Pork stir fry with Leeks
I spoke too soon. The wintery and frosty weather is back. Nothing compared to the pile of snow that halted New York and London. Looking up from the valley of Sollér the snow that encapped the peak of Tramuntana mountains is such a picturesque sight. Yes, we do enjoy the view but there is a price to pay (chilly!) for the picture.
There were few windy days before the snow, which was very disturbing. Jeremy and I both woke up having a nightmare – him dreaming that I am turning into a fanatic, extremist and radical lesbian feminist, and me dreaming that everyone close to me is turning into monkeys and gorillas. Conveying such dreams into words does not carry the same scary, uneasy effect as the dreamer. The sleeping hours felt like a disturbance and the body, unrested.
After such a heavy night, we did a soul comforting exercise – walking. Destination = local charity shop. With a stroke of luck we found this cookery book by Madhur Jeffrey, who usually focuses on Indian food. It featured recipes from Asian countries mainly Hong Kong, Thailand, Vietnam, Korea, Japan, Malaysia, Indonesia as well as her home country, India. It is relatively easy and the ingredients have been carefully chosen for chefs-to-be-at-home in the west. With a good local asian supermarket, the ingredients are readily obtainable. The book also includes menu suggestions for those who are interested in an oriental feast for a dinner party (or parties). The serving sizes caters from four to six people.
We started with a pork dish. The meat requires neither long marinating hours nor inaccessible ingredients. In fact, I have substituted the greens with leeks (only the green part) and changed the way that the dish is prepared but keeping most of the sauce and marinade ingredients unaltered. Purely because it does not involve too much cleaning and also that was the way that I was shown as a little girl. After a few attempts, the amount of ingredients changed. Not extensively, just to the palate. Should I say that this dish has been adapted?
The green part of the leeks are not popular, they are commonly added as another ingredient when making vegetable stock. In fact, the green parts are known to have more nutrition, containing vitamin B, carotenoids and lutein. The milder form of onion, this vegetable is believed to be diuretic and aids in blood building. I certainly would not mind having a poor man’s asparagus (as referred to by the French) especially when leeks are also believed to have been consumed on a regular basis by Emperor Nero (fifth and last Roman emperor).
Verdict = delicioso!
Pork stir fry with Leeks
100g pork tenderloin, cut into thin slices
Marinade:1 tsp sesame oil, cornflour water
Sauce: ½ tbsp oyster sauce
1 tsp chinese light soy sauce
1 tsp chinese rice wine
1 tsp sesame oil
3 tbsp vegetable oil
1 large clove garlic, chopped finely
2 cm cube fresh ginger, grated
½ medium onion, peeled, quartered and separate the different layers
1 leek (green part only), slice into 3cm pieces
½ tsp cornflour + 1 tsp water
1. Place the pork in a small bowl together with the marinade ingredients and leave marinating for and hour or more.
2. In a separate bowl, combine the sauce ingredients. Set aside.
3. Heat 2 tablespoon of vegetable oil over high heat. When the oil is smoky, add the marinated pork, immediately turn the fire to the lowest and toss until the meat turns white. Remove the pork with a slotted spoon and put it aside.
4. Heat 1 tbsp oil in a wok over high heat. Add the ginger and garlic, stir fry for half a minute. Put in the onions and stir briefly before adding the onions. Add couple tablespoons of water and simmer on medium heat then add the cooked pork.
5. Add the sauce and let simmer for one minute. Add the cornflour mixture and simmer until sauce is thicken. Serve hot!
