It was one of those later night at work. Most of the people in the office had already left, but my coworker and I were still there, typing away at our computers.
*click click click*
All of a sudden I heard the beep of the microwave in the kitchen. For good or for bad, my office directly faced the kitchen. All of a sudden, the most incredible smell wafted towards me.
"Mike, what are you cooking there? It smells amazing."
"It's pork belly. It's a really easy recipe. There's tons of garlic, and a whole jar of chili sauce."
"an entire jar??!"
It's actually not that spicy. My boys love it. Whenever I make it for them, it never lasts."
He then let me try a bite of the pork belly from his dinner, and I was totally hooked.
"Oh man, you gotta send me this recipe . . ."
That evening, we went our separate ways. I forgot about the dish and he forgot to send me the recipe. More time passed. Within a year, we had both moved onto new jobs. No longer office mates, we lost touch for awhile. And then, just a few months ago, I suddenly remembered that pork belly dish and decided it would be perfect for the Christmas party I was hosting.
I emailed Mike. We reconnected, and I begged for that magical pork belly recipe. I was thrilled when he wrote back the next day with a document attached, full of details for how to make this fantastic and super easy dish.
Start with fresh pork belly (not frozen). Mike told me he likes to get it at HMart if he can, since he finds their pork belly to be better quality than the ones he gets from the Chinese markets. I trust him on that (he makes this dish A LOT!), and so I headed over to HMart to buy 3-4 lbs of belly.
Bring a large pot of water to a rolling boil, and then add the pork belly pieces. Your purpose here is to remove any blood or other "dirty" bits that will come out during this boiling process. After cooking for 3-5 minutes, remove the belly and set aside. Dump the water.
Cut up the belly into 1 inch pieces.
In another pot or Dutch oven, add 1 tablespoon of oil and heat to high heat. Add garlic cloves and cook until browned and fragrant. Set aside garlic.
Into the same pot, add the pork belly pieces and sear so that all sides are nicely browned.
Add a whole jar of Lao Gan Ma Spicy Chili Crisp. I have included the Amazon link so you can see the photo, but it is horribly expensive online. You can get it for around $2 - $3 a jar at places like HMart, Super88, or any Chinese supermarket. This stuff is key to making this dish taste right. I cannot guarantee that the dish will taste good if you use any other type of chili sauce.
Stir until well mixed. Add about ½ cup of water, or just enough so the pork belly can cook mostly submerged. Bring heat down to medium low, or a simmer and cover. Cook for at least 30 minutes, but preferably an hour.
Chili garlic braised pork belly - recipe coming on the blog soon! #sundaycooking
A video posted by Jennifer (@tinyurbankitchen) on
Serve!
Definitely eat with rice, since the sauce is very, very flavorful!
- 3-4 lbs fresh pork belly
- 1 bottle (7.4 oz) of Laoganma "Spicy Chili Crisp" Sauce
- ¼ lb garlic cloves (peeled)
- 2-3 tablespoons of soy sauce
- salt to taste
- Bring a large pot of a water to a boil and boil pork belly for 3-5 minutes.
- Remove the pork belly and cut into 1 inch pieces.
- Add 1 tablespoon of vegetable oil over high heat to a large pot or Dutch oven. Add garlic and stir around until fragrant. Remove garlic pieces and set aside.
- In the same oil, add back in the pork belly pieces and sear until all sides are nicely browned.
- Add in the whole bottle of Spicy Chili Crisp, soy source, and the garlic cloves. Stir around until all ingredients are well mixed.
- Adding about half a cup of boiling water to the pot and reduce heat down to medium low/simmer. Cover and let cook for around 1 hour (minimum 30 minutes, but the meat won't be as soft).
Enjoy!
Smells magnificent! Chili garlic slow-braised pork belly #potluck #smallgroup #laoganma
A photo posted by Jennifer (@tinyurbankitchen) on
