Mabo Harusame

Name: Mabo Harusame
Yield: 4 servings
Cuisine: British
Ingredients: 250 g Pork Mince; 1 small piece Ginger *finely chopped; 1 clove Garlic *finely chopped; 4 Spring Onion *finely chopped; 100 g Harusame Noodles (Bean Thread Noodles); About 300 g Vegetables of your choice; I used 1 Carrot, a handful of Snow Peas, 100g cooked Bamboo Shoots, 5 Shiitake Mushrooms; 1/2 tablespoon Sesame Oil; 1 cup Chicken Stock (or Water 1 cup & Asian Chicken Bouillon Powder 1 teaspoon); 1 tablespoon Sugar; 2 tablespoons Soy Sauce; 2 tablespoons Sake; 2-3 teaspoons Toban Djan (Chili Bean Sauce)

Hiroko Liston @hirokoliston

Melbourne, Australia

A Japanese word ‘Okazu’ is hard to be translated into English. There is no English word that has the same meaning. The Japanese principal food is rice (short grain). The most typical meal in standard Japanese cuisine is called ‘Ichijū Sansai’ which means ‘One Soup & Three Dishes’. This doesn’t include rice. These dishes are the accompanying dishes to be eaten with rice and ‘Okazu’ are the these dishes.
I heard this ‘Mabo Harusame’ is one of the most popular ‘Okazu’ dishes these days. The basic concept of this dish is replacing Tofu of ‘Mabo Dofu’ with Harusame, the starch noodles. It tastes yummy but less nutritious. That’s why I tend to add lots of vegetables and mushrooms to this dish.

Hiroko Liston @hirokoliston

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Ingredients

4 servings

250 gPork Mince
1small piece Ginger *finely chopped
1 cloveGarlic *finely chopped
4Spring Onion *finely chopped
100 gHarusame Noodles (Bean Thread Noodles)
About 300 g Vegetables of your choice
I used 1 Carrot, a handful of Snow Peas, 100g cooked Bamboo Shoots, 5 Shiitake Mushrooms
1/2 tablespoonSesame Oil
Sauce Ingredients
1 cupChicken Stock (or Water 1 cup & Asian Chicken Bouillon Powder 1 teaspoon)
1 tablespoonSugar
2 tablespoonsSoy Sauce
2 tablespoonsSake
2-3 teaspoonsToban Djan (Chili Bean Sauce)

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Steps

1

Soak Harusame Noodles in cold water for 10 to 15 minutes to hydrate. When they are soft, drain well and tear short if very long.
2

Prepare vegetables. Basically you need to slice them into thin strips or cut into small pieces. I used 1 Carrot, a handful of Snow Peas, 100g cooked Bamboo Shoots, 5 Shiitake Mushrooms. Other suggestions include Shimeji, Enoki, Beans, Black Fungus (Kikurage), Garlic Chives, Bean Sprouts, Pak Choi, etc.
3

Place all the sauce ingredients in a mixing bowl and mix well. This has to be done before you start cooking. Cooking process doesn’t take long at all.
4

Heat Sesame Oil in a large frying pan or a wok, cook Pork Mince with Ginger and Garlic, breaking up the mince. When the Pork changes colour, add vegetables and cook for a few minutes.
5

Pour in the sauce mixture and bring it to the boil. Then add Harusame Noodles.
6

Harusame Noodles become transparent. At this point, you might think the sauce is too much and you need more noodles. DO NOT worry because the noodles will soak up the sauce. When the sauce is almost gone, it is ready to serve.