Sichuan beans with pork mince

There are many versions of this, some with a trace of heat, by way of a few chillies, or garlic. I saw this particular recipe in a recent Australian Gourmet Traveller magazine. It caught my eye partly because they recommended pairing it with a light pinot noir - which I found so hard to believe, I had to scour the city for half a day, looking for ingredients, just so I could test the suggested combination myself.

I would certainly commend the dish, with a few modifications (which I have made), though not the wine match. The beans are flavour packed, though somewhat salt and ginger laden and I don't think it works at all with pinot noir. A pot of Chinese tea is probably the liquid of choice, distantly followed by a juicy rosé for the hard core. . .

Ingredients:

• 2 tablespoons of dried prawns, soaked in boiling water for 10 minutes.
• 40g fresh ginger
• 30g Tianjin preserved vegetables
• 500g snake beans (though any green bean would work, though less well) - trimmed
• 60mls chicken stock, to which you stir in 1 tbsp sugar and a pinch of salt
• 60g minced pork meat
• 1 tbsp Chinese black vinegar mixed with 1 tsp sesame oil
• 2 spring onions - chopped finely

How?
Blend the first 3 ingredients to make a course mixture. Set aside.
Take 750mls of peanut oil, or similar and heat in a large pot till very hot, then cook the beans in two batches, removing the beans from the oil as they start to wrinkle (approx 3-4 minutes).
In a wok, heat a splash of oil and stir fry the prawn/ginger/Tianjin mixture and the pork. When cooked through, add the stock and then the beans that have been partly cooked. Stir fry for a few minutes to heat through and then add the remaining ingredients (vinegar, sesame oil and spring onions). Give a final stir and then serve.