Lamb Stir-Fry with Potatoes and Pine Nuts

Chinese dishes always catch my attention, especially when they involve the use of unusual ingredients or give nods to regional cuisine. This particular dish -- Lamb Stir-Fry with Potatoes and Pine Nuts -- checks off both boxes. 

First, there are the pine nuts. That happens to be an ingredient that I do not use very often in my cooking. It is also an ingredient that I did not associate with Chinese cuisine. I was wrong on that point. There are quite a few dishes across trhe various Chinese regions that incorporate pine nuts, including dishes from my favorite region, culinarily speaking, Sichuan. 

That brings me to the other ingredients featured in this lamb recipe, namely, Chinese chile oil and red Sichuan pepper oil. The reason why I love Sichuan cuisine is the use of peppers to create spicy dishes. Most of the Sichuan dishes that I have made to date -- from Qiatou Yi Nen to Jiaoma Jipian -- feature chicken. So, cooking with lamb was a nice change of pace. 

The oils presented some challenge, at least when it came to acquiring them. I had some difficulty finding in them in Asian markets, although the difficulty was greater when it came to the red Sichuan pepper oil.  I also spent some time looking online; however, my relative unfamiliarity with a lot of the websites and products made me a little reluctant to try to the oils. Eventually, I took a risk and I think the dish turned out well. 

In the end, this dish got me thinking about going back to some of my cookbooks, especially the one by Jeffrey Alford and Naomi Duguid, Beyond the Great Wall. There may be more of those recipes to come. Only time will tell ....

LAMB STIR-FRY WITH POTATOES AND PINE NUTS

Recipe from Saveur

Serves 2

Ingredients:

• 3 tablespoons vegetable oil, divided
• 2 tablespoons soy sauce, divided
• 1 tablespoon Shaoxing wine
• 1 teaspoon sugar, divided
• 1/2 teaspoon cornstarch
• 9 ounces boneless lamb leg, cut into 1 1/2inch by 1/4 inch strips
• 1 Yukon Gold potato, peeled and thinly sliced
• 2 tablespoons red Sichuan pepper oil
• 1 1/2 teaspoon oyster sauce
• 1/2 teaspoon sesame oil
• 1 tablespoon finely chopped garlic
• 1 1/4 teaspoon finely chopped fresh ginger
• 2 scallions, coarsely chopped
• 1 medium onion, thinly sliced
• 1-2 tablespoons Chinese chile oil (optional)
• 2 tablespoons pine nuts, toasted
• Chopped cilantro, for serving

Directions:

1. Prepare the lamb. In a medium bowl, stir together 1 1/2 teaspoons of vegetable oil, 1 tablespoon of soy sauce, the Shaoxing wine, 1/2 teaspoon of the sugar and corn starch. Add the lamb and turn to coat, then cover and refrigerate for 40 minutes or up to 24 hours. 

2. Prepare the potato. In a medium pot, cook the potato until tender yet firm, about 2-3 minutes, then drain and set aside. 

3. Prepare the sauce. In a small bowl, stir together half of the Sichuan pepper oil, 1 tablespoon of the vegetable oil, the oyster sauce, sesame oil and the remaining soy sauce and sugar. Set aside. 

4. Cook the dish. Place a large wok or skillet over high heat. When it is hot, add 1 tablespoon of the vegetable oil and add the lamb and stir-fry until browned, 2-3 minutes. Transfer to a bowl. To the empty wok, add the remaining vegetable oil, the garlic, ginger, and scallions and stir-fry until fragrant, 30-60 seconds. Add the onion and cook until tender 3-4 minutes. Add the reserve potato and continue stir-frying until browned at the edges, about 3 minutes. Add the reserved lamb, leaving any juices in the bowl, and the Sichuan oil mixture and stir-fry to coat, about 2 minutes. Stir in the chile oil (if using), then transfer to a platter.

5. Finish the dish. Top with the remaining Sichuan pepper oil, pine nuts and cilantro. Serve hot with white rice. 

PEACE.

Macanese Pork Chop Bun

"The product of genius."

-- Anthony Bourdain

A fried pork chop served on a buttered Portuguese roll. One of the most favorite foods of Anthony Bourdain, which is a point that he clearly made during his visit to Macau back in 2011. It is, as Anthony says, a "distinctly Macanese creation, which will live in history." That history is said to have begun at Tai Lei Loi Kei, which is known for having created the Pork Chop Bun and been the place to eat it for more than fifty years. Although I am unable to make my way down the non-descript alley in Taipa Village to sample the original, I can try to make an adequate substitute in my own kitchen. 

To get a better understanding of what we are working with, it is best to start with the original. Tai Lei Loi Kei uses a "Brazilian pork chop," which they claim to be more tender and flavorful than other pork cuts. With some marinade and manual pounding, the end result is a pork chop that is, in their words, "flavor and tenderful." Once fried, the pork chop is placed on a marraqueta bun.

While the pork chop bun is definitely Macanese, its inspiration is unquestionably Portuguese. The island of Macau was a Portuguese colony from 1557 until 1999. Over 440 years of colonization left its mark on the island. That can be seen in the cuisine, which is perhaps one of the most cosmopolitan cuisines in the world. (I have previously posted on this subject when I prepared Galinha a Africana or African Chicken, a Macanese dish that pulls together influences from around the world.) It can also be seen in the Pork Chop Bun, which follows in the culinary footsteps of the Portuguese bifana, a pork on a bun sandwich that is said to have originated in Vendas Novas, a city southeast of Lisbon. The bifana takes on many forms across Portugal, but none of them are the Pork Chop Bun. The Chinese influences can be found in the use of Shaoxing wine, soy sauce and five-spice powder. 

The Pork Chop Bun does not have any standard toppings. One can add tomato, onions, lettuce, or sauces, but none are required to complete the experience. In some respects, just the pork chop and the bun are enough.

MACANESE PORK CHOP BUN

Recipe from Omnivore's Cookbook

Serves 4

Ingredients:

• 4 thin sliced, bone-in or boneless pork rib chops, 1 cm or 1/2 inch thick
• 2 tablespoons light soy sauce (or soy sauce)
• 2 tablespoons Shaoxing wine (or Japanese sake)
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/8 teaspoon five-spice powder
• 4 Portuguese bread rolls
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 1 tomato, sliced
• 1 onion sliced
• Lettuce leaves
• Mayonnaise, ketchup or mustard, optional

Directions:

1. Marinate the pork. Combine the soy sauce, Shaoxing wine, garlic, sugar, black pepper, salt adn five-spice powder. Place pork chops in a large Ziploc bag. Pour in marinade. Squeeze as much air out as possible and seal. Massage the bag so that both sides of the pork are coated with the marinade. Marinate in the fridge for at least 1 hour, preferably overnight. 

2. Prepare the buns. Right before cooking, slice the Portuguese bread rolls.

3. Cook the bun and pork. Heat a cast iron pan over medium heat until hot. Cook the cut sides of the Portuguese bun until browned. Pat the pork chops dry with paper towel and lightly season with sea salt. Add 2 tablespoons of oil to the same cast iron pan. Place a pork chop into the pan and press with a spatula so the chop will stay flat during cooking. When the first pork chop has cooked for about a minute, place another chop and press it with the spatula, repeating the process for each chop. Cook until both sides are evenly browned and the internal temperature reaches 145 degrees Fahrenheit.

4. Finish the dish. Place the pork chop on the bottom part of the roll. Add lettuce and tomato, if desired, place top part of roll on top. Skip the condiments and eat immediately. 

PEACE.

Mala BBQ Wings

Mala sauce originates in China's Sichuan province,which is known for its spicy cuisine. The name, mala, means numbing and spicy; and, in the context of this sauce, it refers to the use of chiles and Sichuan peppercorns. The sauce is typically prepared by combining those ingredients, along with tobanjiang, ginger, garlic, shallots, sesame oil, and other spices.  Once completed, mala is typically served alongside other dishes, as a condiment or dipping sauce. 

This rather unique sauce inspired me, as part of my Wings Around the World project, to create a mala wing sauce. This required more research, because the typical sauce would not work very well. It is more of a brothy type of sauce, which would have a hard time holding itself to the chicken wings. Moreover, some versions use oil, which, in my humble opinion, would not provide a very pleasant wing-eating experience. I am not a big fan of wing dripping in oil, even if that oil is so spicy that I would not know it because the Sichuan peppercorns had numbed my tongue. 

I eventually found a recipe for a mala barbecue sauce, which was served in connection with pork spare ribs (mala paigu). Obviously, barbecue sauces have the great texture for wings. Most restaurants that serve wings usually offer a barbecue sauce option. Yet, unlike a standard barbecue sauce, this mala barbecue sauce balances the five elements: salty (or han in the Sichuan dialect), sweet (tian), sour (suan), hot or pungent (la) and bitter (ku). (For more about the balance of flavors, check out my Laozi Iniative, which is part of The Mindfulness Foodways.) The sweet comes from the sugar and sweet wheat paste, the bitter comes from the black vinegar, while the hot or pungent comes  and Sichuan peppercorns and the doubanjiang, and the salt comes from the hoisin sauce and a little from the Shaoxing wine. 

I prepared the sauce (a picture of it is to the right). I placed the wings in a ziploc bag, added about 2/3 of the sauce and mixed the wings to ensure that they were covered. I allowed the wings to marinate for about 15 minutes or so (you can obviously go longer if you would like, but put the wings in the refrigerator if you do so). I then broiled/roasted the wings in the oven for about 30 minutes. Once they were done, I moved the wings to the bowl and tossed them with the remaining 1/3 of the mala sauce. 

In the end, I have to say that this sauce was not as spicy or as numbing as I had expected after reading many articles about Mala sauce. That is probably a good thing for everyone else, given my love for really spicy foods means that, if I found it spicy, it would probably be too hot for everyone else. It could also be the result of the balance of flavors that I mentioned above. This allowed the sweet and bitter, to shine as much as the spicy/numbing. These wings were very good. I count them as a success in my efforts to globalize buffalo wings. Until next time ....

MALA BBQ WINGS

Recipe from The Mala Market

Serves 3-4

Ingredients:

• 12 chicken wings (drummettes and flats)
• Kosher salt
• Freshly ground black pepper
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• 2 tablespoons doubanjiang (chile bean paste)
• 2 tablespoons tianmianjiang (sweet wheat paste)
• 2 tablespoons Chinese dark soy sauce
• 2 tablespoons Shaoxing wine
• 2 tablespoons Zhenjiang black vinegar
• 2 teaspoons hoisin sauce
• 2 teaspoons Chinese roasted sesame oil
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground Sichuan pepper
• 2 tablespoons honey

Directions:

1. Prepare the sauce. Place the chile bean paste on a cutting board and mince it with a knife to break down any whole beans. Add it to a small bowl with the sweet wheat paste, vinegar, dark soy sauce, Shaoxing wine, hoisin, sesame oil and ground Sichuan pepper and stir to combine. You could add all of the ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth as an alternative. 

2. Prepare the wings. Place the wings in a ziplock bag. Add about 2/3 of the sauce to the bag and mix so that the wings are covered with the sauce. Allow the wings to rest for about 15 minutes, if you want to marinate them longer, place them in the refrigerator for a couple of hours. 

3. Cook the chicken wings. Heat a grill on medium high heat or the broiler of an oven. Rinse the chicken wings and pat them dry. Season with salt and pepper. Oil the grates of the grill (if using) and place the chicken wings on the grill.  Grill or roast for about seven minutes and then flip the wings, grilling them for about seven minutes more. 

4. Finish the dish. Once the wings reach an internal temperature of 165 degrees Fahrenheit, remove them from the grill. Add the wings to a large bowl and pour the rest of the sauce over the wings. Toss the wings to ensure that the sauce covers all of the wings. 

PEACE.

Yangrou Chuan

For all that it may do, China cannot erase the influences of those who practice Islam (namely, the Uyghurs) on both the people ... and their food. This influence is most noticeable when it comes to chuan or chuan'r. It is a dish that begins with small pieces of a protein, usually lamb, which are heavily seasoned with ground cumin and chiles. The seasoned meat is threaded onto skewers and then roasted over hot coals. The end product resembles the kebabs that are seemingly omnipresent throughout the Muslim world. 

These particular kebabs originated within, and quintessentially associated with, the Uyghur communities who live in Xinjiang, which is located in the northwest corner of China. The Uyghurs are currently the victims of a concerted effort to erase their culture and history. I have previously posted about this effort, as well as its impact upon Uyghur cuisine. I am not going to repeat what I discussed in that post. But, the subject of chuan brings me back to this discussion, because it is a subject of how aspects of a culture can be accepted and even incorporated into a larger body even while that culture is ruthlessly repressed. 

The spread of chuan throughout northern and eastern China tells a familiar story. The preparation of these kebabs began to spread as the Chinese -- especially those who lived in Beijing -- learned that the skewers were not just delicious, but a good eat after a long night on the nightlife scene.  Small food carts started appearing in the nighttime at night-time stalls, known as da pai dang, serving those who had spent the night partying in the clubs. In other words, the food of the Uyghurs has been accepted into the "mainstream," while other aspects of their culture, such as their religion, their language and their traditions, have not. 

To be clear, this situation -- where certain aspects of a culture have been accepted into the "mainstream" while the culture itself has not -- is not unique to the Uyghurs in China. Indeed, if one looked hard enough (which really is not that hard at all), one can see aspects of Native American culture that have been accepted into mainstream American culture while the Native Americans themselves were forced over the course of our history onto reservations. 

In my humble opinion, it is important to ensure that everyone knows and understands the history behind the foods that they enjoy.  It is equally important that, where this history is troublesome and difficult, people acknowledge the issues and work to make positive changes. Put another way, education will hopefully help to prevent these historical issues from repeating themselves. 

YANGROU CHUAN

Recipe from Serious Eats

Serves 4

Ingredients:

• 1 tablespoon red chile flakes
• 1 tablespoon whole cumin seeds
• 2 teaspoons whole fennel seed
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 2 teaspoons granulated garlic
• 2 pounds of boneless lamb shoulder or leg, cut into 1 inch pieces
• 1 tablespoon vegetable or canola oil
• 2 teaspoons Shaoxing wine (or rice wine)

Directions:

1. Prepare the marinade. In a mortar and pestle or spice grinder, coarsely grind chile flakes, cumin and fennel.  Add granulated garlic and kosher salt and briefly grind to break salt into smaller pieces and thoroughly combine ingredients. reserve 1 tablespoon of the spice mix in a small bowl.  Add lamb to a large bowl and toss thoroughly with the remaining spice mix, oil and Shaoxing wine (or rice wine0.

2. Prepare the grill. Light a chimney of charcoal or a gas grill to medium high hear.  When the charcoal is lit and covered with gray ash, pour out and arrange the coals on one side of the charcoal grate. Set cooking grate in place, cover grill and allow to preheat for 5 minutes.  Clean and oil the grate. 

3. Grill the skewers. Grill skewers, covered, over indirect heat until lamb is nearly cooked through, about four minutes per side.  Move skewers over direct heat, sprinkle with the reserved spice mix and cook until well seared on both sides, about 1 minute total. 

4. Finish the dish.  Remove the skewers from the gas grill and serve right away. 

ENJOY!