Pork, squared

What better way to bounce back from a couple of unexciting recipes than with some pork? With that inspired thought in mind I scoured my sources for something that seemed like it would have some real oomph. I was seeking out strong flavor and happened upon a recipe I had torn out from an old issue of Food & Wine for Spicy Ginger Pork in Lettuce Leaves, which is essentially a modified larb. Given the fish sauce, chili, cilantro, sesame oil and other goodies that seasoned this dish I figured there was no way I was going to end up with something bland. Fortunately-- as is not often the case-- I was right. The ground pork, red pepper and water chestnuts had a toothsome quality that was perfectly complimented by the cool crisp lettuce leaves that were warmed by the juicy porky goodness. We devoured this dish, nothing left, except for a singular lettuce leaf that Juniper was very grateful for (Schnauzer’s are a pretty easy-to-please bunch). I would make this dish again in a heartbeat, especially now that I have all the requisite sauces (fish sauce, sweet chili sauce, sesame oil, oyster sauce...) at home and don’t have to lug them home from the market in a freak rain storm.

Among other items in my arms as I trekked through the rain were two bundles of Long Beans. You see, in the quest for a more satisfying meal I happened upon a recipe in Saveur for Wok-Charred Long Beans with Black Olives. That’s right folks, two dishes, both with pork; I was not risking disappointment this time around. But back to the beans. I knew I was in the right place in the store when I found myself in front of a basket full of some mutant looking string beans. I took a plastic bag to put these in, but the beans were longer than the bag and seeing as I didn’t want to take two bags even though I had two bundles (dude, I’m looking to reduce my carbon footprint here) I suddenly felt like I was wrestling an alien hand or fighting off some plant come to life (ala Little Shop of Horrors). But, fret not, eventually I beat the legume enemy.

Sadly I was unable to locate the Thai chili needed for the Long Bean recipe at any of the local markets. Instead, on my walk home, I wandered into some local Thai restaurants to ask if they perhaps, might maybe possibly be willing to sell me a chili or two. At the first restaurant I was greeted by an adolescent boy, whose cracking voice and shifty demeanor may have been a result of hormones. Or perhaps it was due to the fact that I looked like a drowned rat being weighted down by arms full of yellow bags overflowing with alien hands. He squeaked “I can’t do that. My boss isn’t here. Have a nice day lady.” I had slightly more luck in restaurant two. The owner empathized with the disappointing lack of Thai groceries in the neighborhood, especially given that this is one of the statistically most culturally diverse blocks in this country. Nonetheless, he hurried downstairs to the kitchen and returned with dried Thai chili powder. Not quite what I had hoped for, but his generosity was lovely and I was ready to get home. “Very hot”, he warned, and sent me on my way.

On to the cooking, the recipe called for a 12” nonstick pan, though my largest nonstick is only 10”. As a result my beans were a little crowded and each step of the recipe took an extra couple minutes (so maybe size does matter after all?). After browning the pork, the beans get caramelized in the rendered pork fat. Next copious amounts of garlic, ginger and chili (in this case, chili powder) are added. Then vinegar, soy and stock-- and finally the cooked pork and olives are reincorporated into the dish. So here’s the thing, the flavors were great; unique, strong, interesting. There was only one problem, when you chew the beans they make this awful squeak sound against your teeth. It made us laugh as we listened to each other squeak through the meal, but it also kinda made my skin crawl in that chalk-on-a-blackboard sort of way. James declared the meal a total success, his only complaint was that the beans lacked proper distribution of sauce, meat and olives-- but then again, he has been spending too much time with his head in a statistics book lately. I say, the distribution was just fine. Amen to the pork.


Spicy Ginger Pork in Lettuce Leaves
adapted from, Food & Wine, September 2006
3/4 lb ground pork
1 red bell pepper, finely diced
1 garlic clove, minced
1 T minced peeled ginger
1 T Thai sweet chile sauce
1 T Asian fish sauce
1 t Asian sesame oil
1 T plus 1 t grapeseed oil
One 8 oz can whole water chestnuts, drained and diced
2 scallions, thinly sliced
2 T oyster sauce
2 T chopped cilantro
1 Head Boston lettuce leaves

1) In a medium bowl, combine the ground pork with the bell pepper, garlic, ginger, chile sauce, fish sauce, sesame oil and 1 tablespoon of the grapeseed oil.
2) In a large skillet or wok, heat the remaining 1 teaspoon of grapeseed oil until shimmering. Add the pork mixture and stir-fry over high heat, breaking it up, until it is cooked through and starting to brown, about 8 minutes. Stir in the water chestnuts, scallions, oyster sauce and cilantro and remove from the heat.
3) Spoon the pork into bowls. Stack the lettuce leaves on plates. To eat, spoon the pork onto the lettuce leaves, roll up and eat.
6 first-course servings

Wok-Charred Long Beans with Black Olives
adapted from, Saveur, Issue #112
1 1⁄2 lb long beans
3 T. canola oil
4 oz ground pork
2 T minced garlic
2 T minced ginger
1 Thai chile, minced
1⁄3 cup chicken broth
2 T Chinese black or balsamic vinegar (I used balsamic)
1 T soy sauce
1⁄2 lb dry-cured black olives, halved and pitted

1) Trim and cut beans into 2"-long pieces. Bring a pot of salted water to a boil. Add beans; cook until crisp-tender, 1–2 minutes. Using tongs, transfer beans to a bowl of ice water; chill. Drain beans.
2) Heat oil in a 12" nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add pork; break into small pieces. Cook pork until browned, about 3 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer pork to a plate, leaving fat in skillet.
3) Raise heat to high; add beans and cook, without stirring, until hot, about 2 minutes. Toss beans; cook, without stirring, until caramelized, 1 minute more.
4) Add garlic, ginger, and chiles; cook for 1 minute. Add chicken broth, vinegar, and soy sauce; cook until almost evaporated, about 2 minutes. Add olives and reserved pork; cook for 1 minute more.
4 servings