Classic Taiwanese "flies' heads" stir fry, done with ground pork or something similar. This is a pretty standard recipe that has little variation from cook to cook; mine is based on a rendition in the excellent book Phoenix Claws and Jade Trees by Kian Lam Kho.
3tablespoonfermented black beans(see headnotes above)
1/2cupred chiles, sliced into small rings(see headnotes above)
3tablespoonsShaoxing wine or sake
Salt to taste
Instructions
Sprinkle the soy sauce and white pepper over the ground meat and mix it in well with your (very clean) hands. Set it aside as you cut the other vegetables.
In a wok or large pan, heat the oil over very high heat until it just barely begins to smoke. Add the ground pork and stir fry until it's no longer pink. Remove the pork from the wok.
If there is no oil left in the wok, add a tablespoon. When it's hot, stir fry the garlic for a few seconds, then the remaining ingredients, including the pork. Stir fry until the chives are a bit wilted and bright green, about 2 minutes. Serve at once with steamed rice.
Notes
I use ground wild pork here, but obviously store-bought ground pork works, too. And really? Any ground meat will be fine.
Keys to Success
Ideally you can get the fermented black beans, which are the "flies' heads" in this dish. But if not, regular black bean paste you see in many supermarkets will do.
I grow the little red chiles, which are basically serranos, but red ones can be tough to find. Green serranos are fine, and for added heat use Thai chiles.
Garlic chives are easy to get in Asian markets, but use regular green onions if you don't have one near you.