← Nouns Cooking · Indonesian & Filipino

Ingredients

• 500 g Pork belly
• 1 l Water
• 1 tsp whole black peppercorns
• 1 Onion, halved
• 1 tsp Salt
• 400 g extra-firm tofu, patted dry and cut into 2 cm cubes
• oil, for frying
• 180 ml cane or white vinegar
• 3 tbsp Soy sauce
• 1 tbsp Brown sugar
• 3 tbsp pork cooking broth
• 1 Red onion, thinly sliced
• 2 Spring onion, chopped
• 2 bird's eye chillies, chopped
• ¼ tsp ground black pepper

Method

1. Put the pork belly, water, peppercorns, onion and salt in a pot, bring to the boil and skim. Simmer covered for 40–45 min until a knife slides in easily. Lift out, cool slightly and cut into bite-sized pieces. Keep a little broth.
2. Heat 2 cm of oil in a frying pan to 175°C (350°F). Fry the tofu in batches for 6–8 min, turning, until golden and crisp. Drain.
3. Fry the pork pieces in the same oil for 3–4 min until the edges crisp up. Drain.
4. Whisk the vinegar, soy sauce, sugar, pork broth and ground pepper until the sugar dissolves, then stir in the red onion, spring onion and chillies.
5. Pile the tofu and pork into a bowl and pour over the dressing, or serve it on the side for dipping. Eat as a snack or with rice porridge (lugaw).

Tips

• Pig's ears, boiled with the belly, are the traditional addition for extra chew.
• Soy sauce contains wheat; use tamari for a gluten-free dressing.

Sources

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

Panlasang Pinoy Panlasang Pinoy Kawaling Pinoy