Chinese Steamed Pork Patty With Preserved Vegetables

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Every once in a while, my dad makes this steam pork patty with preserved vegetables and it reminds me of the simple meals that I would eat as a kid. My parents focused on cooking healthy, delicious, and quick meals for me. This steamed patty was their go to meal because it can feed 3-4 people in one sitting.

This dish may not look fancy but it is considered very traditional Cantonese food. Chinese families would eat this dish mostly at home with close ones because its not fancy or something you cook for guests. Therefore, you won’t see it at Chinese restaurants.

The best part about this dish is the preserved vegetables; they are so fragrant and savory in this dish! The preserved vegetables can also be eaten on its own with rice, noodles and porridge.

What is Chinese Preserved Vegetables (Zha Choi)?

Chinese preserved vegetables are made from mustard stems. In Cantonese, they are called Zha Choi) and a very popular side dish in China. Depending on the region in China, they may use these preserved vegetables in stir fries as well. They taste savory, sweet and a little spicy (depending the kind you get!) with soft crisp texture. The preserved vegetables are not pickled so don’t assume they are sour 😉

I bought these zha choi packets at 99 ranch (Chinese grocery chain). They were located in the refrigerated tofu/pickled veggies aisle near the fresh product section at my store ◡̈

Zha choi comes in a preserved package (see image above for reference) and is already ready to eat! Depending on the brand you get, the taste can vary. So remember to taste one of the preserved vegetables and adjust your salt accordingly when making the steamed patty.

INGREDIENTS YOU NEED FOR YOUR STEAMED PORK PATTY:

• ground pork
• ground ginger
• green onion
• salt (adjust accordingly as the chinese pickled vegetables can be salty)
• chicken bouillon
• soy sauce
• eggs
• starch
• olive oil or neutral oil
• water
• Chinese pickled vegetables (zha choi in Cantonese), chopped

STEPS TO MAKE THE STEAMED PORK PATTY:

1. Prepare the filling by chopping the green onions. Next, chop the chinese pickled vegetables. Ground ginger and set aside.
2. Add 1 teaspoon ground ginger, chopped green onions, 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/2 teaspoon chicken bouillon, 1/2 tablespoon soy sauce, 1 egg, 1 tablespoon corn starch, 1/2 tablespoon oil, 2 tablespoons water and chopped chinese pickled vegetables to ground pork.
3. Mix the ingredients together in one direction (see video to see how to mix). Mix until the meat filling is well incorporated. Mixing the meat filling in one direction helps with myosin development. Myosin is a protein that helps bind the meat together. This results in a stickier and tender filling. I recommend to mix in one direction for around 100 rotations.
4. Add steamed patty in a shallow bowl. Make sure to press the patty down and press on the sides to prevent shrinking during cooking. Depending on how large your bowl is, you may need to split the portions in 2 different bowls. If you use a larger bowl for all the meat, adjust cooking time in the next step.
5. Boil a large pot of water on medium high heat. When water is boiling, add steamed patty on the wire rack. Cook for 15-17 minutes. Optional: gently make a hole in the center with a spoon. Crack egg inside the hole. Cook for 2-3 minutes for over easy egg. Cook for 5 or more minutes for hard boiled egg.
6. Enjoy the steamed patty with rice and leafy vegetables!

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