Hong Shao Rou
This is my favorite way to prepare pork belly. Hong Shao Rou is a Shanghai Chinese classic dish. The belly is seared in melted sugar, then braised with light and dark soy sauces, shaoxing cooking wine, and aromatics, resulting in a reddish glossy melt in your mouth porky goodness. Serve the pork belly with steamed rice and a vegetable.
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 lb pork belly 1/2” thick; cut into 2” pieces
- 2 green onions cut in half
- 4 slices ginger
- water
Braising Liquid
- 2 tbsp vegetable oil
- 3 tbsp sugar
- 1/3 cup shaoxing cooking wine
- 2 cups blanching liquid saved from the pork
- 3 tbsp light soy sauce
- 1 1/2 tbsp dark soy sauce
- 6 slices ginger
- 3 green onions cut into 2” pieces
- 2 star anise pods
Instructions
- Bring a pot of water to boil. Add in the pork belly, green onions, and ginger. Boil for 5 minutes. Skim off any of the scum that floats to the top.
- Drain the water, reserving 2 cups of the liquid. Rinse the pork belly under cold water. Pat dry with paper towels.
- Heat up cooking oil and sugar in a large sauté pan over medium heat.
- Watch the sugar. It will slowly turn an amber color. This will take about 5 minutes.
- Add the pork belly in a single layer to the pan.
- Cook the pork belly for 1 minute a side, making sure the sugar doesn’t burn.
- Add in the ginger and green onions. Cook for 1 minute.
- Pour in the soy sauces and cooking wine. Cook for a minute, scraping up the bits from the bottom of the pan.
- Add in the recesrved 2 cups of the blanching liquid. Bring to a boil. Cover. Reduce the heat to low and simmer for 90 minutes.
