Hong Shao Rou (Red-Braised Pork Belly)

Ingredients

• 800 g pork belly, cut into 3 cm cubes
• 30 g fresh ginger, sliced into coins
• 4 spring onion, cut into 5 cm lengths
• 2 tbsp vegetable oil
• 50 g brown sugar
• 4 tbsp shaoxing wine
• 3 tbsp soy sauce
• 3 star anise
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 2 bay leaf
• 7 dl water
• ½ tsp salt

Method

1. 1.

   Blanch the pork belly — Put the pork cubes in a pot with cold water to cover, half the ginger and 1 tbsp of the shaoxing wine. Bring to the boil and simmer for 5 minutes, skimming the grey foam, then drain, rinse and pat every cube dry.

2. 2.

   Make the sugar caramel — Wipe the pot dry, add the oil and the brown sugar and set it over medium-low heat. Let the sugar melt without stirring, swirling the pot, until it turns the colour of dark honey and smells nutty — about 3 minutes. Do not let it go past amber or it will taste bitter.

3. 3.

   Lacquer the pork — Tip in the drained pork and toss it in the caramel for 2-3 minutes, until every cube is lacquered mahogany and the fat has started to render into the pan.

4. 4.

   Deglaze and add the aromatics — Pour in the remaining shaoxing wine and let it hiss away, then add the soy sauce, star anise, cinnamon stick, bay leaves, the rest of the ginger, the white parts of the spring onion and enough water to just cover the meat. Bring it to the boil.

5. 5.

   Braise until the fat melts — Turn the heat right down, cover, and leave it at the barest simmer for 70 minutes. The fat should be soft enough to give way under a spoon and look almost translucent.

6. 6.

   Reduce to a sticky glaze — Uncover, add the salt and raise the heat. Boil hard for 12-15 minutes, spooning the liquid over the pork as it drops, until it reduces to a sticky glaze that clings to the cubes and coats the bottom of the pot.

7. 7.

   Finish and serve with rice — Fish out the star anise, cinnamon and bay, scatter over the green parts of the spring onion and serve with plain steamed rice to soak up the glaze.