This soup has lemongrass and basil from Thai cuisine along with a version of Chinese sticky plum sauce that I bought from the fancy new Pick n Pay Blue store at the Boardwalk Mall in Gqeberha, for which the going abbreviation by locals, if you didn’t know, is “PE”. Read TGIFood this Friday for more about what’s happening in the higher echelons of South African shopping mall culture.

Remember to steam some jasmine rice in good time, for serving, and to prepare your garishes so you can garnish quickly when serving.

(Serves 4)

Ingredients

2 pork fillets, about 350g each

1 stick of lemongrass

2 garlic cloves, thinly sliced

Juice and zest of 1 lime

1 red pepper (capsicum), trimmed and cut into julienne strips

200 g shimeji, shiitake and king oyster mushrooms

Rice wine vinegar, as needed

PnP Crafted Collection sticky plum sauce or similar

10 to 12 joy choy leaves (a.k.a. pak/bok choy)

2 Tbsp basil leaves

1 Tbsp coriander leaves, chopped

Method

Peel and slice the garlic. Bash the lemongrass and peel off the hard outer layers. Chop the inner parts finely. Grate the zest of the lime and have these three elements on standby near the stove.

Prepare the red pepper and slice the mushrooms, leaving the tiny shimeji ones whole, but do snip off their root bases.

Trim away any membranes from the pork fillets and slice into strips.

Sauté the garlic, lemongrass and lime zest in wok sauté oil on a lowish heat in a wok for 3 minutes. Remove to a side dish.

Cook the sliced mushrooms in this flavoured oil, adding a splash of rice wine vinegar, and remove to the side dish.

Now cook the julienne strips of red pepper. Remove to the side dish.

Cook the pork in batches so they do not crowd the wok, adding plum sauce as you cook. Remove to the side dish.

Chop the stems off the joy choy and cook them first, then add their leaves. They need only be wilted.

Add everything back to the wok and stir fry together, then add plum sauce, squeeze in the lime juice, and stir fry for a minute to heat through.

Garnish with basil and coriander and serve with steamed jasmine rice. DM/TGIFood

Follow Tony Jackman on Instagram @tony_jackman_cooks.