Smoky Wok

After a few posts in a row of my yummy belacan series , it's time for something relatively milder. To me, this is the dressed down version of Mui Choy Kau Yuk (Pork Simmered with Salted Turnip), much simpler yet still tasty. Mui Choy is part of the Chinese dried vegetables repertoire, usually made with Choy Sum (translates to Chinese Broccoli from the Cantonese dialect) where the latter is dried and then marinated with mostly salt and kept in jars. Hence, it is important to soak these vegetables before using to rid them of excess salt and of course to totally remove the sand. Tasty and simple, serve with hot rice for a satisfying meal. Though mui choy is a popular Chinese dish, mui choy is almost never used during festivities especially Chinese New Year as the word mui in Cantonese means being in bad shape and of course due to most Chinese people's superstitions especially during Chinese New Year which is time for everything new, mui choy is never served. I still remember that aghast look on the face of a restaurant owner when I asked for a mui choy dish one Chinese New Year.



Ingredients:
1 packet of mui choy, soaked in cold water for about 1 hour
1/2 pound of pork, sliced (I used fatty pork)
1 tbsp soy sauce
4 cloves garlic, sliced
1 tbsp sugar

Method:
Firstly, saute some garlic in cooking oil until fragrant. Next, add in the pork slices and stir-fry briskly until about half cooked. Now, add in the chopped mui choy and stir-fry some more. Finally, add the soy, sugar and about 1/4 cup of water. Turn the heat to low and allow to simmer until cooked. Add more sugar or soy depending on taste.

Soak the mui choy in water