Pork Belly - Braised

By Janet-2

Ingredients

• Slaw:
• pork belly
• 1/4 cup soy sauce
• 1/4 cup rice wine (i.e. Shao Xing) as opposed to cooking rice wine which has more salt or dry sherry
• 1 scallion, chopped
• 1 tbsp. ginger, minced
• 2 cloves of garlic, minced
• 2 tbsp. brown sugar
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 1 dried red chile
• 1 star anise
• 1 tbsp. hoisin sauce
• 1/2 cup shredded ginger, extract its juice
• 1/2 large head of Napa cabbage, shredded
• 3 tbsp. unseasoned rice vinegar
• 1 tbsp. honey
• 1 garlic clove, crushed
• 1/4 tsp. hot pepper flakes
• 2 tbsp. toasted sesame oil
• 1/3 cup vegetable oil
• 2 carrots, peeled and shredded
• 2 scallions, thinly sliced
• 3 tbsp. cilantro, finely chopped
• 1/4 cup chopped unsalted peanuts
• Hoisin sauce for serving
• Chinese buns, steamed

Preparation

Step 1

Take out a french oven, add oil and heat. Saute the pork belly until browned, about 5 minutes. Transfer the pork to a plate.

Combine soy sauce, rice wine, scallions, ginger garlic, brown sugar, chile and saute for 30 seconds. Return the pork belly to the pot and saute for 30 seconds. Add water - enough to barely cover the pork.

Cover and braise for about 2 hours at medium low heat. Test for doneness: take a knife and insert in middle. If it goes in easily, it's done.Cool pork in the liquid about 1 hour.

Cover the pork in plastic wrap and put something heavy on top to compress the pork. Then refrigerate for at least 2 hours or up to 2 days.

Keep sauce - strain first. Skim the fat off the top. Put sauce back into the pot and boil another 20-30 minutes until sauce is reduced. Add hoisin sauce to finish it. Hoisin glaze can keep in the fridge for up to 2 days.

Take pork belly out of the fridge. Heat up a griddle and then place pork belly on it - carmelize the skin.

Drizzle the hoisin glaze over the pork belly. Serve with the slaw above.