Lemon Black Pepper Sauce Fuzzy Melon Shabu Shabu Pork Loin Stir Fry (檸黑椒汁節瓜炒涮涮锅豬肉, Ning4 Hak1 Ziu1 Zap1 Zit3 Gwaa1 Caau2 Saan3 Saan3 Wo1 Zyu1 Juk6)

Here’s another stir fry dish using Shabu Shabu pork, which is thinly sliced pork and can be found at your local Japanese or Asian market. You can always substitute pork loin or butt cut into thin 2-inch (5 cm.) pieces if you’re unable to obtain Shabu Shabu pork. Juice from one lemon was added to a black pepper sauce to make this dish.

Enjoy!

Ingredients

1 lb.	500 g.	Shabu Shabu (thinly sliced) pork loin (涮涮锅豬肉, saan3 saan3 wo1 zyu1 juk6), cut into 2-inch (5 cm.) pieces
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
8	8	Dried Shiitake mushrooms (冬菇, dung1 gu1), rehydrated and cut into ½-inch (15 mm.) pieces
3 stalks	3 stalks	Green onions (葱, cung1), cut into ½-inch (15 mm.) pieces
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

1	1	Juice from one lemon
2 Tbs.	30 ml.	Lee Kum Kee brand Black Pepper Sauce (黑椒汁, hak1 ziu1 zap1) 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)
½ Tbs.	7.5 ml.	Sesame oil (麻油, maa4 jau4)
2 tsp.	10 ml.	Corn starch (粟粉, suk1 fan2)
4 tsp.	20 ml.	Water

Equipment

		Garlic press
		Lemon reamer
14 in.	35.5 cm.	Wok or pan

Preparation Instructions

Lee Kum Kee Brand Black Pepper Sauce
(黑椒汁, hak¹ ziu¹ zap¹)

1. Purchase or have your butcher cut pork loin into thin pieces. Thinly sliced pork can be purchased at your local Asian (Japanese) market for Shabu Shabu. Thinly sliced pork butt can also be substituted. There’s no need to use baking soda to tenderize the meat since the pork is sliced so thinly. Cut the pork into 2-inch (5 cm.) pieces.
2. Marinate the pork in a covered container 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. Pour boiling water over the small dried whole Shiitake mushrooms in a heat proof bowl and rehydrate the mushrooms for at least one hour. Remove the Shiitake mushrooms from the rehydration liquid and remove the stems. Cut the Shiitake mushrooms into ½-inch (15 mm.) pieces. Reserve the rehydration liquid for later use in the cooking process. If you need to rehydrate the Shiitake mushrooms quickly, use the method described here: Technique: How to Quickly Rehydrate Dried Shiitake Mushrooms (冬菇, Dung¹ Gu¹).
4. Scrape off the “fuzz” from the fuzzy melon by holding the melon in one hand and scraping a cleaver or knife in reverse over the skin of the fuzzy melon under running water. This means putting the cleaver at the half way point of the melon with the blade of the cleaver pointing towards you and while holding the cleaver almost parallel to the surface of the fuzzy melon, moving the cleaver away from you, scraping the skin of the fuzz. Reverse the fuzzy melon and repeat the procedure, scraping the fuzz off the other half. Cut the fuzzy melon into quarters lengthwise and then cut each melon quarter into ½-inch (15 mm.) pieces.
5. Crush the ginger and garlic in a garlic press, and put into the bowl.
6. Wash and cut the green onions into ½-inch (15 mm.) pieces.
7. Prepare and mix the sauce in a small bowl: add the lemon juice, Lee Kum Kee brand Pepper 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 before adding oil. Add the pork pieces to the wok in a single layer on the bottom and brown the outside. You may have to cook the pork in batches, so be sure to reheat the wok over high heat before adding more oil. Transfer the pork to a bowl.
2. Reheat the wok over high heat before adding oil and then the Shiitake mushrooms. Stir fry the mushrooms and then transfer to the bowl with the pork.
3. Reheat the wok over high heat before adding oil and then the fuzzy melon. Stir fry to brown the fuzzy melon. Add the bowl with the ginger and garlic mixture to the wok, and then some oil to the mixture. Quickly stir fry all the ingredients until the ginger and garlic become fragrant. Add the contents of the bowl with the pork back into the wok, and stir fry all the ingredients together.
4. Add the green onions and the sauce ingredients to the wok and stir fry the ingredients together. If more sauce is desired, add some of the mushroom rehydration liquid to the wok. 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 Clay Pot Rice (煲仔飯, Bou¹ Zai² Faan⁶) or steamed rice.