Tag: East Asian
Chinese Pork Belly Bun
Chinese Pork Belly Bun
Pork belly buns are one of my favorites. There are many different kinds from many Asian countries. This particular version is from the Xi’an province of China where the pork belly is served on more of a flatbread type of bun, instead of the typical steamed bun varieties that you may be used to seeing. They are traditionally topped with chopped bell peppers and cilantro with a little chili oil. I used shredded cabbage, shallots, and green onion in addition to the peppers and cilantro.There are 2 routes you can go with braising the pork belly: skin-on or skinless. Both are great. Having the skin on does generate a little more grease to the pork, but that can be spooned out. Other then that, the rest of the braising process is pretty straight forward. Towards the end, your should have about 1 cup of the braising liquid left.The flatbreads only have 3 ingredients: flour, yeast, and room temperature water. Mix them together, knead for a couple of minutes, and let rise for 25-30 minutes in a plastic wrap covered bowl. If your a glutton such as myself, you can portion out the dough into 8 equal pieces. But they are typically a little smaller then that, so 10 equal portions is good too. Roll them out into 1”4 thick discs. They take 3-4 minutes a side on a hot oiled griddle. Once they cool off, slice in half and top with the pork belly and the toppings of your liking.
Ingredients
Braised Pork Belly
- 3 lb skin-on pork belly
- 4 dried chili peppers
- 3 whole clove
- 1 whole nutmeg
- 1 whole star anise
- 2” cinnamon stick
- 2 slices of ginger
- 4 green onions chopped
- 1/4 cup Shaoxing cooking wine
- 1/4 cup light soy sauce
- 2 tsp dark soy sauce
- 1 tbsp sugar
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp cracked black pepper
Flatbread
- 2 1/2 cups flour
- 1 tsp active dry yeast
- 1 cup room temp water
Pork Belly Buns
- bell peppers chopped
- cabbage shredded
- shallots thinly sliced
- cilantro roughly chopped
- green onions chopped
- hot chili oil
Instructions
Braised Pork Belly
- Cut up pork belly into 1” chunks. Place in a Dutch oven, covering with enough water until it is submerged. Bring to a boil. Rub the heat to medium low. Simmer for 10 minutes. Scoop off the scum that floats to the top.
- Add in the chili peppers, cloves, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, star anise, green onions, and shaoxing wine. Bring to a boil. Cover. Reduce the heat to medium low and simmer for 30 minutes.
- Add the soy sauces, sugar, salt, and cracked black pepper. Cover and simmer for 1 hour.
- Uncover. Simmer for another hour.
- You should have no more then 1 cup of braising liquid left.
Flatbreads
- Mix together the dough ingredients. Flour your hands and knead the dough for a couple of minutes.
- Cover in plastic wrap. Let the dough rise for 25 minutes.
- Lightly flour your surface. Portion the dough out into 8-10 dough balls.
- Roll them out about a 1/4“ thick.
- Heat up cooking oil over medium high heat on a griddle. Toss on the flatbreads.
- Cook for 3-4 minutes a side.
Pork Bun Assembly
- Slice a flatbread in half. Scoop on a generous portion of the pork belly. Top off with chili oil, bell peppers, shredded cabbage, shallots, cilantro, and green onion.
Gochujang Marinated Grilled Shrimp
Gochujang Marinated Grilled Shrimp
If you like spicy, this recipe is for you. Gochujang paste is great as a marinade for shrimp, as well as chicken, pork, and squid. When selecting shrimp, I chose to use 8-12 count. These are the ideal size for grilling and broiling, especially if you want to add a glaze to the shrimp.
Equipment
- metal skewers
- charcoal
- chimney starter
- charcoal grill
- brush
Ingredients
- 1 lb 8/12 ct. shrimp peeled and deveined
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tbsp garlic minced
- 2 tbsp lemon juice
- 2 tbsp gochujang paste
- 1 tbsp honey
Garnish
- toasted sesame seeds
Instructions
- Mix all of the marinade ingredients together. Save half of the marinade for basting.
- Add in the shrimp. Marinate for 30 minutes.
- Skewer the shrimp. Let your charcoal turn grey in the chimney starter. Pour the charcoal into the grill and place on the grate. Place the skewers directly over the charcoal.
- Grill the shrimp for 2 minutes a side.
- Brush the shrimp with the other half of the marinade. Grill for another minute on each side.
- Garnish with toasted sesame seeds.
Doenjang Marinated Pork
Doenjang Marinated Pork
Doenjang is a fermented soybean paste used in Korean cuisine. It adds a salty savory umami flavor to whatever its added to. This marinade on pork works great for Korean barbecues. Pork butt works best for this recipe. It has enough fat in the meat, allowing the pork to be moist and juicy. When sliced thin and marinated, the pork turns out very tender. You can cook the pork on a griddle or grill pan. The pork will cook very quick; 3-5 minutes in total depending on the thickness.Doenjang marinated pork is typically served in a lettuce wrap. Red or green leaf lettuce works the best. It is then accompanied by garlic chives, perilla leaves, and a small dollop of doenjang paste.
Ingredients
- 1 lbs pork shoulder sliced between 1/8”-1/4” thick
- 1 1/2 tbsp doenjang paste
- 2 tbsp soy sauce
- 2 tbsp rice wine
- 1 tsp vinegar
- 1 tbsp sesame oil
- 2 tbsp honey
- 1 tbsp sugar
- 2 tbsp onion grated
- 1 tbsp garlic minced
- 1 tsp ginger grated
- 1 tbsp vegetable oil
Garnish
- green onions chopped
- toasted sesame seeds
Instructions
- Mix all of the marinade ingredients together.
- Add them the sliced pork shoulder. Marinade for at least 4 hours, preferably overnight.
- Heat up cooking oil on a griddle over high heat. Add in the pork slices in a single layer. Depending on the thickness of the pork, it will take 3-5 minutes in total to cook.
- Garnish with green onions and toasted sesame seeds.
