Oyster Sauce Bitter Melon Beef (蠔油苦瓜牛肉, Hou4 Jau4 Fu2 Gwaa1 Ngau4 Juk6)

This was a taste combination that I thought would not work together – oyster sauce and bitter melon. I thought the flavors would clash, but after making the dish, I can say that this was not the case. The combination tastes pretty good together when combined with beef and Shiitake mushrooms. I think this works because of the slight sweetness of the oyster sauce and the bitterness of the bitter melon complimenting each other. You have to like the taste of bitter melon for this recipe to be a success in your kitchen.

Enjoy!

Grilled Chili Garlic Sauce Hard Apple Cider Black Pepper Turkey Wings (燒烤蒜蓉辣椒酱蘋果酒黑椒火雞翼, Siu1 Haau1 Syun3 Jung4 Laat6 Ziu1 Zoeng3 Ping4 Gwo2 Zau2 Hak1 Ziu1 Fo2 Gai1 Jik6)

I used a bottle of hard apple cider, chili garlic sauce, and soy sauce as the basis for the marinade for this grilled turkey wing recipe. You can of course use regular apple cider in place of the hard apple cider; just use whatever’s available. The marinade is discarded and freshly ground black pepper is used to coat the turkey before grilling.

Enjoy!

Black Pepper Sauce Kurobuta Pork Chow Mein (黑椒汁豬肉炒麵, Hak1 Ziu1 Zap1 Zyu1 Juk6 Caau2 Min6)

Here’s another recipe using Kurobuta (aka Berkshire) pork, which is a heritage breed with more flavor. The last recipes to use Kurobuta pork were made with spareribs in a clay pot: Clay Pot Black Bean Sauce Kurobuta Pork Spareribs (砂煲豆豉豬排骨, Saa¹ Bou¹ Dau⁶ Si⁶ Zyu¹ Paai⁴ Gwat¹) and Clay Pot Basil Pork Sparerib and Fish Ball (砂煲紫蘇魚蛋豬排骨, Saa¹ Bou¹ Zi² Sou¹ Jyu⁴ Daan⁶ Zyu¹ Paai⁴ Gwat¹). This recipe uses thinly sliced Kurobuta pork butt in a stir fry noodle dish. Regular pork butt sliced thinly can be used if Kurobuta is not available at your local Asian market.

I was asked recently about making the dishes found on this blog when a particular manufacturer’s brand was specified in the recipe. If you notice in the ingredient list where a brand is specified, I specify a brand and add the words “or equivalent”. For this recipe, I’ve specified Lee Kum Kee’s brand of Black Pepper Sauce. Lee Kum Kee is not the only manufacturer of Black Pepper Sauce, so while it is the brand I use, feel free to substitute another manufacturer’s Black Pepper Sauce (which would be the “or equivalent) that’s easily available to you. Adapt your recipe to use the local ingredients and brands, and don’t worry about using the exact brand specified.

Enjoy!

Green String Beans with Dried Shrimp and Japanese Chilies (日本指天椒蝦米青豆角, Jat6 Bun2 Zi2 Tin1 Ziu1 Haa1 Mai5 Ceng1 Dau6 Gok3)

This is actually a very easy dish to make and is made with a minimal amount of sauce. There are three principal ingredients: green string beans, dried shrimp, and whole dried Japanese chilies. Green string beans are a common enough ingredient that can be obtained at any local market. The dried shrimp can be purchased at your local Asian market (usually from the refrigerated section). In this case, I used the smallest sized dried shrimp available, but you can use whatever sized dried shrimp that you have. Finally the last principal ingredient is the dried whole Japanese chili peppers.

The dried whole Japanese chili peppers were purchased at my local Mexican market, which are similar to the more common Chile de árbol peppers (which have more heat to them). The dried Japanese chili peppers aren’t mind numbing hot like the dried red chilies that you can purchase at your local Asian market. While there is some heat, the chilies are more flavorful than hot. The whole Japanese chilies make the dish very spicy without being overly hot, but you can substitute the Asian red chilies if you really like the mind numbing hotness. Ground pork (actually any ground meat) can also be added to this dish.

Enjoy!

Clay Pot Black Bean Sauce Kurobuta Pork Spareribs (砂煲豆豉豬排骨, Saa1 Bou1 Dau6 Si6 Zyu1 Paai4 Gwat1)

Here’s another clay pot recipe using pork spareribs. The first recipe was Clay Pot Basil Pork Sparerib and Fish Ball (砂煲紫蘇魚蛋豬排骨, Saa¹ Bou¹ Zi² Sou¹ Jyu⁴ Daan⁶ Zyu¹ Paai⁴ Gwat¹). This time the recipe uses Kurobuta (aka Berkshire) pork, which is a heritage breed with more flavor. Regular pork spareribs can be used if Kurobuta is not available at your local Asian market. Clay pots need to be prepared before using for the first time to prevent cracking. I used this website for advice: Clay Pot Use and Maintenance Tips at Chinese Soup Pot. Since the pork spareribs take some time to cook and to cook the dish all at once, the other ingredients used were chosen to hold up to the cooking time (the green onions are added after cooking is complete).

The pork spareribs are placed into the clay pot first after being stir fried. Since the pork spareribs are in contact with the clay pot during cooking, the meat gets an added flavorful crust that cannot be obtained by just stir frying. I’ve seen some recipes where the browning is done in the clay pot, rather than a wok, but using high heat with a clay pot can crack it, so I used the wok for browning. Another advantage of using a clay pot is that it also serves as the serving dish and keeps the contents hot.

Enjoy!

Black Bean Chili Oil Green String Bean Shabu Shabu Beef Stir Fry (黑豆辣椒油青豆角炒涮涮锅牛肉, Hak1 Dau6 Laat6 Ziu1 Jau4 Ceng1 Dau6 Gok3 Caau2 Saan3 Saan3 Wo1 Ngau4 Juk6)

This recipe was updated on 30 Aug 2016. The Cantonese translation for Shabu Shabu was added to the title.

Shabu Shabu is a Japanese dish where thinly sliced meat is swished in a hot broth (the name coming from the noise the meat makes as it is moved through the broth) with chopsticks before dipping in a sauce and eating. I bought Shabu Shabu beef at my local Japanese market and used it in a stir fry instead. The quality of meat used to make Shabu Shabu beef is of high quality. The highest quality coming from Japanese Wagu or Kobe beef, where the marbling of the fat makes the meat melt in your mouth (and with a corresponding high price!). I’ve been fortunate enough to have this dish and that highest quality of beef when I traveled in Japan.

While I didn’t use that quality of beef for this dish, the American beef was still of high quality and was cut from the prime rib into thin slices. I usually use baking soda to tenderize the meat before marinating. In this case, there’s no need for baking soda since the beef quality is so good and it so thinly sliced. The beef is cut further into smaller strips to make it easier to eat in a stir fry dish. Using Shabu Shabu beef in a stir fry is similar to using other cuts of beef (like flank or flap meat), but since the beef is sliced so thinly, the cooking time is quicker. The mouth feel when the dish is eaten is also different because the beef has more surface area.

Enjoy!

Fermented Red Bean Curd Lamb Clay Pot (砂煲南乳羊肉, Saa1 Bou1 Naam4 Jyu5 Joeng4 Juk6)

This clay pot recipe uses lamb with fermented red bean curd and bean curd sticks. The combination is a classic Chinese dish and now that I have a clay pot, cooking the dish is just a matter of assembling the ingredients. I bought a clay pot recently and used it to make this dish. Clay pots need to be prepared before using for the first time to prevent cracking. I used this website for advice: Clay Pot Use and Maintenance Tips at Chinese Soup Pot.

Lamb stew meat was available at my local market, which usually is lamb shoulder or leg meat already cut into pieces. Purchasing already cut lamb meat saves a step in the preparation of this dish. The lamb is placed into the clay pot after being marinated, although if you’re in a hurry, marinating the meat can be skipped. Since the lamb meat is in contact with the clay pot during cooking, the meat gets an added flavorful crust that cannot be obtained by using a slow cooker. Another method to make this dish is to put cut cabbage or lettuce on the bottom of the clay pot before adding all the other ingredients. You will typically see this preparation when at restaurants. The clay pot is used as the serving dish and keeps the contents hot.

Enjoy!