NOW THAT'S A WRAP.

That’s a san choy bau lettuce wrap, just in time for the Lunar New Year.

Many lettuces (and cabbages) will be sacrificed this weekend, fed to the lion dances to make sure that good fortune is spread widely across the year of the Dragon.

My sacrifice will be more of a metaphor, serving piles of icy-cold lettuce with a quick stir-fry of what is essentially savoury mince. Yes, san choy bow, or sung choi bao, is the perfect dinner to ring in the lunar new year.

Its appeal never fades. The joy is in the mix – the crunch of water chestnut, the gentle sting of spring onion, the savoury umami of soy and oyster sauce – and the shock of the hot/cold ratio.  (Hot filling/cold lettuce, not the other way around).

It’s even better now that san choy bau is no longer strait-jacketed, but allowed to be its best self, made with pork or quail, chicken, prawn, lobster or scallop. Haven’t tried it yet, but I reckon kangaroo would be awesome, too.

It’s a hit in meat-free form as well, with loads of juicy mushrooms, diced eggplant and maybe some tofu.

This recipe is my attempt to emulate the san choi bau of Fei Jai in Sydney, which is bright with zucchini, red capsicum and mushroom. I figure that with so much veg, you don’t actually need an enormous amount of meat. As long as you have plenty of other interesting things, you could probably drop the meat to about 250 grams.

There’s not much in the need-to-know cupboard:

• Start soaking the mushrooms a couple of hours beforehand. I get up in the morning, make a cup of tea, pour a cup of boiling water over some dried shiitake, and leave them to it.

• Tip: Use the mushroom water with a little cornflour to add to the pan at the end of cooking to make a silky sauce that pulls it all together. No need to use chicken stock, just use the mushroom water because it’s to hand.

• Lup cheong sausage (usually steamed alongside the rice) is a cheeky addition, for its lovely porky sweetness. Quite like a handful of peanuts thrown on top, or some sesame seeds. Some people adore fresh bean shoots in this, others think they’re manky. 

• Chilli? Can be your fave sauce, either in the mix, or at the table. Fresh chilli is always good. I sneak in some chopped jalapeno because I love pickled chilli, and because I’ve seen some recipes that use pickled mustard greens, so hey.

I’ve dropped the usual bamboo shoots, because so often when I open a can they have a foetid smell to them that a good rinse won’t get rid of. Besides, I adore water chestnuts so much, I like to get rid of their competition.

Serve with steamed rice, which you can mix through the meat on the plate to lighten it, or just add a spoonful to each lettuce wrap. Nice, because it turns the whole thing into a meal.

SAN CHOI BAU

• 6 dried shiitake mushrooms

• 1 iceberg or 2 baby cos lettuces

• 100 g canned water chestnuts, drained, rinsed

• 4 spring onions

• 1 zucchini

• Half red capsicum

• Half yellow capsicum

• 2 tbsp vegetable or peanut oil

• 400 g coarsely minced fatty pork or chicken

• 2 tbsp Chinese rice wine

• 2 tbsp soy sauce

• 2 tbsp oyster sauce

• 1 tsp cornflour

Pour boiling water over the mushrooms and soak for 30 minutes to 2 hours.

Separate the lettuce leaves, and if large, tear in half. Wash, shake dry and chill.

Finely chop the water chestnuts, spring onions, zucchini and capsicums.

Drain the mushrooms, reserving the water. Discard stems and finely dice.

Heat 1 tbsp oil in a wok or fry pan until hot.

Add the zucchini, capsicum and water chestnuts and stir-fry over high heat for 3 minutes until they start to soften but not brown.

Remove from the pan, then add 1 tbsp oil to the pan and heat. Add the pork and half the spring onions and stir-fry over high heat for 2 minutes, breaking it up into a crumble, until no longer pink.

Add the rice wine, soy and oyster sauce, tossing until coated.

Mix cornflour with 3 tbsp mushroom water and drizzle over the top, then toss well, adding more mushroom water if you like it saucier.

Return the cooked zucchini, etc, to the pan, and toss well.

Scatter with remaining spring onions and serve with steamed rice, and icy-cold lettuce leaves. Serves 3-4.

Thanks for dropping by! And as always, thanks for your comments and suggestions. Special thanks to Terry for sharing the chopping. If you’re doing it all on your own, don’t forget to stand properly: some good advice on avoiding a sore back in the kitchen here.

I would like to acknowledge the traditional owners of the lands and waters upon which I work, live, cook and play; the Gadigal people of the Eora Nation, and pay my respects to Elders past and present, and to the continuing strength and resilience of First Nations people, communities and cultures.