• 1/2 lb pork butt in one piece
  • 1 large carrot
  • 5 large jyo black mushrooms
  • 1 cube bean curd
  • 2 small dried red chili peppers, minced
  • 1/3 cup mushroom liquid
  • 1 tbsp thin soy sauce
  • 2 large cloves garlic, minced
  • 1 pinch sugar
  • 2 tsp fresh ginger root, minced
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 1 small bell pepper
  • 2 tbsp peanut oil
  • 1/4 cup bamboo shoots
  • cornstarch paste

Twice cooked pork with spicy vegetables is a delicious Chinese recipe that is quite simple to make. Here’s how to make it. In a saucepan, cover the pork butt with water, bring to a boil and simmer for 30 minutes. Add more hot water if level goes below pork. Cool pork in its cooking water.

Wash, then soak mushrooms in warm water for 1 hour. Squeeze the liquid from mushrooms, reserving liquid. Discard mushroom stems, and halve mushrooms. Halve, seed and core bell pepper, cut into pieces of about 1″ by 1 1/2″.

Now, slice the bamboo to match the bell pepper. Peel carrot, slice on bias into ovals. Remove the pork from cooking water and parboil carrots in the same water for 1 minute. Slice 2/3 of pork butt into rectangles – the same size as bell pepper.

Save remaining 1/3 for another dish. Strain mushroom liquid, combine specified amount with soy sauce, sugar and salt. Drain the bean curd, rinse in cold water and slice same size as bell pepper.

Stir-fry

Add oil to very a hot wok. When oil begins to smoke, stir-fry the mushrooms, garlic and ginger for one minute. Add in the bell pepper, bamboo shoots, carrots and pork – stir-fry for 1 minute. Add the bean curd along with mushroom liquid and bring to boil.

On a medium heat, cover wok and cook for 1-2 minutes, until bell pepper is bright green and crisp. Push ingredients up side of wok. Re-stir thick cornstarch paste, then dribble into liquid until it thickens. Cook briefly while stirring. Recombine with ingredients and then serve.

Twice cooked pork with spicy vegetables makes an ideal main dish or as an accompaniment.