Pork, pepper and mango stir fry

Where does the tang come from? Ketchup. Adds a lovely reddish tinge to the dish too.

And… mango? In a stir fry? Sure! I had a chicken and mango stir fry in my old, old blog called Pinoy Cook. The photos were okay but, in today’s reality, photos like that won’t even merit a second glance. I could have taken new photos to go with the old recipe, but I have something better now.

There’s a new chicken and mango recipe but it’s a salad and not a stir fry. It’s chicken, fresh shiitake, Thai basil, mint and cilantro tossed with Thai-style sweet, salty and spicy dressing flavored with palm sugar, fish sauce, lime juice, lemongrass, shallots, chilies and more cilantro. It’s ten times better than the old chicken mango recipe. It’s called poached chicken and shiitake salad with fresh mango and herbs.

So, we go back to the mango-in-a-stir fry wonderment. Yes, fresh ripe sweet mango is a lovely ingredient for a stir fry. The trick is to not overcook the fruit. Add it during the last minute of cooking so that the fruit flesh gets heated through without being allowed the opportunity to soften and turn soggy.

And… just what is shichimi togarashi? It’s a Japanese spice blend. It has chili, sansho (related to but not the same as Sichuan peppercorns), citrus peel (orange or yuzu), seeds and, occasionally, aonori. There is a full post dedicated to it. Shichimi togarashi is traditionally a table condiment, but I have discovered that it’s a beautiful addition to marinades.

And there on the top left photo you can see shichimi toragashi sprinkled on thinly sliced pork. Salt is the only other seasoning. Starch, sesame seed oil and mirin are added create a loose batter. I kept the pork in the fridge overnight. If you have time, I recommend leaving the pork to soak for several hours. During that time, the combination of mirin and starch creates enough velveting to transform the texture of the meat. Tender, bouncy, lovely.

The cooking begins by frying the pork over medium heat. Spread the pork slices in a single layer and leave until the undersides are just lightly browned. Turn the slices over, cook a bit longer and you’re ready to begin stir frying.

Stir frying requires high heat, so, turn up the heat to HIGH. Add bell peppers and onion slices to the pork with a bit of salt, and stir fry them all together until the vegetables are just starting to soften.

Then, you pour in the sauce. Starch is already mixed into the sauce so just toss everything around until the sauce is thick and has lost its cloudy appearance. Finally, you add cubes of sweet ripe mango.

Just continue stir frying until the mango cubes are heated through. And it’s done. I did take a moment to taste the sauce in case some adjustments were needed, but it was perfect. We just had it for lunch. With rice, of course.