Soy-braised Pork Belly with Eggs

Knowing about my adversity towards Mr Porky, kiddo seldom requests to include pork in our meals. However he would have craving occasionally and requests to have it when we are doing our weekly grocery shopping. So I cook Mr porky on these rare occasions just to put a smile on his face and to see him gobble down the food happily.

There were 7 fat slabs in this pack and I had already used up 3 to make crispy pork lard pieces to go with kiddo's fried vermicelli and ramen soup. I decided to make his all-time favourite - Tau Yew Bak, Soy-braised Meat （酱油焖肉）, with the remaining pieces.


Serves 2

Ingredients:
4 slabs pork belly (cut into 2cm width)
6 pieces chinese dried mushrooms (soaked till al dente)
5 whole garlic (skin removed and cracked lightly) - use 4 if they are big
2 star anise (cracked lightly)
2 hard-boiled eggs (omit or add more as desired)
3 tablespoons dark soy
1 tablespoon light soy
1 tablespoon brown sugar
2 tablespoons Shaoxing cooking wine
spring onions or coriander to garnish


Cooking:

• Heat thick-based metal soup pan on medium-high.
• Add 1 tablespoon of canola oil and add pork belly pieces.
• Fry until the meat is lightly caramelised, add garlic, star anise and mushrooms, fry for about a minute to release fragrance.
• Add 1 tablespoon dark soy, ensure meat is coated evenly and continue frying for 3 minutes.
• Add boiling water to contents, pour just enough to cover meat.
• Add remaining seasonings and simmer on medium heat for 15 minutes.
• Add hard-boiled eggs. (Add more water if more eggs are added and liquid is not enough. Then add another tablespoon of dark soy.)
• Simmer on low heat, check and stir contents in pot after 15 minutes.
• Turn eggs to ensure even coating of soy on whites.
• Simmer for another 15 minutes until liquid has thickened and reduced to 1/2.
• Garnish with spring onions.
• Serve with gravy and a side of vegetables on rice.

**Notes:

• I didn't add salt because the soy is already salty enough.
• This is a flavourful dish with high salt and fat content, so do limit consumption to once a month if having blocked arteries is not your goal.

Extra Crispy Biscuit Pork Katsu

Yes, I was cooking Mr Porky. We were having guests over and I had a pot of Japanese curry ready. I thought it would be nice to serve it with some crispy pork cutlets. I hadn't touched the meat since my childhood trauma stay rooted with me. So while my guests were enjoying these juicy pieces, I had contented myself with the curry and vegetables instead. Unfortunately, I didn't snap any picture of the curry, which means I will have the save the recipe for another time.


Serves 2 to 3

Ingredients:
3 pieces pork fillets
1 egg (beaten)
3-5 pieces wheat biscuits
1 packet preferred pre-mixed meat frying powder
salt for seasoning
canola oil

Preparation:

• Put biscuits into clean plastic bag and crush them into powder form using hands. It is okay if there is a little lumpy here and there. It adds on to the crispiness.
• Pour biscuit powder onto a wide plate.
• Pour beaten egg onto another plate.
• Pour 1/2 packet of frying powder into another plate.
• Line plates in sequence - frying powder -> egg -> biscuit powder
• Clean and remove additional fats from pork fillets.
• Season fillets with salt.
• Dip 1st pork fillet into the plate with frying powder, coat evenly.
• Then dip into egg and finally, coat with biscuit powder.
• Set aside.
• Repeat the process for 2nd and 3rd fillets.

Cooking:

• Heat about 3 tablespoons of oil in non-stick pan.
• Preheat oil at high heat. Test temperature with wooden spoon or chopticks. The oil is ready when bubbles appear.
• Place the coated pork fillets into hot oil.
• Turn the heat down to medium high and fry until golden brown. (As the fillets were quite thick, lowering the heat helps to prevent the burning the crust too quickly while undercooking the meat which can happen if the oil is too hot. Pan-frying the meat over moderate heat allows it to cook more evenly while maintaining a crisp exterior).
• Turn over and fry the other side until golden brown.
• Drain oil on grease paper and let meat rest for 5 minutes.
• Cut fillets into 2cm strips with a sharp knife.
  
• Serve with hot curry and rice.