Lettuce Wraps

Finely chop the Japanese leek.

Finely chop the ginger and garlic separately. The ginger has a strong aroma around the skin, so there is no need to peel it.

Cut off the tough ends of the shiitake mushrooms and finely chop them, stems included.

Cut the bamboo shoots into 1cm cubes so the texture remains.

Chop the peeled shrimp coarsely, being careful not to over-chop, to keep the texture.

Press firmly on the core of the lettuce with your hand and twist it out. Since it is eaten raw, wash the whole head thoroughly, including the dirt at the base, and drain well.

Add the potato starch to the cooking sake and mix well to make sake-dissolved starch. Unlike water-dissolved starch, it does not dilute the flavor and improves the taste.

Add vegetable oil to a frying pan and heat over medium heat. Once hot, add the ground meat. Rather than stir-frying, press it down and sear it; once browned, flip it over and sear both sides well. Wipe off the rendered fat with a paper towel.

Once the ground meat is browned, add the Japanese leek, ginger, and garlic, and stir-fry over medium heat for about 1 and a half minutes until fragrant.

Add the tianmianjiang, oyster sauce, soy sauce, sugar, and Ajinomoto, and stir-fry quickly to coat the ground meat evenly with the seasonings.

Add the peeled shrimp, bamboo shoots, and shiitake mushrooms, and stir-fry for about 2 minutes, being careful not to overcook so the texture remains.

Switch to low heat, add the sake-dissolved starch and sesame oil, mix through, and thicken slightly. Serve the lettuce and meat miso separately on plates; to eat, tear off a lettuce leaf, top it with the meat miso, and wrap it up.