Chinese Long Beans with Shrimp Paste 蝦醬炒豆角

Ingredients

• 450 g Chinese long beans ((white or green))
• 200 g Pork belly
• 1 tsp Salt (for soaking long beans)
• 4 cloves Garlic (, chopped)
• 2 Thai Chilies (, chopped)
• 1 tsp Light soy sauce (for pork marinade)
• ½ tsp Sugar (for pork marinade)
• ¾ tsp Corn starch (for pork marinade)
• 1 tbsp Fermented shrimp paste
• ½ tsp Sugar
• 1 tsp Shaoxing wine
• 6 tbsp Water ((add in 3 increments))
• 2 tbsp Oil

Steps

1. 1

   Cut the ends off the long beans and slice them into your desired length I like them to be approx. 5 cm or 2”

2. 2

   Soak the beans in water with a tsp of salt. Soak for 15 minutes, drain, rinse well and let dry in a colander. The salt will help rid the beans of its grassy taste, which is generally regarded as undesirable

3. 3

   Slice pork belly into slices or strips. I like to make them the same shape as the long beans

4. 4

   Marinate the pork in 1 tsp light soy sauce, ½ tsp sugar, and ¾ tsp corn starch. Mix well and set aside

5. 5

   Chop garlic and chilis. Set aside

6. 6

   Prepare the sauce by combining 1 tbsp fermented shrimp paste, 1 tsp Shaoxing wine and ½ tsp sugar. Mix well and set aside. The salt content in fermented shrimp paste may vary so you may need to add more sugar or more salt when you do your taste test

7. 7

   Heat wok on medium high heat

8. 8

   Add 2 tbsp oil to the wok and add pork belly. Arrange in single layer and let cook for 1 minute or until browned

9. 9

   Flip the pork over and cook for 30 seconds then stir-fry in the wok for another 30 seconds until the pork is done

10. 10

    Remove pork from wok and leave the oil.

11. 11

    Add garlic to the wok, stir-fry for 10 seconds

12. 12

    Add long beans to the wok. Stir-fry for 1 minute

13. 13

    Make a well in the middle of the wok and add the fermented shrimp paste mixture

14. 14

    Stir-fry the long beans with the sauce for a minute

15. 15

    Add the pork into the wok with 2 tbsp water. Mix well

16. 16

    Add chilies and another 2 tbsp water, mix well and cover with a lid. Cook for 2 minutes

17. 17

    Stir-fry and check if most of the water has evaporated. If not, turn heat to high

18. 18

    Once water has mostly evaporated, add another 2 tbsp water directly onto the wok (not on the long beans) to give it more moisture and incorporate the bits of flavour on the wok to make a very light sauce.

19. 19

    Stir-fry to mix well. Turn off heat

20. 20

    Serve