Recipe/Directions for Fuki and Pork Stir-Fry

Delicately bitter fuki / Japanese butterbur flavored with soy sauce and mirin.

Cooking time: 15 minutes

Calories: 257kcal

Sodium: 0.8g

Nutrition facts are for one serving.

Ingredients(Servings: 2)

Fuki/Japanese butterbur: 150 g (5.3 oz.)

pork belly (thinly sliced): 100 g (3.5 oz.)

red chili pepper: 1

sesame oil: 1/2 Tbsp

Kikkoman Soy Sauce: 1 & 1/2 Tbsp

salt: a dash

(A)

sake (cooking sake): 1 Tbsp

mirin (Manjo Mirin, Kotteri Mirin): 1/2 Tbsp

sugar: 1/2 Tbsp

Directions

Cut the fuki to fit in a pot and sprinkle on 1/2 Tbsp of salt. Roll back and forth on a cutting board to rub in the salt. Boil for 1 to 2 minutes, then immediately transfer to cold water. Remove any sinew and cut diagonally into 3 cm (1.2 in.) lengths.
Cut the pork into small pieces. Remove seeds from the red chili pepper and chop into small rounds.
Heat the sesame oil in a fry pan over low heat, saute the red chili pepper without scorching, then turn the heat to medium and saute the pork.
Once the pork is browned, add in (1) and saute. Add in (A), then add in the soy sauce to finish while sauteing and simmering to boil down the cooking liquids, Serve onto plates.

Checkpoints

Fuki/Japanese butterbur - rolling in salt

Place the fuki on a cutting board, sprinkle on some salt, and roll the fuki back and forth with your palms. Use about 2 Tbsp of salt per 4 to 5 stalks. Rolling in salt will make the color more vivid and the skin easier to peel.

Fuki/Japanese butterbur - peeling the skin

Boil, soak in cold water, and then peel off the thin layer of skin. If you peel back several strips about 3 cm (1.2 in.) long and then gather these together and pull off the skin all at once, the peel can be efficiently removed without ripping half way through.