BEEF AND PORK
WITH FISH, GREENS, AND RICE readily available, beef and pork play the role of extras at the Burmese table. In central Burma they are served as intense curries that come as one of many dishes in a rice meal. In outlying areas they are more often cooked together with vegetables, as in the Shan dish Three-Layer Pork with Mustard Greens and Tofu.
I’ve included two central Burmese beef curries here (see this page and this page), as well as a spiced take on beef and potatoes (see this page). There’s also an intriguing beef dish from the Kachin, in which spices and herbs are pounded into tender chunks of cooked beef.
The Shan repertoire of beef and pork dishes makes up the rest of the chapter. On this page, slices of pork are stir-fried and then briefly simmered in a smoky sauce with a hint of sweetness. Sweet-Tart Pork Belly Stew is a warming dish perfumed with lemongrass.
Two of the recipes here can be made with either beef or pork. One is spice-rubbed, air-dried, and then fried (Spice-Rubbed Jerky)—a real crowd-pleaser with intense flavor that originates in methods used by people in the mountains to cure their meat. The others, Lemongrass-Ginger Sliders, is a succulent take on ground meat, taking the slider to new heights.
kachin pounded beef with herbs
SERVES 4
This is one of the most unusual and delicious dishes I have ever come across. The beef is first cooked in a little water, then briefly fried to firm it up, and finally is lightly pounded to blend the herbed
flavor paste into it. It sounds complicated, but it’s easy. The flavor paste includes
Sichuan peppercorns, a reminder that China and Kachin State share a long border, and that there’s been trade across it for centuries. In Myitkyina, people told me that they refer to Sichuan pepper as Kachin pepper.
The result is meltingly tender beef. It’s great served with drinks, seductively warming and deeply flavored.
About 1 cup water
1 to 1¼ pounds stewing beef or boneless beef shoulder, trimmed of fat and cut into approximately 1-inch cubes
1 teaspoon ground Sichuan pepper
1 scant tablespoon peanut oil or vegetable oil
FLAVOR PASTE
1 tablespoon chopped ginger
2 teaspoons chopped garlic
2 dried red chiles, stemmed
1 teaspoon lightly toasted Sichuan peppercorns
1½ teaspoons salt
½ cup loosely packed Vietnamese coriander (see Glossary), coarsely torn or chopped, or substitute coriander leaves
Pour ½ inch of water into a wok or wide pot, add the beef and Sichuan pepper, and bring to a boil. Cook at a low boil until the meat is tender, 20 to 30 minutes, decreasing the heat gradually as the water evaporates. There should be very little liquid left. Remove from the heat.
Place a heavy skillet or a wok over medium heat, add the oil, and tilt the pan to coat the cooking surface. Add the meat and cook, turning occasionally, until all surfaces have changed color a little, about 6 minutes. Set aside.
If you have a large mortar, combine the ginger, garlic, dried chiles, Sichuan peppercorns, and salt and pound and grind to a paste. Add the coriander and pound to incorporate it. Add the meat and pound to blend the flavor paste thoroughly into the meat. (If your mortar is too small to accommodate all the meat at once, remove half the paste and then work with half the meat and half the flavor paste at a time.) The meat will soften and break down but should not be completely pulverized.
Alternatively, mince the ginger and garlic very fine and set aside in a small bowl. Use a spice grinder or coffee grinder to reduce the dried chiles and Sichuan peppercorns to a powder. Stir the powder into the garlic and ginger, then add the salt
and use the back of the spoon to blend them together. Chop the coriander fine and blend into the flavor paste. Place the meat in a wide bowl, add the flavor paste, and use a wooden mallet or a wide wooden spatula to press and pound the flavoring into the meat.
Serve at room temperature.
A NOTE ON LEFTOVERS: I’ve eaten this fresh from the mortar and pestle and as leftovers the next day. As often happens, the leftovers have an even greater depth of flavor than the freshly made dish.
The main food market in Myitkyina sits on a high riverbank by the Irrawaddy. This woman arrived by boat with a load of produce that others were carrying up the steep flight of stairs from the water—the huge squash was enough of a cargo for her!
saucy spiced meat and potatoes
SERVES 3 OR 4
This simple dish of cubes of potato simmered in an aromatic ground beef sauce lends itself to experimentation. I sometimes add mushrooms, for example, to the simmering sauce. Or I make the dish with lamb or goat instead, using cubes of eggplant in place of or in addition to the potato.
The initial spicing of cumin, coriander, shallot, and ginger is reminiscent of northern India. Black pepper is not traditional, but I find it a great addition.
Serve as a simple one-dish meal, on its own or over rice, with a vegetable side or a salad.
About 1 pound lean ground beef
1 teaspoon salt, or to taste
⅛ teaspoon turmeric
½ teaspoon ground cumin
½ teaspoon ground coriander
2 tablespoons peanut oil
¼ cup minced shallots
1 tablespoon minced ginger
3 medium potatoes (about 1 pound), peeled and cut into 1-inch cubes
1 to 2 cups water
1 cup finely chopped tomatoes
¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper (optional)
Mix the meat with the salt, turmeric, cumin, and coriander in a bowl. If you have time, set aside for an hour, covered, in a cool place to let the flavors blend.
Place a skillet or wok over medium heat. Add the oil, and when it is hot, toss in the shallots and ginger and cook until the shallots are translucent and softened, about 4 minutes. Add the potatoes and cook for 3 or 4 minutes, until lightly browned; then raise the heat to high, add 1 cup water, cover, and bring to a boil. Lower the heat and simmer until the potatoes are nearly cooked, about 10 minutes.
Add the meat mixture and stir to break up any lumps and to incorporate it. If the water has boiled away, add another ½ cup so there’s enough liquid to make a meat sauce texture. Stir in the tomatoes and chile powder and simmer, uncovered, until all the meat has changed color and the potatoes are tender; add a little more water while everything cooks if you’d like more sauce. Add the black pepper, if using, then taste and adjust the seasoning with salt if needed.
rakhine chile-hot meat and potatoes
Add 1 tablespoon minced galangal (see Glossary) to the spice mixture, and add 3 green cayenne chiles, slit lengthwise, when you add the water to the potatoes.
