Taiwanese Ground Pork and Pickled Cucumbers

Ground pork is stir-fried with shallots, soy sauce, and pickled cucumbers in this Taiwanese-inspired dish usually served with rice.

• Preparation Time: 15 mins
• Cooking Time: 17 mins
• Total Time: 32 mins
• Calories: 356 Calories

Ingredients

• 1 ½ cups water
• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
• 1 teaspoon white sugar
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tablespoon soy sauce
• 2 green onions, chopped
• 1 tablespoon Chinese rice wine
• ½ pound ground pork
• ¼ teaspoon sesame oil
• 1 teaspoon minced fresh ginger
• ¼ teaspoon ground star anise
• 3 dashes ground white pepper
• 1 tablespoon soy sauce paste
• ⅓ cup Taiwanese pickled cucumbers with brine, chopped
• 2 small shallots, thinly sliced

Recipe Instructions

Step 1

Mix rice wine, soy sauce paste, soy sauce, sugar, and white pepper together in a bowl.

Step 2

Mix ground pork with brine from cucumbers together in a bowl.

Step 3

Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add shallots; cook and stir until golden brown, about 5 minutes. Add pork mixture; cook and stir until no longer pink, 3 to 4 minutes. Push pork and shallots to the sides of the skillet, making a space in the center. Add garlic, ginger, and star anise; stir.

Step 4

Pour water into the skillet; bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium low; simmer until sauce reduces to about 1 cup. Stir in chopped cucumbers. Stir in rice wine mixture; cook until flavors combine, 4 to 6 minutes.

Step 5

Top pork mixture with sesame oil and green onions.