Spicy Pork Stir Fry

Finding the right ingredients in Bombay is an uphill task. So I go to the best resource...my sister Prasanna Gokhale. She takes me to stores in Pune carrying leeks, exotic mushrooms  and kaffir lime leaves. She reveals and then empties the contents of her freezer into my cooler bag. So I come to Bombay well prepared to cook for my ma in law Pam.

Today's strategy is to make meat. No beef with the stringent beef ban in Maharashtra. What are my alternatives? Pork. I plan a simple marinated tenderloin. Compared to its American counterparts, this tenderloin is a baby. I adjust the recipe accordingly. The meat slices like butter, reminiscent of the missing beef. I whizz a bunch of greenery and add soy to make the marinade. Pork sits undisturbed in the fridge for a few days. And then it's on to a quick stir fry, tossed with noodles and plated.

SPICY PORK STIR FRY

Serves 3-4

1 Pork Tenderloin

5-6 Spring Onions/ Scallions

1 tablespoon roasted Sesame seeds
2 Green Chiles

5 Garlic cloves

3 Ginger coins

3/4 cup Cilantro 

2 tablespoons Soy sauce 

3 tablespoons Canola Oil 

1/2 pound cooked Noodles

Cut tenderloin on a bias into 1/5 inch slices. They should be thin enough to be flash fried in a wok or saucepan.

Trim spring onions, cutting off the root. Leave most of the greens intact. Cut into 1 inch chunks.

Place the spring onions, sesame seeds, green chiles, garlic, ginger, cilantro and soy in a blender or processor and whizz till you have a fairly smooth paste. 

Add paste to pork slices, mix well and marinate for at least 6 hours. An overnight marinade adds more flavor. The pork in this recipe was marinated for 3 days, developing an intense flavor.

Heat oil in a wok or saucepan. 

Add pork to hot oil and saute till done. This depends on the quality and thickness of the slices. It could take 10-20 minutes.

When pork is done, add noodles to pan and toss so they are well coated.  Let them heat up a few minutes and then plate and serve.

NOTES

The pork can be easily interchanged with beef, lamb or fish. Marination varies for each. Beef and lamb marination times are the same as the pork. Fish should only be marinated up to 24 hours for best results.

The serving platter pleases my ma in law tremendously. Accompanied by a creamy mushroom soup, pork and noodles make for a light dinner for her. Homemade Alphonso ice cream, thoughtfully frozen for us by my sis, is the cherry on top. Prassy... Thanks for the food, the considerate gestures and above all.....all your love.

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