Serving
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Pork Liver & Kidney, Sichuan
China - Sichuan

Serves
Effort:
Sched:
DoAhead:
2 main
***
1 hr
Most

Double treat or double threat? Depends on your taste. I find liver and kidneys very complimentary in this recipe, neither dominates. This dish has plenty of flavorful sauce so goes very well with long grain rice. If reheated it'll still be plenty tasty but the kidneys and liver will be stiffer.





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T
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Pork Liver (1)
Kidneys (2)
Citric Acid (3)
Salt
Chili Garlic Paste (4)
Dark Soy Sauce
Sugar
Ginger root
Garlic
Sichuan Peppercorns (5)
Oil
Stock
Salt
Sesame Oil
-- Garnish
    Scallions chopped
    Prep
  1. Rinse KIDNEYS thoroughly, slice in half lengthwise and remove all fat - a razor sharp boning knife is the right tool. Slice crosswise into thin medallions.
  2. Rinse LIVER and slice into thin medallions about the same size as the kidney slices.
  3. Combine Liver and Kidneys, rinse thoroughly and then soak 10 minutes in cold water with 1 t Salt and 1/2 t Citric Acid. Drain, rinse thoroughly again and repeat with fresh water, salt and acid.
  4. Rinse Kidney/Liver mix and drain well. Combine with Chili Paste, Soy Sauce and Sugar - let stand for 15 minutes or more.
  5. Crush GARLIC, slice GINGER very thin and sliver. Combine them and chop fine.
  6. Dry roast SICHUAN PEPPERCORNS until fragrant and slightly darkened, then grind well.
  7. Run
  8. Everything must be ready and your rice done - this will go very fast.
  9. Do not overcook, both kidneys and liver stiffen up quickly and you want them tender.
  10. In a wok or large sauté pan heat OIL over high heat and fry Ginger mix until just starting to show color, then stir in Kidney / Liver mix including all sauce. Cook stirring over very high heat for about 3 minutes.
  11. Stir in Sichuan Peppercorns, Stock and Salt. Bring quickly to a boil and cook stirring another 1 minute.
  12. Turn off heat and stir in Sesame Oil. Serve hot, garnished with chopped scallions and with plenty of long grain rice.
NOTES:
  1. Pork Livers can be found in any respectable Asian market. They weigh about 1 pound each.
  2. Kidneys should authentically be pork kidneys (available in Asian markets) but I've also used beef kidneys with great success (they'd be expensive in China).
  3. Citric Acid is convenient but Lemon Juice can be used instead - about 1/2 lemon worth per change of water.
  4. Chili Garlic Paste: Our recipe for Basic Chili Sauce will do fine, or a commercial sauce from a jar.
  5. Sichuan Peppercorns (Szechwan Peppercorns) were illegal in the U.S. for a few years but are now available. Black peppercorns are in no way related, but if you can't get the Sichuan Peppercorns try this: grind together 1 t coriander seed, 1/4 t black peppercorns and mix with the grated zest of 1/3 lemon. Not quite the same, but at least the recipe won't be ruined.
  6. U.S. measure: t=teaspoon, T=Tablespoon, c=cup, qt=quart, oz=ounce, #=pound, cl=clove in=inch
    smm_cowbrocnood1 051017 rt53
cmm_kidliver1 070831 gcrc151
©Andrew Grygus - ajg@aaxnet.com - Linking and non-commercial use permitted