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Arrow head, leeks and roast pork stir-fry




Arrow heads or 'Nga Ku' in Cantonese are considered special as they're only available once a year and that is during the Chinese NewYear.  Arrow heads, an aquatic tuber plant are perceived to be  auspicious because of the tiny offshoots protruding from the bulbs ~ a  symbol of reproductivity.  It is hoped that the consumption of 'nga ku', more so among the newlyweds will help bring forth more sons who will carry on with the family name.  The Chinese leeks or 'shuen' in Cantonese carries a homonym that sounds like 'counting money' which is associated with wealth and prosperity and everything symbolic for the Year of the Dragon!

  




 




This is one dish that I will normally cook during this festive season as my family members love both the arrowheads and the Chinese leeks and they do go down well with white rice.

Recipe for Arrow head, leeks and roast pork stir-fry
Ingredients
  • 350 gm arrowheads - smashed with the back of the chopper
  • 150 gm roast pork
  • 2  Chinese leeks - sliced
  • 3.1/2 cups water
  • 1.1/2  tsp cornflour + 2 tsp water
  • Salt, sugar and light soya sauce to taste
 Preparation
  1. Heat up some oil in a wok, toss in the roast pork, stir-fry for a while.
  2. Add in the smashed arrowheads, stir-fry, add in the water and let it cook.
  3. Once the arrowheads are soft and cooked (you may need to add in more water as arrow heads tend to absorb a lot of water), toss in the cut-up leeks.
  4. Fine tune to taste and add in the cornflour mixture.
  5. Dish onto serving plate.  Serve hot with white rice.

Related post :-
Braised pork belly with arrowroot/arrowhead

I'm sbumitting this entry to

Aspiring Bakers #15 :  Auspicious Dishes for CNY (January 2012) hosted by Wen of Wen's Delight


and

Malaysian Muhibbah Monday.  Do check it out 'Here'




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Comments

  1. yummylittlecooksFebruary 3, 2012 at 8:05 AM

    What a coincidence,i had this similar dish for lunch at my friend's house ytd. So delicious:)
    Gong xi fa cai to you:)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Sokehah cheahFebruary 5, 2012 at 12:45 AM

      This dish is quite common at this time of the year.

      Delete
  2. AnonymousFebruary 3, 2012 at 10:29 AM

    Thanks for sharing. Aries

    ReplyDelete
  3. AnonymousFebruary 3, 2012 at 2:49 PM

    Try to cooking this way, and remember not to add salt. a bit more water be added 350 gm arrowheads - smashed with the back of the chopper (mix a bit of salt)
    150 gm roast pork
    2 Chinese leeks - sliced
    water just enough to cover up all the above when mixed together.
    Nam Yee (3 pcs mash wih water
    Sweet sauce (Tiam Chong)
    sugar and black soya sauce to taste
    Preparation

    Heat up some oil in a wok, fry arrow for 5 mins and dish up. toss in the roast pork, stir-fry for a while (3 mins), add in arrow. stir-fry, add in nam yee, sweet sauce, water and let it cook.
    Once the arrowheads are soft and cooked, toss and mixed in the cut-up leeks head first (white parts)and the rest 1 min later.
    Add sugar to taste.
    Dish onto serving plate. Serve hot with white rice.
    My name is May Chen (mayc_23@yahoo.com), I love reading food blogs.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Sokehah cheahFebruary 5, 2012 at 12:47 AM

      Thanks, May. I've cooked the arrow heads with nam yue before but not the sweet sauce. Your recipe sounds interesting.

      Delete
  4. Christine HoFebruary 3, 2012 at 3:23 PM

    I love stir fry dish. Quick and yummy. I can remember that my mother cooked arrow heads during CNY. But haven't had it again since I moved to AU. :(

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Sokehah cheahFebruary 5, 2012 at 12:48 AM

      Perhaps you can find them in the Asian grocers in AU.

      Delete
  5. ann lowFebruary 3, 2012 at 9:32 PM

    My grandma cooked this dish too during CNY and she also liked to hang the 'shuen' in the kitchen so can count more monies ;DDD

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Sokehah cheahFebruary 5, 2012 at 12:49 AM

      Good idea to hang the 'shuen' so you'll be laughing all the way to the bank for the rest of the year!

      Delete
  6. yummylittlecooksFebruary 4, 2012 at 10:58 AM

    Hi Cheah, I have an award for you, feel free to pick up from my blog :)

    ReplyDelete
  7. Angie's RecipesFebruary 4, 2012 at 4:39 PM

    Never had arrow head...the stir-fry looks very delicious.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Sokehah cheahFebruary 5, 2012 at 12:52 AM

      Thanks. They taste much better than potato chips when they're sliced and deep-fried.

      Delete
  8. DmarieFebruary 4, 2012 at 8:09 PM

    visiting here thanks to Yummy Little Cooks. look forward to seeing more of your blog!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Sokehah cheahFebruary 6, 2012 at 4:39 PM

      Thanks for dropping by. Looking forward to your visits too!

      Delete
  9. JeannieFebruary 5, 2012 at 12:28 AM

    Hmm I have only ate arrow head crisps, never cooked with way, must try this next year, looks delicious!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Sokehah cheahFebruary 6, 2012 at 4:40 PM

      Some people don't like the arrow head cooked this way, it's a wee bit bitter.

      Delete
  10. My Little SpaceFebruary 6, 2012 at 7:30 PM

    Frankly, haven't cooking with arrow shoots for a long long time. See if I can make something out of it. It's hard to get hubby & the kids to like it. Hmmmm....
    Kristy

    ReplyDelete

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