Dongpo Ro (Red Cooked Pork Belly)

 

INGREDIENTS:

500g pork belly – cut into 3” by 3” cubes

2 stalks scallions – lightly bruised with the back of knife

1/2” ginger – peeled and sliced thinly

4 cloves garlic – peeled

 

Sauce ingredients:

1/4 cup soy sauce

1/4 cup Shao Xing wine or Chinese rice wine

1/8 cup rock sugar

3 cups water.

 

 

METHOD:

1). Boil 1” of water in pot and scald the pork pieces evenly on all sides. (for about 1 minute). Drain pork and set aside.

2). Heat oil in a pot large enough to fit all the pieces of pork in one layer.

3). Fry scallions, ginger and garlic until fragrant then add the sauce ingredients and bring to a boil.

4). Place pork pieces skin side down into the pot and bring to a boil.

5). Cover pot, lower heat and simmer in low heat for 1 hour.

6). After 1 hour, gently turn the pork pieces over to skin side up and continue to simmer for another 2 to 3 hours.

7). The pork is ready when it is soft and tender to touch. Gently place pork pieces in one layer on to a plate, strain sauce and pour over the pork. Serve hot.

 

 

Notes:

The recipe above is the authentic way of cooking Dongpo Ro but if you prefer a spicier sauce, you can add 1 piece of star anise and/or 3 pieces dried mandarin peel to your sauce ingredients.

If you prefer a darker coloured sauce, you can add a 2 tablespoons of dark soy sauce, kicap manis or hoisin sauce.

You can add 2 tablespoons oyster sauce for an umami flavour.

You can also add 2 tablespoons of Chinese black rice vinegar, balsamic or red wine vinegar if you prefer a hint of acid in the sauce to counter the heaviness of the fatty pork.

Serve hot with udon noodles, rice, or steamed buns.

Chili Sauce for Bak Chit Gai

This is the recipe for the chili sauce to accompany the chicken:

INGREDIENTS:

6 red chilies

6 bird eye chilies

juice of 2 limes

1/3 cup of broth from the poached chicken

1 clove garlic – peeled

3 tablespoons Sriracha sauce

pinch of salt to taste

 

METHOD:

Put all ingredients into the blender, wiz it into a fine sauce and it is ready to be served.

Recipes for :

Hainan Chicken Rice

Chinese White Sliced Chicken (bak chit gai)

Hainan Chicken Rice

 

I posted the recipe for Chinese White Sliced Chicken (bak chit gai). This is the recipe for the rice to serve with the poached chicken.

INGREDIENTS:

2 cups long grained rice

4 cups broth from the water used to poach the chicken

2 slices ginger

2 cloves garlic – chopped

1 stalk spring onion – lightly smashed

2 tablespoons butter

pinch of white pepper

pinch of turmeric powder

salt to taste

 

METHOD:

1). Rinse rice and drain in a strainer.

2). Heat wok, melt butter and saute the ginger, spring onion and chopped garlic until the garlic is golden brown.

3). Add the rice to the wok and stir fry in medium heat for 2 minutes and until the rice is evenly coated with the oil.

4). Add pepper, turmeric powder and salt, stir until rice is evenly coated with the turmeric powder.

5). Transfer the rice to a rice cooker, add the broth and set to cook.

The rice is ready to be served once the rice cooker has done its job.

Char Siu (Cantonese Roast Pork Belly)

CHAR SIU ( CANTONESE ROAST PORK BELLY) Recipe
I love making Char Siu when I have guests over because it's easy to prepare and never fails to impress. This recipe is so simple because very little work is involved and the ingredients are readily available.

Ingredients:
2 strips of 500g(1lb) pork belly cut 3 inches wide.
6 tablespoon Lee Kum Kee Char Siu Sauce
2 tablespoon maltose
a dash of Chinese rose wine


Directions:
1. Marinate pork belly strips with the rest ot the ingredients in a glass baking dish. Seal  with saran wrap and store in the fridge overnight.
2. Pre-heat oven to 180 degrees Celsius.
3. Place pork belly strips on an oven rack over the pan. Be sure to line your pan with aluminium foil to make it easier to clean later.
4. Roast pork belly for 2 hours. Turn and baste with the marinate every 30 minutes.
5. Cut into bite size pieces and it's ready to be served.