Twice-cooked Pork

Hui Guo Rou

1kg pork belly or meaty spareribs, cut into 5 cm(2 inch) pieces

4 slices of fresh root ginger, peeled

6spring onions

2 tablespoons groundnut or vegetable oil

3tablespoons finely chopped garlic

1small onion, thinly sliced

1red pepper, cored, deseeded and thinly sliced

1green pepper, cored, deseeded and thinly sliced

250g leeks, green part discarded, shredded

3 tablespoons chicken stock

2tablespoons hoisin sauce

1tablespoon chilli bean sauce

2 tablespoons shaoxing rice wine or dry sherry

1tablespoon dark soy sauce

1teaspoon sugar

The flavour of pork is concentrated in the fat, but the problem with fatty meat is its chewy, greasy texture. Twice-cooking-simmering and stir-frying-is the age-old Chinese solution.

1. Bring a saucepan of salted water to the boil, add the belly or spareribs and simmer for 10 minutes, skim-ming the surface constantly to remove the scum. Add the ginger and spring onions. Reduce the heat to low, cover tightly and simmer for 30 minutes. Drain the meat thoroughly in a colander and discard the liquid and the aromatics.

2. Heat a wok over a high heat until it is hot, then add the oil. When the oil is hot and slightly smoking, add the meat and stir-fry for 5 minutes until the fat is rendered if using pork belly, or until brown.

3. Drain off any excess fat and oil, reserving 1 tablespoon. Add the garlic, onion, peppers and leeks and stir-fry for 4 minutes or until the vegetables are tender. Add the rest of the ingredients, then reduce the heat, cover and braise for 15 minutes until tender. Turn onto a platter and serve at once, with plain rice.

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