Pork with Sichuan Chilli Oil Sauce

My 2nd recipe this week from the October 2014 issue of Olive magazine - moving from the Chettinad region of India to Chengdu in China and of course Sichuan cuisine: one of my favourites.

The recipes featured were taken from a cookbook called Hunan: A Lifetime of Secrets from Mr. Peng’s Kitchen. Confusingly the recipes therein are Sichuan in origin rather than Hunanese - the (co-)author, Mr Peng has a restaurant in Pimlico called Hunan, so-called it seems in homage to the man who taught him to cook, rather than the region.

Anyway, two recipes caught my eye - the first being for a Sichuan chilli “sauce” which to me resembled the chilli oil with sediment that I love to spoon over as much food as possible and then a dry pork dish, where the chilli sauce is used as a condiment.

The chilli sauce recipe makes quite a lot: which is fine by me as I poured the excess into a couple of little jars to keep and use as I like (edit: ahem - all now used up, which reminds me that I really must make some more), but you could possibly scale the ingredients down if you weren’t sure you would use as much as me. Be warned though it is FANTASTIC so if you do scale it down you may very well regret it.

You will also need to make some “garlic juice” for the pork marinade - simply crush 2 cloves of garlic and leave to steep in 100 ml of water for 20 minutes then strain and use the resultant allium scented water.

I was slightly disappointed by the pork but only in that mine didn’t look like the picture accompanying the recipe. I’m not sure why this was but I think it is down to one of 3 reasons (or a combination): I used quite a lot of oil in the frying but didn’t deep-fry as suggested; I didn’t dry the pork off as it came out of the marinade; I let it sit in the cornflour too long before frying. Don’t get me wrong, it was still delicious but didn’t have that hint of crispy batter that the pic showed.

But the sauce/oil more than made up that. Now to arrange a visit to the restaurant itself.


Sichuan Chilli Oil
Makes approx 300ml

4 tbsp dried red chilli flakes
200ml vegetable oil
2 tbsp Sichuan peppercorns, crushed
150ml chicken stock (you’ll use 6 tbsp + more possibly)
2 tsp tian mian jiang (sweet bean sauce or use hoisin)
2 tsp tomato purée
pinch of sugar
1 tsp white wine vinegar

Heat a wok and when it is very hot add one tablespoon of oil and the chilli flakes - be careful as there will probably be a lot of spitting and smoke. Not to mention sneezing.

As the chilli flakes absorb the oil add the rest of it, a tablespoon at a time until you have what resembles an oily paste. This will take 5-10 minutes.

The chilli flakes will darken considerably but be careful not to let it burn.

Take the wok off the heat and add the Sichuan peppercorns and 3 tablespoons of stock. Hold your nerve as it will sizzle and bubble up quite ferociously.

Stir through then put the wok back on the heat and add the sweet bean sauce, tomato purée, 3 more tablespoons of stock and a pinch each of salt and sugar.

Stir everything together well and add a bit more stock if you like but you need a thick yet runny sauce.

Finally add the white wine vinegar, stir through and remove from the heat. Reserve a couple of tablespoons to serve with the pork and carefully pour the rest (let it cool a bit) into a jar.

Pork with Sichuan Chilli Oil Sauce
serves 2

2 small boneless pork loin steaks, trimmed of fat, sliced into strips
100ml garlic juice (see note above)
2 tsp Shaoxing wine
2 tsp white wine vinegar
1 tsp Chinese 5-spice
2 tbsp cornflour
vegetable oil, for frying
1 long red chilli, finely sliced
2 cloves garlic, crushed
2 spring onions, sliced (the whole length, including greens)
a pinch of Sichuan peppercorns, crushed
2 tbsp Sichuan chilli sauce (as above)

Put the pork strips in a bowl with the garlic juice, Shaoxing wine, wine vinegar and 5-spice. Mix it all together well and set aside to marinate for 10 minutes.

Remove the pieces from the marinade and coat with the cornflour.

Heat a generous amount of oil in a wok and fry the pork until golden. When it is cooked, remove with a slotted spoon onto some kitchen paper on a plate.

Discard most of the oil and then quickly stir-fry the chilli, spring onion and garlic for a minute or so.

Return the pork to the wok and stir in the peppercorns and a pinch of salt.

Continue to stir-fry for another minute and then serve over plain rice with the Sichuan chilli oil sauce drizzled over.

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Black Bean Chicken & Dry-Fried Green Beans

Once again some Fuchsia Dunlop recipes here: slightly adapted in both cases and from “Every Grain of Rice” rather than Sichuan Cookery.

The black bean chicken is of Hunanese origin and employs two of its most distinctive seasonings: fermented black beans and chillies. On the other hand the dryfried green beans are from the Sichuan province and one that I have cooked many times before although from the aforementioned Sichuan Cookery. This is the vegetarian version from Every Grain of Rice where ya cai or preserved vegetable are used in place of minced pork for a savoury kick.


Black Bean Chicken
serves 2 with one other dish & rice

2 boneless chicken thighs, cut into 1-2cm cubes
1 small green pepper, cut into 1-2cm squares (to match the chicken)
2 tbsp groundnut oil
3 garlic cloves, peeled & sliced
20g ginger, peeled & sliced
2 tbsp fermented black beans, rinsed & drained
1 tsp ground chillies
salt
2 spring onions, green parts only, finely sliced
1 tsp sesame oil
For the marinade
1 tbsp Shaoxing wine
¼ tsp salt
1½ tsp potato flour
1 tsp light soy sauce
1 tsp dark soy sauce

Put the chicken pieces in a bowl with the marinade ingredients, mix well and set aside.

Heat a wok over a high flame and add ½ tbsp oil. Add the peppers and stir-fry until slightly cooked but still crisp. Remove with a slotted spoon and set aside.

Reheat the wok over a high flame and add the remaining groundnut oil. Swirl it around to coat the sides of the wok then add the marinated chicken and stir-fry until the pieces have separated.

Add the garlic and ginger and continue to stir-fry until they smell fragrant.

Add the black beans and stir around a few times.

Add the ground chillies and also return the peppers to the wok.

Continue to stir-fry until the chicken is just cooked through. Season to taste if necessary with a little salt then stir in the spring onion greens. Remove from the heat and stir in the sesame oil before serving.

Sichuanese Dry-Fried Green Beans
serves 2 with one other dish & rice

300g green beans, trimmed & halved
4 dried Facing Heaven (or other red chilli), snipped in half and seeds discarded
2 spring onions, white parts only, finely sliced
3 garlic cloves, finely sliced
20g ginger, peeled & finely sliced
2 tbsp Sichuan preserved vegetable, rinsed, drained & chopped (optional)
salt
1½ tbsp groundnut oil
½ tsp Sichuan pepper

1 tsp sesame oil

Blanch the beans until just tender in a pan of salted, boiling water. Drain thoroughly.

Heat a wok over a high flame and add the groundnut oil then the chillies and Sichuan pepper. Let them sizzle until the chillies have darkened (be very careful not to let them burn) and it all smells very fragrant.

Add the spring onion, garlic & ginger and stir-fry for a minute then add the preserved vegetable and stir a few times.

Add the blanched beans and stir-fry for a few minutes more over a fairly high heat until they are coated in the fragrant oil and puckered and browning in places.

Add salt to taste then stir in the sesame oil and serve.

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Dan Dan Mian

Dan dan mian or dan dan noodles originates from Sichuan cuisine so as is fairly easy to guess (since I make it pretty clear I’m a bit of a fangirl) I first spotted these in Fuchsia Dunlop’s Sichuan Cookery. They contain many things that I love: noodles (natch), spicy sauce, preserved vegetables, chilli sediment oil, Sichuan pepper and minced pork.

The noodles were originally made by Chengdu street vendors and the name refers to a type of bamboo shoulder-carrying pole (“dan” in Mandarin) that was used by walking street vendors who sold the dish to passers-by: the pole being over the shoulder with a basket at each end containing the noodles and sauce.

I’ve cooked them many times but for the purposes of the blog I did have a look at recipes by other chefs (such as Jamie Oliver and Ching-He Huang). Ultimately, as ever when it comes down to Chinese food for me, I came back to Dunlop: sometimes simple & straightforward really is best - and most authentic.

Dunlop herself publishes 3 versions of the noodles that I know of - I have chosen to go with the original “traditional recipe” from “Sichuan Cookery”. I do make some changes: namely in sauce and pork topping quantities where I also include around 6 tablespoons of noodle cooking water as I like it a little soupier.


Dan dan mian
serves 2

250 g egg noodles
For the sauce

1 tsp groundnut oil
4 tbsp Tianjin preserved vegetable, rinsed & chopped
3 spring onions, green parts only, finely sliced
1 ½ tbsp light soy sauce
2 tsp dark soy sauce
2 tbsp chilli oil, to taste
2 tsp Chinkiang (or chinese black) vinegar
1 tsp ground roasted sichuan peppercorns
For the pork topping

1 tsp groundnut oil
100g minced pork
2 tsp Shaoxing rice wine
4 tsp light soy sauce

Heat 1 tsp of groundnut oil in a wok over a high flame, and then stir-fry the Tianjin vegetable until it is dry and fragrant. Set aside.

Heat another teaspoon of groundnut oil in the wok, add the minced pork and stir-fry, splashing in the Shaoxing wine as the meat separates. Add the soy sauce and continue to fry until the meat is browned and a bit crispy but not too dry. Set aside.

Put the preserved vegetable and the rest of the sauce ingredients back into the wok, mix together and set over a low heat.

Meanwhile cook the noodles according to instructions - drain, adding about 6 tablespoons of the cooking water to the sauce ingredients and mix well

Divide the sauce between two bowls, top with noodles and then top the noodles with the cooked pork.

Serve immediately, with the noodles and pork being mixed into the sauce at the table, using chopsticks.

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Beef with Cumin and Sichuan Broad Beans

Number two in operation “Open a Cookbook at Random”. Spookily Beef with Cumin was one that I first remember seeing (and thinking looked great) in Revolutionary Chinese Cookbook but as I tend to shy away from deep frying as I find it a bit of a faff (and don’t have a deep frying pot and can’t think of where to store the oil after) I never tried it. That’s not to say I haven’t attempted any of Fuchsia Dunlop’s other “deep fried” recipes as I have, namely here. 

Pre deep-frying is a method known as “velveting” which results in tender & juicy meat. When I have done it before the results really do speak for themselves but all the same I was glad to see a version of the same recipe in Every Grain of Rice where just stir-frying is employed. And more, what I found was that if you buy a good cut of beef - a very good sirloin steak in my case - and make sure to cut the slices across the grain, the result will be in my opinion, pretty close to that derived by velveting anyway.

As ever, this is slightly adapted and as I wanted a bit more sauce coating the meat I increased the quantities of marinade (bar the potato flour).

The chilli I had incidentally was quite large so I actually only used half of it in the end... that said, I’m effectively using 4 types of chilli here: fresh, dried and “red pepper” flakes and sedimented oil. The original recipe calls for dried chilli flakes and optional fresh which I’m sure would be quite sufficient. The other two I added for further depth of flavour and the fact that I bloody love Sichuanese chilli oil.

Overall this seems to be another great book from FD, her latest, and concentrates on Chinese (and again largely Hunanese and Sichuanese) “home cooking”. A lot of recipes showcase humble vegetables: very simple preparations that make these simple ingredients sing.

This broad bean recipe (not by the way chosen at random but selected as I had some fresh broad beans in the fridge) is a very good example; admittedly they are probably one of my favorite veg anyway but with just a couple of other ingredients and pretty quick cooking and prep they are taken to a whole other level.

Cumin with Beef - Zi ran niu rou (孜然牛肉)
serves 2

250g v. good quality beef steak, cut into 1-2cm wide slices 

½ red pepper, cut into strips 1–2cm wide on the diagonal
½ green pepper, ditto
4 tbsp rapeseed oil
2 tsp ginger, finely chopped 
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped 
1 fresh red chilli, deseeded and finely chopped 
2 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp dried chilli flakes (or to taste)
1 tsp red pepper flakes (optional)
1 tsp chilli oil with sediment
2 spring onions, green parts only, finely sliced
1 tsp sesame oil
for the marinade
4 tsp Shaoxing wine
½ tsp salt1 tsp light soy sauce
1½ tsp dark soy sauce
1½ tsp potato flour

Mix the marinade ingredients with 1½ tbsp water in a bowl and stir the meat in. Set aside

Heat a wok over a high heat and when hot add 3 tbsp and swirl it around.

Add the beef (keeping the marinade to one side) and quickly stir-fry to separate the slices. When they have, but are still a bit pink, remove from the wok and set aside.

Return the wok to the flame with the remaining oil.

Add the ginger and garlic and allow them to sizzle for a few seconds until fragrant, then tip in the peppers and fresh chilli, and stirfry for a few minutes.

Add the beef slices and the marinade back into the wok, giving everything a good stir before adding the cumin, chilli oil and chilli & red pepper flakes. 

After a minute or so when it is all sizzling and fragrant add the spring onions. Stir around for 30 seconds then remove from the heat, stir in the sesame oil and serve with plain rice and the beans as below.

Sichuan-style Broad Beans with Spring Onion

serves 2

440g broad beans (about 145g podded)

salt

1½ tbsp oil

1 small garlic clove, finely chopped

2 spring onions, finely sliced

Sichuan pepper oil

Boil the podded beans in lightly salted water for 3-4 minutes then refresh under cold running water. When they are cool enough to handle, slip the skins off the broad beans.

Heat a small wok over a high flame, add the oil and thrown in the garlic & let sizzle for a few seconds.

Add the beans, the white parts of the spring onions and a little pinch of salt. Stir fry for a few minutes until the beans are heated through.

Add the green parts of the spring onions, stir around and then take off the heat. Sprinkle in a little Sichuan pepper oil and serve with the beef and steamed rice.

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Hunan Feast

Last weekend, as a thank-you for generally being lovely but for also feeding and medicating the little monsters during my recent Italy trips, I had my friends Steve & Linda over for dinner.  The last time I cooked for them it was back in February for Chinese New Year.  They seemed to enjoy the Sichuan dishes I served up that night so this time I thought I would give them a taste of Hunan.

Similar to Sichuan, Hunan cooking is known for its liberal use of chillies.  However it tends to be more "purely hot" rather than málà (hot and numbing) that distinctive taste that Sichuan cuisine is known for. 

As usual when I am cooking either Sichuan or Hunan food I turned to the excellent Fuchsia Dunlop and on this occasion The Revolutionary Chinese Cookbook.

It should be noted that all recipes below serve four with three or four other dishes, plus rice (or two people with just one or two other dishes).  There were three of us so this was more than plenty. We had: General Tso's chicken, farmhouse stir-fried pork with green peppers (which I have actually cooked before and can be found here), fisherman's prawns with Chinese chives and stir-fried broad beans with Chinese chives plus steamed rice.


General Tso's Chicken - zuo zong tang ji
This is chef Peng Chang-kuei's General Tso's Chicken, invented in Taipei, Taiwan. This version is hot and sour, more so than the Changsha (capital of Hunan) version which is closer in flavour to the sweeter Americanised dish.

4 boned, skinless chicken thighs
groundnut oil, for deep-frying
2 tsp sesame oil
For the marinade
2 tsp light soy sauce
½ tsp dark soy sauce
1 egg yolk
2 tbsp potato flour
2 tsp groundnut oil
For the sauce
1 tbsp tomato purée
½ tsp potato flour
½ tsp dark soy sauce
1½ tsp light soy sauce
1 tbsp clear rice vinegar
3 tbsp stock
8 dried red chillies
2 tsp finely chopped ginger
2 tsp finely chopped garlic

Combine all the marinade ingredients in a small bowl and set aside

Unfold the chicken thighs and lay them what would have been skin-side down, on a chopping board. If some parts are very thick slice them in half horizontally, parallel to the board.

Using a sharp knife make a few shallow criss-cross cuts into the meat to help the flavours penetrate then cut into bit sized pieces about 5cm or so in thickness

Put the chicken pieces into a bowl, pour over the marinade and toss until well coated.

In a large pan or wok, heat enough groundnut oil for deep-frying (it doesn't have to be too deep as you can easily do this in batches) to 180-200C. Add the chicken and fry until golden - remove with a slotted spoon and set aside.

Mix the tomato purée and 1 tablespoon of water in a small bowl, then add the potato flour, soy sauces, rice vinegar and set aside.

Use a pair of scissors to snip the dried chillies into 2cm pieces.

Heat a wok with 2-3 tablespoons of groundnut oil. Add the dried chillies and stir-fry briefly until they are fragrant and just changing colour (they will turn dark but don't let them burn). Add the ginger and garlic and stir-fry for a few seconds longer, until fragrant.

Pour in the combined sauce ingredients and stir until the sauce thickens. Return the chicken to the wok and stir well to coat the pieces in sauce. 

Remove the wok from the heat and stir in the sesame oil. Serve with steamed rice and other dishes.

Fisherman's Prawns with Chinese Chives - yu jia chao xia qiu

500g prepared raw large prawns (you can use frozen but thaw first)

100g Chinese chives, trimmed and cut into 1¼ inch pieces

2 tsp garlic, finely chopped
1 tsp dried chilli flakes (or if you have them 1 tbsp chopped salted chillies)
1 tsp Chinkiang vinegar
1 fresh red chilli, seeded and thinly sliced
salt
1 tsp sesame oil
200ml groundnut oil for cooking
For marinade

1 tsp salt
1 tbsp potato flour
1 small egg white

Put the prawns in a bowl with the marinade ingredients, mix well and set aside.

Heat the oil in a large pan or wok over a high flame until it reaches 150C (about 300 F). Drain off excess egg white from the prawns in a colander or sieve then add them to the wok and fry briefly until pinkish but not fully cooked. Remove with a slotted spoon and set aside.

Drain off all but 3 tbsp of the oil.  Add garlic and chilli flakes and stir-fry briefly until fragrant.  Add the prawns, stirring well, followed by the vinegar.  

Add the chives and fresh chilli and stir-fry unil they are barely cooked.  Season with salt to taste, remove from the heat, stir in sesame oil and serve.

Stir-fried Broad Beans with Chinese Chives - jiu cai can dou

100g fresh Chinese chives, washed trimmed and cut into 1¼ inch lengths

200g shelled broad beans (about 800g in the pod)

2tsp finely chopped fresh red chilli (or chopped salted chillies, again if you have them)

2tsp finely chopped fresh ginger

2 tbsp groundnut oil

salt

Blanch the beans in boiling water for about 1 minute so barely cooked, drain and set aside.

Heat a wok over a high flame until smoke rises then add the oil and swirl around.

Add the chillies and ginger and stir-fry briefly until fragrant before adding the beans and stir-fry until hot & sizzling. Add salt to taste.

Throw in the chives and stir-fry a little longer until just tender and serve immediately.

And just as a reminder, here's what the farmhouse pork looks like:

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Dong'an Chicken & Pounded Aubergines

Some time ago, leading up to a trip to Shanghai, someone recommended that I read Fuschia Dunlop’s memoir of her time living & cooking in Sichuan Province: Shark’s Fin and Sichuan Pepper.  Fuschia was the first foreigner to study at the Sichuan Culinary Institute in Chengdu so not only is the book a fascinating insight into Chinese life and cooking culture but it also includes many regional recipes that likewise, fascinated.

The trip to Shanghai followed, where friends were kind enough to introduce us to many regional restaurants to get a good taste of all the country has to offer (well some anyway, in fairness!).  It was then that my dislike of “Chinese food” garnered from rubbish Chinese takeaways in London changed to love - particularly of Sichuan & Hunan cuisines (and also of xiaolongbao which I’d love to attempt to make myself but I fear they wouldn’t turn out well - or does anyone know where to get excellent xiaolongbao in London?).

On my return I bought a copy of Fuschia Dunlop’s Sichuan Cookery from which I have cooked many, many things and cannot recommend enough.  It was this book that also cured me of another lifelong aversion: aubergines - now I love them, and positively crave fish-fragrant aubergine on a fairly frequent basis.

It was only a matter of time therefore before I knew I would have to get her second cookery book: The Revolutionary Chinese Cookbook this time focusing on Hunan cuisine, birthplace of the “Great Leader” himself, Chairman Mao.

What follows are approximations (unfortunately I threw away my notes!) of the two recipes I tried first: dong an zi ji (Dong’an chicken - also called “vinegar chicken”) and qing jiapo lei qie zi (pounded aubergines with green peppers) - both slightly adapted. 

I advise that you buy both books yourself as they are truly brilliant.  

Pounded Aubergines

Serves 1

1 aubergine
salt
1 thin-skinned green pepper (of the type found in mediterranean / middle eastern supermarkets)
Light soy sauce
1 tbsp groundnut oil

Peel & slice aubergines thickly - sprinkle liberally on both sides with salt then set aside for approx 30 mins.

Meanwhile cut the pepper in half, cut away seeds & stem then slice thinly.  

After 30 minutes rinse the aubergines of salt then pat dry with kitchen towel.

Put the peppers into a wok over medium heat (obviously a flame is best when using a wok I’m afraid electric-hob users!), pressing down against the side of the wok until the peppers are softer and smell fragrant.

Set the peppers aside then add the oil to the wok and heat.  Add the aubergines and stir-fry for at least 15 minutes, pressing down on them firmly occasionally to break them down to a sludgy paste.  At the end they should be softened, about half the volume of the original slices but not coloured.

Return the peppers to the wok with the aubergine mush and stirfry for a few minutes until combined.  Season with a little light soy then serve.

Dong’an Chicken
Serves 1

1 chicken breast
weak chicken stock for poaching - about 500 ml
1½ inch knob ginger, unpeeled
2 spring onions
½ fresh red chilli, deseeded, deveined & cut into  very fine slivers
1 dried red chilli
1 tsp Shaoxing wine
1 tbsp rice vinegar (mine was seasoned japanese vingegar as that was what I had, but it should be clear)
¼ tsp sichuan peppercorns
salt
½ tsp sesame oil
1tbsp lard

Poach the chicken: bring the chicken stock to boil in a saucepan, add the chicken and bring back to the boil.  Crush half the unpeeled ginger and 1 spring onion (I bash with a rolling pin) and add to the pan.

Reduce the heat and poach for about 5 minutes. Remove the chicken for the poaching liquid, and let cool (keep the poaching liquid to one side).  The chicken will only be about ¾ cooked which is what you want.

When it is cool enough to handle, cut along the grain into bite size pieces.

Now peel the remaining ginger and slice into verey fine slivers. Ditto with the green part only of the remaining spring onion.  

Heat the wok until starting to smoke and add the lard. When it has warmed up but isn’t fiercely hot and smoking, add the ginger and chilli, dried chilli & Sichuan pepper.  I remove from the heat and swirl around until all is fragrant but not burning - this only takes about 30 seconds or so.

Add the chicken and stirfry, splashing the Shaoxing wine in. Then add the vinegar and a pinch of salt (to taste).  Then add about 50 mls of the cooking liquid.  Bring to the boil then simmer briefly, stirring to ensure all is coated in the liquid and the flavours have mingled and penetrated the chicken.

Finally throw in the spring onion greens and stir around.  Remove from the heat stir in the sesame oil and serve with the aubergines and a little rice.

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