← Nouns Cooking · Chinese

Ingredients

• 450 g skin-on pork belly, in one piece
• 3 slices Ginger
• 1 Spring onion
• 1 tbsp Vegetable oil
• 1½ tbsp Pixian doubanjiang (chilli bean paste)
• 1 tsp Fermented black beans (douchi), rinsed (optional)
• 3 cloves Garlic, sliced
• 1 tbsp Shaoxing wine
• 1 tsp light soy sauce
• 1 tsp Sugar
• 1 small leek (or 6 Chinese garlic shoots), sliced diagonally into 4 cm pieces
• 1 long green chilli or ½ green pepper, sliced (optional)

Method

1. Put the pork belly in a pan with the ginger and spring onion, cover with cold water and bring to the boil. Simmer for 20–25 min, until a chopstick goes into the thickest part with little resistance.
2. Lift the pork out and leave it to cool for about 20 min (or chill it), which makes it much easier to slice. Cut it into very thin slices, about 3 mm, with a bit of skin and fat on each.
3. Heat the oil in a wok over medium heat and add the pork slices. Fry for 3–4 min, turning, until the fat renders and the slices curl into little cups with golden edges.
4. Push the pork to one side, add the doubanjiang and black beans to the oil and fry for 30 seconds, until the oil turns red. Add the garlic and toss everything together.
5. Add the Shaoxing wine, soy sauce, sugar, leek and chilli. Stir-fry over high heat for about 2 min, until the leek is just tender and glossy. Serve with plenty of rice.

Tips

• Cook the pork a day ahead and chill it in one piece: cold belly slices paper-thin.
• The traditional green is suan miao (garlic shoots); leek or even cabbage are common home swaps.

Sources

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

Omnivore's Cookbook Made With Lau Christine's Recipes