This is a very popular stir-fry dish in Japan. It’s a dish consisting of vegetables, pork, prawns, squid, etc. stir-fried and thickened with potato starch. The dish is called ‘Happō-sai’ in Japanese and that means ‘Eight Treasure Ingredients’ as the number eight is the lucky number in our culture. This is my family’s recipe which I always determine to use eight main ingredients.
Makes
4 Servings
Main Ingredients
*This time I used these eight main ingredients.
Wombok 1/4
Carrot 1
Daikon Radish 10cm
Shiitake 4
Bamboo Shoots 100g
Pork Belly 250 to 300g *thinly sliced
Squid 1/2
Prawns 12
*Other Suggested Ingredients.
Onion, Snow Peas, Shimeji, Black Fungus Mushrooms, Edamame, Boiled Quail Eggs
Other Ingredients
Potato Starch 2 tablespoons
Water 2 tablespoons
Sesame Oil 1 tablespoon
Rice Vinegar 1 tablespoon *Vinegar will be added at the very end of cooking.
Soup
Chicken Stock 1 cup *OR 1 cup Water & 1 teaspoon Asian Chicken Bouillon Powder
Ginger 1 small piece *grated
Salt 1/2 to 1 teaspoon
Mirin 1 tablespoon
Soy Sauce 1/2 tablespoon
White Pepper as required
Method
- Place the ingredients for Soup in a bowl and mix well. Check the flavour and adjust it to suit your taste.
- Place Potato Starch and Water in a small bowl or cup and mix well.
- All main ingredients should be cut or sliced to small pieces if large, so that it would be easy to eat.
- Heat Sesame Oil in a large frying pan or wok over high heat, cook Pork and Vegetables for a few minutes, then add Squid, Prawns and Shiitake (or other mushrooms).
- Add soup and cook a few more minutes until vegetables are cooked.
- Stir the Potato Starch mixture once again, then add it to the stir-fry a small amount at a time, stirring well, until the soup is thickened. You probably don’t need to use all the starch mixture.
- Sprinkle Rice Vinegar over and stir.
- Enjoy with freshly cooked rice.
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