Chinese Take-Out Chili Crisp Casserole

 

3 cup chicken broth

¼ cup black bean garlic sauce

2 tablespoon cornstarch

2 tablespoon honey

1 tablespoon sambal oelek

1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil

8 ounce lap cheong (Chinese sausage) (optional), sliced

1 pound ground pork

5 – 6 scallions, thinly sliced, white and green parts separated (about 1 cup total)

1 tablespoon grated fresh ginger

2 – 3 garlic cloves, minced

¼ cup Shaoxing cooking wine, dry sherry, or chicken stock

6 cup coarsely chopped Napa cabbage

3 cup cooked jasmine rice

1 5-6 ounce container crunchy chow mein noodles

1 tablespoon chili crisp (stir to make sure to get a nice mix of chili and oil)

 

Preheat oven to 350°F. For sauce: In a 4-cup measuring cup whisk together broth, garlic sauce, cornstarch, honey, sambal oelek, and sesame oil. In a 4- to 6-qt. pot cook sausage (if using) over medium-high 2 minutes or until sausage is browned, some of the fat is rendered out, and the edges are dark. (There is a lot of sugar in Chinese sausage so be careful not to burn it.) Add ground pork and season with a pinch salt and a couple turns of black pepper. Cook 4 to 5 minutes or until pork is no longer pink and any liquid is cooked off. Add scallion whites, ginger, and garlic; cook 1 minute. Deglaze pot with wine; cook 2 minutes or until liquid is gone. Stir sauce and add to pot. Cook and stir until thickened and bubbly. Remove from heat; stir in cabbage and rice. Transfer to a greased 13×9-inch baking dish. Cover; bake 25 minutes or until bubbly and hot. In a bowl toss crunchy noodles with chili crisp until fully coated. Uncover casserole and top evenly with noodles. Bake 10 minutes more or until noodles are toasted and a shade darker. Remove from oven; sprinkle with scallion greens. Makes 8 servings.