Yu Xiang Rou Si
鱼香肉丝·(yú xiāng ròu sī)
The Mother Brine: Pao Cai
If you grew up in a Chinese-American household, the smell of ginger, garlic, and vinegar hitting a hot wok is the smell of a Tuesday night. Yu Xiang Rou Si sounds like a magic trick: a 'fish-fragrant' pork dish that contains absolutely zero fish. Born in Sichuan from the frugality of reusing pickled red chilies and seasonings from the family's mother brine, it is a perfectly balanced sweet, sour, salty, and spicy masterpiece. The trick here isn't restaurant wok skills. It’s the strict math of the golden sauce and the velvet texture of the meat, pulled off with ingredients you can easily grab at any suburban Asian market. This is exactly what home tastes like.
Before you start
Gather and measure all ingredients before you heat the wok.
The actual cooking process takes under five minutes. You will not have time to chop, mince, or measure once the oil is smoking.
Ingredients
- pork tenderloin1/2 lb
- Shaoxing rice wine1 tbsp
- light soy sauce3 tbsp
- cornstarch2 tbsp
- water4 tbsp
- neutral cooking oil3 tbsp
- dried wood ear mushrooms1/2 cup
- medium carrot1 med
- green bell pepper1/2 med
- Lao Gan Ma Pickled Red Chilies3 tbsp
- fresh ginger1 tbsp
- garlic3 tbsp
- scallions3 med
- Chinese black vinegar2 tbsp
- white sugar1 1/2 tbsp
- dark soy sauce1/2 tbsp
Method
- 01
Velvet the pork to protect it from the heat of the wok.
Place the matchstick-sliced pork in a bowl. Add the Shaoxing wine, 1 tablespoon of light soy sauce, and 1 tablespoon of water. Massage the liquids into the pork until it is completely absorbed and looks sticky. Sprinkle in 1 tablespoon of cornstarch and mix until coated, then stir in 1 teaspoon of neutral oil to seal the marinade. Let sit at room temperature for 15 to 20 minutes.
- 02
Mix the golden sauce.
In a small bowl, whisk together the Chinese black vinegar, remaining 2 tablespoons of light soy sauce, white sugar, dark soy sauce, remaining 1 tablespoon of cornstarch, and 3 tablespoons of water. Whisk until the sugar and cornstarch are completely dissolved. Set aside.
- 03
Slip-fry the pork briefly and remove it from the wok.
Heat a wok or large, heavy skillet over high heat until it begins to smoke. Add 3 tablespoons of neutral cooking oil. Immediately add the marinated pork, spreading it out in a single layer. Let it sear for 10 seconds, then rapidly stir-fry until the pork turns pale and opaque, about 1 minute. Scoop the pork out of the pan, leaving the oil behind.
- 04
Build the fish-fragrance base over moderate heat.
Turn the heat down to medium-low to prevent the aromatics from burning. Add the minced pickled chilies to the remaining oil and stir-fry for about 30 seconds until the oil turns a beautiful reddish-orange. Add the minced ginger, garlic, and the white parts of the scallions. Toss for another 15 seconds until highly fragrant.
- 05
Execute the high-heat finish.
Turn the heat back up to high. Add the julienned carrots, wood ear mushrooms, and bell pepper, stir-frying aggressively for 1 to 2 minutes until crisp-tender. Return the pork to the wok and toss to combine. Give the golden sauce a quick stir to lift the settled starch, and pour it around the edges of the hot wok. Toss rapidly. Within 5 to 10 seconds, the sauce will bubble, thicken, and cling beautifully to the pork and vegetables.
- 06
Garnish and serve immediately.
Turn off the heat, toss in the green parts of the scallions, and plate immediately. Serve with massive bowls of steamed white rice. The sauce is designed to bleed into the rice, creating the ultimate comfort-food bite.
Notes
Achieving the perfect matchstick slice is critical for texture.
Partially freezing the pork for 20 minutes before slicing gives you the structural firmness needed to cut uniform, 1/8-inch shreds against the grain.
Accept no substitutions for Chinese black vinegar.
The malted, complex depth of Chinkiang vinegar is non-negotiable for the Yu Xiang flavor profile. Rice vinegar or white vinegar will render the dish excessively sharp.
The starch will settle to the bottom of your sauce bowl.
You must give the bowl sauce a vigorous stir right before pouring it into the wok to ensure proper gelatinization.
From Cook Sichuan in America.