Red Braised Pork Belly

 

Po

Ingredients:

1 1/2 lbs pork belly

2  tbs cooking oil (grapeseed or canola)

4 tbs (60g) rock sugar (2 tbs finely crushed in a mortar, 2 tbs left whole)

3 tbs dark soy sauce (use the dark karamel sauce, red label)

1 cup (240ml) chicken stock or water

1/4 cup light soy sauce (use the brown braised sauce)

1/4 cup shaoxing wince 

3 whole star anise

2 thin slices of ginger

4 scallions (cut into 2 inch segments

Optional Additions:

4-6 boiled eggs

8 frozen tofu knots (available at Asian market). 

Method: 

1. Bring about 2 inches of water to a boil over high heat in a large pot. Add the pork belly and boil for 3 mins. Add more water to cover pork if necessary. This step removes impurities from the pork, making for a cleaner dish. Drain and set aside. When cool enough to handle, cut the por into 1 1/2 inch (4 cm) cube. 

2. Heat the oil in a well-seasoned wok on low, until wisps of smoke curl up off the edges. Add the crushed rock sugar and stir until the sugar melts and dissolves. 

3. Increase the heat to medium and working in two batches if necessary, gently slide in the chunks of pork belly. Brown all sides of the pork. Any residual water on the pork will pop in the oil - don't be scared! A splatter screen can help keep the oil contained. Stir only occassionally, so that the pork can caramelize and brown. This step gives it a rich caramel flavor. Add the dark soy sauce and fry for an additional minute. 

4. In the work or in a separate Dutch oven (clay pot works well too if you don't use induction stove), combine the browned pork with the stock, light soy sauce, shaoxing wine, remaining rock sugar, star anise, ginger, and scallion segments. The mixture should come 3/4 of the way up the side of the pile of pork. If not add more stock or water. 

5. Bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce the heat to the lowest setting and simmer, partially covered for at least 3 hours, stirring occasionally to prevent sticking. The longer the pork simmers, the more tender and flavorful it will be. It's ready when it's soft enough to slip a chopstick in with ease, but you can go up to 2 hours longer to build the flavor even more. Add more stock or water as needed, the wok should never be dry. When there's approximately 2 hours of braising time left, add the hard boiled eggs to the wok(pot). Twenty minutes before serving, add the tofu knots if using. 

6. When ready to serve, remove the lid, increase the hear to high and boil until the cooking liquid becomes a thick, dark glistening sauce that covers the pork belly. If the pork belly has begun to break down(the lean meat is separating from the fatty portion), use a slotted spoon to remove the cubes before cooking down the sauce, and add the cubes of meat back in at the end. 

7. Serve with white rice and the chopped scallions.