← Nouns Cooking · Thai

Ingredients

• 700 g skin-on pork belly, cut into 3 cm chunks
• 6 cloves Garlic
• 1 tsp black peppercorns
• 3 coriander roots (or a handful of stalks)
• 1 tbsp Vegetable oil
• 3 tbsp Palm sugar, grated
• 3 Star anise
• 1 Cinnamon stick
• 2 tbsp light soy sauce
• 1 tbsp Dark soy sauce
• ½ tsp Salt
• 1 l Water

Method

1. Pound the garlic, peppercorns and coriander roots into a rough paste. Toss with the pork and leave while you get the pan ready.
2. Heat the oil and palm sugar in a heavy pot over medium heat and let the sugar melt and turn amber, 2–3 min. Watch it closely so it doesn’t burn.
3. Add the pork and paste and stir for 5 min, until the meat is coated in caramel and lightly browned.
4. Add the star anise, cinnamon, both soy sauces, salt and water. Bring to the boil, skim, then cover and simmer gently for 1 hour.
5. Uncover and simmer for 45–60 min more, stirring now and then, until the pork is soft enough to cut with a spoon and the sauce has reduced to a dark, glossy gravy.
6. Taste for salt and sweetness, skim off excess fat and serve with rice and a sharp chilli-vinegar dip.

Tips

• Add a few peeled hard-boiled eggs for the last 30 min; they soak up the colour beautifully.
• Contains soy and wheat (soy sauces).

Sources

Written in our own words after cross-checking these recipes:

Hungry in Thailand Hot Thai Kitchen Simply Suwanee