Pork Chop Suey - Chow Mein Noodle This!

I went to a Catholic grade school for eight years, a Catholic high school for four, and a Catholic college for four more.  At Boston College, we had pretty solid food options.  The cafeterias were top notch.  We had ample selection, varying from the healthy to the deep fried and everything in between.  However, in grade school and high school, you had one option per day.  That was it.  At St. Theresa's grade school in Boston, MA, I particularly remember Fridays fondly.  Standard fare was a slice of rectangular frozen pizza (in hindsight, nothing special, but at the time, quite tasty), steamed green beans (rarely eaten, but they were a mandatory side) and chocolate cake with white frosting (delicious and I can still remember the moist texture, yum!).  At Catholic Memorial (CM) High School in Boston, MA, I became a "brown bag" guy pretty regularly.  I wasn't a big fan of the cafeteria food.  That said though, CM was smart enough to have the local amazing donut shop (at which I worked during my sophomore year) deliver several dozen each morning.  My senior year, after "homeroom", I had "study".  I went straight to the cafeteria, and ate a donut or two.  Good times!

At both locations, I do remember that they served Chop Suey.  And always, without fail, you'd see a large bowl with a small spoon it, filled with La Choy Chow Mein Noodles, these little crispy things that masked the taste of the cafeteria style Chop Suey.  In looking them up just now, I learned that they are essentially sticks of wheat and rice flour flash fried.  Mmmm.  Sounds delicious and good for you, right?  Well, I have to tell you, on those days I didn't "brown bag" and chop suey was on the menu at school, I made the most of that small spoon in the big bowl of chow mein noodles.

But those were NOT needed tonight when I made Pork Chop Suey, using Emeril's recipe that treated me oh so kindly.  First, I started with a pound of Paulina Meat Market's Pork Chop Suey cuts of pork.  I learned while there that this cut is essentially diced Pork Shoulder.  But since it's on display, well you know the rules, I need to cook it.  Now, truth be told, Emeril's Chop Suey recipe calls for Pork Tenderloin, a much leaner cut than pork shoulder.  But I figured I'd be brave enough to use a cut called "Chop Suey" for a recipe called "Chop Suey".  Call me crazy.  That said, I was smart enough to prep the diced meat by removing all fat, and making these little dices of meat lean and ready to go.

So, first, I mixed some oyster sauce, soy sauce, sugar, Chinese rice wine, red pepper flakes and corn starch together.  I then marinated the diced pork in that for 30 minutes or so.  In a separate bowl, I mixed some additional oyster sauce, Chinese rice wine and corn starch together.  This would be used late in the cooking process.  In a hot wok over high heat, I added vegetable oil (2 tablespoons) and coated the pan.  In went garlic for about 10 seconds, then came the pork for about 2 minutes, then some red pepper and onion for about a minute, then celery and shitake mushrooms for about a minute, then bean sprouts and water chestnuts for a minute, and finally some red chili paste and the separate sauce mentioned earlier for a final minute or two.  Transfer it to a serving bowl, and garnish with some chopped green onion, and you have a colorful, tasty dish.  We served it over white jasmine rice with a bottle of Robert Biale Stagecoach Vineyard Zinfandel.

Now, people ask me what are my favorite dishes so far this year.  Let it be known that this dish is most definitely top 10.  I loved it.  And those crispy crazy wheat/rice flour chow mein noodles?  They were nowhere to be found in this meal.  And that was because the deliciousness of this meal required nothing to cover it up.

25 down, 34 to go!