Recipe: Stir-Fried Chili Pork and How to Roast Sichuan Peppercorns (Chinese)

STIR-FRIED CHILI PORK

1 pound lean pork
1 tablespoon light soy sauce
2 tablespoons rice wine (or dry sherry)
1 pinch salt
2 teaspoons sesame oil
8 ounces fresh mild chilies
3 tablespoons peanut oil
3 tablespoons finely-chopped garlic
1 teaspoon ground red chili powder
1 teaspoon Sichuan peppercorns, roasted,* crushed
3 tablespoons water
1 tablespoon light soy sauce
2 teaspoons sugar

Cut the pork into 3-inch thin slices and combine with the soy sauce, 1 tablespoon rice wine, salt, and sesame oil.

Cut the chilies in half lengthwise and seed them.

Heat a wok or large frying pan untiI hot. Add 1 1/2 tablespoons of peanut oil and the pork and stir-fry for 1 minute. Remove the pork with a slotted spoon.

Reheat the wok or frying pan. Add the remaining oil. When it is very hot, add the fresh chilies, garlic, chili powder, and peppercorns and stir-fry for 30 seconds.

Then add the water, 1 tablespoon rice wine or sherry, soy sauce, and sugar and cook for another 30 seconds.

Return the meat to the mixture and heat through. Stir well, turn onto a platter, and serve.

*HOW TO ROAST SICHUAN PEPPERCORNS:
Heat a wok or heavy skillet to a medium heat. Add the peppercorns (up to 1/4 cup at a time) and stir-fry them for about 5 minutes until they brown slightly and start to smoke. Remove the pan from the heat and let them cool. Grind the peppercorns in a pepper-mill, clean coffee grinder, or with a mortar and pestle. Seal the mixture tightly in a screw-top jar to store. Alternatively, keep the whole roasted peppercorns in a well-sealed container and grind them when required.

NOTES:
"Sichuan food is hot, spicy, and sensual, and the chile is one of the mainstays of that region's cuisine. Unlike in the West, restaurants there do not offer chilies in oil or a paste at the table to augment tastes. Instead they season a dish before it arrives. Fragrant, roasted Sichuan peppercorns combined with freshly crushed dried chilies ensure that diners have a tasty dish, though not all chilies used are hot. In this recipe mild chilies are combined with thinly sliced pork to create a pleasing, nutritious dish which is colorful, fragrant and flavorful."

Makes 2-4 servings
Source: The Taste of China by Ken Hom