Celery and Shiitake Pork Rolls

Why people make this dish

Bro Niu first made this dish after finding a pack of quality organic pork at the supermarket. Good pork, marinated well, rolls beautifully around crunchy vegetables and becomes something special. The combination of celery, shiitake, and carrot provides both texture and flavour contrast, while tying each roll with a softened garlic chive gives it an elegant, restaurant-style look that makes it a real talking point at the table. In food-therapy terms, celery is traditionally thought to gently clear stomach heat, and shiitake has long been used to support digestion and general vitality.

Who it suits / who should be cautious

• Suits the whole family; great for anyone with a dull appetite or those who enjoy a bit more flair in home cooking
• Easily adaptable to different tastes by changing the finishing sauce

Why these ingredients (the food-therapy logic)

• Celery (qin cai): Crisp and mildly aromatic; traditionally thought to clear stomach heat and support healthy digestion
• Shiitake mushroom (dong gu): Deeply savoury; long associated in Chinese food therapy with strengthening the spleen-stomach and supporting vitality
• Carrot (hong luo bo): Sweet and mildly warming; traditionally supports the spleen and liver, and adds bright colour to the dish
• Pork (zhu rou): Considered neutral and nourishing; gently replenishes qi and blood without being overly warming

Ingredients (12 rolls, 3–4 servings)

Ingredient	Amount	Notes
Pork, thinly sliced	12 slices	Loin or shoulder works well
Celery	1 stalk section	Cut into strips the length of the pork slices
Large dried shiitake mushrooms	4 pieces	Rehydrate, then cut into thick strips
Carrot	1 section	Cut into strips
Garlic chives	12 strands	Blanch briefly to soften before tying
Fresh ginger, grated	to taste	For stir-frying
Shallots, minced	to taste	For stir-frying
Light soy sauce	to taste	Part of marinade
Rose wine (mei gui lu jiu)	to taste	Substitute Shaoxing wine if needed
Sugar	to taste	Part of marinade
Cornstarch	to taste	Part of marinade

Method

1. Marinate pork slices in light soy sauce, rose wine, sugar, and cornstarch for at least 15 minutes.
2. Blanch the celery strips, soaked shiitake strips, and carrot strips in boiling water for 1–2 minutes. Drain and cool. Blanch the garlic chive strands separately until just pliable.
3. Lay each pork slice flat. Arrange a few strips of celery, shiitake, and carrot across the centre and roll the pork tightly around the filling.
4. Tie each roll securely with one strand of softened garlic chive.
5. Heat oil in a pan. Pan-fry the rolls over medium heat, turning to brown all sides until golden and fragrant. Remove and drain on paper towels.
6. Leave a little oil in the pan. Saute the ginger and shallots until aromatic. Add your sauce of choice. Return the rolls and toss to coat. Plate and serve.

Bro Niu’s tips

• This dish nourishes the spleen and stimulates appetite — the whole family can enjoy it together.
• The choice of sauce is entirely personal: sweet-and-sour, spicy-honey, or a creamy pepper sauce all pair well.

Community questions answered (selected)

• Q (fong): Is lemon acidic or alkaline? And why do recipes say to peel ginger when cooking — is the skin too drying? Bro Niu: Almost all fruits — including lemon — are actually alkaline once digested, even though they taste sour. Only plums, persimmons, oil peaches, and nectarines are truly acid-forming. As for ginger skin: just wash it thoroughly and leave it on for soup. Removing the peel in cooking is mainly for appearance. As a bonus note: South jujube (nan zao / black dates) do not need to be pitted, and their nourishing effect is actually a little better than regular red dates, though the flavour takes some getting used to.

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Published May 5, 2010 · Adapted and translated for Nourilo from a traditional home-kitchen recipe. Approx. 3 min read.