Another home-style dish we have that’s great with rice or congee is steamed pork mince. I’m not sure if it has a proper name, but it appears to have Nyonya origins, so it’s a dish we likely picked up from my grandmother’s side. It’s a ridiculously simple dish that’s flavourful and perfect for simple meals, with an added veg dish for balance.
It’s quick to make, and definitely something you can throw together for a weeknight meal. Just cook some rice, and while the mince is steaming, stir-fry a few greens. Or, do what I did, and make some congee in a pressure cooker and you can have dinner on the table in just over half an hour.
The top of the mince is sprinkled with a preserved vegetable we call tang chai, which you can commonly find at Chinese grocers labelled tianjin preserved vegetable. I mainly use it for this dish, but you can use it as a flavour additive for dumpling stuffings, soups, and saucy dishes. And possibly other things I haven’t googled yet. It also lasts forever because it’s so heavily preserved.
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- 500 g pork mince
- 2 tbsp water
- 1 tsp cornflour heaped
- 3 Tbs soy sauce or to taste
- 1 tsp white pepper heaped, or to taste
- splash sesame oil optional
- tang chai Tianjin preserved vegetable, to taste
Ingredients
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- Combine the cornflour and water and mix well
- Pour cornflour mixture into pork mince and add soy sauce and white pepper to taste
- Place mince in a dish with sides, a pie dish works well, and spread it out evenly, even allowing the mince to climb up the sides of the dish
- Scatter tang chai over the mince
- Steam for about 10-15 minutes or until done, the mince will have shrunk and be sitting in a pool of salty, porky juices
I don't actually have measurements for the soy or white pepper, I will dip my finger in the mince to taste that the seasoning is about right. If you're not comfortable with this, try the suggested quantity and adjust to taste next time.
If the mince is lean, add the oil, but it's fine without it.
Tang chai, or Tianjin preserved vegetable comes in a squat clay jar, but can also be found in a squat plastic container in most Asian supermarkets. It's a salted and preserved veg and can be used straight from the jar without rinsing.