Twice-cooked pork
An iconic Sichuan recipe in which the pork is boiled before being seared. It features ingredients emblematic of the region such as doubanjiang (spicy fermented broad bean and soy paste), Sichuan peppercorns and pickled chillies.
Ingredients
- 300 g pork belly
- 40 g ginger (sliced)
- 20 g garlic (sliced)
- 20 g spring onions
- 3 g Sichuan peppercorns
- 40 ml rice wine (Shaoxing)≈ 40 g
- 100 g green peppers
- 2 Chinese leeks (or 1/2 regular leek*)
- 0,5 onion
- 10 g fermented black soybeans (douchi (optional)*)
- 5 pickled chillies (see recipe (optional)*)
- 15 g doubanjiang (spicy fermented broad bean and soy paste)*
- 2 g sugar
- 15 ml soy sauce≈ 15 g
- 20 ml black rice vinegar≈ 20 g
- 1 tbsp Sichuan peppercorn oil (see recipe (optional)*)
Method
- 1Over high heat, place the meat skin-side down in a frying pan for a few seconds, stir and lift. Repeat for 2 to 3 minutes. This step is to tone down the burnt pork flavour and remove any tiny hairs that might remain. Don't go as far as burning the skin. Stop before any colour develops.
- 2In a Dutch oven, add water, the meat, half the ginger slices (20 g), the spring onions, the Sichuan peppercorns and half the rice wine (20 ml). Bring to a boil. Lower to a gentle simmer, cover and cook 30 minutes.
- 3Dip the meat in cold water, wipe it dry and let it cool in the fridge. Once cool, slice it thinly (2-3 mm thick).
- 4Clean the Chinese leeks and cut them into large pieces (2 cm); do the same with the peppers and the onion. Crush the white part of the leeks roughly with the pommel of a knife and combine with the onions. Set aside.
- 5Rinse the fermented soybeans in a bowl of water. Drain them on paper towel. Set aside.
- 6Heat oil in a frying pan over high heat. Add the pork once the oil starts to smoke. Keeping the heat high, stir well and cook a few minutes until the meat develops a nice colour.
- 7Lower the heat and add the fermented soybeans. Cook 30 seconds longer. Set the meat aside. It's important to leave as much of the cooking juices in the pan as possible, but you can remove half of the fat.
- 8Raise to medium heat, add the second half of the ginger slices, the garlic, the Sichuan peppercorn oil and the pickled chilli. Cook 30 seconds.
- 9Raise to high heat. Add the meat, the onion/white-of-leek mixture and the doubanjiang. Stir and cook 30 seconds.
- 10Add the sugar, the black vinegar, the soy sauce and the other half of the rice wine. Cook 30 seconds.
- 11Add the green peppers. Cook for one minute. Add the green parts of the Chinese leeks. Cook 30 seconds longer. Stop cooking when the vegetables are done but still crunchy.
- 12Taste. Add soy sauce if it needs more salt or a touch of sugar if it's already a bit too salty.
Notes
Twice-cooked pork is eaten with white rice. The recipe is given with Chinese leeks, which are smaller and closer in flavour to fresh garlic or spring onion. Try to find some at an Asian grocer, but you can use regular leeks or spring onions if needed. Fermented black soybeans come as small, salty, semi-dried black seeds. If needed, replace with a tablespoon of "black bean sauce", "sweet bean sauce" or even a mix of both. If needed, replace doubanjiang with another spicy fermented bean and soy paste ("chili bean paste") such as Korean gochujang or Hong Kong toban djan. It would still be a shame though, as doubanjiang really is the signature flavour of Sichuan. The pickled chilli and Sichuan peppercorn oil are optional but bring a real Sichuan aromatic touch. Here are the recipes: Pickled chillies "Pao La Jiao" Sichuan peppercorn oil
