Two essential tips to make delicious and flavorful salted shrimp paste with steamed pork.

Mắm tee dressing with meat is a signature dish of many northern provinces. The meat is tender and fragrant with the smell of mắm tép (a type of fermented shrimp paste). The minced meat blends with mắm tép and spices to create a delicious dish, especially in cold weather.

Ingredients for mắm tép dressing with meat

500g of pork. The best pork for mắm tép dressing is the pork shoulder because it has both lean meat and fat, but the fat is not greasy and the lean meat is not dry.

Lemongrass, dried shallots, ginger

Seasonings: mắm tép, shrimp paste, sugar, seasoning powder, etc.

Cooking oil or lard (if you want the meat to be soft and delicious, it is recommended to use clean lard instead of cooking oil. The meat will be more tender after being cooked).

Instructions

Step 1: Prepare the ingredients:

Buy fresh and good-quality pork, avoid using frozen or old meat. The pork shoulder is soft and crispy, not greasy or dry like meat from other regions. If the meat is not good, the dish will not taste good.

Buy high-quality mắm tép that is not smelly or gritty. The mắm tép should have a sweet aroma.

Peel the outer layer of the lemongrass. Cut off the root part of the lemongrass and finely chop it.

Peel and finely chop the dried shallots.

Wash and finely chop the fresh ginger.

Step 2. Marinate the meat

Put the minced meat in a large bowl. Do not mince or grind the meat too finely, as it will become crumbly and dry. Add 2 tablespoons of mắm tép, 2 tablespoons of shrimp paste, 2 tablespoons of cooking oil, and 4 tablespoons of sugar. Mix well so that the meat absorbs the seasonings.

Depending on your taste, you can adjust the seasoning to be more or less salty and sweet. Some families may not like the taste of shrimp paste, so you can omit it.

Then mix in the finely chopped ginger. Mix this mixture well, and if you wear plastic gloves while mixing, it will be even better. After that, cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let it marinate in the refrigerator for at least 1 hour. If you have time, marinate it for about 4 hours or overnight.

Step 3. Cook mắm tép dressing with meat

Heat a pan over medium heat and add the lard. Then add the lemongrass and dried shallots and stir-fry until fragrant and golden. Add the marinated meat and stir-fry until the water is completely evaporated. At this point, the meat should be firm but not dry. The meat will have a beautiful reddish-brown color and an enticing aroma. Avoid stirring too much, as it can make the meat dry and tough.

It is recommended to cook the mắm tép dressing with slightly more fat to ensure that it can be preserved longer and remain soft. When serving, you can reheat it in the microwave and drain the excess fat. Let the mắm tép dressing with meat cool down, then put it in a glass jar and store it in the refrigerator for about 1 month. Serve the mắm tép dressing with meat with hot rice, a plate of blanched morning glory, some pickled tomatoes, and a bowl of sweet and sour vegetable soup with lemon or tamarind to create a simple but tempting meal.

Two important notes to make delicious mắm tép dressing with meat:

– Choose fresh and good-quality pork shoulder and fragrant mắm tép. The ingredients must be fresh for the mắm tép dressing with meat to taste good.

– Using lard instead of cooking oil will make the dish more delicious, tender, and fragrant.