Wok Wednesdays | Stir-Fried Hoisin Pork with Peppers

WW's  wokking through Stir-frying to the Sky's Edge
by Grace Young

Well, wouldn't you know it - a recipe that calls for red bell pepper (those of you that read my posts, know that I always sub out green for red), and my market was out of them! Go figure.

 Mise en place.

Bowl 1: Pork, scallions, hoisin sauce, garlic, rice wine, ginger, soy sauce, salt, pepper, sesame oil

Bowl 2: Bell pepper, carrot

Bowl 3: Salt

Bowl 4: Scallions

Bowl 5: Rice vinegar

The amazing scent of the meat marinating was enticing, to say the least.

This was yet another super easy, super fast recipe. Prep was minimal - just slicing up a carrot, a bell pepper, shredding and mincing some scallions, and slicing up the pork. 

The pork gets mixed with the minced scallions, hoisin sauce, garlic, rice wine, ginger, soy sauce, salt, pepper, and sesame oil. Which reminds me, I need to remember to post a question on the WW Facebook page asking Grace (yes, the stir-fry guru herself answers our many questions) why the oil for the marinade(s) is added after mixing all the other ingredients - why not add it at the same time?

The pork only marinates for a short time; just long enough to finish prepping the rest of the ingredients; of course mine marinated a little longer, I had to gather just the right stuff for the photo shoot and get pics of the mise en place - important things, ya know?

The pork is cooked undisturbed in the wok for about one minute to add a nice sear, then stir-fried to brown the other side. The meat is removed, and the salt and vegetables get a quick toss until softened, the pork is added back along with shredded scallions and vinegar for another couple of minutes. Total cooking time.. maybe four to five minutes.

Like I said, super easy, super fast. You can't even order and pickup take-out that quick; hell, sometimes you get put on hold for longer than that. Besides, making it yourself is so much fresher, healthier, and better tasting.

by purchasing Grace Young's book Stir-Frying to the Sky's Edge, along with a 14" flat-bottom wok. 

 You'll be happy ecstatic that you did!

Both of these items can be purchased from The Wok Shop* in San Francisco, CA, in person or on-line.

* I have no connection with the Wok Shop, other than being an extremely satisfied customer!  I have purchased a couple of woks from them; one for myself, and others for family.

We are asked not to post the recipes here on our blog. If you would like the recipe, you will find it on page 94 of  Stir-Frying to the Sky's Edge, which you can purchase at your local bookstore or find it at your local library. I highly recommend purchasing the book - you won't be disappointed. 

Wok Wednesdays is an online cooking group. If you would like information about joining us, click here, or visit us on Facebook. Would love for you to wok along with us!

WW: Hot Pepper Beef

Wok Wednesdays wokking through Stir-Frying to the Sky's Edge
by Grace Young 





美味!
(Chinese)

Herkullista!
(Finnish)


Lecker!
(German)

Delizioso!
(Italian)


Utsökt! 
(Swedish)   



No matter what the language, it translates to delicious! 
                                                                                                                                                                                                 (English)


(Translations taken from Google Translate)

Mise en place

Bowl 1: flank steak, garlic, soy sauce, cornstarch, rice wine, s&p, water, sesame oil

Bowl 2: red onion, ginger, red pepper flakes

Bowl 3: bell pepper, zucchini (I had a lonely zuke hangin' in the fridge that needed using up - tossed that in. The recipe calls for green bell pepper, though Grace herself will sometimes use a mixture of green and red. Me, I always switch out green bells for red - a personal preference.)

Bowl 4: salt

Bowl 5: ketchup, hoisin sauce, rice wine

You start out by searing the meat first. Then remove from the wok and set aside.

Toss the aromatics (onion, ginger, red pepper flakes) till fragrant, add the vegetable(s). Stir-fry for about ten seconds, then return the meat with their juices to the wok, along with the salt and ketchup mixture, and heat till the meat is just cooked through.

 

Serve, and be delighted!

This dish has amazing flavor.

One rule of the Wok Wednesdays group is we are asked not to post the recipes here on our blog. If you would like the recipe, you will find it on page 85 of Stir-Frying to the Sky's Edge, which you can purchase at your local bookstore or find it at your local library. I highly recommend purchasing the book - you won't be disappointed. 

 

Wok Wednesdays is an online cooking group. If you would like information about joining us, click here, or visit us on Facebook. Would love for you to wok along with us!

 

 amazon

WW: Hong Kong-Style Mango Ginger Chicken

Wok Wednesdays wokking through Stir-Frying to the Sky's Edge
by Grace Young

When I saw this recipe on the schedule, excitement ensued. I love mangoes! Especially the manila mango which I used here. They must be the same type that Grace mentions in her book, her favorite being the ataulfo mango, for they too are buttery, and sweeter than the typical large red/orange mango you find in the local grocery store.

 manila mango

As you can see I once again switched out the green bell pepper for red. I am not very fond of the green bell; though I do use it when I make chili. I also mistakenly purchased skinless-boneless chicken thighs instead of breasts out of habit. We eat a lot of grilled chicken and prefer the more tender, moister, thigh meat over breast.

However, you will never have dry, tough, chicken breasts in any of your stir-fries again if you follow Grace's recipe for velveted chicken. Your meat is marinated in egg white, cornstarch, rice wine, and oil, and after a thirty minute chill in the refrigerator, it is par-boiled for a very short time in oiled water. It's an amazing process - you won't believe how tender and moist this makes the chicken.

You can read all about velvet stir-frying on page one-hundred of her book. This process not only works on chicken, but shrimp, scallops, beef, and pork as well. If you don't already have this fabulously awesome cookbook, you'll want to purchase a copy soon and give this technique a try, as well as stir-frying up other delicious recipes she shares.

The only change I would make the next time I make this, is to add extra red pepper flakes - I like my dishes on the spicy side.

Wok on my friends...

Success meter (1-3): 3

This deliciousness is comprised of ginger, garlic, red onion, bell pepper, chicken, salt, chicken broth, soy sauce, red pepper flakes, rice wine, cornstarch, and delectable mango.

 

One of the rules of the Wok Wednesdays group is we are asked not to post the recipes here on our blog. If you would like the recipe, you will find it on page 124 in Stir-Frying to the Sky's Edge, which you can purchase at your local bookstore or find it at your local library. I highly recommend purchasing the book - you won't be disappointed. 

Wok Wednesdays is an online cooking group. If you would like to join us or just want more information, click here or visit us on Facebook.

WW: Stir-Fried Ginger Beef and Summer Pepper Corn

WokWednesdays wokking through Stir-Frying to the Sky's Edge
by Grace Young


                                           The ginger beef is amazing!


This was another fabulous recipe from Grace Young! If you have not purchased a wok and her book, I so encourage you to do so. Now! Run, do not wok walk, to your nearest bookstore and grab her book and then order your wok from The Wok Shop! I do not know of another cookbook on my shelf that I have had so much success with other than Emily Luchetti's books ~ but those are on the baking spectrum.

I am amazed by the flavor of the dishes I have prepared so far. Tasting fish sauce and oyster sauce on their own is enough to turn me off. But combined with other ingredients, the finished stir-fries have a wonderful flavor. And making them at home, the taste is superior to anything you'll find at a Chinese restaurant.

Success meter (1-3): 3

Flank steak.

I was confused with the instructions of needing

a 1/4 cup (1 oz. approx.) of sliced pickled ginger.

I purchased fresh pickled ginger from the sushi dept.

 at the grocers. It came in a one ounce container and

was filled with thin shavings of ginger. I sliced those

into thin strips and the longer strips I cut in half.

I had way more than I needed. In the end I felt a

1/4 cup (as apposed to 1 oz.) was the perfect amount.

So few ingredients ~ yet amazing flavor!

Pickled ginger and scallions.

Sizzling away.

Absolutely fabulous!

The one thing I will do next time, is too cook the beef

a bit less. I think I may have over cooked it a smidge.

Now onto the Summer Pepper Corn!

Fresh corn from our local farm.

Their corn is so popular, they put out a

sign to let you know corn is available.

You will not find the recipe here on my blog or within the Wok Wednesdays community. We encourage readers to go and purchase this book at their local independent bookstore or on-line.

Make sure to visit my co-wokkers to see their results on this stir-fry.

Look for the LYL link on the Wok Wednesdays page.

Book Seventy-Five: Cooking Under Wraps

by Nicole Routhier


                   Molded Rice Salad Provençale

This has potential...

I really wanted to say this was as wonderful as it was beautiful; however the basil and the fishiness of the tuna were the dominate flavors. I always buy canned tuna in water, whereas this called for tuna in oil. I don't know if that makes a big difference in taste. I even left out the anchovies, and I still have an unpleasant aftertaste at the time of this writing. Personally I would use less basil and use tuna packed in water or omit it all together. Maybe add some zucchini or anything else you may have in your refrigerator.

As I was doing a name search on Nicole Routhier, I realized she is the author of The Fruit Cookbook which I have had wonderful results with the recipes from that book. I made one other recipe from this book (Cooking Under Wraps) which I recall was really tasty.

Success meter (1-3): 2

amazon

Rainbow Chard

Had a lot of filling leftover.