No35 [Cooking] Chilli Pork with Green Pepper and Konnyaku

Chilli Pork with Green Pepper and Konnyaku

If you are looking for something different, why not try konnyaku? This Japanese superfood is made from the pounded roots of a yam-like plant known by many names, including “devils tongue”. The jelly-like potato cake has extremely few calories and zero sugar or fat.
Konnyaku is also said to ‘clean the stomach’ as it is very high in fibre. It is pretty tasteless on it’s own but has a unique ability to absorb any sauce it is cooked with. Spicy, rich and mildly sweet, the dish is good to eat right away, but you can also enjoy any leftovers the next day when the konnyaku has absorbed even more delicious flavour.

Ingredients :
Serves 2
● 240g Pork Belly
● 1 Green Pepper
● 150g Yutaka Japanese White Konnyaku
● 1 tsp Fresh Hot Chili
● 1 tsp Yutaka Cooking Sake
● 1 1/3 tsp Yutaka Organic Tamari Soy Sauce
● 1 tsp Sugar
● 1 tsp Vegetable Oil

❶ Thinly slice the pork, cut the konnyaku into 2cm cubes and the pepper into 2cm squares. Finely slice the chilli.
❷ Cook the konnyaku in boiling water for 3 minutes. Drain away the water and continue cooking while shaking the saucepan for 30 seconds until any left over evaporates completely.
❸ Add the oil to a frying pan, stir fry the pork for 2-3 minutes over a medium heat until it is lightly cooked. Add the green pepper, konnyaku and chilli and cook for a further minute. Add the rest of the ingredients, except for half of the soy sauce, and keep cooking until the sauce is reduced to less than half of its original volume. Keep stirring.
❹ Add the remaining soy sauce and cook for 2 more minutes, stirring continuously. Serve immediately.