While this was last night’s Nosh, I had a couple of people ask for the recipe so I thought I would share today. I doubled the recipe below, using 1 negi (a really large Japanese green onion… it’s a couple of feet long) in place of the “bunching onion”. Since my chili paste already had garlic in it, I skipped adding the grated garlic to mixture A, and I used Hoisin as that’s what I had on hand.
For the greens, since I had swung by the Japanese market, I picked up a bunch of komatsuna, which looks similar to regular-sized spinach. After making the pork belly and putting it aside in a bowl, I wiped any piece of onion left behind from the wok, so it wouldn’t burn, but left the chili-and-pork-laced oil that I hadn’t drained in the wok. I added a bit of extra oil to ensure the leaves would get coated, then I tossed the thoroughly-dried leaves into the wok with some salt and pepper. In less than a minute they became bright green, and I added a bit of garlic black bean paste (~ regular-sized spoonful), about 1/4 teaspoon sugar, and a drizzle of sesame oil. I quickly tossed those around in the wok to evenly cover the leaves, and then pulled the leaves out into their own bowl.
Finally, I plated it on a bowl of Nishiki rice, keeping the pork belly separate from the greens so I could enjoy both flavors separately, then together as I got closer to the bottom of the bowl. Little prep + quick cooking + happy taste buds = One of the best weeknight meals ever (even if it was the end of the weekend…)!
I used the (almost) last of my tomatoes this evening, along with the last of the garden basil. Arrivaderci summer, salve autumn!
Making my voice heard. If you didn’t vote early or by mail, make sure you get yourself to the local polling place Tuesday!