Pork Curry with Mango Pickle [Burmese]

Burmese Pork and Pickle Curry

The most complex dishes can be created from a few simple and basic ingredients.  As in Cajun cooking, the basic ingredients for Burmese dishes consist of onions, garlic and ginger where varying the amount of any one ingredient significantly changes the tastes and textures of the finished dish. This is one which I consider to be a "fusion" of various Asian components: Chinese soy sauce; Indian mango pickle cooked in the standard Burmese manner.  Goes well with a mound of freshly cooked white rice (we use "Haiga" or "Gen ji mai" polished brown rice) and a medley of freshly sliced veggies (cucumber, cabbage, tomatoes, Thai pea-eggplants, etc.)

A good mango pickle

Ingredients:

• 1 lb pork butt cut into 2x2 cubes (could go as high as 2 lbs)
• spice mix for marinade: powdered coriander seed, red hot pepper powder, ginger powder, onion powder, garlic powder, turmeric powder, fish sauce, soy sauce, small pinch of sugar, big pinch of salt
• 1 large onion chopped fine
• 3 cloves garlic chopped fine (or crushed)
• 1 slice ginger
• [Optional - a few potatoes cubed to the same size as pork]
• 2 T oil
• 2 cups stock

Method

1).  Mix pork with spices and leave to marinate for an hour or so.
2). When ready to cook, heat oil (moderate heat) and saute onions until translucent and the smell has dissipated.  Add garlic and ginger and saute for 2 minutes. 
3). Increase heat to med-hi. Add all of the pork and marinade ingredients and stir until the pork is browned. 
4). If using potatoes, put pork aside on a plate and saute potatoes in remaining oil.  Add more oil if the pan dries out.  When potatoes have been seared, return pork to pan. 
5). Wash out the bowl that the pork was marinated in and pour this over the pork in the pan.  Add stock to cover and bring to a hard boil.  Reduce heat and taste.  If needed, add salt and/or sugar.  Simmer until pork is cooked.  The gravy will be thick and should be the consistency of heavy cream.  If it is thicker than that, add a bit of water - a tablespoon at a time.  Best to let this sit for a few hours and let the tastes blend before reheating and serving.
6). Reheat, put into serving bowl and put a dollop (1 tablespoon or so) of chopped pickled mango on top.  Sprinkle chopped fresh cilantro on top if desired.

The end

Haiku: "Old Pond" (Quoted)

The best-known Japanese haiku is Bashō's "old pond":

古池や蛙飛込む水の音

ふるいけやかわずとびこむみずのおと (transliterated into 17 hiragana)

furuike ya kawazu tobikomu mizu no oto (transliterated into romaji)

This separates into on as:

fu-ru-i-ke ya (5)

ka-wa-zu to-bi-ko-mu (7)

mi-zu no o-to (5)

Translated:

old pond . . .

a frog leaps in

water’s sound