Hong Siu Yuk – Shanghainese Braised Pork Belly

Hong Siu Yuk with noodles

Due to Melbourne's Stage 4 lockdown restrictions, only 1 person per household can go shopping. Honestly, I had a mini-meltdown because only MrT can go since he drives. I looove to grocery shop and always pick up stuff that's not necessarily on the shopping list (I'm constantly making shopping list). 

I armed MrT with a detailed grocery list (including meats from butcher, deli special, green leafy veg. hahaha) and just hoped for the best.

He came back with a slab of pork belly and knew I would make something delicious out of it. I figured we might as well try a different dish to our go toes Taiwanese LouRouFan or Crispy Roast Pork.

I scoured the internet for Hong Siu Yuk, a Shanghainese braised pork belly dish where the pork just melts in your mouth.

Here's what I did after combining a few Chinese youtube videos.

Ingredients

• pork belly slab (mine was maybe 400g)
• 3 cloves of smashed garlic 
  
• 1 small knob of sliced ginger (half a thumb)
• 3 spring onions, sectioned
• 1 tsp Sichuan peppers
• 2 Star anise
• 1 tsp Cloves
• 1/2 Cinnamon stick
• 1 tbsp Sugar: rock/palm/raw sugar (i used palm)
• 1/2 cup Chinese Cooking Wine
• 1 tbsp Chinese Black Winegar
• 2 tbsp Light Soya Sauce
• 1 tbsp Dark Soya Sauce (i used kepjap manis)
• Oil
• Salt and pepper

Directions:

Blanching pork belly

• In a large heavy-based pan, add boiling hot water and whole pork belly slab
• Blanch pork belly for 5–10 mins to remove impurities and a bit of the fatty oiliness
• Remove from pan, rinse off and cut into big cubes
  
  

  

  Prepare the vegetables
  

  
  
• Add oil back to the clean pan on medium heat
  
  
  

  

  Have the dry seasoning ready
  
  

  
  
• Add the dry seasoning to the hot oil and fry for a little bit
• Add the vegetables to the pan
  
  

  

  Fry vegetables and dry seasoning for a bit
  
  

• Add the cubed pork to the pan and brown on all sides
  
  

  

  Let it fry a bit on each side before flipping them
  
  

  
  

  

  Have the seasoning ready
  
  

  
  

  

  Add seasoning and sugar, top with a bit of water
  
  

• Cover and slowly simmer 
  
  

  

  Check it occasionally and stir to make sure it's not sticking to the bottom
  
  

• Cook it covered for about an hour or 90 mins, depending how hungry you are and how much you can resist the delicious smell wafting through the kitchen. 
• Season with salt and pepper to taste
• The pork will be so so soft and melt in your mouth.
• I quickly blanched rice noodles in hot water and add the noodles to the pan, coating each strand of noodles in the reduced sauce
  
• In another pan, add some chopped garlic to peanut oil and saute some spinach
• Or you can serve this with jasmine rice.
• Hope you enjoy this!