Yu Xiang Rou Si (Fish-Fragrant Shredded Pork)
Not a drop of fish! Sichuan Magic Stir Fry with "Fishy Scent"
Description
The absolute staple of Sichuan cuisine. 'Yu Xiang' (Fish-fragrant) is a special seasoning profile—originally used to cook fish in Sichuan—combining 'Pao Jiao' (pickled fermented chilies), garlic, black vinegar, and sugar. It is used to violently stir-fry julienned pork, wood ears, and bamboo shoots. A rice thief perfectly fusing sour, sweet, spicy, and salty.
Restaurants serving Yu Xiang Rou Si (Fish-Fragrant Shredded Pork)
Researching
We are researching restaurants that serve this dish.
On this site you can check dictionary details and, later, places to buy or eat related items.
The Recipe section below is a general reference, not a recipe from the listed shops.
Recipe
Ingredients
- Lean pork
- Pao Jiao(Red fermented pickled chilies)
- Bamboo shoots
- Wood ears
- Garlic
- Ginger
- Black vinegar
- Sugar
- Soy sauce
Instructions
- [Authentic Recipe & Differences]
- (Ultimate Shredding) Julienne lean pork into matchstick-thin shreds. Massage vigorously with salt, wine, egg white, and massive starch slurry, sealing with oil (Shang Jiang).
- (Veg) Beautifully julienne wood ears, bamboo shoots, and carrots to the exact same thickness/length.
- (Yu Xiang Sauce: This is Life) In a bowl, mix soy sauce, black vinegar, sugar, wine, and starch slurry in a 'golden ratio where sweet and sour are perfectly equal'.
- (Flash-fry) Flash-fry (Hua Chao) the pork on low heat, separating quickly. Remove the instant it turns white.
- [Flavor Explosion]: Leave oil in the wok. Slow-fry massive minced garlic, ginger, scallion, and Sichuan's special 'Pao Jiao' (finely chopped red fermented pickled chilies) to bloom a blazing red oil and intense aroma.
- Add the veggies and pork on high heat.
- Dump in the 'Yu Xiang Sauce'. Toss violently for seconds until it brilliantly glazes everything. Kill the heat instantly.
Learn more Spice, substitutes, tips
Key spices
Lactic acid tartness of Pao Jiao(fermented chilies)、Sweet-sourness of black vinegar/sugar
Substitutes at Japanese supermarkets
(Stir-fry JP pork with Doubanjiang, black vinegar, and sugar)
Pairing
White Rice (Bowl mandatory) / Beer
Trivia
[Trivia] 'Yu Xiang' is one of the foundational flavor profiles of Sichuan cuisine. Legend says a housewife fried pork using leftover sauce (scallion, ginger, garlic, fermented chilies) from cooking a fish. It produced a delicious aroma resembling fish (Yu Xiang) despite containing zero fish, thus the name.
Eating tips & etiquette
[Unique Eating] Scoop massive amounts of meat and veg with a spoon and dump it directly onto piping hot white rice. Unlike Mapo Tofu, it lacks violent heat or numbness. The profound sauce—complexly intertwining 'sweet, sour, and spicy'—soaks into the rice. A magical dish where your plate vanishes before you realize it.
Allergen
Pork, Soybeans, Wheat (Soy sauce)