Barbecued Pork Hors d’oeuvre
Makes 18 Pieces

Do you ever find yourself stymied for a new hors d’oeuvre idea? I do. For some reason ideas for entrées, salads, sides and desserts come easily, and I often go through several different choices before making up my mind. But when it is time to figure out what to serve first when guests are the hungriest, I tend to fall back on old stand bys like cheese, crackers, crostini, olives, nuts or patés.

They’re delicious, but they can spoil appetites for dinner and somehow seem “same old.”

At Uwajimaya recently I came across that classic Chinese favorite, barbecued pork, sliced and ready to eat. Near it was a container of shiny black Shiso Konbu, shredded kelp marinated in soy and shiso, an herb related to mint that tastes like basil cinnamon and allspice.

I picked up a package of crisp rice crackers and went home to experiment.

Wonderfully sweet and sour, small bites of Shiso Konbu provided a great flavor balance to the mild barbecued pork. Because it’s shredded, small amounts can be picked up easily with a kitchen tweezer*

*Drug store tweezer kept in the kitchen.

Ingredients

18 slices barbecued pork
Wasabi
Picked ginger
¼ cup Shiso Konbu (shredded, seasoned kelp)
Toasted sesame seeds
18 crisp rice crackers
Fresh cilantro for garnish

Procedure

1. Place the pork slices in a line. Put a dab of wasabi on each slice. Next, put a slice of pickled ginger on top of the mustard and press it gently.
2. Using a tweezer, pick out shreds of Konbu and place them over the pork. Sprinkle with sesame seeds. Garnish with cilantro leaves.
3. Serve on a plate (see photo) with crackers alongside or place each slice on a cracker.