Barry's International Kitchen

August 17, 2009


Salt Pork String Beans(sorta)

When I was in college some 40 years ago I was not unlike most college students, never refused a free meal.  Although I had a small apartment with a kitchen it wasn't well stocked and I had none of the tools needs to create anything beyond basic.  I had the pleasure of eating several meals with a school mate who lived close by, his family were super nice, they owned a little Ma and Pa store and had a nice life, I didn't see they wanted for anything.  Ronnie was my school mates name and Ronnies mom made these wonderful String beans that she cooked in Salt Pork and whatever else, they were great.  Whenever I had the oportunity to dine with them, I would always ask is your mom making Salt Pork String beans, Ronnie would say, "I am sure she will make them for you" and she always did. 


A lot of my cooking today is reworking old unhealthy put you in your grave dishes to something more healthy without sacrificing what made them good.   We planted string beans this year and even though we have had a horrible growing season with an exceptionally cold and wet summer Barbara came in last night with string beans, I didn't know they were even big enough to yield a string bean.  It was only a handful but I was determined to do something good with them, they are really expensive string beans most of the garden didn't even come up.  I wanted to replicate Ronnies mothers Salt Pork String Beans but I knew that was impossible but how close could I get was the question?


The most flavorful cooking oil I have is Sesame oil so I thought that would be a good start but how to get a nice salty taste was where my attention went next.  Soy sauce of course I though.  So you can see where this is going.


This is so simple and really tasty if not exactly authentic.  A tablespoon or two of Sesame oil depending on the size of your batch and some Soy sauce to taste I would suggest a TBSP or Two.  I was afraid the inside wouldn't cook by the time the outside was brown so I microwaved them for a minute and that did the trick.  Then just stir fry, keep them moving until you see a nice brown crust develop.  This should work equally as well with green or yellow beans.


I would have a picture for you but I ate all of them.


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