Riesling
Riesling is an amazing grape that can make delicious sweet wines and delicious dry wines! Dry rieslings are particularly food friendly.
Chinese-Style Red Braised Pork Belly Recipe
View more Pork Recipes
Prep Time
20 min
Total Time
1.5 hrs
Yield
Serves 8
Sticky, sweet, and savory in one delicious pork dish? That’s what this recipe will bring to your dinner plate!
We all love bacon, and for that reason, we generally think of pork bellies as the cut of meat that’s used to make bacon. However, throughout the rest of the world, there are so many other delicious dishes that are made with pork belly.
This classic Chinese dish known as hong shao rou, or red braised pork belly, is one of our favorite ways to enjoy pork belly that isn’t bacon. With a little bit of time, all of these ingredients come together to make an incredibly yummy comfort food meal.
This dish and cut of meat may not be familiar to you, so we’ll share a little bit more information in the paragraphs below, or if you’re an experienced cook, just skip to the ingredients and start cooking!
What is Chinese Five Spice and what is shaoxing wine?
Two main ingredients in this recipe are Chinese Five Spice blend and shaoxing wine.
Chinese Five Spice is a flavorful and aromatic spice blend that embodies the essence of Chinese cuisine. This blend is traditionally made with five key spices: star anise, cloves, cinnamon, Sichuan peppercorns, and fennel seeds.
Commonly used in marinades, rubs, and stir-fries, this blend pairs beautifully with meats like pork, as well as chicken and duck and can be used to bring deep flavor to roast vegetables. The combination of aromatic, savory, and spicy elements brings a beautiful balance and heightened flavor to any dish.
Shaoxing is a traditional Chinese rice wine that has a rich, complex flavor and is a staple in many Chinese recipes. The golden-amber liquid brings a mildly sweet and slightly nutty taste to marinades, sauces, and braises. This is primarily used for cooking, not drinking, and if you don’t have any on hand, you can substitute a dry sherry or mirin.
Tell me a bit more about pork bellies.
Since we mostly use pork bellies for bacon in America, we don’t often see them in a butcher case, so you may not know what they look like or how to use them.
Pork bellies are a boneless cut of meat that come from the belly (duh!) of a pig. They are rectangular and have skin on one side that the butcher will generally remove. There is a solid layer of fat on top and then rich dark meat with streaks of fat throughout.
Since these are well-marbled cuts, they can be seasoned heavily and then slowly cooked using a method such as oven-roasting, braising, or smoking. You’ll end up with tender pork that is packed with flavor!
How do you recommend serving this dish?
We love to serve our red braised pork belly over rice and garnish it with sliced green onion to bring a bit of freshness to the dish.
In addition to the rice, some items you’ll find served with this meal include:
- Bok choy
- Broccoli
- Hard-boiled eggs
- Pickled cabbage
- Or whatever other vegetables you enjoy!
We hope you enjoy this dish. It’s a great way to enjoy an affordable cut of pork that feels elegant and indulgent! If you have any suggestions on how you tweaked this recipe or serving ideas, please leave us a comment below.
Thanks for reading – we’ll see you soon at Lake Geneva Country Meats!
Ingredients
- 2 lb LGCM Pork Belly (skinless, cut into 1″ pieces)
- 1/4 cup Water
- 1/4 cup White Sugar
- 2 Tbsp Sesame Oil (or vegetable oil)
- Ginger (2″ piece thinly sliced )
- 2 clove(s) Garlic (minced)
- 2 tsp Chinese Five Spice Mixture
- 1/4 cup Soy Sauce
- 1/4 cup Shaoxing Wine
- Green Onion (sliced, for garnish)
Directions
Blanch the pork by bringing a large pot of water to a boil, then adding the pork, and cooking for five minutes. Remove the pork, and place on paper towels to dry.
Add 1/4 cup of water to a sauce pan, and turn heat to medium-high. Add the sugar to the mixture, and stir to dissolve. Cook, stirring constantly, until the syrup thickens, and turns a pale amber color.
Add the sesame oil to a large pot, like a Dutch oven and heat to medium heat. Once the oil is hot, add the pork, syrup, ginger, garlic, Five Spice seasoning, soy sauce, and Shaoxing wine. Mix together and cook for 2 minutes.
After 2 minutes, pour in enough water to cover the bottom of the pork, then bring the mixture to a boil. Reduce heat to low, and cook, partially covered until the pork is tender. Stir occasionally, and check for doneness so you don’t overcook the pork.
It should take about 45-60 minutes to cook, and the pork is done when you can cleanly slide a toothpick through each piece.
Once the pork is tender, if there is still visible water, uncover the pot, turn up the heat, and cook until the sauce has reduced to a glistening coating. Be sure to stir consistently to prevent the sauce from burning the bottom of your pan.
Once the pork is cooked and the sauce reduced, remove the pork from the pan and serve warm over freshly made rice, garnish with sliced green onion, and enjoy!
