Lup Lup

This is an old family recipe that I picked up from my late mother. It is a humble dish that I enjoy very much. I do not know if there is a name for this dish. My mother just called it lup lup in Cantonese (粒粒- which means grains or small pieces). I also do not know if other Chinese families cook this at home. Besides from my late mother and now in my own home, I have not been able to find this dish anywhere else.


The ingredients are many. And as my late mother described them, they are all in small pieces. We start with some kacang - ground nuts. Plain fry the kacang in a wok. Do not use any oil. Just throw the nuts in a hot wok and fry them until they are dark brown - even a bit blackish. Then leave the nuts to cool.

Next , remove the skins. This is the hard part. I found it very difficult to separate the skins from the nuts. It is a very messy task. I have hunted around the shops (including those Japanese places that sell clever domestic devices) and I have yet to come across an apparatus that can be used to de-skin fried ground nuts. If you know of any, please leave a message in my blog. In any case, I learnt from SP's maid that if throw some salt in while frying the nuts, the skins would separate easily. I tried it and it did help somewhat. After de-skinning, keep the kacang in an airtight container.

Other ingredients - a small piece of roast pork, cut into small pieces like so.

Some choy po (菜甫- Chinese salted radish), likewise into small pieces.

Some dried shrimps.

A carrot - also diced in small pieces.

2 red chilis.

About 10 strands of long beans. Try to get the hard thin type as shown in my pic - not the soft fatter variety.

Finally a piece of white tofu. Get the harder tofu, so that it can be easily cut and fried.

Now, it's time to cook. Heat some oil in a hot wok. Throw in the diced tofu. Fry the tofu until brown and crispy.

Dish out the fried tofu and keep aside.

If necessary, add a bit more oil in the wok and in goes the roast pork.

Followed by the dried shrimp.

And the choy po (菜甫).

Fry the 3 ingredients until aromatic and then add in the carrot.

And the long beans.

Stir the mixture and let it cook for a short while. Then add in some thick soya sauce for flavor and color. Do not add water as this is meant to be a dry dish.

Put in about half tablespoon of sugar.

Stir fry the good stuffs until cooked. Just before dishing out, throw in the tofu and chili.

Your efforts look something like this.

Just before serving, sprinkle the kacang on top of the dish. The ground nuts complement the other ingredients beautifully. I normally top up the nuts as we progress down the dish.

It is yummy munch munch munch - suitable with both rice and porridge. Enjoy.