Stir-fry Chilli Petai & Mince

If you love hot & spicy local food like I do, you have to try this stir-fry chilli petai & mince meat. Petai is also known as stinky bean (臭豆 in Chinese) so I think you can guess that the petai bean has a ‘unique’ smell & taste. It might sound like a foul smelling food but trust me, this is a strangely delicious ‘stinky’ ingredient.

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Stir-fry Chilli Petai & MInce Recipe

Petai was an acquired taste for me. I never dared to eat it all my life due to the smell but suddenly I tried it 2 years ago and I grew to like it from there. Nowadays, I crave eating petai! Locally, we usually cook petai with a thick sambal paste but as a starter to cooking petai as a noob cook, this recipe is really simple. I just wanted to do a simple stir fry petai in cut chilli & garlic, so I used instant sambal belacan as a short-cut to cutting the chillis. The dish is also cooked with some mince meat so that it can be served as a one-dish meal.

PETAI PREPARATION

Petai (Stinky Bean)
Each petai must be halved for cooking. On the left of the plate are the halved petai, while the right section of the plate are the intact petai sold at the market.

Halved Petai (Worm)
Halving the petai helps to reduce cooking time but most importantly, it is a vital check for any worm which might be embedded inside the bean (pictured above). If you found a worm, just cut a ‘v’ shape around the worm to discard that portion.

STEP-BY-STEP PHOTOS

Stir-fry Chilli Petai & MInce (Step-by-Step)
Cook onions on medium low heat in a wokpan until softened.

Stir-fry Chilli Petai & MInce (Step-by-Step) (Chicken)
Add marinated mince chicken.

Stir-fry Chilli Petai & MInce (Step-by-Step) (Pork)
You can also use minced pork (I cooked the pork version on an earlier day).

Stir-fry Chilli Petai & MInce (Step-by-Step)
Stir fry mince chicken until half cooked, then add mince garlic and dried chilli.

Stir-fry Chilli Petai & MInce (Step-by-Step)
When the mince chicken is fully cooked on the surface (turns fully opaque), add petai and sambal belacan.

Stir-fry Chilli Petai & MInce (Step-by-Step)
This is the brand of sambal belacan I am using by the way. It is really hot! You can use any favourite brand from the supermarket and adjust to taste.

Stir-fry Chilli Petai & MInce (Step-by-Step)
Stir-fry briskly to coat the petai in the sambal belacan.

Stir-fry Chilli Petai & MInce (Step-by-Step)
Then add water …

Stir-fry Chilli Petai & MInce (Step-by-Step)
sugar …

Stir-fry Chilli Petai & MInce (Step-by-Step)
& fish sauce.

Stir-fry Chilli Petai & MInce (Step-by-Step)
Stir fry until the petai is softened to liking, which won’t take long.

Stir-fry Chilli Petai & Mince Recipe

This recipe uses instant sambal belacan as a short cut to cutting chillis. As every brand of sambal belacan differs in heat and taste, do season to taste accordingly.

Check out the step-by-step photos on the previous page.

Ingredients:

  • 150g petai (臭豆)
  • 200g mince pork or chicken
  • 1 tbsp cooking oil
  • 1 small white or red onion sliced thinly
  • 1 level tbsp minced garlic
  • 3 dried chilli deseeded; snip to short sections
  • 1 heaped tbsp instant sambal belacan (or check out this home-made recipe)
  • 75 ml water add more if needed
  • 10g sugar
  • 1/2 tbsp fish sauce

(A) Marinade

  • 1 tsp light soy sauce
  • 1 tsp fish sauce
  • 1 tsp sesame oil
  • 4 dashes white pepper powder

Directions:

  1. Prepare petai by carefully halving each bean with a knife. If there is any embedded worm in the cut bean, cut a v shape around the worm and discard that portion.
  2. Marinade mince meat in (A) for at least 15 minutes in the fridge.
  3. Stir fry the mince. Heat oil in wokpan. Add cooking oil and onions. Cook on medium low heat until softened. Add marinated meat and stir fry until almost cooked. Then add garlic and dried chilli. Stir fry until the mince is fully cooked on the surface.
  4. Cook petai. Add petai and sambal belacan. Cook briskly until the petai is well coated in the sambal chilli. Then add water, sugar and fish sauce. Stir fry until petai is softened to liking, about 1-2 minutes. Dish out and serve with steamed rice.