The autumn breeze brings back memories of a familiar dish of my people. For mountain dwellers like me, no dish is more simple yet refined than stir-fried cassava leaves with pork belly. Just mentioning its name evokes nostalgia for generations of mountain people.
While the golden sunlight still lingered on the thatched roofs, my mother told me to go to the cassava hedge behind the house. There, lush green cassava plants spread throughout the garden. We picked young cassava leaves to make dinner for the whole family.
Every time I go to pick cassava leaves, I always smell the earthy scent mixed with kitchen smoke from afar. It's like a familiar sign that mealtime is approaching.
My mother told me to pick only the softest and freshest leaves so that they wouldn't be tough when stir-fried, while still retaining their characteristic sweet and savory flavor.
Upon returning home, I carefully broke the cassava leaves into small pieces and rubbed them on the surface of a winnowing tray until they were finely shredded into soft, smooth fibers. This was the most difficult step and greatly determined the deliciousness of the dish.
At first, I was quite confused about how to do it correctly, but gradually I learned how to scrub the leaves so that they weren't too fine or too coarse. When stir-fried, the leaves retain their rich flavor without becoming too soft. Each soft, smooth strand of leaf emits a distinctive aroma of the border countryside.
After scrubbing the cassava leaves, rinse them two or three times with water to remove all the sap and pungent smell, then squeeze them dry to loosen them. My mother said that the preparation was complete; now we just needed to stir-fry them.
My mother usually chooses pork belly with plenty of fat, slices it thinly, and stir-fries it in a hot pan. The fat renders and clings to the meat, making it tender and sweet. The aroma of the hot pork belly blends with the fresh scent of cassava leaves, filling the kitchen.
When stir-fried with pork belly, cassava leaves have a slightly chewy texture. The dish is not simply a combination of ingredients, but a harmonious blend of flavors: the delicate richness of the meat, the nutty flavor of the cassava leaves, the mild spiciness of the seasoning, and a touch of saltiness from the fish sauce.
Every time my mother stir-fried cassava leaves with pork belly, I would stand beside her and watch. Her hands were skillful, and her movements were gentle. My mother said that the stir-frying process required paying attention to the heat, stirring constantly so that the cassava leaves and pork belly would absorb the seasoning evenly, while the cassava leaves retained their vibrant green color, remaining soft without becoming mushy.
This dish is even more special when enjoyed with a few A Rieu chili peppers. The spiciness of the chili peppers adds a rich flavor to the dish, making everyone nod in approval.
I can't find the distinctive taste of stir-fried cassava leaves with pork belly anywhere else but in my mother's small kitchen – the kitchen in our remote border house.
Source: https://baoquangnam.vn/thom-bui-la-san-xao-thit-ba-chi-3145944.html
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