Bacon and Cabbage

Cabbage Stir-fry

Bacon is a rare find here, even though BA sells blocks of salted cured pork belly (panceta). When I first got here, I pressed the butcher in my broken spanish if they could whip up some thinly sliced blocks of panceta for me…confused, shake of head..alas. I’ve long given up. Now, a few months later, I am addicted to this piece of goodness. This dish, with panceta, also has a Taiwanese twist combining one of my favorite cabbage dishes in Beijing. Salty, smokey, spicy: the Mmmlicious three S’.

*Add in the sliced smoke-dried tofu squares and make it a one-dish meal.

Serves 4 as a side dish

• 3 cups of cabbage, peeled, washed and torn into bite size
• 3 slices of bacon or panceta, sliced thinly (equivalent to 3 tbsp)
• 4 large cloves of garlic, sliced thinly
• 1 teaspoon of light soy sauce
• 1/2 teaspoon of brown sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon of dark vinegar
• 5 dried chilis (optional)
• 1 teaspoon oil
• 1 green onion, sliced thinly

1. Heat wok with oil, until hot and shimmers; stir-fry bacon and brown sugar for 30 seconds, add garlic and chilis (and the optional tofu), stir-fry until fragrant, another 30 seconds.
2. Add the cabbage handfuls at the time, stir-fry until semi-wilted, before adding the next handful, about 2~3 minutes each time.
3. Add soy sauce and vinegar; continue to stir-fry until leaves are completely wilted and the sauce is evenly distributed. Garnish with green onion and serve with rice.
4. Enjoy.