Image from mochimama's blog (mine didn't turn out so well...)
This is a super delicious dish that my mom likes to make from time to time. I love it because it has a bit of everything – protein, fiber, carbs, etc. – all stewed together until delicious and flavorful. It makes use of almost every standard Chinese ingredient that you can think of, so it may be harder to pull together if you don’t have a lot of them on hand. However! If you have an asian grocery store readily accessible, I guarantee that you can get these ingredients cheaply and benefit greatly in future endeavors with Chinese recipes! You will also need a heavy, heat retaining vessel to make the dish in – traditionally it calls for a lidded clay pot, but I made use of Jo’s dutch oven.
Ingredients (I basically made up approx. measurements for those who like specific directions to follow, so feel free to improvise):
Makes about 5 servings…?
- 1 lb ground pork
- 1 medium sized block of firm tofu (about a 3-inch square, give or take an inch)
- 1/2 cup minced green onions
- 1/4 cup minced fresh ginger
- 1 large egg
- 2 tbsp sesame oil
- 3 tbsp soy sauce
- 1/4 cup rice wine (”cooking michu”)
- couple pinches of salt and black or white pepper
- pinch of sugar
- cornstarch
- veggie oil
- 6-7 cups of chicken broth (50ish ounces, equal to one of those big cans)
- 1 packet mung bean noodles
- 1 can bamboo shoots
- 1 pound napa cabbage
First, combine the ground pork, tofu, scallions, ginger, salt, pepper, sugar, beaten egg, rice wine, sesame oil, and soy sauce in a big mixing bowl with your hands. Mix it good!! Then, start adding cornstarch about a couple tablespoons at a time, micing it in thoroughly. You want the consistency of the mixture to be somewhere between too wet and too dry, enough so that it seems to hold together in one mass.
If you’re using a dutch oven like I did, start heating it on medium-low heat right about now.
Separate the meat mixture into thick patties, about three inches in diameter. Pour veggie oil into a deep skillet so that it’s about 1/4- 1/2 inches deep. Heat on medium-high heat and then drop the patties in, frying one side until it’s browned and then flipping over. Remove and put them on a plate.
Stick the dried noodles into a large bowl of cold water.
Pour the chicken broth in the pot along with the cabbage and bamboo shoots, then bring to a boil. As soon as it boils, bring down to a simmer and then add in the meatballs. Add a splash of soy sauce- enough to turn the broth slightly brown- and let it simmer for at least 30 minutes. You want the cabbage to be soft and delightfully chewy.
Add in the noodles about 10 minutes before you want to eat the dish. Serve and enjoy!
Some addendums:
- You can be creative with what you add to the dish – mushrooms and bok choy are pretty good additions!
- The most useful ingredents for chinese cooking that I mentioned before? Rice wine, sesame oil, soy sauce!
- Makes for great leftovers, though the noodles do get squishy. However, the cabbage only gets better.