Food Makes Me Happy

Dec 26, 2016

Asian Leafy Greens: Aromatic Mountain Tung Ho Stir-Fry in 5 Minutes

Mountain tung ho is one of the popular ingredients used in simple stir-fry or as one of the leafy veggies for hot pot. The texture is very tender and wilts like spinach, but it's the aroma that makes me crazy about mountain tung ho.

Almost celery-like with a light touch of peppery tone. Get the organic version whenever possible, some said that farmers tend to use more pesticides when growing mountain tung ho, I guess even bugs can't resist the charms of tung ho.

Mountain tong ho (山茼嵩) stir-fry in 5 minutes -

Ingredients?

2 big bundles mountain tung ho
4 garlic cloves
2 red chilies
2 tablespoons olive oil
Tiny pinch salt
Some fish sauce

How?

Peel and roughly chop the garlic cloves. Trim off the chili stems and slice diagonally. Gently rinse the mountain tung ho, soak in water if needed, and make sure the leafy greens stays dry before stir-frying.

Drizzle just enough olive oil to lightly coat the bottom of the pan. Turn to medium high to high heat and add in garlic, chilies, and a small pinch of salt. Cook till the garlicky aroma comes out but not burning the garlic pieces.

Add in the leafy greens and give it a quick stir-fry. Adjust the taste with fish sauce. This step should take less than one minute since tung ho wilts very fast, do not overcook it.

Using salt alone works fine too, but I always like that extra depth when using fish sauce as a flavoring agent. Just a few dashes go a long way.

Other quick Asian stir-fry recipes:

Dec 21, 2016

Scallion and Pork Stir Fry (蔥爆豬肉)

If you can get a hold of high quality scallion, such as the thick-looking, succulent kind from Japan or the aromatic version from Yilan Taiwan, without any hesitation, just buy it right away.

Acts as an aromatic ingredient, scallion itself can also be the protagonist of a Chinese stir-fry. So if you ever find good quality scallion at the market, give this recipe a try. You'll be amazed how sweet scallions can taste.

Scallion and pork stir fry -

Ingredients?

0.5 to 0.6 lb (250 grams) pork slices
1 big handful/about 3 bulbs scallion
2 to 3 garlic cloves
1 to 2 red chilies
1 tablespoon olive oil

Marinade:

2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon Chinese cooking wine
1/2 tablespoon sesame oil
Small pinch black pepper plus extra for garnish
Small pinch granulated sugar
Small pinch corn starch

How?

Mix together the ingredients under the "marinade" section and make sure the sugar has been dissolved. Add in the pork slices and massage the marinade into the meat. Marinate for about 15 minutes.

Trim off the stems from the scallion bulbs and chop the remaining into about 2 inch long sections. Separate the white and the green parts. Peel and roughly chop the garlic cloves. Trim off the chili stems and slice diagonally.

Drizzle 1 tablespoon of oil to the pan and turn to medium high heat. Add in the white sections of the scallion and sear till all sides turned slightly browned. Add in the garlic and chilies and cook till that wonderful garlicky aroma comes out, but not burnt.

Add in pork along with the marinade if there's any left, but should all be absorbed by the pork slices by now. Stir-fry once a while and sear till almost fully cooked through.

Add in the green sections of the scallion and give it a quick stir. Turn off the heat right away, otherwise you'll loose some of that vibrant green color. Plate and sprinkle some freshly ground black pepper before serving.

Obviously the key here is scallion. Use more scallion if desired, this recipe should work for up to 6 bulbs and no need to adjust the amount of seasonings.

Other Asian stir-fry recipes: