Assemble all ingredients before you start. The method is so fast-paced that there’s no time to stop and look around for a missing ingredient. Foods having the same cooking time can, of course, be placed in one bowl, but all others should be separated. Cut everything that is to be cut, measure out seasonings, and blend together whatever needs to be mixed. Most of this can be done ahead of time, and separate little piles of food can be kept at-the-ready in the refrigerator.
The basic recipe for ch’ao in an earlier chapter gave you the general principles. Those that follow show some special ways to transform familiar vegetables into gourmet dishes, and some flavorings for meat that are both surprising and delicious. They also show the usefulness of the stir-fry method for “stretching” a supply of meat. With the addition of rice (or bread), these dishes will serve 4 or 5 persons amply.
SPINACH (CHOW BOR CHOY)
Crinkly leaves spurt moisture and chlorophyll like a fountain, so spinach cooked quickly this way without water is sauced in its own rich green juices. Here’s a vegetable you won’t have to bribe, bully, or trick children into eating.You can substitute any other leafy vegetable: Or try zucchini. The tender translucent slices, ringed with green and afloat in the vegetable’s own abundant juices, make a sensational dish.
For more subtle flavoring of zucchini, add a couple of slices of ginger to sizzle with the garlic, and remove it along with that other envoy of good flavor.
1 pound fresh spinach (or 10 ounces frozen,thawed and drained)
1 clove garlic, crushed
Salt to taste
1/4 teaspoon mono sodium glutamate
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1/4 tablespoon peanut oil
Clean fresh spinach, snip off coarse ends of stems, and keep small leaves whole. Break large leaves into 2 1/2-inch pieces. Pound garlic with flat side of cleaver. Mix salt, mono sodium glutamate, and sugar. Heat oil, toss in garlic, and cook past the sizzle point. Add spinach and stir-fry until it barely wilts. Remove garlic. Add salt mixture and stir-fry for another minute or two. (Don’t cover spinach or other leafy vegetables.) Serve with your most magnificent meat course. Serves 4.
SAUTEED BROCCOLI (GUY LON)
Broccoli cooked this way should be a separate course-it’s that good! Serves 4.
2 medium dried mushrooms cup cooked Smith field ham
1 bamboo shoot, sliced
1 medium bunch fresh broccoli
1/4 teaspoon sugar
1/4 teaspoon mono sodium glutamate
2 tablespoons peanut oil
2 tablespoons chicken essence or canned consomme
Soak mushrooms in hot water for 15 minutes. Slice ham to same size as bamboo shoot. Wash broccoli. Peel big stalk to get rid of fibrous outer skin, then slice. Break flowers into small pieces, and cut peeled, small stems into 1/2 inch slices. Slice mushrooms to same size as broccoli, reserving stems and liquid for later use in soup or stew. Mix sugar and mono sodium glutamate.
Heat oil, put in sliced broccoli stalk, and stir-fry for a couple of minutes. Add remainder of broccoli and other vegetables; stir-fry for another minute. Add chicken essence, cover pan, and cook for about 3 minutes more. Just before serving, add sliced ham and sugar mixture. Stir well; serve hot.