Pork Stew with Arrowhead (红烧肉炖慈菇)

红烧肉炖慈菇 (Hong Shao Rou Dun Ci Gu)

Believe it or not, today it was my first time to see arrowhead, a type of root vegetable, in a Chinese supermarket in North America. I could not hide my excitement and surprise, plus the price is so reasonable : $2.29/lb. The arrowhead is abundant in southern region of mainland China, it grows in wetland. It is typically cooked in pork stew, and this recipe is going to show the taste of my hometown.

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Ingredients

• 3/4 lb. Arrowhead (available in some Chinese supermarket, seasonal)
• 1 lb. Country style rib meat (or other cuts that have some fat in the meat)
• 1/4 cup chicken stock
• 3 tablespoon soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• A few slices of ginger
• 1 green onion (why buy from store? grow your own green onion)

Preparation Time:  5 minutes
Cooking Time: 40 - 50  minutes
Servings: 4

Cooking Steps

1. Get about 1 lb. pork meat, ideally with some fat, I used country style rib meat in this recipe. Other options could be pork belly, pork butt, shouder that have some fat in the meat. Avoid using cuts that are too lean.
2. Cut the meat into 2 inch size chunks, add the meat chunks to a non sticky wok, use medium high heat to cook the meat for about 10 minutes or until the bottom turns light brown.
3. Flip the meat chunks to pan fry the other side for a few minutes or until the bottom turns light brown. Adjust the heat to medium as needed to avoid the meat from getting burnt.

Tip: The fat from the meat is enough to pan fry the meat itself, no need to add extra canola oil.

4. While the meat being cooked, get about 3/4 lb.  arrowhead, remove the fluffy hair from the skin, rinse clean, remove any dirty part.

Uncleaned arrowhead

Cleaned arrowhead

5. Cut each arrowhead into 4 portions, add to the wok once step 3 is done.

6. Add 1/4 cup chicken stock (or water if no chicken stock is available), add a few slices of ginger, 1 coarse chopped green onion, 3 tablespoon soy sauce, 1 tablespoon sugar, stir all ingredients evenly, cover, turn heat to medium low, simmer for 20 to 30 minutes. Stir a few times in between to let the meat and arrowhead cook evenly.