CHAR SIU PORK
I love how this jerk always brings me back to my happiest place—Sunday dim sum with my family. We would ‘yum cha’ (drink tea) at tea houses while wheeled carts loaded with bamboo baskets, each stacked high with steaming dishes, rolled around us. Little by little, our table would magically fill up with our family favorites: dumplings, chicken feet, and char siu baos. It's sweet, salty, and savory, all packed into one glorious jerk.
MÁLÀ SICHUAN PORK
Mapo tofu was a favorite comfort food from my childhood. This dish comes from China's Sichuan Province with the signature spice of the region–the Sichuan Peppercorn. With its pleasant spiciness, brightness, and burst of aromatic flavors, this jerk embodies the essence of a dish I simply can’t live without.
BLACK GARLIC PORK
In Beijing, I’d spend hours walking through neighborhoods, stopping at random street vendors, in search of the perfect bowl of Zha Jiang Mian. I was obsessed with the hodgepodge of aged, rich, and salty ingredients over perfectly chewy noodles. I haven't been able to stop thinking about those noodles ever since. Those walks and this dish were the inspiration for this jerk.
EAST-ASIAN RECIPES AND AMERICAN RANCH TRADITIONS, BOTH PASSED DOWN THROUGH GENERATIONS
Anica Wu is a 1st generation Chinese-American, jerky obsessed, whole-animal butcher.
Born in Hong Kong, my family and I immigrated to Kansas when I was six years old. Growing up in the Midwest, where Asians were a minority, food was always the constant in keeping our traditions alive and celebrating our Chinese culture. Sharing a family meal, whether at home or during Sunday dim sum, always reminded us of where we came from, no matter where we were. Growing up, our food kept me connected to my Chinese heritage and provided me a sense of belonging.
Experimenting with jerky recipes became a way for me to learn more about the meat industry and rediscover and share the flavors I loved—the dishes I grew up with. I realized that conversations around the quality of our meat, were mostly absent in Asian-American households. After tasting how delicious our jerks turned out using meat from our local butcher shop, I was determined to change that narrative.
So in 2018, I began my journey into the meat industry and started training to become a whole-animal butcher. Learning how to break down animals instilled in me the true sense of what "farm to table” meant and how much work it takes for a piece of meat to reach our plates. It made me think about ingredients and the experience of eating food differently. Most importantly, it made me appreciate the people working on land, and those behind the butcher block, who skillfully break down our meat so we can enjoy wonderful meals with our loved ones.
Thank you for coming along on this journey with us. I'm so happy to share our jerks with you.
