerator at least one hour before cooking.
3. Remove the prepared fried fish cake from the refrigerator at least one hour before cooking.
4. Wash and quarter lengthwise the fuzzy melon. Cut each quarter into ½-inch (15 mm.) pieces.
5. Remove the onion’s tough outer skin and cut into ½-inch pieces.
6. Crush the ginger and garlic in a garlic press and put into a small bowl.
7. Wash and cut the red chili peppers into ½-inch (15 mm.) pieces and place into the bowl with the crushed ginger and garlic. The amount of red chili peppers to use in this dish depends upon personal taste, so feel free to reduce or increase the amount.
8. Prepare and mix the sauce in a small bowl: add the Lian How brand bean sauce or equivalent, soy sauce, hoisin sauce, Shaoxing rice wine or dry sherry, ground white pepper, and sesame oil. In another small bowl, prepare the corn starch slurry by mixing the corn starch and water together.

Cooking Instructions

1. Heat a wok or pan over high heat and before adding oil. Add the onion pieces to the wok and brown them. Set the onion aside in a bowl.
2. Reheat the wok over high heat before adding oil. Add the ground pork to the wok in a single layer on the bottom and brown the outside, breaking up any clumps that form. You may have to cook the pork in batches, so be sure to reheat the wok over high heat before adding more oil. Set the pork aside in the bowl with the onion.
3. Reheat the wok over high heat before adding oil and then the fried fish cakes. Stir fry the fish cakes and then remove them to the bowl with the pork. The fish cakes are already cooked, so stir frying will be quick.
4. Reheat the wok over high heat before adding oil and then the cloud ear fungus. Stir fry the cloud ear fungus and then remove them to the bowl with the pork.
5. Reheat the wok over high heat before adding oil and then the bowl with the ginger, garlic, and red chilies. Quickly stir fry the ginger, garlic, and red chilies until fragrant before adding more oil and then the fuzzy melon. Stir fry the fuzzy melon before adding the contents of the bowl with the pork back into the wok. Stir fry all the ingredients together.
6. Add the sauce ingredients to the wok and stir fry the ingredients together. Add the corn starch slurry to thicken the sauce and mix all the ingredients together. Put the cooked ingredients into a serving dish and serve with steamed rice.