Ingredients
500 g winter bamboo shoots (about 1 lb), 50 g pork belly or fatty ground pork, 50 g preserved mustard greens (ya cai)
Seasonings
10 g each of soy sauce, cooking wine, sugar, MSG, and sesame oil, 500 g (about 1 lb) lard, and 3 g salt.
Instructions
1. Cut the winter bamboo shoots into thick slices, gently pat them to loosen the fibers, then cut into 4 cm long by 0.8 cm wide pieces. Finely mince the pork belly into pea-sized pieces. Place a wok over heat, add lard and heat to 60% hot (about 350°F/175°C), then deep-fry the bamboo shoots until light golden brown and remove.
2. Leave 50 g (about 1/4 cup) of oil in the wok, add the minced pork and stir-fry until the grains are crispy and fragrant, then add the winter bamboo shoots and dry-fry until they begin to wrinkle. Splash in the cooking wine, then add salt, soy sauce, sugar, and MSG one at a time, stir-frying a few times after each addition. Finally, add the preserved mustard greens and stir-fry until fragrant, drizzle with sesame oil, toss to combine, and remove from the wok. This dish is both tender and crunchy, savory and dry-fragrant, with a lingering finish.